I recently embarked on my fourth solo cruise with Viking River, Ocean and Expedition Cruises.
When my flight arrives in Stockholm for the Viking Homelands Ocean Cruise, I go through passport control, and in baggage claim, the Viking Cruises representative is there to welcome me with a bright red shirt and a warm smile. When everyone on her list has gathered, she leads us to another red-shirted employee who guides us to the coach which will take us to Viking Jupiter, the gateway to two weeks of sightseeing and exploration.
Viking’s ocean fleet features a modern Scandinavian design with elegant touches, intimate spaces, and attention to detail. Every stateroom has a veranda. The smaller ship design also allows direct access into most ports, so guests can quickly embark and disembark—allowing for more time in port.
Viking ships also feature several restaurants offering various fine dining options, the most al fresco dining at sea, an infinity pool, a Nordic-inspired spa, and the two-deck Explorers’ Lounge with panoramic views.
STOCKHOLM
I had arranged to meet my cousin Jenny, her partner Billy, and their baby Sam in Gamla Stan – The Old Town – the city’s oldest settlement dating back to the Middle Ages.
A helpful Viking customer service employee, Tan, helps me get a taxi and a friendly taxi driver drops me close to the restaurant.
After catching up at lunch, we take a walking tour. We pass centuries-old buildings along narrow, winding cobblestone streets, most from the 16th and 17th centuries including, the Royal Palace, the Stockholm Cathedral, the Medieval Museum, the Nobel Prize Museum, and the Royal Armory.
It is an excellent way to catch up with my Swedish relatives before sailing to other ports.
My first stop after Stockholm is Åland Islands. The 6,700 islands make up an autonomous territory under Finnish sovereignty. Located between Sweden and Finland, the capital is Mariehamn.
From the seaport, I follow a pathway lined with lingonberry trees that leads to the center of the city’s commercial area. Beautiful streets lined with shops, restaurants, flowers, and smiling faces await. I peruse several gift shops, purchasing souvenirs and gifts.
Near the ship is the Åland Maritime Museum. It is the most important museum on the islands and a monument to the history of Åland as holder of the world’s largest fleet of wooden sailing ships. A central exhibit is a four-masted ship Pommern, built in Glasgow in 1903, and anchored behind the museum.
Gdańsk, Poland, is known for the amber found along the Baltic Sea and the beautiful historic center, illustrating what was when the city was part of the Hanseatic League, the mercantile powerhouse of the Baltic.
After a fascinating tour of the historic city center, I purchase a few amber treasures, including an angel, a small jewelry box, and a necklace.
GERMANY
At our stop in Warnemünde, Germany, I tour the charming seaside resort and Rostock.
Our guide tells us that Rostock served as a Hanseatic trading city. In 1356 the first Hanseatic Convention was held. It was the central power of the Hanseatic League, where the delegated councilors of the Hanseatic towns discussed problems at hand and tried to bring about joint decisions.
We walk past the 13th-century Town Hall and Gothic St. Mary’s Church and learn about its astronomical clock, built in 1472 by Hans Düringer.
We continue past University Square, the terra-cotta Hauptgebäude, the university’s main building, and watch as the Fountain of Happiness comes to life, spraying water over the figures.
After our formal tour, we explore the pedestrian district of Kröpeliner Strasse, which runs east from the Neuer Markt to the 14th-century Kröpeliner Tor, a former town gate.
I set out with another passenger I met on the Rostock tour to Warnemunde, a peaceful seaside resort town. We stop at nearly every shop lining the Old Channel. From the promenade, you can admire a view of the Baltic sea.
IN COPENHAGEN,
I board a coach to see some of the attractions of this lovely city, including “The Little Mermaid” sculpture, one of the city’s most iconic tourist attractions inspired by Hans Christian Andersen’s famous fairy tale, and then to Amalienborg and the changing of the guards. The guards march from their barracks through the streets of Copenhagen and end up at Amalienborg for the ceremony.
Our tour continues at The Royal Danish Opera House. The main stage of the opera seats an audience of 1,400. It totals 41,000 square meters. It is spectacular.
Our tour finalizes as the local guide explains what we see from the coach – essential landmarks, buildings, and statues.
DENMARK, NORWAY, AND BACK TO SWEDEN
In Ålborg, Denmark, I spend the day learning about the Vikings.
Fyrkat, a reconstructed farm is our first stop. At this living museum, we witness firsthand local traditions, chores, and cultural practices dating back to the Viking era.
We head next for Fyrkat Fortress, the hometown of Viking king Harald Bluetooth dating to 980 A.D. It is known as one of the oldest ring fortresses in Denmark.
Our final stop is Lindholm Hoje, a museum with artifacts uncovered after centuries of being hidden by shifting sand and dirt. We walk to an ancient Viking and Bronze Age burial site featuring more than 700 gravesites and 150 stone ships.
In Oslo, from the coach, we see essential landmarks before we travel to the world-famous ski jump set atop the most prominent hill in the city. This impressive structure dates back to 1892.
We tour Vigeland Park, named after the sculptor whose work adorns this expansive green space. More than 200 stone and bronze sculptures depict the human life cycle.
Gothenburg, Sweden, is special to me as I walk the same street where my great-grandmother walked from the train station to the dock 150 years ago where a ship was waiting to take her to England and then to America.
Stavanger, Norway, has a beautiful and delightful Old Town with cobblestone streets lined with historic wooden homes dating to the 17th and 18th centuries. The houses are considered the best-kept wooden houses in Northern Europe.
Walking along the narrow streets, our group learns that most privately owned houses, tiny in size, served the community in the preceding centuries.
After the tour, I walk along the streets, admiring their simplistic beauty and small flower gardens, and then shop in an open-air market.
We sail into picturesque Flam, Norway, at the innermost banks of the Aurlandsfjord. This little village is the starting point for the Flam Railway, hiking, biking, boating, kayaking, and coach tours to discover the beauty of the river surrounded by fjords, waterfalls, high mountains, and deep valleys.
On the coach, we make our way up a steep incline to Stegastein viewpoint, more than 2,000 feet above the Aurlandsfjord.
We also stop at the beautiful 13th-century Vangen Church, located in Aurlandsvangen.
Our final port is Bergen, Norway, and the famous parallel row of small, vibrantly painted buildings overlooking the picturesque Vågen Harbor. The area is a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
It is a wonderful two weeks aboard Viking Jupiter with its excellent employees, fine amenities, and a fantastic itinerary. Traveling solo doesn’t distract from my adventure at all. I have had a wonderful time.
For more information: www.vikingcruises.com/oceans or call (866) 984-5464. |
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