​Ready To Set Sail to Norway on MSC Virtuosa

​At the time of writing this, its just four days until I set sail with MSC Cruises on the massive and beautiful MSC Virtuosa. The seven-night cruise I’m booked on departs Southampton and cruises to Norway, visiting four ports of call, two of which I’ve been to before, and two I have not.
 
I have spent the last few weeks trying to plan what we might get up to in each port. In some of the ports we are visiting, we have a little longer than others to go further afield and explore. Here’s what I have planned and hope to get up to in each port:

Haugesund

​This port I visited last year on MSC Virtuosa. It was our last port and perhaps our least favourite. It’s a slightly more industrial looking port, with some cargo ships and oil rigs nearby to where the cruise ships dock, so it isn’t quite so pretty as other ports in the fjords.
 
However, there’s a nice town to explore nearby. Last time we took a leisurely walk through the town and along the coastline to the historic landmark of Haraldshaugen, the national monument in Haugesund. We continued to walk a bit further along the coast to see the Rising Tide sculptures.
 
On our way back to the ship we explored the town of Haugesund a little more and stopped off at a cupcake café for lunch. We also walked along the waterfront and found the statue of Marilyn Monroe.

This time we plan on taking a stroll along the coast and maybe even braving a deep in an outdoor swimming pool (last time we didn't take our trunks!). If we have time we might jump on the hop-on-hop-off bus and even find a little bit of New York in Norway...
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Maloy

This is one of the two ports on the cruise I have not visited before. From what I can see it looks like a small fishing port, with not so much to do. I have set myself the challenging of trying to climb a mountain! Something I’ve not done before. Veten, the mountain, peaks at 613 meters. Let’s see how far I get.

Flam

​This must be my favourite port of call I have visited in Norway. Second to Eidfjord. Flam is a small village situated at the end of a fjord, with steep slopes either side. It offers breath-taking views. On my first visit in 2018 I took the train up to Myrdal. It was a record-breaking hot day, so all the waterfalls we passed were so powerful!
 
On my second visit, last year on MSC Virturosa, we went kayaking in the morning. It was so much fun. we learnt lots, saw some goats and even a friendly seal too! Later in the afternoon we hired a small electric car, or Twizy! The satnav-guided route took up along the fjords, through a nearby village and right up the mountainside to a stunning viewpoint.
 
My partner and I enjoyed the car ride so much we’ve booked it again this time round too! This time however, we’ve hired a larger four seat car, as we will also be taking my partner’s mum.

Kristiansand

Our last port of call, and another one I have not yet visited. Kristiansand is the fifth largest city in Norway, so we have seen there is lots of explore and do. We’re planning on visiting a nearby waterpark which looks loads of fun.
 
Hopefully if we have enough time, we will also explore the city a little, but sadly this stop only has six hours in port, so we may be a little rushed!
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​Make sure to head over to Cruise Cotterill and Harry Cotterill on Facebook, Instagram and X to follow along with our cruise.
 
I will be announcing another cruise very soon too…