Port Stop: Is Geiranger the Most Beautiful Place in Norway?

Most Recently Updated December 14, 2025

Originally Published February 12, 2024

We were on this specific NCL Prima 11 Night Northern Europe itinerary based entirely on being able to sail through Geirangerfjord! Well…my family may not have known why I booked this one (vs the cruise that went in the opposite direction and didn’t stop here). But friends in the know had raved about how this was THE “do not miss and/or prettiest place in Norway” so it had been on my wanderlist for some time. The question would be would this port stop live up to that hype?

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LOGISTICS

MONEY MATTERS

Credit cards were widely accepted (we were able to use American Express, Visa and Mastercard throughout Norway). ATMs are called Minibank in Norway: we found that other than for tipping in local currency, we didn’t need to carry cash. Speaking of which, tipping is not obligatory in Norway as wages are high/workers are paid living wages so there isn’t a need for a tipping culture (vs in the US where workers are reliant upon tips as part of their salary). As so, it is a nice gesture of appreciation to tip if you receive great service.

COMMUNICATION

English was widely spoken.

_{BEAUTIFUL TIP: Reminder that arrival times for port days are estimates for when the ship will be docked and may not be when the port has given approval to the ship to allow passengers to get off. IF the activity start time is close to arrival times, I will always reach out the activity/tour provider and find out exactly what their policy is if I am not able to be there on time. I have found that many operators are flexible especially if the majority/all of the participants are from the cruise ship but some may not be able to accommodate late arrivals with no refund given. Whilst both scenarios are valid business practices, don’t make the mistake of finding out it’s the latter when you aren’t able to join!}

My friend and I get up early (around 4:30 AM) and are able to snag the comfy seats at the front of the observation desk and are later joined by my sister and BIL. My friend and sister who are not morning people agreed that this was worth it!

You are also able to watch the sailing in from the outside top decks which I actually liked more than the observation deck but I advise you to come more prepared than I was. I don’t know why I didn’t think I would come out so I was only wearing a short sleeve top and leggings – it was definitely brisk.

This set of waterfalls is known as the Seven Sisters as seen here from the Prima shrouded in fog in the early morning

RIB Fjordsafari Geirangerfjord @ 11 AM

Tour Times: Choice of morning or afternoon departure but many time slots sell out – book early for preferred times!

The walk to the boathouse which was the excursion meeting point from the cruise ship took maybe 5 minutes.

Why book a boat tour when we are on a cruise?

I did get some grief about this booking from some of the family for that exact question but their tune changed after we finished this excursion. To start with, only 4 out of 15 in the group came to see the sailing through the fjord in the morning but we all agreed that they are very different experiences. So for most of the group, the RIB boat was their only chance to see Geirangerfjord up close.

A RIB (rigid inflatable boat) is built for high maneuverability and speed which is perfect for what we were doing – having some fun by going full throttle on the high-octane RIB boat along with being to get close enough to the waterfalls to be splashed while also having some times of cruising and just enjoying being in and surrounded by Geirangerfjord.

Sailing in on the Prima and being on the RIB boat offered contrasting views and when you are in one of the most beautiful places in the world, don’t you want to be able to admire the beauty from as many different vantage points as possible?

Explore/Lunch In Geiranger

The village is very compact – so it’s easy to navigate and explore. The RIB boat tour was only an hour (probably an hour and forty minutes if you account for getting dressed/undressed and walking to/back from the RIB boat dock) so we were able to catch a bite in town between excursions. We also had enough time to get snacks/ice cream after the bus tour since the port day was so long.

Geiranger Shore Excursion: Mt. Dalsnibba and Eagle Road Bus Tour @ 2 PM

Tour Times: Choice of morning or afternoon departure but many time slots sell out – book early for preferred times!

One of the concerns that comes up with booking an excursion that isn’t with the cruise line is that the ship will not wait for you if you are late. Norway Excursions accounts for this by ensuring that their buses are ahead of the NCL tour buses with the guides and driver constantly monitoring that – this is something that I saw on both of our tour with the company! They are so confident in this that they have a back to boat guarantee

We head to the meeting point (near the supermarket) which was ~ 10 minute walk from the cruise ship to make it to our bus tour. Note that Norway Excursion’s new meeting point is now at the Geiranger Cruise Terminal!

You will get to see so much on this shore excursion!

Classic fjord panoramas from Eagle Road: Ørnevegen (Eagle Road) and the Ørnesvingen (Eagle’s Bend) viewpoints give sweeping views down into Geiranger and toward famous waterfalls and abandoned mountain farms!

Dramatic vantage points: Flydalsjuvet has an easy access panoramic platform looking down at Geiranger village and the fjord. The Dalsnibba Skywalk offers Europe’s highest fjord view from a road-accessible viewpoint (~1,500 m). Both are show stoppers for photos and panoramic views!

I am all about maximizing my time in port and this tour fits perfectly into that. As it is a short tour, it was easy to pair with the RIB Fjordsafari and still have time for more exploration!

One HUGE Benefit of Tours: Local Knowledge + CRAZY FACTS – Did you know?

When our guide was telling us this story, I thought she was kidding at first because it seems so insane. Per National Geographic already reaching 230-feet deep, the Åkernes mountain crack is growing by as much as three and a half inches a year and will eventually result in part of cliff sliding into the fjord. This could in turn trigger what could be a 300 foot wave tsunami and decimate the area!! It is closely monitored with an early warning system built to give enough advance notice to safely evacuate but still…it’s sobering to think that it’s probably just a matter of when not if.

Has anyone else ever heard about this? None of my friends who had visited were aware of this!

Norwegian Fjord Center

There was still time to explore and we hiked up past the cemetery and up the mountainside. Even though the center was closed, we were still afforded some great views as it is just a beautiful area to explore.

Even with 14 hours in port (and having gotten to the observation lounge at 4:30), I was not ready to leave Geiranger – this was taken at 21:27…it really is so beautiful. What an incredible day!

WHAT WE ATE

Geiranger Sjokolade Chocolate Café

Left photo: the cutest chocolate shop + cafe housed in boat house a with 3 different types of hot chocolates, ice cream, choco waffles and delectable chocolates – pictured was the dark hot chocolate

Fiskekakebuda

Right top photo: this is what I get for not writing things down so this might be a fish ball? – it was definitely a local specialty and I am fairly certain we got it along with our fish sandwich from here: again classic Norwegian nomeclature: the fish cake booth

Gatekjøkken

Right bottom photo: my adorable niece with her Softis: soft serve ice cream dipped in sprinkles / others loved the chocolate powder

WHAT I SPENT

Reminder that these NCL port posts are unlike my other posts in that I only have a sampling of costs (plus my sister ended up covering a number of items ie lunch + hot chocolate here)

• Activities $142.93 $67.08 RIB Fjord safari: ($67.08/ adults + $38.12/Children) + $75.85 Bus Tour: ($75.85/ adults + $56.89/youths + $37.92/Children) – booked via Viator (for why I use Viator, check out this post)
• Food $24.19 Soft serve ice cream for 7 (3 child sized cones)
• Misc $17.94 Souvenirs (magnet 59 NOK + socks 119 NOK)

ALTERNATIVE ITINERARY IDEAS & OTHER TOP SPOTS TO EXPLORE

Hiking

Another option is exploring the fjord on foot by taking a short hike – there are trails dotted all throughout the area. One hiking itinerary is a pleasant and short walk from Vesterås farm up to the Vesteråsfjellet viewpoint.

Sea Kayaking

One of the things I was really hoping to do was fitting in some kayaking but just couldn’t make it happen due to time constraints on this cruise. Since this port was originally a tender out of Hellesylt, I ended up accounting for a significant time drain that didn’t happen. I had been eyeing this excursion: Kayak Tour with Waterfall Views in Geiranger