Norwegian Fjords & Coastal Treasures

Tour begins: 6:00 PM, Hotel Norge or Clarion Collection Hotel Havnekontoret. A transfer is included upon arrival from Bergen Airport to Hotel Norge or Clarion Collection Hotel Havnekontoret, located in the historic wharf district, a UNESCO World Heritage site. Your hotel blends in perfectly with the surroundings of the harbor and its iconic brightly colored medieval buildings. Please join us for a welcome reception and dinner this evening. Stay: Hotel Norge (D)

Discover cosmopolitan Bergen, on Norway's west coast, one of Northern Europe's oldest port cities, and join our local guide for a walking tour of the historic Bryggen harbor district.

This afternoon, get to know Bergen on a walking tour and visit a traditional stave church before heading to Troldhaugen, the home of Edvard Grieg, Norway's greatest composer.

After your guided tour, enjoy a brief reception and a private piano concert featuring Grieg's music. Embark your ship in Bergen in time for dinner onboard, and set off on your Norwegian cruise this evening. Stay Seven Nights: Le Bellot (B/D)

Spend a relaxing morning at sea cruising north en route to fjord country. After lunch onboard the ship, disembark in Olden, a village on the shore of Nordfjord, where you'll take a quick trip to the summit of Mt. Hoven aboard the Sky-Lift cable car, prior to a choice of activities. From Mt. Hoven, you can choose an excursion into the scenic Loen valley for a short boat ride and a walk for views of the blue and white Kjenndalsbreen, an arm of Jostedal glacier, the largest glacier in Europe. The sight is definitely worth the walk!

Or you can choose a drive from Mt. Hoven to Briksdalbre, where a ride on a "Troll Car" and a short hike to the foot of Briksdal Glacier lead to stunning views of one of Norway's most inspiring natural wonders, in a setting of roaring waterfalls and mountain peaks at the end of one of the Nordfjord's three branches. Return to Olden and board the ship for dinner. Sail on to the village of Hellesylt, on famously scenic Geirangerfjord, this evening. (B/L/D)

Today may be the most beautiful day of touring and sightseeing anywhere! Disembark first thing in Hellesylt in the stunning valley at one end of the deep blue Geiranger Fjord for a choice of activities. On one, head off for a full day's touring with a local expert around this UNESCO World Heritage Site. All day the views just keep getting better – as you ride a gondola up to the Sunmore "Alps" and drive through the mountains surrounding Geiranger Fjord, and through Fjord og Fjell.

Have lunch at a local fjord-side restaurant en route. Or you can stay aboard ship this morning and visit the charming hamlet of Geiranger on your own, perhaps visiting the Norwegian Fjord Center. Another choice is a shorter trip from Geiranger up to Dalsnibba, rising from sea level to nearly a mile high. And a third alternative is a kayaking trip on the Geiranger Fjord. Return to the ship this evening and set off for Ålesund, Norway. (B/L/D)

Disembark today in picturesque Ålesund, the most important fishing harbor in Norway, situated on seven islands on the Atlantic coast. You have three activities to choose from this morning: Join our local expert for a walking tour of the city's Art Nouveau – Jugenstil – architecture; nearly all the historic buildings went up between 1904 and 1907 after a fire had destroyed the town, making Ålesund a leading example of Jugenstil today.

Enjoy a spectacular panoramic sightseeing tour of Ålesund, hopping from island to island to take in the amazing views; you'll drive through an intricate network of tunnels, carved out of granite, that link this maritime community. Or, embark on a bicycle tour through town. Return to the ship for lunch and spend the afternoon cruising south, enjoying the amenities onboard. (B/L/D)

Welcome to the port city of Stavanger, Norway's oil capital on the oil-rich North Sea and a lively university town, for a choice of sightseeing. You may choose an overview tour of the city, on which you'll visit the massive Swords in Rock, a powerful symbol of unity and peace that commemorates the battle of Hafrsfjord in 872, when Harald Fairhair united Norway as one kingdom. You'll also step even farther back in time on a guided visit at the Iron Age Farm at Ullandhaug, an archaeological site where you'll see how the prehistoric people of the Iron Age lived – in long buildings of rock and sod, with animals housed at one end and their owners at the other!

Then it's on to the Norwegian Petroleum Museum, a Stavanger Port landmark, to learn just about everything you ever wanted to know about oil and gas. Or, you can choose a Stavenger walking tour that includes the city's harborfront and Gamle Stavanger (Old Stavanger), a settlement of small white wooden houses from the 1800s set on narrow streets paved by ballast blocks, used long ago as ballast on the ships that sailed in and out of port. You may even be invited by the owner of one of these old houses to come inside for a look around. After lunch, your yacht sets sail through Lysefjord; keep your eyes peeled for Prekeistolen, a mammoth flat-topped cliff overlooking the water.

Later, your ship charts a course for Arendal. (B/L/D)

Enjoy some time at sea this morning taking advantage of the amenities onboard your ship and hearing a talk by our lecturer. Early afternoon, the ship arrives in Arendal, a popular seaport town on Norway's southern coast. Established in the mid-1500s, Arendal's historic center contains an area called Tyholmen, containing a number of wooden houses dating back to the 17th century; the inner harbor area, Pollen; and the beautiful 19th-century Trinity Church. Discover the town on a guided walking tour and during some free time to explore on your own this afternoon. Your yacht sails across the Skaggerak Strait this evening for Göteberg, Sweden. (B/L/D)

Arrive in clean, green Göteborg, Sweden's second largest city, laced with canals and dotted with parks. On both choices of morning sightseeing here, you'll explore the lively Långgatorna neighborhood, a hive of homegrown fashion labels, indie bands, and craft beer bars – and for contrast stroll along Kungsportsavenyn, the city's elegant main avenue inspired by the Champs-Élysées.

But you'll also choose between a tour of Göteborg's Volvo Museum, taking you on a trip through a unique piece of Swedish 20th- and 21st-century history and design; or a visit to Botaniska, Goteborg's Botanical Garden, one of the largest in Europe. Return to the ship midday, and enjoy dinner onboard as your yacht sails up the west coast of Sweden back to Norway… and Oslo. (B/L/D)

Set off to discover some of Norway's greatest heroes – from Arctic exploration to the arts. An Oslo city tour brings you to the Fram Museum, a reminder that Norway is an Arctic nation; more than 40% of it lies north of the Arctic Circle, and naturally Norwegians have undertaken many important polar expeditions over the centuries. The museum chronicles some of the most famous, and its centerpiece is the wooden polar ship Fram, used on three historic expeditions, including Roald Amundsen's voyage to Antarctica.

Go onboard and take a look around her cabins, lounges, cargo hold and engine room. A guided walk around Frogner Park introduces you to the work of Norway's most beloved sculptor, Gustav Vigeland; more than 200 of his granite and bronze human figures fill the palatial and popular park with life and emotion, capturing the free-spirited sensibility of the Norwegians, their strong connection to nature, and their willingness to embrace the totality of human experience. And at the Kon-Tiki Museum, discover objects from Thor Heyerdahl's world famous expeditions including the original Kon-Tiki raft and the papyrus boat Ra II. Lunch is at a local restaurant and the afternoon is free.

This evening join us for a farewell reception and dinner at your hotel in the center of town. Stay: Grand Hotel Oslo (B/L/D)

Tour ends: Oslo. Fly home anytime. A transfer is included today to Oslo Airport from the Grand Hotel Oslo or Hotel Bristol Oslo. Allow three hours for flight check-in. (B)