Ferries along the Norwegian coast

MY HUSBAND AND I PLAN TO TAKE THE FERRY ALONG THE NORWEGIAN COAST FROM BERGEN TO KIRKENES. IS IT BEST TO TRAVEL BOTH DIRECTIONS BY FERRY OR TRAVEL SOUTH BY TRAIN TO SEE NORWAY'S INTERIOR? WE HOPE TO FOLLOW THAT WITH A RIVER CRUISE FROM AMSTERDAM TO BUDAPEST BEFORE FLYING HOME, ANY RECOMMENDATIONS?

D. SMITH, HAMILTON

I'm guessing your trip along the Norwegian coast will be aboard one of the Hurtigruten vessels. If so, Hurtigruten's 12-day Classic Round Voyage between Bergen and Kirkenes stops at the same places on both its northern and southern journeys and so the round trip might not be the best use of your time. However, you can't get a train south from Kirkenes. The most northerly railway station from where you could get a train through the interior of Norway is from Bodo. This is a fabulous trip on the Nordlandsbanen Railway but getting to Bodo from Kirkenes would require a one-stop flight at the very least, and the quickest flight would take you via Oslo. Most voyagers on the Hurtigruten ships simply fly one way between Oslo and Kirkenes. Even if you do likewise you still have the opportunity for a really sensational rail trip between Oslo and Bergen, ranked among the most scenic railway trips on the planet.

There are lots of options for river cruising between Amsterdam and Budapest – Uniworld uniworld.com, Viking vikingrivercruises.com.au and Avalon avalonwaterways.com to name just a few. It really depends how much you want to spend, but European river cruising is highly competitive which means you can count on good value. Given the fact that the Aussie dollar seems to be falling through the floor at the moment you might want to book soon.