CRUICE NORTH 2015
7
new to the cruise game. He has taken
responsibility for coordinating the shorex
offers and creating attractive packages
for the Costa guests in Bodø. “We have
a dedicated guide company that can
supply the guides we need. We are also
in the process of developing a series
of combinations that will make visiting
Bodø even more attractive. To give one
example, guests will be able to take a
Rigid Inflatable Boat (RiB) to Saltraumen,
the world’s strongest maelstrom, and
then return to Bodø by bus.”
Johansen adds that they are also
working to develop niche products based
on local food traditions and culture. ”We
are currently developing a culinary course,
which we believe will be to the guests’
taste – literally,” he says. “Working in a
larger network as we do in Bodø makes
everything so much easier when you’re
going to handle a large number of
passengers within a short space of time,”
says Johansen,” who has no desire for
local providers to sell their products at
the quayside in Bodø.
OVERLAND TOURS
The Lofoten Islands is by far the most
experienced cruise destination of the
four ports that Costa will call at on these
somewhat special cruises. However, Ole
Martin Hammer from the Lofoten Cruise
Network, which represents virtually all the
providers in Lofoten, is aware that these
cruises represent a new challenge for
Lofoten. “This gives us new opportunities,
This map shows the four ports, all of
which are located within a compact sailing
area. The longest distance between two
ports is approx. 115 nautical miles (Bodø
to Narvik).
Costa neoRomantica:
Owned by Costa Crociere,
completed in 1993 as a sister
ship to Costa neoClassica and
refurbished in 2003. Her public
rooms are decorated with rare
woods, Carrara marble, and millions
of dollars worth of original works
of art. In November 2011, Costa
Romantica underwent a €90
million refurbishment. Two new
half decks were added as a part of
the refurbishment. This increased
the gross tonnage of the ship from
53,000 to 56,769 tonnes. Following
the major refurbishment, the cruise
ship was renamed neoRomantica
and set sail on her first voyage with
the new name on March 2012.
Leknes
Sortland
in part because the distances between
the ports are so short. Consequently,
we will be offering overland trips with
the possibility to stay overnight in an
authentic rorbu (fishermen’s cottage),
participate in attractive adventures and
enjoy local culinary traditions. Such
offers are not available for regular cruise
calls that only last for up to eight hours.
This provides us an opportunity to
cooperate more closely with other ports,
and that’s always informative and good
for the business,” says Hammer.
In Vesterålen too, where Sortland is
the cruise port, a wide variety of shore
and sea-based offers will be available.
Sortland is known as the “blue town”,
with all the houses painted the same
pronounced shade of blue. Not far
from downtown Sortland, the cruise
passengers can experience an authentic
siida, a Sami settlement, where Inga
and her family are reindeer herders.
The famous fishing village of Nyksund,
which was abandoned but has now been
resettled, is just an hour’s drive from
the port and a visit there is a wonderful
experience. Another great experience
here is going on a whale watching safari
just off the coast of Vesterålen in the
heart of the whale’s feeding grounds. If
you go on one of the organised safaris,
whale sightings are virtually guaranteed.
MORE TO FOLLOW?
Harriet Willassen, the Chair of the Board
of Cruise Northern Norway & Svalbard,
is extremely satisfied with Costa’s focus
on compact cruises and hopes that the
cruise line and providers succeed right
from the start. “We hope that in time
more cruise lines will do the same and
that more of our smaller ports will be
added to the itineraries of the larger
cruise lines. One of the goals we set
when we established our regional cruise
network was that the smaller cruise
destinations would get more traffic, and
it looks like this is now about to happen.
Nothing pleases us more than that,” says
a proud Chair of the Board.
Bodø
Narvik
