If You’re Ready to Explore, Hurtigruten Has the Ships

Hurtigruten, the Norwegian cruise line that comes up with some of the most unique cruise itineraries in the world, has just released their newest schedule for their 2019/2020 season.

This 125-year old cruise line that began as a way to connect the coastal villages of Norway, is preparing to welcome two new hybrid ships into their 21st century fleet.

What’s a Hurtigruten hybrid ship?

The new Hurtigruten hybrid ships, MS Roald Amundsen – set to launch in 2018 and MS Fridtjof Nansen – launching in 2019, will be able to run on electric propulsion for up to 30 minutes per battery charge. The new technology combines a newly designed hull with effective use of onboard electricity to reduce carbon dioxide emissions by 20 percent..

Along with this new industry-leading technology, Hurtigruten is also leading the way with a spectacular selection of expedition voyages for 2018 and 2019. Spanning a cruising area from the Northwest Passage and Russia’s Franz Josef Land then heading south to the Galapagos Island and a visit to Machu Picchu.

In total, there will be three ships in Antarctica and five ships calling in Svalbard in the 2019/2020 season. Hurtigruten is becoming known as the world’s leader in exploration cruises. Where’s Svalbard? Svalbard is a Norwegian archipelago between mainland Norway and the North Pole. It’s one of the world’s northernmost inhabited area with 24-hours of sunlight in summer

Says CEO Daniel Skjeldam, “Honouring our explorer heritage, we are constantly seeking new waters to explore. With our new ships and new itineraries, Hurtigruten is setting a new global standard for exploration travel to the polar edges of the world – and to new frontiers.”

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The new cruise itineraries launching in 2019 will offer several new destinations including:

• Explore the full Northwest Passage and follow in the wake of polar explorer legend Roald Amundsen on board the namesake, state-of-the-art hybrid-powered expedition ship.
• A cruise to explore the wild and rare Franz Josef Land in Russia.
• Experience the hybrid-powered MS Fridtjof Nansen on voyages from Amsterdam to the Norwegian coast, via Bjørnøya, to Longyearbyen, Svalbard.
• Cruise round-trip from Hamburg, Germany to the dramatic and alluring Norwegian coast, including the Lofoten Islands and tiny fishing villages under the Midnight Sun aboard the hybrid-powered MS Roald Amundsen.
• Sail north of the 80th parallel and be less than 600 nautical miles from the Geographical North Pole. This is the furthest north any Hurtigruten expedition vessel has ever operated.

Along the way, guests will be led by experienced expedition team members, who are hosts on board and ashore. While onboard they present enrichment lectures on biology, history and geology. Ashore, they are the expedition leaders and eagle-eyes for wildlife.

If you’d like more information on the expedition voyages for 2019/2020, visit Hurtigruten.us.