Friday 3rd October, 2025 – Narvik

Of the four ports we visited on this cruise, Narvik was possibly the least interesting, at least at first sight. However, it soon turned out there was more to it than meets the eye. It’s very easy once you look around to understand how it lives up to at least part of its billing on Cunard’s port information: “Rugged mountains meet rippling blue fjords on a cruise to Narvik, Norway. A favourite destination for keen skiers, the snowy peaks here glide gently downward towards stretches of white sandy beaches that surround the port itself. Lying 137 miles inside the Arctic Circle, Narvik may be one of the world’s most northerly towns, but the North Atlantic currents and the mountains that shelter the town make it surprisingly mild.” It was certainly mild, as we headed out into town. It’s around a 20 minute stroll into town and there were shuttle buses but we felt no need to use them, leaving that option for the less able-bodied passengers. This is, after all, another port where the cruise ship quay is pretty much right in the town.

The history of Narvik is such that many people were headed straight for the Narvik War Museum, but we were more interested in the Narvik Museum which is mostly about the construction of the Ofotbanen railway, and the development of the town as a processing point for iron ore brought from Kiruna in Sweden to be shipped from the ice-free harbour to the rest of the world. Before the iron ore, Narvik seems to have been a tiny village, but because it is tucked away in the sheltered interior of Vestfjord and Oftojord, it made an ideal staging post. The result was rapid growth, much of it with British involvement. The Ofoten line (Ofotbanen) runs for 43 kilometers from Narvik to the Swedish Border, where it connects with the Swedish Ore Line (Malmbanan). At one point around 5,000 labourers were involved in its construction, and there is much of interest around this history in the Museum. A lot of our fellow passengers were off for a trip on the line which is by all accounts blessed with stunning scenery. We chose instead to learn as much as we could about it. We also made a stop for coffee while we planned our next move – again, coffee and teas were offered in a small room in the museum, this time for free. I cannot imagine this happening anywhere else in the world.

From the Museum we made our way towards the centre of town, passing some intriguing small shops, including a fabric shop which had some fabulous moose fabric in the window. From there we headed to the Tourist Information office which is housed in the main library. I had questions, including whether we could get to the cable car by bus (the number 2 bus apparently, and you can pay onboard with card or cash) but the second question made the first irrelevant, because the strong winds that had buffeted us out at sea meant the cable car was not running! This was a pity for a number of reasons including the fact that the view from the Narvikfjellet Cable Car is described as “one of the best ways to experience the breathtaking beauty of the surrounding Norwegian landscape” which takes you to 656 metres above the fjords. Oh well, some other time. It was also disappointing because I’d persuaded Lynne to go up, against her better judgement it has to be said, and I’ll likely not get the opportunity again. You can at least see the top of the cable car from the town.

With that option gone, we strolled to the main church, which is rather lovely and apparently has a “simple yet peaceful interior”. You’ll have to take someone else’s word for that because it was firmly locked and bolted. They did also say “the surrounding church grounds are a wonderful spot for a stroll as you take in the external workmanship” and I can testify to that.

We decided we needed a lunch break, and while we could have gone back on board for lunch, we again opted to spend money locally. Fiskekroken beckoned. We were slightly taken aback by the presence of a whale burger, and needless to say did not order it. Instead I went for the Crispy Skin Arctic Char, served with a glorious creamy celeriac puree, boiled broccoli, a dill beurre blanc and potatoes. There were also some carrots which seemed to be lightly pickled and were delicious. I love Arctic char and this one was very good, the skin fabulously crisp. Lynne ordered the supposedly “small” dish of fish and chips which was coalfish (a form of cod) and came with a lake of remoulade sauce. This was also excellent, with especially good chips.

Next door to the restaurant (and in the same building, the Fiskehallen, the rest of which seems to be undergoing extensive renovation), is a fabulous fishmonger, Fiskehallen Drift, of the type I really wish we had anywhere near home.

From here we decided we’d attempt the Narvik Vehicle History Museum which apparently contains all sorts of fun things, covering everyday motoring, caravanning, roadside environments, bus history, taxi history, ferries and bridges as well as a miniature of the Ofotbanen railway. However, by the time we got there, having been distracted by a flowered covered wire moose (!), it was less than an hour to closing time, and you can’t buy tickets at the museum, you have to go to the tourist information desk in the library to do that. We decided to forget about it for this visit.

We walked back via the weird and wonderful bandstand and somehow found ourselves inside the fabric shop, buying two lengths of the moose fabric. We also had a chat with the shop owner who lives about a mile outside Narvik and is often startled by moose in her garden at night in winter. Apparently the first you know about it is the loud snuffling noises they make. Her children are apparently completely freaked out by these occurrences, which is probably not unreasonable given the size of a fully grown moose.

Our final call before returning on board was the Norwegian Seamen’s Church, just a few hundred metres from the port. They have souvenirs, a (very small) exhibition of photos of the Northern Lights, and an incredibly cheap cafe, offering tea, coffee, and waffles among other things. There was jam, yogurt, and Norwegian brown cheese to add to your waffles so we went for it, with jam and yogurt on one and cheese on the other, because can you really say you’ve been to Norway if you haven’t had Norwegian waffles? The cheese was causing a certain amount of confusion among out fellow Cunard passengers and I found myself having to explain both it (it’s brown, sweetish, and texturally not unlike fudge – the Norwegians tend to treat it as sweet not a cheese), and the cheese slicer after someone was about to take a knife to it (don’t do that unless you want to be ostracised by Nordic society – just don’t).

Satisfied with our day, we were back on board in good time for a drink in the Sky Bar (we gave up after one because it was now getting cold as the sun began to dip below the horizon) before dinner.

We warmed up with a second round of cocktails in the Commodore Bar, including the weird but wonderful Great Scott, which is served with an accompanying piece of cheese! Dinner was also fabulous with crepes suzettes on the menu. It had to be done!

After we changed into warm clothes, and headed up onto deck 10 again to see if the aurora would show up again. The skies had been clear almost all day and it was looking very promising. It did indeed show up, and it did not disappoint, this time being visible to the naked eye, the sky filling and shifting marvelously. We stayed there for around an hour before the need to get warm proved irresistible. J and J headed for the Artisan Food Hall again, and this time I went with them, though only to snag two small squares of pizza. I couldn’t have eaten another thing. It had been an immensely satisfying day and I was quite happy to head for my bed.