Name the Seals Contest!

Two seal pups were born in July on the Lofoten Islands. They will embark Hurtigrutens ship MS Midnatsol September 2 on the way to Tromsø and their new home Polaria. Take part in the naming competition!

The seals Victoria and Lauser gave birth to cute little offspring in July on the Lofoten Islands, and they are growing and thriving wonderfully. The Polaria aquarium in Tromsø and Hurtigruten are looking for names for the two seals - one boy and one girl. Let your imagination run wild and take part in the naming competition. The prize is a Hurtigruten winter voyage for two from Kirkenes to Bergen.



Simply email your two name suggestions with your name, address and telephone number to seal@hurtigruten.com. The entry deadline is September 13, 2010. The winners will be notified.

Best of luck!

How Wrong Is It Possible to Write "Hurtigruten"?

The Norwegian cruise line Hurtigruten makes it difficult sometimes for Americans to find it in search engines because Americans don't understand what the word means. This makes it therefore difficult to write.

For Norwegians it is not that difficult to write "Hurtigruten." Error sources are usually the first letter (should it be capital or lower case H?) and the silent (not pronounced) letter g. And Norwegians understand the two parts the compound "Hurtigruten" is composed of: "Hurtig" (meaning "fast") and "rute(n) (which means "route") - ships sailing regularly up and down the Norwegian coast. Some years ago, this voyage was fast; now our customers don't take this cruise for the speed.

Below you can see a list of how Americans write Hurtigruten wrong when when searching for the company or cruises Hurtigruten offers. For Norwegians some of the misspelling are quite funny, but they are very understandable. When you do not understand what the word is composed of, it is not easy to write it correctly.

• hertegruten
• hertigruten
• hrutegarten
• hurdigen norway cruise
• hurtegruten
• hurtengruten
• hurtgruten
• hurtig ruten
• hurtigan
• hurtigen
• hurtigeruten
• hurtigren
• hurtigrten
• hurtigrunten
• hurtigrutan
• hurtigrute
• hurtigrute
• hurtigrutenus
• hurtigrutin
• hurtigrutin fram
• hurtigrutten
• hurtigtuten opera voyage
• hurtigurten
• hurtiguta
• hurtiguten
• hurtihruten
• hurtingruten
• hurtingrutin
• hurtinguten
• hurtiruten
• hurtrigen
• hurtzegrutin cruise line
• hutengruten
• hutigruten
• hutigruten us
• hutrigruten
• huttigruten
• hutygruten

MS Fram's Chief Officer Writes from Ship in Greenland

MS Fram has completed our Spitsbergen season and is now in the throes of our Greenland expeditions in Disko-bay.

MS Fram's Chief officer Ingar Lorentsen sent us some fantastic pictures from the last cruise. Here's what he writes:

"When I’m writing this we have been a while at Ilulissat and the voyage has been amazing so far. As you can see from the pictures, the weather has been amazing. During our journey, we've been to Kangerlussuaq, Sisimiut, Qeqertarsuaq, Uummannaq, Ukkusissat, Eqip Sermia. Today we are in Ilulissat and had amazing weather, experienced great excursions in striking nature, seen a kayak show from the natives in Sisimiut and watched amazing sunrises with indescribable iceberg formations.
Yesterday when we were next to the glacier Eqip Sermia we had a barbecue on deck in the sunset and I guess you can say that our passengers are thrilled. The ship is full of extremely enthusiastic passengers!"

MS Fram now continues on her journey sailing the 8-day Glaciers and Icebergs of Greenland voyage.

Try a Norwegian Specialty - Fjellbekk!

One of our favorite spirits to enjoy while traveling on Hurtigruten's Norwegian Coastal Voyage is the famous Fjellbekk which means Mountain Stream in Norwegian.

The fjellbekk is a tasty and refreshing drink coming directly from Norway and made with aquavit, a very special Scandinavian liquor. The fjellbekk goes down great while watching the majestic scenery of the fjords or in the evening at the bar while listening to live music with friends.

Try making your own for a summer happy hour tonight!

3/4 oz vodka
3/4 oz aquavit
3/4 oz lime juice
3/4 oz Sprite® or 7-up

Enjoy over ice as you watch the sunset. Or if you're in Norway, the Midnight Sun.

Hurtigruten Offers

Hurtigruten is offering amazing deals right now on our once-in-a-lifetime destinations including the our Northern Lights adventures in Norway and our special Christmas voyage in Antarctica.

Book select summer and autumn Norwegian Coastal Voyages now and your companion will sail for half price!

Plus, for adventure seekers, Hurtigruten's Northern Lights Adventures in the winter time have never been easier to attain than with this special offer. Book a 12-day Classic Roundtrip voyage and pay for only 7-days! What a deal!

These Hurtigruten offers won't last long so check out www.hurtigruten.us for more information.

For those really looking to brag about their holiday vacation, there's no better way than to sail Antarctica on the 17-day Shackleton's Christmas in Antarctica. Book now and your companion sails for half price!

Finally don't forget to ask about our amazing Early Booking Discount for 2011 Norway, Antarctica, Spitsbergen and Greenland departures. You can save up to 20%!