Norway
Astronomy Above the Arctic Circle: A Journey Along Coastal Norway
Program No. 23067RJ
Starting in culturally rich Bergen, voyage north to colorful fishing towns and unique ecological wonders above the Arctic Circle in search of the northern lights.
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15 days
14 nights
38 meals
13B 12L 13D
1
In Transit to Program
In Flight
2
Arrive Bergen, Check-in, Orientation, Welcome Dinner
Bergen, Norway
3
Bergen, Embarkation
At Sea
10
Mehamn-Tromso,Hammerfest
At Sea
14
Alesund-Bergen,Bergen, Disembark
Bergen, Norway
15
Program Concludes
In Flight
At a Glance
Take a front-row seat for nature’s own theater, voyaging above the Arctic Circle to learn about the Arctic night sky and the luminous green curtains of the northern lights, the aurora borealis. With an astronomy expert, sail along Norway’s coast during polar nights when the sun doesn’t make it over the horizon and snow-clad mountains provide a matchless backdrop. Sail through pristine islands, past majestic mountains and go ashore in enchanting towns such as Tromsø, Ålesund and Trondheim on this special adventure discovering science in the skies at the northern tip of Norway.
Activity Level
On Your Feet
Walking up to 2 miles per day over various types of terrain; walking up stairs unassisted, getting in and out of motor coaches.
Best of all, you’ll…
- Sail along the breathtaking and rugged coast of Norway as you hunt for the incomparably beautiful display put on by the aurora borealis.
- Look out across the Arctic Ocean from the North Cape, the northernmost point on the European continent.
- Explore the beauty and history of Bergen with a local expert surrounded by the Seven Mountains.
Suggested Reading List
(17 books)
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You can find many of the books we recommend at the Road Scholar store on bookshop.org, a website that supports local bookstores.
Astronomy Above the Arctic Circle: A Journey Along Coastal Norway
Program Number: 23067
A Naturalist's Guide to the Arctic
Our bestselling book on the Arctic, this guide covers the geography and climate, plants, birds and wildlife of the Circumpolar North.
The Fellowship of Ghosts, Travels in the Land of Midnight Sun
A captivating travel memoir in which novelist Paul Watkins interweaves his own experiences in Norway with those of early eccentric visitors. Along the way, Watkins offers vivid, evocative accounts of the country’s majestic mountains, dramatic landscapes and expansive snowfields.
Letters on Sweden, Norway, and Denmark
Groundbreaking feminist Wollstonecraft records her observations of a late 18th-century journey through Scandinavia in this small masterpiece, rich in detail of people and place.
Kitchen of Light: The New Scandinavian Cooking
By a celebrated Norwegian food writer, this handsomely illustrated compendium pairs recipes with an engaging history of Scandinavian cuisine.
The Northern Lights, Celestial Performances of the Aurora Borealis
Shot in Alaska, one of the best places to watch the Northern Lights, these images capture the natural phenomenon in all its splendor and majesty. Hall and Pederson’s 160 photographs were taken with ultra-HD cameras during a period of unusually high solar activity.
Norwegian Folk Tales
This rich collection of stories, interpreted by a leading scholar on ancient traditions and tales, will delight both adults and children.
In Cod We Trust: Living the Norwegian Dream
A Minnesotan of Norwegian extraction, Dregni writes entertainingly of Norwegian culture and the immigrant experience in this delightful account of a year living with his wife and infant son in Trondheim on a Fulbright scholarship.
Wildlife of the North Atlantic, A Cruising Guide
This compact, illustrated guide covers the many petrels, ducks, gulls, terns and other seabirds, as well as the rich abundance of life existing under the waves, that populate the vast Atlantic region from the British Isles to Newfoundland.
Eyewitness Guide Norway
This handsome, illustrated guide covers nature, culture, history and attractions.
Cross and Scepter
In his scholarly Scandinavian history from the Vikings to the Reformation, Sverre Bagge spends little time with myths, instead focusing on the development of northern European societies and their rise from the Dark Ages.
A History of Scandinavia: Norway, Sweden, Denmark, Finland and Iceland
Scandinavia from prehistory to the present with chapters on the Viking and Lutheran kingdoms, medieval times, monarchies, the World Wars and modern period, emphasizing the common cultural, political and social backgrounds.
Norway Map
A handsome map of Norway at a scale of 1:1,000,000, with a place index and shaded relief.
Through the Eyes of the Vikings, An Aerial Vision of Arctic Lands
In this captivating collection of oversized aerial photographs, Haas (Through the Eyes of the Gods) reveals the surprising diversity of color and life in the arctic landscape, including Norwegian fjords, Alaskan tundras and Swedish waterscapes.
The Almost Nearly Perfect People, Behind the Myth of the Scandinavian Utopia
Guardian journalist Michael Booth writes with laugh-out-loud humor and brutal candor about the Scandinavians, mixing history and his own experiences in Nordic regions in this searing cultural portrait.
Penguin Historical Atlas of the Vikings
The history of the Vikings told through a series of innovative maps and excellent photographs. This book traces the routes of the ninth-century Viking merchants and explorers throughout Europe and onto the New World.
The Northern Lights, The True Story of the Man Who Unlocked the Secrets of the Aurora Borealis
The compelling story of Kristian Birkeland, the turn-of-the-century Norwegian scientist who devoted his career to understanding the aurora borealis, this book also covers the science, history, myth and romance of the phenomenon.
Out Stealing Horses
A deliberate and astonishing novel. Looking back on his early childhood in rural Norway, Trond Sander fixates on a fateful summer. In 1948, after the death of a child, his father's decision to abandon the family and the crippling guilt of his best friend, the course of Sander's life would be altered forever.
