In search of Ambience, beyond the Arctic Circle

In this fast moving, ever changing and increasingly manic world it’s sometimes hard to remain grounded and focus on the things that really matter in life.  I write these words whilst just four days away from setting sail on another cruise and providing I can steer my Tele-addict wife away from the likes of Sky News, our voyage should be a welcome escape from the madness that’s occurring in the world at large.

You see that after nine voyages on Cunard – all “Queen” ships, we’ve decided to cut loose and try something completely different. In doing so, we’ve moved away from Carnival’s flagship brand – thereby saving ourselves a tidy packet. Only time and experience will tell whether we’ve made the right decision, as we’ve booked a 16-night voyage on Ambience, one of three cruise ships operated by Ambassador, Britain’s newest cruise line.

Ambassador sail from seven regional UK ports to a wide variety of different destinations, and the company prides itself by offering affordable quality at a price that offers some of the best value on the high seas. They claim to offer excellent service coupled with outstanding cuisine and all served with the warmest of welcomes. According to the company’s promotional literature, “you’ll get a decent cuppa, as well as a traditional afternoon tea, coupled with some great entertainment - all at an affordable price.” What is it about the Brits and their cups of tea?

The regional port that we’re sailing from is Tilbury, just 45 minutes’ drive from Bailey Towers, via the M25 and the Dartford Crossing. Our destination is Norway, and nowhere else, and our cruise will see us sailing right up the coast of the country, visiting various towns and cities on the way. These settlements include Alesund, Trondheim, Tromso, and Narvik. After crossing the Arctic Circle, we’ll have an overnight stop at Alta, a settlement close to the northern tip of Norway, and uncomfortably close to the Russian Federation.

We can expect some spectacular scenery, and if we’re lucky a glimpse of the Northern Lights, or the aurora borealis, but as long as the accommodation is of a high standard, and the food equally good, we don’t really mind. Ambience, which is a refurbished former P&O Australia ship looks well presented, and with just 1,400 passengers, is considerably smaller than the Cunard vessels we’ve become used to. After running into IT issues on our last cruise, I’ve decided against taking a laptop, although I shall be taking a notebook. This does mean that postings, whilst away, will be few and far between. 

From a personal point of view, it will just be nice to escape from all the bad stuff that’s going on in the world at the moment. I shall be taking a nice thick book as well as a pair of binoculars. As for clothing, temperatures are likely to be just above freezing during the day, and slightly below that figure after sunset. I’ve got a thermally lined coat, that is still unworn, but with a high TOG rating it should be warm enough to wear whilst ashore. I will also be taking my Meindl hiking boots which, when worn with a pair of thermal socks, should be sufficient to keep my feet warm, as well as providing sufficient grip on potentially slippery surfaces.

This forthcoming cruise is not our first visit to Norway and its famous fjords, because in June 2022, Eileen and I took a cruise to the aforementioned fjords. That voyage was made onboard Cunard Queen Mary 2 and included two visits to Hamburg – one on the outward sailing, and the other on the return journey. The reasoning behind this was one of simple economics, because by making two calls to Hamburg, was to pick up and then drop off parties of rich German passengers eager to combine a visit to the fjords with a trans-Atlantic crossing to New York.

On that voyage, Alesund was the most northerly settlement that we called at, whereas on the forthcoming one, this attractive Norwegian town will be the most southerly port. So, apart from Alesund, all other anchorages on this cruise will be new destinations as far as Mrs PBT’s and I are concerned. And this is where we must say farewell to Norway for the time being, apart from revealing that the photos used to illustrate this post, date from that 2022 cruise to Norway.