The Bergen to Kirkenes coastal route is one of the great solo journeys in Europe, and Havila Voyages is the newer of the two companies running it. Its four ships, Havila Capella, Havila Castor, Havila Polaris and Havila Pollux, were built between 2021 and 2023 and are near-identical: 124 meters long, 179 cabins, 640 passengers at most, and a glass-roofed observation lounge for watching the northern lights or the midnight sun from a chair.
For someone traveling alone this is an unusually easy trip, and Havila's solo discount makes it an affordable one.
The solo discount
Havila does not have single cabins. Every category is built for two, from the 8 to 10 square meter Interior cabins to the 48 square meter Lighthouse Suite. What it has instead is a published solo offer: up to 40 percent off the cabin price for one person in a Seaview or Interior cabin on selected departures. You can book it up to 60 days before sailing, availability is limited on each voyage, and it cannot be combined with other offers. Prices are dynamic, so the figure moves.
That 40 percent is roughly the difference between paying for two and paying a modest supplement, and it applies to the three core voyages: the 12-day Round Voyage from Bergen, the 7-day Voyage North to Kirkenes and the 6-day Voyage South. The offer page notes it may apply to other voyages too, so ask. Suites are not included, which is fine, because on this route you spend your time in the lounge, not the cabin.
What a day is like
This is a working coastal route, not a resort cruise. The ships call at 34 ports between Bergen and Kirkenes, some for ten minutes, some for hours, around the clock. Locals get on and off with luggage and shopping. The scenery does the entertaining, and the program is light: a few talks, an excursion or two a day, and the announcement when the ship is about to pass something worth seeing.
For a solo guest that rhythm is a gift. You are never obliged to be anywhere. You eat when you like, you go ashore in Ålesund or Tromsø for an hour on your own, and you come back to a chair under the glass roof with a coffee from Havly Cafe.
Eating alone on Havila
There are three places to eat, all on Deck 6. Havrand is the main restaurant, where breakfast, lunch and dinner are served à la carte and included in the fare. The menu changes every few days to match the region the ship is passing through, so it is Lofoten cod one night and reindeer in Finnmark the next. Tables are mostly twos and fours, and eating alone is normal here; a good share of the passengers on any given night are traveling solo or are locals on a short hop. Hildring Fine Dining is the small, extra-charge restaurant for a special seafood evening, and it is comfortable for one. Havly Cafe runs from early morning to late night for sandwiches, pastries and hot dishes.
There is no shared solo table and no host. The lounge and the open deck at the Trollfjord or the Arctic Circle crossing are where conversations start. Many of them are with Norwegians, who tend to be happy to explain what you are looking at.
Which voyage
The 12-day Round Voyage is the full experience and the best value under the solo offer, because every day is a different coast and you see the big sights in both directions. The 7-day Voyage North is the popular shorter option, ending in Kirkenes with a flight home. The 6-day Voyage South is the quietest. In winter the ships are the easiest way to chase the northern lights without driving; in summer the midnight sun means there is no real reason to go to bed.
Who it suits
Havila suits the solo traveler who wants scenery over entertainment, who is content with a book, a window and a good dinner, and who likes the idea of a ship that is also a bus. It is not for anyone who wants a singles program, evening shows or a big social scene. Book an Interior or Seaview cabin under the solo offer, pack layers, and let the coast do the rest.
Sources: Havila Voyages solo travelers offer page (https://www.havilavoyages.com/offers/solo-travelers), Havila Voyages ships page, Havila Voyages cabins and suites page, Havila Voyages restaurants page.
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