There are two ways to get to Iceland: by plane and by this ferry. If you have a lot of luggage, or even worse, you like to travel by car, this ferry is ready to become your home for two days. Is that a lot or a little? By the end of the second day, the numerous children are running around on the ceiling... The ferry, although it looks large, is not really.
Ferry check-in begins well in advance of its arrival at Hirtshals Port. Since Norrona isn't the only ferry departing from here, it's important to avoid checking in for another ferry, for example, to Norway. This can be quite difficult, though—at the entrance to the check-in portal, port staff will ask which ferry you're boarding.
So I was stuck in a holding area for about 1.5 hours under the scorching sun at +28°C, without toilets or any other amenities... And who am I talking about myself, there were many of us like that... I especially feel sorry for the motorcyclists - they have nowhere to hide in the shade.
When the time comes, everyone is released from the pen for registration. It's simple: just show a printout of your reservation and, if necessary, your passport. After that, they gave me a yellow piece of paper with the row number I needed to stand in and a key card for my cabin. For example, 5012 is deck 5, cabin #12. But all cabins have four-digit numbers. I've written it out this way to make it clearer. The cars going somewhere to the right are the queue to board the "Norwegian" ferry.
Passengers will be asked to exit their vehicles and board the ship on foot. If you refuse and attempt to board by car, you will be prevented for several reasons: the car will be stopped and you will be pulled out, or you will be unable to open your door once the car is parked on the ferry.
And they park so close, it's best not to even look at it; it's nerve-wracking (especially when the car isn't yours). You can only get in through the window; I don't even bother looking at the trunk, because mine, as you remember, is packed to the ceiling. Basically, it's a real mess down there, on three car decks. The gap is on the left:
Gap on the right:
I previously wrote that you should run and grab empty seats early, because they take another hour and a half to clean after departure. Well, this time there was nothing like that—when I went up to deck 5, all the cabins were available for occupancy.
On the way to Iceland, I had a cabin with a window, but on the return trip, I didn't. This happened because I waited so long to book…until January 16th.
The bathroom is cramped, but you can wash yourself
To get to the top shelves you need a ladder - here it is
By the way, the 5th deck is the main deck, on it there is an information desk, a Tax-Free shop, a mini-cinema, a bar, a cafeteria, one of the restaurants and even a small stage for performances.
Looking ahead, I want to say that it was used mainly for lotto hosts. How they love this game... This photo was taken from the stage.
The cafeteria has a large children's maze, so kids will have plenty to do. I wonder if they start running around the ship "on the ceiling" afterward? 🙂
This deck also features arcade machines for both children and adults. Adults, in fact, have them scattered throughout the ship, in almost every nook and cranny.
Source: travel.ru