The hike up Vettfjellet above Sandnessjøen on Norway’s Helgeland coast — 360-degree views over the Seven Sisters range, the fjords and the Arctic Circle 100 km north.

Honningsvåg to the North Cape on your own: the local bus from the pier from about NOK 750 against the ship’s excursion at €85, 40 to 45 minutes each way — and …

Prostneset is five minutes from the centre. Cable car NOK 645, Arctic Cathedral NOK 90 — a little over €60 together, against €119 for the ship’s excursion that shows the same two …

Sailing into Norway’s Geirangerfjord — a UNESCO World Heritage site where cliffs rise 1,400 metres from the water and the Seven Sisters waterfall drops beside the ship.

Åndalsnes at the head of the Isfjord — Norway’s alpine town, ringed by 87 peaks above 1,500 m, with the Romsdalshorn and the Trollveggen rock face within easy reach.

Ulvik on the Hardangerfjord — mist over the Ulvikafjord at dawn, the Hardanger Bridge, orchard country and one of the quieter corners of the Norwegian fjordlands.

Ships lie alongside in the sound and the town starts at the quay. What to do in Måløy in half a day, how far Kannesteinen is, and when the ship’s bus is …

A day spent walking above the Geirangerfjord — trails climbing from the village to viewpoints over the water, past waterfalls and long-abandoned mountain farms.