Regent Seven Seas Cruises®: Seven Seas Mariner®

Wonderful Copenhagen is a city of bridge-spanned canals, copper-roofed buildings and manicured parks. This famous Baltic seaport is one of Europe’s loveliest capitals and the seat of the oldest monarchy in the world. Copenhagen is a focus for commerce, culture, industry and cosmopolitan atmosphere. The locale of Hans Christian Andersen’s enchanting tale of The Little Mermaid, Copenhagen is known as Denmark’s fairy-tale city. Its impressive theaters, museums and churches are of interest to many visitors; the best-loved attractions include the world-famous Tivoli Gardens, the Langelinie Harbor with its Little Mermaid statue and the busy shopping promenade known as Strøget.

While in Lysekil visitors interested in marine life can visit "Havets Hus" (The House of the Ocean), which is a marvelous aquatic museum that has most of the different ocean animals and plants living around Lysekil's coast. Visitors looking to relax will find several pleasant beaches including Pinnevik; a sandy beach suitable for families. Not far Pinnevik is Stangehuvud, a nature park displaying a lovely variety of fauna.

Oslo, Norway’s capital and largest city, is encircled by wooded hills and snowcapped peaks. The city displays a mixture of several architectural styles. A full range of activities includes art galleries, museums, restaurants, theaters and nightclubs. Other points of interest include Royal Palace; Frogner Park, known for its famous Vigeland sculptures; Holmenkollen, where international skiing events take place; imposing Åkershus Castle; and Bygdøy Peninsula, home to some of Oslo’s most important museums. Many attractions can be explored on foot. Oslo's City Hall ranks as the most distinctive part of Oslo’s waterfront. The art portrays the country's different historical and domestic phases. Munch Museum, which is dedicated to the life work of Norway’s famous painter, contains more than 5,000 drawings and paintings. National Gallery has the nation’s largest collection of Norwegian art and some of Munch’s best-known works. Åkershus Fortress & Castle, transformed into a Renaissance palace in the 17th century, houses Norway’s Resistance Museum.

Oslo, Norway’s capital and largest city, is encircled by wooded hills and snowcapped peaks. The city displays a mixture of several architectural styles. A full range of activities includes art galleries, museums, restaurants, theaters and nightclubs. Other points of interest include Royal Palace; Frogner Park, known for its famous Vigeland sculptures; Holmenkollen, where international skiing events take place; imposing Åkershus Castle; and Bygdøy Peninsula, home to some of Oslo’s most important museums. Many attractions can be explored on foot. Oslo's City Hall ranks as the most distinctive part of Oslo’s waterfront. The art portrays the country's different historical and domestic phases. Munch Museum, which is dedicated to the life work of Norway’s famous painter, contains more than 5,000 drawings and paintings. National Gallery has the nation’s largest collection of Norwegian art and some of Munch’s best-known works. Åkershus Fortress & Castle, transformed into a Renaissance palace in the 17th century, houses Norway’s Resistance Museum.

Set on the scenic southern tip of Norway, at a magical spot with more sunshine than anywhere else in Scandanavia, little Kristiansand is Nature’s playground. Its spacius, ice-free harbor is ringed with thousands of tiny islands, a haven for swimmers, boaters and sport fishermen. Along the waterfront, in the silent Christiansholm fortress, and the charming houses of the historic center, you’ll find a peaceful serenity.

Founded in the 8th century and one of Norway's oldest towns, Stavanger is situated along the Byfjord, an arm of the Stavangerfjord. A bishop ruled the city from the twelfth through seventeenth centuries. At the end of the eighteenth century, Stavanger had developed a successful merchant shipping fleet and during the next century developed herring fishing and canning industries. Appealing echoes of that proud heritage live on amid the evocative cobbled streets of Gamle (Old) Stavanger, whose whitewashed 18th century houses are probably northern Europe's best-preserved community of wooden houses. It has a well-preserved 12th century stone church.

At the head of three valleys amid the peaceful surroundings of the Inner Nordfjord, Olden is the key to a not-to-be-missed journey up to the frozen cascade of the million years old and ever-advancing Briksdal Glacier, best-known of the gigantic, Jostedal's many icy arms. An Iron Age burial mound was discovered in this region of Western Norway, but in more recent history, most of the town was settled in the seventeenth century. In Olden, an historic church was built in 1746 and survived the Second World War.

Explore the Atlantic Road through the middle of the ocean or walk the Fjord Route - a footpath on the very top of Fjord Norway. Whatever you choose to do in Kristiansund, it's sure to take your breath away.

Norway's royal residence since 997 AD, when King Olaf I founded Trondheim, the city still boasts Stiftsgarden, the huge wooden palace. A century later, St. Olaf II began to perform miracles for the people, making Trondheim a major pilgrimage destination. Be sure to visit Nidaros Cathedral, where the Norwegian kings are still crowned, which is certainly one of Europe's premier Gothic-style churches.

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The world's northernmost village, Honningsvag, the gateway to the North Cape, is a completely modern fishing harbor set in a land of forests, fjord waters, and crashing waterfalls, everything bathed in summer by the eerie light of the midnight sun. Only the chapel withstood the German destruction of 1944. It's some 50 miles nearer to the North Pole than Hammerfest, on the Alta-Hammerfest bus route.

Hammerfest, the world's northern-most city with a population of 7,000 residents, is located in the wide but calm bay of the Province of Finnmark. The North Atlantic Gulf Stream provides the city with an ice free port all year round. Hammerfest's short distance from the North Cape makes it an attractive destination to tourists. Like Tromso, Hammerfest became a major location for the start or end of arctic expeditions in the 19th century. In 1890, the town was one of the first in Europe to provide electric street lighting. Of course, the sun's disappearance from the sky during the arctic winter from November through February may have contributed to this distinction. Today the main street shops of this interesting trawler port offer a friendly welcome, and the drily -named 'Polar Bear Club' provides intriguing insights into Arctic history and tradition.

Enjoy the appealing frontier atmosphere at this ancient whaling capital and base for expeditions to the North Pole.

The municipality´s centre of administration and trade, with about 1,600 inhabitants and well-developed services, including a hotel, cafes, restaurants, auto repair shops, specialty shops, a pharmacy, bakery, movie theatre, swimming pool, and other services. The newspaper "Lofot-Tidende" is published here.

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The region is famous for its beautiful scenery with high mountains and blue fjords, of which the Geiranger fjord is one of the most attractive tourist places in Norway. The climate is less severe than might be expected from its geographical location, with mild winters and cool summers. Ålesund, with its unique architecture, is the center of business and industry in Møre and Romsdal. As the sea, the woods and the mountains are easy accessible, the possibilities for outdoor and sports activities are excellent, both in the summer and winter season.

The Shetland Islands are Great Britain's most northerly islands, situated nearly fifty miles northeast of the Orkneys. Lerwick is the capital of the principal island of Mainland and is Britain's most northerly town. Founded on the fishing industry and with strong Viking connections, little now remains of the old village of Lerwick. Features of interest include the Cromwellian Fort Charlotte and annual Norse fire festival, Up-Helly-Aa, held every January. On the southern tip of the island is Jarlshof, site of ruins of several Stone Age and Bronze Age dwellings as well as wheel-houses from the Iron Age. Elsewhere on the island is Clichimin Broch, another prehistoric site containing a Bronze Age fort.

The northern part of Scotland, known as the Highlands, ranks as one of the world’s most magnificent scenic spots. Among the main attractions is a landscape of dramatic mountains and forested hills. Invergordon is the port for Inverness and capital of the Highlands. The surrounding countryside offers such famous attractions as the Battlefield of Culloden, Loch Ness, the villages of Tain and Cromarty, numerous historic castles and old established whisky distilleries. Enjoy the picture-perfect scenery and an opportunity to chat with a Highlander eager to introduce you to his fabled land and its rich heritage. Inverness Castle is a predominantly 19th-century edifice perched high above the Ness River. Today’s remains house the Sheriff’s Office. The exhibits of Inverness Museum and Art Gallery may be worth viewing as they provide a good overview of the development of the Highlands. Located 14 miles southwest of Inverness the Loch Ness Monster Exhibition tell the legend of the monster from 565 A.D. to the present.

Cruising. The North Sea lies between Norway, Denmark, Germany, the Netherlands, Belgium, France and Great Britain. The North Sea is quite a rough sea with a lot of activity. The wind, the waves and the seabirds all leave their mark, sailing boats and motorboats parade along the coast, ferry-boats sail to and fro. It is a pageant of light, air and movement.

Amsterdam is one of the world's best hangouts, a canny blend of old and new: radical squatter art installations hang off 17th-century eaves; BMWs give way to bicycles; and triple-strength monk-made beer is drunk in gleaming, minimalist cafes. Amsterdam has many fascinating neighbourhoods to explore, from red light sleaze to bohemian chic to stately grandeur. The landscape is riddled with graceful bridges and eccentric churches, the air laden with carillon chimes. Most attractions are within the canal belt, so sightseeing is a breeze.

Cosmopolitan Amsterdam is most famous for its narrow, gabled houses lining the canals. Interesting attractions include the medieval weighhouse, Royal Palace on Dam Square, and New Church. Its most glamorous industry is the diamond trade. Not too far from Amsterdam are the flower centers of Aalsmeer, the picturesque fishing villages of Volendam and Marken, cheese markets at Edam and Gouda, and historic Haarlem, the main center of the bulb-growing industry. Enjoy the city’s sights from a glass-topped sightseeing boat which passes characteristic gabled houses and negotiates picturesque arched bridges. Facing Dam Square, the Royal Palace was built in 1648 and is still officially the royal residence, although the royal family resides in The Hague. The marbled Citizens Hall with inlaid maps of the world is worth seeing. One of Amsterdam’s most visited sites is historic Anne Frank House. Rijksmuseum, the city’s most prestigious museum, houses the largest collection of Dutch paintings in the world. Van Gogh Museum houses a striking collection.

Suggested Private Excursions

Amsterdam: An Introduction to Amsterdam – 4 hours

Amsterdam: Highlights of Amsterdam - 8 Hours

Amsterdam: The Three Sisters, Delft & Den Haag - 8 Hours

Cosmopolitan Amsterdam is most famous for its narrow, gabled houses lining the canals. Interesting attractions include the medieval weighhouse, Royal Palace on Dam Square, and New Church. Its most glamorous industry is the diamond trade. Not too far from Amsterdam are the flower centers of Aalsmeer, the picturesque fishing villages of Volendam and Marken, cheese markets at Edam and Gouda, and historic Haarlem, the main center of the bulb-growing industry. Enjoy the city’s sights from a glass-topped sightseeing boat which passes characteristic gabled houses and negotiates picturesque arched bridges. Facing Dam Square, the Royal Palace was built in 1648 and is still officially the royal residence, although the royal family resides in The Hague. The marbled Citizens Hall with inlaid maps of the world is worth seeing. One of Amsterdam’s most visited sites is historic Anne Frank House. Rijksmuseum, the city’s most prestigious museum, houses the largest collection of Dutch paintings in the world. Van Gogh Museum houses a striking collection.

Suggested Private Excursions

Amsterdam: An Introduction to Amsterdam – 4 hours

Amsterdam: Highlights of Amsterdam - 8 Hours

Amsterdam: The Three Sisters, Delft & Den Haag - 8 Hours