We were recently lucky enough to experience a mini cruise between Kiel and Oslo with Color Line. If you’re looking for a bite size travel experience without the hassle or cost of flying, then this mini cruise could be exactly what you’re looking for.
This little trip works brilliantly as an add-on if you’re exploring Northern Germany. The port city of Kiel is not only the departure point but also a vibrant and worthwhile destination in its own right.
The Color Line Kiel-Oslo return trip allows enough time to enjoy a fantastic onboard experience, alongside four hours ashore in Norway.
As with any short break, you will get the most out of your time and budget with a bit of forward planning. Here, I’m sharing my tips to help you have an amazing mini cruise experience.
Kiel-Oslo Mini Cruise: What to Expect & Why It Works So Well
This experience isn’t you typical cruise or citybreak; it’s really the best of both worlds. Think of it more as a floating hotel, scenic journey and quick city break all rolled into one. Why does this work so well?
- No fly option to visit Norway from Germany- no airport stress.
- Depart straight from Kiel making this trip an easy add on to a Hamburg or Kiel city break, or any other Northern Germany itinerary.
- Onboard experience and overnight sailing makes every minute of travel time part of the experience.
- Beautiful fjord sail in followed by four stress free hours in Oslo.
Departure from Kiel
Kiel: Vibrant seaside city and departure point for this Color Line mini cruise.
The cruise terminal is conveniently located close to Kiel city centre, a ten minute walk from the main rail station. Kiel Terminal Address: Color Line, Norwegenkai 24143 Kiel
With cruise sailings departing at 14.00 ( check in for foot passengers closes one hour prior), you should have at least a few hours in the morning to explore the city.
If you can, I really recommend arriving in Kiel the day before your mini cruise departure to give you some time to explore the city and surrounding areas. Kiel has parks, shopping and maritime history in abundance.
If maritime history is your thing, head just outside of Kiel to Laboe, a pretty Kiel Fjord town that is also home to Submarine Museum U995 and the 85m high German Maritime Memorial.
Color Line Mini Cruise: What to Expect On Board
Departing Kiel at 14.00 and docking in Oslo at 10.00 the following day gives you quite a bit of time at sea. How do you spend it? Let’s take a look at the onboard facilities.
This might be a mini cruise but that doesn’t mean basic. The Color Line ships on this route have been designed to give travellers the best experience- think delicious dining options, cosy cabins, duty free shopping and even an on-board spa.
Yes, that’s right, you can swim and spa at sea.
Aqualand swimming zone is a great way to kick off your cruise, especially if travelling with children. Think lazy river, water slides, Jacuzzi and Sauna. The entrance fee includes towels- no damp swimming towels sat in the cabin.
For something more relaxing, head to the onboard Color Spa. There’s hot tubs, sauna and a range of pre-bookable treatments, with the options of a spa-only or gym-and-spa ticket.
Again, towels and robes are provided. It’s things like this that make this mini cruise easy to slot into travel plans.
If swimming and spa-ing leaves you hungry, take your pick from the restaurant and bar options. There’s something to suit all tastes and budget, whether you’re after a gourmet experience or a burger. We enjoyed the retro American style diner for a laid back evening meal one way, and the buffet for a pick-and-mix for everyone on the way home.
Post dinner, drinks and a show. You can catch the spectacular performance of dance, music and colour every night in the onboard show lounge- booking is essential and I’d recommend booking online when you book your mini cruise to guarantee admission and get the best deal.
If you’d rather just relax, chat and have a few drinks there are plenty of other venues onboard where you can do just that. My favourite? The Observation Lounge on deck 15- a spectacular bar with panoramic views by day, stylish venue for dancing and cocktails by night.
The Cabin
From a comfortable but basic standard cabin to the luxury of a suite- there’s an option for every everyone. I’m usually very much a budget traveller, but this sailing was one of those times where it was genuinely worth paying a little extra.
I opted for an outside cabin to have a window. You sail Kiel-Oslo out into the Baltic from Kiel and into the fjord. I didn’t want to miss out on any of those views! Being able to relax in our cabin to enjoy them was a real highlight.
When booking, you can select Classic, Clever or Comfort depending on how much you want to include. If you know you’re going to spend onboard anyway, pre booking makes sense. Details here.
The Color Class Ocean View cabins aren’t the cheapest but they do come with a few added perks that made our cruise even more comfortable: buffet breakfast, included mini bar and complimentary WiFi. We were also able to get inter-connecting cabins as there was 5 of us sailing, giving us plenty of space.
A great balance of ‘treat yourself ‘ and value for money.
Time Ashore in Oslo
The Kiel-Oslo sailing schedule gives you about four hours ashore to get a taste of the Norwegian capital. I know it doesn’t sound like long but you’d be surprised what you can pack in. The ship sails all the way up the fjord (almost) into the city itself and hey, go for it. You’ve got the whole sailing home to relax!
Oslo has lots going on- Museums, sculpture parks, A Royal residence… I’d advise planning your time to get the most out of it. Pre booking tickets and planning routes and transfers will save you time and money. We opted for lots of walking, an ice bar experience and a walk around the Palace Park.
For details of what we did ashore in Oslo and how to make the most of your time, click to read this post (coming soon, updating)
All too soon, it’s time to board again. The upside is, you have the pleasure of the sailing home and a good nights sleep in your cabin before waking refreshed back in Kiel the following day.
Tips to Make the Most of the Kiel-Oslo Mini Cruise
Book in Advance: Kiel-Oslo is a popular route with limited capacity, book your sailing as far in advance as you can. You’ll also get the best value by adding any on board extras prior to departure. You can do this via ‘My Page’ after booking.
Pack Light: You won’t need much, especially if you don’t care for ‘dressing for dinner’. The atmosphere is very relaxed. Towels and a hair dryer provided in the cabin. Cabins are cosy, but small and feature limited storage. Tip: pack a small hanging organiser ( the kind you buy for cosmetics and toiletries) and hang in the cabin for chargers, cables, cabin cards etc. Thank me later!
Don’t forget your swim wear if you plan to swim and spa!
Set the Budget: This isn’t a particularly cheap experience and it isn’t all inclusive. Experiences like Aqualand and the spa incur an extra cost, and you’ll have at least two meals to buy onboard. Prebooking is key to keeping costs down- and/or pack snacks!
Budget a Bit for Onboard Spending: Duty free might not be all it’s cracked up to be, but there are things worth checking out. We picked up a beautiful Christmas bauble, some Norwegian candy, and some local Harrahorn gin (small batch, beautiful bottle and absolutely lovely). The on-board supermarket is worth checking out if you fancy taking home a taste of Norway. Moose jerky, anyone?
Both Norwegian Krone and Euros are accepted onboard.
Kiel-Oslo Mini Cruise: Is it Worth it?
I’d say yes, absolutely! It’s a no fly, low stress, low effort way to see a bit of two different cities and make the journey a really fun part of the experience.
It’s a wonderful trip if you want a bite size adventure, a change of scenery and maybe inspiration for future travels. I’m definitely planning a return to Oslo!
The Kiel-Oslo mini cruise with Color Line is a great way to spend some time at sea, wake up somewhere new and have just enough time to explore a bit of the Norwegian capital. It’s a really easy add-on if you’re already exploring Northern Germany, especially if you’re short on time but still want to make the absolute most of your travels.
And above all else, it’s just really, really good fun!
Intrigued by the idea of a mini cruise and want to see what a week long North Sea cruise is like? You might enjoy MSC Northern Pearls: An Honest Review from a First Time Cruiser
Want to know about the U995 & German Maritime Memorial? Click here to read that post
Helen x
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