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Hurtigruten (company)
Norwegian ferry service and cruise line From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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Hurtigruten is a Norwegian coastal ferry service and cruise line headquartered in Oslo, Norway.[1] It is the larger of two companies currently operating Hurtigruten, the coastal ferry service along the Norwegian coast from which it takes its name.[2]
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History
Hurtigruten is the result of a merger between the previous operators of the Hurtigruten service, Troms Fylkes Dampskibsselskap (TFDS) and Ofotens og Vesteraalens Dampskibsselskab (OVDS). TFDS was founded in 1866, and OVDS was established in 1912 (ODS) and 1881 (VDS). The two companies merged in March 2006 to form Hurtigruten Group ASA, and twelve months later the merged entity assumed the name Hurtigruten ASA.[citation needed]
Vesteraalens Dampskibsselskab and the company founder, Richard With, pioneered the Norwegian Coastal Express in 1893, and Hurtigruten has continuously served the route since then.[4]
In 2012, the company headquarters was moved from Narvik to Tromsø.[1] In October 2014, TDR Capital purchased a majority ownership of Hurtigruten.[5] In 2015, the legal form of Hurtigruten was changed from ASA to AS.[6]
In 2021, the international and the Norwegian branches of the company was separated operationally.
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Operations
Summarize
Perspective
Coastal Express
Hurtigruten is one of two operators of the Hurtigruten (literally "The Fast Route"), a daily passenger ferry, cruise, and shipping line along the western and northern Norwegian coast.[2] It operates between the southern city of Bergen and the northeastern city of Kirkenes. A total of 7 ships operate this route.[7]
Signature Voyages
Hurtigruten also sails two Signature routes[8] along the Norwegian coast: The North Cape Line[9] and The Svalbard Line.[10]
These routes are currently operated by two ships: MS Trollfjord,[11] which sails The Svalbard Line between Bergen and Longyearbyen in summer and The North Cape Line between Oslo and Honningsvåg in winter; and MS Finnmarken,[12] which operates The North Cape Line from Hamburg to Honningsvåg. MS Midnatsol will join the fleet as a Signature ship from May 2026,[13] sailing The Svalbard Line and The North Cape Line from Hamburg.
Tourism
The company also owns Hurtigruten Svalbard[14] (formerly Spitsbergen Travel), a tour and hotel company based in Longyearbyen.
The Hurtigruten Museum
The Hurtigruten Museum is a maritime museum located in the port city of Stokmarknes, Norway that showcases the history of Hurtigruten. The MS Finnmarken, retired from the coastal express and a museum ship now, is located within the Hurtigruten Museum.
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Current fleet
As of 2024, Hurtigruten AS operates 10 ships in its fleet:[15]
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Former assets
HX Hurtigruten Expeditions
In 2021, Hurtigruten formed a separate business for its expedition cruise business, Hurtigruten Expeditions. In 2024/2025, the company was sold.[28] As HX Hurtigruten Expeditions, the now separate company operates the ships Spitsbergen, Fridtjof Nansen, Roald Amundsen and Fram[29] formerly owned by Hurtigruten AS, as well als Santa Cruz II in partnership with the Galapagos company Metropolitan Touring.
Buses
Hurtigruten ASA owned 71.3% of the transportation company TIRB. The shares were sold to Boreal Transport Nord AS in July 2014 for 95.9 million NOK.[30]
Car ferries
Hurtigruten AS operated a number of roll-on/roll-off car ferries in Nordland, Troms, Finnmark and Møre og Romsdal.
Hotels
Hurtigruten AS owned two hotels in Bergen; Neptun Hotel and Strand Hotel. The hotels were sold to Bergen Hotel in 2008.[31]
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References
External links
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