Finnmarken

After a new 14-ton unit was added to the 'Finnkarken' over a two-day timeframe, which included a two-hour operation to put it in position, the ship has been undergoing a series of tests with work now taking place onboard to get the vessel ready to welcome guests back soon. Hurtigruten had to cancel a cruise of the ship to allow for the drydock. Sailing to the Norwegian coast, the 14-night cruise had been scheduled to depart from the port of Hamburg on July 25 with visits to Stavanger, Bergen, Træna, Senja, Nordkapp, Tromsø, Reine, Lofoten and Haugesund. Affected guests were offered the choice of rebooking their reservation on an alternative departure or receiving a full refund of the cruise fare. Hurtigruten also covered any additional costs incurred as a result of the cruise cancellation. The 'Finnmarken' has now been set to resume its regular cruise schedule on Aug 8, sailing from Hamburg for another voyage to Norway. At 4 a.m. UTC it left the berth at the Steinweg Terminal and shifted to Steinwerder, where it docked at 4.45 a.m. Before drydocking at the Norder Yard, a major modernization project had been undertaken while the ship spent a month in drydock at the Frederikshavn shipyard, before resuming service under its original name. Before the refit, the vessel had been sailing as the 'Otto Sverdrup', a name it gained during another refit in 2021. Report with photo: https://cruiseindustrynews.com/cruise-news/2025/08/hurtigrutens-finnmarken-gets-new-propeller-in-drydock/

The "Finnmarken" was drydocked at the Norderwerft shipyard in Hamburg. on July 25, 2025, for repairs of damage to its stern thruster. As a result, the Norwegian shipping company Hurtigruten had to cancel a 15-day Norway cruise from Hamburg, planned for July 25 to August 8. The affected rudder is essential for safe docking in ports, especially in windy and changeable weather conditions. The repair required the ship to be taken out of the water until Aug 1 at 8 a.m., when it was towed out of dock 1, and trials were started for testings of the stern thruster, before shifting to warehouse 62 at the C. Steinweg Southwest Terminal, where it berthed at 10 a.m. The "Finnmarken" is scheduled to resume service on Aug 8, and depart for her next Norway cruise as planned. The previous round trip from July 11 to 25, was still carried out as planned despite the already known defect, as there were no serious, safety-related restrictions. All guests affected by the cancellation were informed immediately. They were offered a free rebooking to later departures or a full refund of the cruise price. According to the shipping company, around half of the passengers rebooked promptly; others initially contacted customer service directly, Hurtigruten will cover the costs of new flights or changed connecting bookings.

One person on board the «Finnmarken» has tested positive for Covid-19. On Sep 20, 2020, the person tested himself again, and the other test was negative. On Sep 19 the first message about the positive test became known. Hurtigruten was informed in the afternoon that the passenger has tested positive for Covid-19. The person was associated with the actual charter assignment. The vessel is used as a hotel ship in connection with the filming of the new Mission Impossible film. The infected person belongs to the company Truenorth, which organizes the work. The person in question arrived aboard the ship in Hellesylt in the morning of Sep 19. The person has no symptoms of illness and was tested again on Saturday afternoon. No one else on the ship has symptoms of illness, Knoph continues. The infected person is now isolated on land. Hurtigruten was in dialogue with the health authorities locally and nationally and followed all advice and recommendations from them.

A female passenger of the 'Finnmarenk' fell from the ship as it was about to add a dock in Ålesund in Møre og Romsdal in the night of Oct 30, 2019. Emergency services, the Red Cross, air ambulance and a number of boats, including other ferries, lifeboats and fire boats, were alerted and took part in an SAR operation north of Skansekaia. After just over an hour, the woman was found by a ship participating in the search.The woman in her 40s was transferred to St. Olav's hospital in the evening with very serious injuries to which she later succumbed. The police in Ålesund was investigating the case, but so far had no basis for believing that there was any criminal action behind the accident.

Hurtigruten is to convert three of its existing passenger vessels into hybrid-powered expedition cruise ships that will operate year-round itineraries along Norway’s coast from 2021. Finnmarken, Trollfjord and Midnatsol will all be equipped with upgraded low-emission engines, battery packs and other green technologies to “drastically cut” their emissions. In addition, they will have technology to enable them to connect to shore power facilities and operate emission-free when docked in ports. Finnmarken will be upgraded in 2020 while the other two vessels are scheduled to be converted in 2021. “At Hurtigruten, the push for sustainable solutions and introduction of green technology is the core of everything we do,” said Daniel Skjeldam, CEO of Hurtigruten. “We operate in some of the most spectacular areas of the world. This comes with a responsibility.”