WoodTurning Cruise

 What is the Woodturning Cruise? 
First:
We are nearly fully booked but we have a few inside cabins available, we can also offer a few single cabins*. Check out our BOOKING page to see the offers on available cabins.  

CHECK OUT THE LAST MINUTE BOOKING OFFERS HERE!

It is now confirmed that the Woodturningcruise will go ahead as planned. 

One of the most rewarding benefits about the Woodturning Cruise is that it brings together people from around the world, sharing a common love for wood turning and woodworking. They come as either demonstrators or passengers, living together on a medium size cruise ship, MS GANN, for 12 days as it travels up and down the spectacular western coast of Norway. Some of the world’s best woodworking manufacturers are also represented. Stopping every day at a different picturesque port, the world’s finest craftsmen and women demonstrate their skills for passengers and visitors while providing the opportunity for guests to purchase the latest products that the global woodworking world has to offer.

On board, the common language is English, but announcements are made in both Norwegian and English. However, the language diversity is very colorful. Friendships are easily made and communities of people with similar interests are quickly formed, regardless of their country of origin. In a short time, everyone just knows about everyone else. It is wonderful to experience the breakdown of barriers, regarding cultures and language, as passengers learn about each other. For most, rubbing shoulders with the world’s best during formal demonstrations, then sitting down and sharing meals, or having the chance to participate in group classes or private lessons is a once in a lifetime opportunity. Combined with the spectacular scenery whilst in port or at sea, the unique shopping, wonderful excursions, the many onboard arts and crafts classes, ship activities, gallery and auction, The Woodturning Cruise is an adventure you will never forget.  And for many, lifetime friendships are forged.

We sail from Stavanger, a picturesque, seaside city on the west coast of Norway, and we will visit 12 cities along the spectacular western coast. Our long stops, 5 - 8 hours, in harbors leave you with lots of time to explore the small cities or go for an excursion trip exploring the surrounding countryside, all arranged by the MS GANN.

Check out this video about Norway as a tourist destination:



Travelling to Stavanger is quite easy since its airport has more than 30 direct routes to airports in Europe and connecting overseas airports. More information here: Stavanger Airport, SVG
During our 12 day cruise you will be visiting famous cities like Bergen, Trondheim and Tromsø, and many more. Our turning point of travel is Honningsvaag, which is very close to the North Cape, Europe's most Northern point, which you can visit! Join the guided tour and visit the spectacular North Cape! As you travel in the land of the midnight sun you will experience very long evenings almost as bright as day, culminating in spectacular sunsets.

Couples?

Even though most of the turners are men, most of them bring their wife along - so you will not be alone! (A very common question!) On previous cruises the ladies have had a lot of fun, going ashore shopping, excursions and even setting up an evening performance! Felting courses at Ullform has also been very popular with the ladies. We´ve also had a knitting club and a whittling group, so who knows what the next cruise will bring. We encourage passengers to get together and develop informal arts and crafts classes which are not offered on the ship. Assistance will be provided when possible.

Comfort on-board.

All cabins have a shower and toilet. The ship we use are spacious and the cabins vary in size and comfort. Today`s MS GANN (since 2008) has comfortable cabins, but bear in mind it is not a luxurious cruise ship. There are lounges and other areas where you can relax and enjoy the view. Outside you will find chairs on the sundeck to relax in during passage, and lots of other deck area's to spend time enjoying the view of Norwegian fjords and mountains. The crew is first rate and friendly with an outstanding chef who will serve you delicious meals, based on traditional Norwegian recipes and international dishes. Three meals a day, breakfast, lunch and dinner, will be included in the ticket. Free coffee and tea is available almost 24 hours. On the top deck, Panorama lounge, there is a small snack shop which will be open during sailing at set times.
A laundry self service is available onboard complete with several washing machines and dryers.

Internet on-board.

A Wi-Fi connection is available onboard in public areas (works in some cabins as well).  Internet connection will be possible in most harbors, and most of the time we sail. But it is a wireless connection to the shore and sometimes connection can be lost due to lack of coverage. The Wi-Fi has a limitation in users and will work slow if you upload lots of pictures and large data files. But for checking emails it works great.

On-board woodturning shop area.

On the B-deck you will find our onboard Woodturning shop! Here we invite local visitors to come and enjoy the demonstrations during our stay in the harbors. When we sail you are more then welcome to come and visit and work! Shopping also allowed..
 

A total of 12 days of pure nature, relaxation, fun woodworking and lots of opportunities to develop new friendships and learn new skills.

What to do onboard?

While we're sailing, you will have the opportunity to use lathes, test your skills, try out new ideas and get advice, tips, techniques and tuition from top wood turners. There will be at least 7 lathes available in our dedicated Passenger Class room, well equipped tool sets, face shields and other tools. Dust extraction and protection will be supplied for all lathes! On sun-deck we have a set up for woodturning with 3-4 lathes and a dedicated instructor team. Perform woodturning in the most spectaluar surroundings you can dream on, outside in the sun! Our demonstrators will assist as much as time permits, but we will also have three dedicated instructors who will be available to help and guide you to achieve your turning goals. All woodturning instruction is FREE! You only have to buy the wood!

MR Rolf Taraldset will do courses on woodcarving using traditional Norwegian patterns. He is a professional woodcarver working full time with carving. He has made decorations ranging from private reliefs to large church decorations, and lately to a replica viking ship. Rolf will introduce you to tradiationel woodcarving with some small projectes. He will sell you a prepared blank, ready to start carving. We´ve got 5 large sets of Pfeil woodcarving tools ready for use. Limited to 5 people at a time. Check out the Courses tab.

Power carving - Arthur Aveling(?) and his team of expert carvers will give lessons on the safe and creative way of using the world's best power carving tools and accessories. Learn how easy King Arthur's Tools are to use and what amazing results you can achieve in a short period of time!

Routing - attend to a short introduction course on routing by the experts from Trend! Learn how to use jigs, routertables and much more. Check out the Courses tab
 

Pyrography: Iren T. A Faerevaag will be the instructor for the courses in pyrograpy. She has a background in drawing and lately started with drawing and decorating with pyrography. Learn this skill on one of our courses onboard. Especially popular among the ladies on board. 

Knife making Courses - Inge Hågensen and ??. These guys will teach you how to make your own beautiful handmade knife. Read more about in the COURSES section.

Ullform - felting. Tone Tvedt is a very well know artist in the felting business in Norway and she makes a lot of felted products. She will bring most of her business on board and she will give classes in this craft. 

Need more to do? Over the past 7 cruises we have learned that our passengers have a variety of talents and we encourage informal sessions throughout the ship. Some examples of passenger initiated activities are: knitting, weaving, whittling, yoga, karaoke evenings, individual musicians and storytelling. In order to secure space in any of the ship's lounges, please let us know on your registration form if you want to lead an activity.

Cabins.
You can choose from a variety of cabins. All cabins have a shower and toilet. On the booking page you can check out which cabins are outside and inside cabins. Outside, means with a window (small or large). Inside means there are no windows. Beds are arranged either as bunk beds or two beds at floor level (not double bed, one at each side). In most cabins you can flip up one of the beds to get more space. Bear in mind that this ship is not a luxury cruiseship but a schoolship during the rest of the year. Our experience is that apart from sleeping, not much time is spent in the cabin due to the fact that there are so many places to be; in various lounges, outside to get a view, and down in the workshop...

Hotel

Many of our passengers prefer to arrive a day or two before the cruise, or leave a day or two, after the cruise. We have made an appointment with Hotel Victoria, click here to find out more.

Go to BOOKING PAGE!  Contact us for more information about booking.

*Double cabin sold as single with a lower fee than normal.