The Coastal Express

The Hurtigruten steamer sailing in a coastal landscape.

The shipping company Hurtigruten, also known as the Norwegian coastal express, was founded in 1893. It was established by the government to improve communications along Norway's coastal line, between Bergen and Kirkenes. It functions as a transporter for people, goods and mail to small places, but is now mostly a cruise company for tourists. The fleet consists of 15 ships, 11 of them sailing the Norwegian coast and four of them as expedition ships to Greenland, Canada, South America, Iceland, Svalbard and Antarctica.