Fjords In Focus: Acclaimed Naturalist Jon Dunn Shares His Guide to Norway's Wild Wonders

• Exclusive Wildlife Voyage: A bespoke 7-night no-fly sailing to the Norwegian fjords from Southampton aboard Oceania Cruises' boutique Oceania Nautica.

• Expert-Led Discoveries: Sail alongside acclaimed natural history writer Jon Dunn and photographer Sarah Cuttle for exclusive talks and dedicated wildlife deck watches.

• In Jon's Own Words: The author shares his deep connection to Norway, what seabirds and cetaceans to look out for, and his tips for capturing coastal flora.

For wildlife enthusiasts and photographers, few places on earth match the sheer majesty of the Norwegian fjords. Cascading waterfalls, towering granite peaks, and sheltered coastal fringes create a magnificent haven for nature lovers.

Now, an extraordinary adventure has arrived, exclusive to Cruise.co.uk...

Fjords In Focus: A Wildlife & Photography Voyage With Expert Guides >

Departing roundtrip from Southampton aboard the elegant Oceania Nautica, this bespoke 7-night voyage blends boutique luxury with rare natural discovery.

Guests will enjoy exclusive onboard talks and guided outings with two celebrated experts: professional naturalist, author, and wildlife tour leader Jon Dunn, alongside acclaimed photographer Sarah Cuttle.

Together, they will help guests explore botanical gardens, historic estates, and traditional mountain farms, all while scanning the waters for magnificent marine life.

Ahead of this unforgettable departure, Jon Dunn shares his personal story, his deep connection to the Norwegian coastline, and what guests can look forward to spotting along the way.

In His Own Words: Jon Dunn on Wildlife, Waves, and the Magic of Norway

"When I look out of my kitchen window at home, I see nothing but sea stretching away from me to the east. Next stop? Norway!

I’ve lived up in the Shetland Islands for almost 25 years now, and work has taken me across the water to Norway on a regular basis. I live somewhere slightly out of the ordinary, and my work is a little unusual too: I’m a professional, full-time naturalist. I lead wildlife tours all over Europe, write books and articles about wildlife, and I’m never happier than when I’m behind a camera taking images of it too."

"Moving to live that far north, all those years ago, was a natural choice for someone like me; my Shetland home is surrounded by opportunities to see some wonderful things from seabirds to wildflowers, and whales and dolphins to the delicate lichens that flourish in the clean, unpolluted air.

And Norway? It’s like an even more dramatic version of Shetland, with some achingly beautiful and spectacular coastal scenery, and masses of wildlife-watching and photographic opportunities.

No wonder those Viking settlers who headed west from Norway to Shetland hundreds of years ago felt right at home! And small wonder that I feel so inspired when I make a journey east to the Norwegian fjords and coastal fringes."

"In August I’m expecting we’ll see birds typical of the Norwegian coast: the resident and visiting species that are coming to the end of their breeding season for another year.

Our two at-sea days crossing the North Sea and transiting the English Channel are particularly exciting for me as a keen birder, as mid-August offers the possibility of some really good seabird encounters (there may be post-breeding birds out at sea, while some species may already be starting to move towards their winter quarters).

I’ll be hoping for a good cross-section of the seabird families, from the dramatic and large plunge-diving Gannet to more ephemeral and dainty terns, small parties of auks, maybe some shearwaters and Fulmar scything over the waves, and with any luck some of my favourite of all the seabirds, skuas."

"Great Skua (known at home in Shetland as ‘bonxies’, an old Norse name for a stout, heavy-set man, a name that makes complete sense when you see these powerful pirates of the sea) and Arctic Skua may be on the move and, if we’re lucky, we may bump into their scarcer, Arctic-breeding counterparts, Long-tailed and Pomarine Skua.

All of these skuas harry other seabirds for the fish they’ve caught, making for dramatic mid-air chases and interactions."

"We’ve organised an elevated, forward-facing deck vantage point for our at-sea days, and I’m planning on being outside from dawn to dusk on those days! A transect across the North Sea is a rare treat for me, so I’m going to make the most of it.

Of course, it’s not compulsory to join me there for the whole day, but I’m hoping some of our guests will take a moment to see what we can find: the more eyes watching, the more chance we have of spotting something out of the ordinary!"

"That’s never more true than with cetaceans: whales and dolphins are certainly a possibility at this time of year, though of course they only come to the surface to take a breath or two before diving once more to feed, so the more eyes looking out to sea, the better.

Feeding activity is often betrayed by a gathering of seabirds overhead, so we’ll be watching particularly keenly if we see a feeding frenzy of gulls or gannets from our lofty vantage point.

With any luck we’ll encounter a Minke Whale or two, the smallest of the rorqual baleen whales, and we’ve a fair chance of White-beaked Dolphin and Harbour Porpoise too."

"Once on land, the chance to swap my binoculars for my camera and my macro lens (or indeed, my phone, as phone cameras are getting so good these days) will be irresistible.

Wildflower photography is the perfect counterpoint to the more fleeting nature of at-sea birding or sea mammal watching: an opportunity to take one’s time composing a beautiful image of a subject that doesn’t fly away or dive out of sight!

That said, I’ll also be keeping the binoculars at hand, as one never knows… it would be rude not to take a closer look at a majestic White-tailed Eagle, after all…"