East and South Greenland - Chasing Aurora Borealis

Your journey begins in the morning - the scent of adventure is on the air! By request, you can transfer via chartered bus (T) from the bus stop at Harpa Concert Hall and Conference Centre at Austurbakki, Reykjavik (the meeting point), to the ship in Akureyri (the embarkation point). You arrive in the afternoon after a six-hour drive through the beautiful landscapes of Northern Iceland. PLEASE NOTE: This transfer (T) must be booked and paid for in advance. In the early evening, the ship departs from the port of Akureyri, sailing north toward the Denmark Strait.

Meals:  D

While sailing north, you will likely see various bird life, including fulmars, kittiwakes, gannets, and common guillemots. You then cross the Arctic Circle, possibly spotting whales. By evening, the first icebergs flash into sight with your approach to the east Greenland Blosseville coast, a wild, remote, and dramatic area. With a fresh breeze in the air, your Arctic adventure has truly begun.

Meals:  B,L,D

Sailing southward along the East Greenland coast, we enter several fjords competing in beauty: d'Aunay, Nansen, Kangerlussuaq, and possibly either Ikersuaq or Kangertitsivaqmiit. Most of these fjords feature glacier front at the head, and any one of them can offer us a chance to spot polar bears and narwhals. The head of Mikis Fjord provides good possibilities for a long hike. The landscapes you will see in this area are typical of this part of Greenland and are especially beautiful.

Meals:  B,L,D

Tasiilaq, once known as Angmagssalik (about 2,000 inhabitants) is our next port of call. This charming town is the center of East Greenland, boasting a museum where you can learn about the colorful local history of this incredibly remote area.

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We next sail south to land at Umivik, an accessible bay where the explorer Fridtjof Nansen ascended the Greenland ice sheet during his pioneering 1888 Greenland expedition. Nansen and his party crossed the Greenland ice sheet, reaching Godthaab on the west coast, where they remained for several months before being picked up. In Umivik, you may even be able to trace his footsteps with a short walk in the area.

Meals:  B,L,D

Today we circumnavigate Skjoldungen through one of the most spectacular fjords of southeast Greenland, then land at Qornoq to see houses from the Thule culture. We will then visit Mariedal and a beautiful valley where Greenlanders used to collect berries in autumn.

Meals:  B,L,D

Moving on to Timmiarmiut, we see an abandoned Greenlandic settlement and will possibly sail into the fjord. Polar bears have sometimes been spotted here in the past. As an alternative, we may visit Igutsait to the south.

Meals:  B,L,D

Our westward passing of the Prins Christian Sund is surrounded by mountains of over 1,000 meters (3,300 feet) and is one of the highlights of the voyage. We may make a landing at Svaerdfiskens Havn or in the evening at Ikigait, once known as Herjolfsnes, a former Norse settlement.

Meals:  B,L,D

Today we reach Lichtenau, a lovely though nearly deserted Greenlandic village, where the Herrnhuters had a mission in the 18th century and where some of their large German-style buildings still remain. We will then try to get to Uunartoq, where we can bathe in a large hot spring surrounded by icebergs. Across at Vagar, we find the remains of a Norse homestead.

Meals:  B,L,D

In Eriksfjord we land at Ittileq, in a bay from which we can walk 4 km (2.5 miles) down a road to Igaliku (Gardar). In this small Greenlandic village, we can see the remains of a 13th-century Norse church, along with other ruins. Then in the afternoon, we plan to visit Bratthalid, the base of Erik the Red. This is a sub-Arctic area with birch trees, agriculture, and cattle. Later that evening, we arrive at Narssarsuaq for the final night of our voyage.

Meals:  B,L,D

On the final day of your journey, you will disembark the vessel in Narsarsuaq, concluding your Arctic adventure. From the nearby WW2-era airport, you may choose to fly to destinations such as Copenhagen, Keflavik, or Nuuk, or opt to continue exploring Greenland at your own pace. While the voyage comes to an end, the unforgettable moments and discoveries will stay with you forever.

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