Iceland to Greenland: In the Wake of Vikings

Board the Ocean Endeavour for an evening departure after enjoying a day of self-guided exploration in Reykjavík.

Iceland’s cosmopolitan capital was established in the year 874 CE.

Powered by geothermal energy, Reykjavík is widely considered one of the cleanest, greenest cities on Earth. Food, culture, and nightlife abound.

The National Culture House preserves treasures like the Poetic Edda and the Norse Sagas in their original manuscripts.

Watch for whales and seabirds as we sail the Denmark Strait.

You’ll be truly in the wake of the Vikings as we journey westward from Iceland.

The onboard learning program will prepare you for the archaeology, history, culture, and wildlife that await you in Greenland!

Explore the remote reaches of east Greenland by ship, in Zodiacs, and on land.

Your first views of this seldom-visited region will reveal a stunning coastline traced with innumerable fjords and potentially dotted with pack ice.

Join our expedition team out on deck to watch for iconic Arctic wildlife, such as muskox, seals, and humpback whales.

Make the most of your time out on deck, as our experts scout for opportunities to go ashore along this breathtaking landscape.

Soak in the breathtaking beauty of one of the world’s most majestic waterways, Ikerasassuaq (Prince Christian Sound), where the Irminger and Labrador Seas join through the islands of the Cape Farewell Archipelago.

Here, craggy mountain peaks tower over still waters fed by calving glaciers.

Pay a visit to the Kujataa UNESCO World Heritage Site, where Norse settlement history intersects with contemporary Greenlandic life.

Admire the jagged mountains that rise from beyond green pastures, with sheep farms directly bordering ice fjords.

Along its southern coast, Greenland lives up to its name; the land is fertile, agriculture thrives, and farms and vegetable husbandry contrast with the ice that covers so much of the rest of the country.

Walk amongst the ruins of captivating history!

Learn more about the settlement at haunting Hvalsey, a major Norse centre in the early centuries of the last millennium.

Hvalsey Church is the best-preserved Norse ruin in Greenland—the last known record from the original Norse colony is of a wedding held here in September 1408!

Visit fascinating Brattahlíð, a UNESCO World Heritage Site in the most fertile region of Greenland.

Walk amongst a reconstructed Norse church and Viking longhouse to fully immerse yourself in the experience.

It was once the home of Viking explorer Erik the Red and his descendants until the 1400s. Today, Greenlandic Inuit run the sheep farms originally worked by Norse settlers.

Explore the Sermersooq region of Greenland by Zodiac or by foot, as landing conditions permit.

Here you’ll find a stunning myriad of mountain peaks, glaciers, and deep fjords, with records of human habitation that stretch back over 1,500 years.

Keep a look out for nattoralik (white-tailed eagles), seabirds, and marine mammals while you enjoy the lush vegetation of southwest Greenland.

Stop in at vibrant Nuuk, the capital of Greenland.

Visit the Greenland National Museum, one of the city’s many outstanding features, where the world-famous Qilakitsoq mummies rest.

The old harbour includes many buildings dating from Danish colonial days, while contemporary Nuuk is known for art, shopping, pubs, and cafés.

See why Kangerlussuatsiaq lives up to its Danish name, Evighedsfjorden, which means “the fjord of eternity.”

Marvel at this complex coastal waterway that includes calving glaciers, sheer bird cliffs, and streams cascading against a towering mountain backdrop.

Explore this sublime glacial landscape by ship and by Zodiac.

The waters here are relatively warm, due to the West Greenland Current and the subarctic location

Complete your journey up Kangerlussuaq Fjord (Søndre Strømfjord), a 190-kilometre-long fjord surrounded by mountains and glaciers, and cross the Arctic Circle on your way.

Kangerlussuaq, the settlement at the head of the fjord, is a former US Air Force base and Greenland’s primary flight hub.

Transfer by Zodiac to shore, then ride to the airport by bus for your charter flight to Toronto, ON.