Travel Scandinavia Baltic Tours Antarctica Expedition Cruises

Greenland's arctic wilderness offers us some of the most spectacular and unspoilt scenery on earth. Join us as we sail under the midnight sun, along a landscape that is rich in culture, history and with spectacular wildlife. Our expedition team includes locals, giving you an authentic experience of the true Greenland.

Itinerary

Reykjavik is the world’s northernmost capital city and home to 171,514 people. In relative close surroundings of Reykjavik you may find glaciers, waterfalls, geysers and mountains. Reykjavik also has a selection of restaurants, museums and shops in the narrow small-town-like streets. We will depart pier in the evening hours, and strongly recommend that you acquaint yourself with this charming and vibrant town before departure.

Grundarfjörður is situated in the western area of Iceland in the region of Vesturland.

Snaefellsnes is sometimes called “Iceland in a nutshell” because of its diversity of landscape with its different kind of lava and rock formations, glacier, volcanic activity, hot and cold springs as well as the richness of bird life and picturesque landscape. Snæfellsnes shelters tiny fishing harbours protected by dark cliffs of columnar basalt. All the colours of the northern summer seem to be caught between the ever undulating ocean and the pristine glacier slopes of Snæfellsjökull glacier.

While crossing the Denmark Strait we follow in the wake of the great Norse settlers who left the shores of Iceland and Norway more than 900 years ago.

Greenland’s southern shores contain some of the most culturally and scenically diverse regions of the island. If conditions allow we will attempt to enter the narrow, often ice-choked 70-mile-long channel Prins Christian Sund that cross the southernmost point of Greenland and enjoy the breathtaking scenery as we navigate through. If the channel is blocked we will sail around Nunap Isua (Kap Farvel).

Qaqortoq is the centre of the largest municipality town in South Greenland. The original Qaqortoq, which means “The white”, was founded by the Norwegian trader Anders Olsen in 1775, and today 3 400 people live in the town. Also we plan a visit to Hvalsey, where you can find some of the best preserved ruins from the Norse period; the former ‘Austurbygd’ which was left in 1408 approx 500 years after it was established.

Today we will enter the fjord and hope to land in Igaliku, founded in 1783 by the trader Anders Olsen, and today 55 people live here. Igaliku is best known for the ruins of Garðar, which one was the religious heart of Norse Greenland. Our expedition team will lead a hike 4 km along the Kongsveg over to Itilleq, a small settlement of less than 20 inhabitants. Here the MS Fram will pick up the hikers. The evening will be spent in Qassiarsuk, a community with a population of 56 people, known for the settlement of the Viking Erik Raude. He was banished from Iceland and escaped to the land he called Greenland. Erik settled in Qassiarsuk because the area was according to him the richest and best site in Greenland when he arrived in 982.

Narsaq is located at the beautiful shores of the Tunulliarfik Fjord, and this area of South Greenland has been inhabited for thousands of years. Today around 1,600 people live in town. Narsaq means "plain" and the name refers to the large, green plain on which the town sits. The glaciers north of town ensure that there are icebergs around and the fjord is rich in seals, salmon, trout and minke whales.

The capital of Greenland houses about 15,000 people and holds the political and social centre of Greenland. Nuuk is the oldest town in Greenland founded by the Danish-Norwegian missionary Hans Egede in 1728. The name Nuuk means peninsula in English, an accurate description of the city’s location, on the tip of a large peninsula at the mouth of one of the largest and most spectacular fjord systems in the world.

Today the town is a place where old and new traditions meet, from picturesque old buildings in ”Kolonihaven” to the building of the Greenland Home Rule. Being the capital, Nuuk also houses a university, a teachers training college, churches and the Greenland National Museum where the mummies from Qilakilsoq are to be found.

Sisimiut has a population of about 5,200 inhabitants and is the second largest town in Greenland. The main trade is fishing, and the town accommodates a large fleet of trawlers, a shipyard and a fish factory. Sisimiut is the southernmost of the towns on the western coast of Greenland where sleigh dogs can be found. It is set in rolling countryside and the town centre lies at the foot of a steep hill. Participation in excursions in Sisimiut requires reasonably good level of fitness, apart from the boat trip. The settlement visit will focus largely on the old part of the town down by the harbour, and on the local centre of activity, the harbour itself. The MS Fram normally docks at the quayside in Sisimiut.

On board you will get an introduction presentation of Sisimiut, to prepare you discovering the town on your own with the help of a city map. The Sisimiut Museum is a culture-historical local museum and its speciality is the Greenland trade, industry and shipping. The museum is housed in beautiful old buildings originating from the colonial period, situated close to the harbour. We recommend a visit; the entrance fee is approx. 30 DKK and can only be paid cash. A local handicraft workshop is located close to the pier. A visit there holds opportunities to watch the artists make jewellery and arts from bone, leather and metal. They also exhibit and sell their works, and purchase is by cash in DKK only.

In Sisimiut we offer a variety of excursions which require reasonably good level of fitness.

Icebergs are called Ilulissat in Greenlandic, and it comes as no surprise to anyone who has been here that this is the town’s name. This is the third largest town in Greenland with a population of about 5,000. Ilulissat is set in marvellous surroundings at Ilulissat Isfjord that in 2004 was inscribed to the UNESCO World Heritage List. Here enormous icebergs run aground at the mouth of the fjord, just outside of town. They originate from the Jakobshavn Glacier, one of the most productive glaciers in the northern hemisphere. Ilulissat is the metropolitan centre of the Disko Bay area and this aspect will be the theme of the settlement visit, together with the town's long-standing history. The most important trades in Ilulissat are fishing and tourism. The conditions determine whether MS Fram can use the PolarCirkel boats.

Before arrival the introduction lecture will prepare you for the stay. Ilulissat holds the busy life of a bigger town and also the house where Knud Rasmussen was born. In the museum you find the extensive collection from Knud Rasmussens expeditions and the history of Ilulissat. The entrance fee is of approx. 40 DKK.

During our stay the expedition team will take you on a guided hike to the abandoned settlement of Sermermiut, which is situated 1.5 kilometres south of the town.

In the early afternoon we reach the small settlement Itilleq. Itilleq means “the hollow” and was founded in 1847 on another island, but was later moved one kilometer east to its present location. The village is located about 50km south of Sisimiut in the head of the Itilleq Fjord. Around 130 people live here, who are mainly engaged in hunting and fishing. The island has no freshwater, and for this reason Itilleq makes use of a desalination facility. The church here has and interesting history: It was built in Thule (Umanak- North Greenland) in 1930 and was moved to Itilleq in 1963.

As its name suggests, the village is situated in a hollow, majestically surrounded by high mountains and glaciers, and it can truthfully be called the Arctic Circle Village as the Arctic Circle is indeed found only 200 metres to the south.

In Itilleq you will be invited for a “kaffemik” which means that you are welcome to visit a local home, talk with the host, and have a piece of cake and a coffee but we request that you only stay 20 minutes. It is expected to remove your shoes before entering a home. Arts and crafts are for sale in the village (cash only). Please feel free to visit the library and the school.

Kangerlussuaq is situated in the end of the Kangerlussuaq fjord. The settlement/airport lies just north of the Arctic Circle and is one of the best places to observe native wildlife. In the early 1960’s musk oxen were introduced to Kangerlussuaq from North East Greenland, and today they count over 5,000. You will leave MS Fram in the morning, followed by a transfer from the docks to the airport in Kangerlussuaq.

You will leave the ship early in the morning. There is no harbour in Kangerlussuaq that can accommodate MS Fram and therefore debarking the ship requires the use of the ship's shuttle boats (PolarCirkel boats). Our Expedition Team will be at your disposal. It is advisable to bring rainproof jackets and trousers in your hand luggage to wear during the boat transfer.

Bus transfer to the airport of Kangerlussuaq, situated 12 kilometres from the dock.

Our specially chartered flight to Reykjavik leaves Kangerlussuaq in the morning and arrives approx. 2,5 hours later in Reykjavik in the late afternoon. Our local guide will welcome you at Reykjavik Domestic Airport, and will join the transfer bus to your hotel in Reykjavik.

The rest of the day is at leisure and overnight.

Breakfast at your hotel.

Notes