ICELAND AND EAST GREENLAND  

SHIP OFFERING THIS ITINERARY

Sylvia Earle

Douglas Mawson

Days 1 – 2 Reykjavik, Iceland

Having made your way to Reykjavik, you will be met by a representative of Aurora Expeditions and transferred to the group hotel. Upon arrival at your included hotel, please visit the Aurora Expeditions hospitality area where you can leave your luggage and enjoy refreshments if arriving prior to 4pm. Whilst here you can collect your luggage cabin tags and speak with the ground operations team, who may have information to share with you about pre-embarkation or to provide you with information about where to dine, withdraw cash or purchase last minute items from a local pharmacy or supermarket.

The remainder of Day 1 is at leisure.

On Day 2, follow the path of one of Reykjavik’s most popular seismic attractions – the Golden Circle. Stops along the route include Thingvellir National Park, accredited as the site of Iceland’s first parliament. Your next stop is Gullfoss waterfall. This impressive water feature tumbles 34 meters into the Hvítá River, offering a popular photographic opportunity. Next, explore the geothermal fields and geysir’s for which Iceland is famous. Late afternoon, return to Reykjavik to board the Sylvia Earle.

After boarding, there’s time to settle into your cabin before you ‘throw the lines’ and begin your Greenland adventure. This evening, meet your expedition team and crew at the Welcome Dinner.

Day 3 Dynjandi

Begin your photographic journey with a wet landing at the spectacular Dynjandi waterfall, one of the Westfjords’ most iconic natural wonders. Cascading 100 metres down a series of tiered cliffs, Dynjandi offers stunning opportunities for landscape photography; think silky long exposures of flowing water, sweeping shots of the surrounding fjord, and close-up textures of moss-covered rocks. With Iceland’s moody skies and crisp Arctic light, this location is a dream for photographers.

Days 4 – 9 East Greenland

In the coming days, a host of choices are available to you, depending on ice and weather conditions. Your experienced Expedition Team will use their expertise to tailor the itinerary on a day-to-day basis. You will generally attempt up to two landings or Zodiac excursions per day, including cruising along spectacular ice cliffs, following whales feeding near the surface.

East Greenland contains some of the Arctic’s most impressive scenery. Deep fjords and narrow channels, flanked by sharp ice-clad peaks up to 2,000 metres high. Gigantic icebergs calved from glaciers drift throughout the fjord system creating breathtaking scenery. The landscape is filled with multi-coloured tundra. Throughout the area are ancient Thule archaeological sites, historical trappers’ huts, and modern Inuit hunters’ cabins.

A highlight is a visit to the Inuit village of Ittoqqortoormiit, the most isolated and northernmost permanent settlement in the region, with approximately 500 inhabitants. Here you can explore the village, the fascinating museum or sit in the beautiful Lutheran Church. The community boasts an excellent museum, gift shop, an abundance of Greenlandic sled dogs, and the opportunity to meet Inuit people.

Each day offers new compositions: reflections on glassy waters, glacial textures, and vast tundra painted in autumn hues. Thanks to the fertile volcanic soil mountains that protects areas from the strong winds, the area is rich in wildlife. You may spot everything from muskox and arctic foxes to mountain hares and even reindeer near the fjord. Look skyward and you could catch a glimpse of birds including common eider, glaucous gull, black-legged kittiwake, northern fulmar, and arctic terns gracefully gliding or plunging into icy bays for zooplankton.

North of Scoresbysund, we hope to visit Kong Oskar and Kaiser Franz Josef fjords, two of the most significant fjord systems in Greenland, each one encompassing several smaller fjords and sounds. Thanks to the fertile volcanic soil and the surrounding mountains offering protection from strong winds, the area is rich in wildlife. You may spot everything from musk ox and arctic foxes to mountain hares, and even reindeer, near the fjord. Look skyward and you could catch a glimpse of birds, including the glaucous gull, black-legged kittiwake, northern fulmar, common raven and common eider.

There are great hiking options in the area, where flowering tundra plants, scattered bones of whales and muskox from centuries of hunting by the Inuit and fumaroles can be found. The area also boasts some of the most striking sedimentary sandstone, shale, and siltstone formations imaginable. The layers of sediment here are estimated to have taken about 4,000 years to be laid down, and the alternating colours and patterns in the layers of rocks are stunningly beautiful.

Day 10 At Sea

As you cross the Denmark Strait to Iceland, attend informative and entertaining onboard lectures from your team of experts.

Day 11 Reykjavik, Iceland

During the early morning, cruise into Reykjavik and disembark at approximately 8.00 am. Farewell your Expedition Team and fellow passengers. Transfer to Keflavik airport for your onwards journey.