12-day Peaks, Ruins, and Eric the Red

Departure: Sept. 2, 2010

A cruise through South Greenland and East Greenland is a tour of some of the most unspoiled and truly spectacular scenery anywhere on earth. Thread your way through some of nature's most breathtaking creations aboard the MS Fram, in between port calls at some of Greenland's many coastal Inuit communities. Here, people have a healthy respect for the environment and you will witness the unique interaction of man and nature as you sail this spectacular near-polar coastline. Wrap up your trip in stunning Iceland, with visits to isolated but cultured Isafjordur and hip, happening Reykjavik, the world's northernmost national capital. This South and East Greenland tour is a journey rich in culture, history, scenery and spectacle, in the northern lands of the Midnight Sun.

Your South Greenland/East Greenland Tour Itinerary

Kangerlussuaq, a settlement of the Sisimiut community, is the main gateway to Greenland. Just under 600 people live and work in Kangerlussuaq (which means "long fjord"). The town's airport was built by U.S. forces during World War II. Operative as an American base until 1992, Kangerlussuaq is today a commercial airport. Kangerlussuaq's dock lies about 7½ miles from the airport where you will embark the MS Fram via the ship's shuttle (PolarCirkel) boats. It is advisable to pack rainproof jackets, trousers, and mosquito repellent in your hand luggage for the transfer to the ship. Your amazing tour through South and East Greenland begins.

During the day, sail into this beautiful fjord, surrounded by majestic mountains and glaciers. Here you may see the highest peak in western Greenland, Naparutaq (7,253 feet), which looms above the northern side of the fjord. Evighedsfjorden ("the eternity fjord") is about 93 miles long, and appears to be never-ending. This is one of those majestic places on Earth where you really feel small in comparison to nature itself. If conditions are good, you will cruise along the glacier front by PolarCirkel launch or land ashore for a short hike to enjoy the diverse flora and majesty of this fjord.

The capital of Greenland is home to about 15,000 people. The political and social center of the country, Nuuk is also its oldest town, founded by Danish-Norwegian missionary Hans Egede in 1728. The name Nuuk means "peninsula" and it is 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 mix of old and new, from picturesque, historical buildings in "Kolonihaven" to the ultramodern structure housing the Greenland Home Rule government. Nuuk also boasts a university, a teachers training college, several churches, and the Greenland National Museum, where the famous mummies from Qilakilsoq are to be found.

You will visit small communities in southern Greenland. In this area, we find traces of Greenland's unique Viking history, historical sites, arts and crafts, and majestic scenery with the multiple colors of the autumn.

Your final route in this area will depend on weather and ice conditions. One of the possible landing sites will be Qassiarsuk, population 56, where Erik the Red founded his Brattahlid estate. Around 982, the Viking explorer was banished from Iceland and escaped to the new land he called Greenland. Erik settled at Qassiarsuk because the area was, according to him, the richest and best site on the island. Here, you'll find reconstructions of his farm, his longhouse and the church that he built for his wife. You may join a guided walk through the settlement, where you will learn more about the history of the region. The walk will also include a visit at the church used today.

South Greenland's shores contain some of the most culturally and scenically diverse regions of the island. Enjoy breathtaking scenery as we navigate dramatic Prins Christian Sund, a narrow, often ice-choked, 70-mile-long channel across the southernmost point of Greenland. Huge glaciers tumble down from the ice cap.

You'll round the southern tip of Greenland and proceed north along the rarely visited coast of eastern Greenland, home to some of the most isolated, sparsely populated, and scenically superb parts of the world's largest island. It's here where you come closest to the original Greenland, and where you can find Polar bears, Musk oxen, Arctic hares, and a variety of birds, including the Gyrfalcon and Snowy Owl.

This part of Greenland is thinly populated for both historical and natural reasons. Although people have lived in East Greenland for certain periods during the last several thousand years, the region is locked in by pack ice for much of the year, which has made this area very isolated - from both the rest of Greenland and the wider world. The first Europeans came here only just over 100 years ago; this separation from the rest of the country is clearly reflected in the language and culture of the region.

From this point on, your actual program and routing will depend on ice and weather conditions, which vary unpredictably from season to season and day to day. This is an expedition into a very little traveled area and no specific itinerary can be guaranteed in advance. Therefore, please read this itinerary as a general guide only.

• Skjoldungen Island will provide views of some of the most spectacular landscapes in the whole of Greenland. At the southern end of this island, you sail by an abandoned Greenlandic settlement, while farther into the fjord plan to land near the remains of an ancient Thule site.
• Koge Bugt, where the Greenland Ice Cap reaches the sea and large tabular icebergs, is an impressive sight. Enjoy drifting about.
• At Umivik you will find the place where 19th century Norwegian explorer and scientist Fridtjof Nansen went ashore and started his epic traverse of the Greenland Ice Cap.
• Ammassalik is the largest community in east Greenland. Most of its inhabitants are employed fishing for the Greenlandic halibut, Atlantic salmon, and other fish that make up the economy of this remote place. This historic district was the site of eastern Greenland's first trading post, founded in 1893. The municipality covers an area five times the size of Denmark, though it only has a population of less than 5,000.

Cross the Denmark Strait and continue to Iceland's West Fjords, an area of cascading waterfalls and huge numbers of nesting birds.

In the morning hours, you arrive at Isafjordur. With a population of about 4,000, Isafjordur is the largest town in the West Fjords. Despite its small size and isolation from the rest of the country, the town has a rather urban atmosphere. Here, we will find a school of music as well as a hospital and a cultural center with a library and showrooms. It has become known in Iceland as a center for alternative music.

You return to Reykjavik, the world's northernmost national capital. Home to just 171,514 people, the city nonetheless boasts a vast selection of restaurants, museums, and shops. Here in the Icelandic capital, your exciting South and East Greenland comes to an end.

Single supplement 50%

*Cabin category H is equipped for physically challenged guests.

Single supplement 50%

*Cabin category H is equipped for physically challenged guests.

USD cruise only and air/sea rates valid for North American residents only. Early Booking Rates are cruise only or air/sea as noted, capacity controlled and subject to withdrawal without notice. Rates include round-trip one-way air between Copenhagen and Kangerlussuaq.Cruise fuel surcharge is additional and will be advised at time of booking.

Hurtigruten explorations, including a tour to South and East Greenland await. Request a brochure or contact a travel agent. Embark on a journey of exploration, adventure and luxury with Hurtigruten, authentic voyages to pristine lands.