Itinerary

Day 1 Longyeabyen
Having made your way to Longyearbyen, you will be met by a representative and transferred to our group hotel.

Please visit the Aurora Expeditions hospitality desk, located in the lobby. Our team will run through your embarkation day, answer your questions, and give advice on the local area. They will also provide you with cabin tags for your luggage. Please clearly label the tags with your name and ship cabin number.

Enjoy free time, and in the evening, dine at your leisure (dinner not included).

Accommodation: Radisson Blu Polar Hotel (or similar)

Day 2 Longyearbyen, embarkation
This morning, your luggage will be collected from your hotel and transferred directly to the port for sanitisation, clearance and delivered to your cabin ahead of your arrival on board. Please ensure that your cabin luggage is fitted with cabin tags clearly labelled with your name and cabin number. Any valuables or personal items should be kept on you throughout the day. Enjoy breakfast in the hotel before joining your fellow expeditioners on a guided city tour of Longyearbyen.

After your tour, we conduct our final, mandatory pre-embarkation health screening and COVID (rapid antigen) testing before transferring to the pier to embark in the late afternoon. Settle into your cabin before attending important safety briefings and enjoy the thrill of departure as we ‘throw the lines’ and set sail.

This evening, get to know your fellow expeditioners and our friendly Expedition Team and crew at the Captain’s Welcome Dinner to celebrate the start of a thrilling adventure.

Days 3-4 Svalbard
Svalbard offers Arctic wilderness at its best. Your experienced expedition team, who have made countless journeys to this area, will use their expertise to design your day-to-day itinerary, choosing the best options based on the prevailing weather, sea-ice conditions and wildlife encounters.

Phenomenal fjords, magnificent mountains ranges and a polar desert rich in fossils set the stage for heroic tales of early exploration. See walrus hauled-out on sea ice or on beaches. On land, stretch your legs on walks across tundra coming out in brightly-coloured wildflowers. We visit towering cliffs noisy with nesting guillemots and puffins, and scree slopes that hold Svalbard’s largest little auk colonies. Most memorable are encounters with the majestic polar bear on pack ice. Your expedition team is just as keen as you to find them— they will be on constant watch to spot these inspiring creatures.

If you have chosen an optional activity such as kayaking, you’ll have the option to enjoy the activity when conditions allow. For those who are enthusiastic to participate in a polar plunge, as soon as conditions are suitable, you’ll hear the announcement to prepare for an exhilarating plunge, a memory you’ll savour for years to come.

Days 5-6 Greenland Sea
As you sail across the Greenland Sea – the main outlet of the Arctic Ocean – you may encounter whales feeding in the rich waters of the north. Sightings of fin whales are common and blue whales have been seen in more recent years. As you approach east Greenland you may encounter more pack ice, and perhaps see seals and a variety of seabirds including northern fulmar and Brunnichs guillemots. This stretch of coast is ripe for exploration, with its many secrets locked in place by drift ice for up to eight months each year.

The strong icy currents have isolated east Greenland from the Polar Basin, attracting large numbers of fish, seals and whales. Climatic conditions and the concentration of ice in the vicinity often create thick morning fog that vanishes with the onset of the midday sun. The experts will inform and entertain you with fascinating discussions on plants, animals, ice, and heroic tales of exploration.

Conditions permitting, there may be a chance for kayakers to launch their sea kayaks while others explore push through the sea ice in Zodiacs. If time and weather permits, you may even make your first landing on the Greenland coast.

Days 7-13 East Greenland
In the coming days, a host of choices are open to you, and depending on ice and weather conditions, the east coast of Greenland is yours to explore. Our experienced expedition team, who have made countless journeys to this area, will use their expertise to design your voyage from day to day. This allows you to make best use of the prevailing weather, ice conditions and encounters with wildlife. You generally attempt up to two landings or Zodiac excursions per day; cruising along spectacular ice cliffs, following whales feeding near the surface.

Be prepared to experience ice, lots of it! 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 m / 6,562 ft high. Glaciers create gigantic icebergs that drift throughout the fjord system creating breath-taking scenes. The tundra landscape is home to musk oxen, Arctic hare and reindeer. 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 450 inhabitants. The community has an excellent museum, gift shop, an abundance of Greenlandic sled dogs, and the opportunity to meet
the friendly locals.

Explore Scoresbysund, the world’s biggest fjord and a favourite hunting ground of the local Inuit. Massive glaciers dump into this fjord, the birthplace of hundreds of spectacular Greenland icebergs. It’s a spectacular place that simply needs to be seen to be believed. North of Scoresbysund are, Kong Oscar and Kaizer Franz Josef fjords, two of the most significant fjord systems in all of Greenland, each one encompassing several smaller fjords and sounds. 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 glaucous gull, black-legged kittiwake, northern fulmar, common raven and common eider.

You will attempt to enter Kaiser Franz Josef Fjord, a remote and rarely visited fjord system with countless opportunities for exploration within the Northeast Greenland National Park. Cruising through Kong Oskar Fjord you will marvel at the geological beauty of the mountains. You will then head south along the coast of Liverpool Land, with the passage dependent on ice conditions.

You stretch your legs on hikes across tundra in search of ancient graveyards and summer villages occupied 3,000 years ago by Eskimos. You may see musk ox, Arctic hare and reindeers grazing. This area provides excellent opportunities for sea kayaking in its maze of calm, interconnecting waterways. You’ll see ring seals, perhaps catch a glimpse of elusive narwhal, and maybe even a polar bear hunting on pack ice.

Day 14 Denmark Strait
Crossing the Denmark Strait to Iceland, search for whale blows and photograph the many seabirds that trail the ship in the ever-present Arctic winds. Reflect on your recent adventures, perhaps share and exchange photos, and breathe in the fresh sea air.

Day 15 Disembark Reykjavik
During the early morning you arrive in Reykjavik. Farewell your expedition team and fellow expeditioners before transferring to downtown Reykjavik or to Keflavik airport to continue your onward journey.

At the conclusion of the voyage, you do not recommend booking flights departing prior to 12.00 pm on the day of disembarkation in case there are delays.

Important note: In the spirit of expedition travel, you encourage exploration and adventure offering flexibility in challenging environments. This itinerary is only a guide and is subject to change due to weather, sea, pack-ice and other conditions beyond your control.

© Sebastian Arrebola

© Sebastian Arrebola

© Sebastian Arrebola