Abercrombie & Kent Offers New Arctic Cruise for 2016

greenland
Photo by Freeimages.com/Tore Paulsen

Abercrombie & Kent has announced a new, Viking-themed cruise in Iceland and Greenland for 2016.

The 12-day Iceland & Greenland: In the Wake of the Vikings voyage onboard Le Boreal will explore the volcanically active Westman Islands, also known as “Mount Fire,” and home to abundant colonies of the Atlantic puffin and Eldfell. Guests will cross the Denmark Strait to Greenland, following the same course plotted in 982 by Norwegian exile Erik the Red. Leading a fleet of settlers from Iceland to Greenland, he established two settlements on the icy land mass. 

On the trip Le Boreal will spend a day cruising the Skjoldungen Fjord, boasting glaciers fed directly from the Greenland ice cap. It will also cruise along Greenland’s southern tip, landing by Zodiac among icy fjords, and Prince Christian Sound, which connects the Southern Atlantic with the Labrador Sea. Travelers will also visit Eriksfjord on Greenland’s Southwest coast, where Erik the Red had a farm, and nearby Brattahlíð, site of the first Christian church in the western hemisphere, as well as explore Hvalsey Ruins, a UNESCO World Heritage Site that is considered southern Greenland’s largest and best preserved Norse site and Narsaq, a village with ancient Norse roots that date back to AD 1000. 

Based on continued interest, Abercrombie & Kent will also offer Arctic Cruise Adventure: Norway, Greenland & Iceland. This Arctic voyage from Spitsbergen will grant guests the opportunity to spot polar bears in their natural habitat on the Svalbard archipelago; witness Kejser Franz Joseph Fjords and Scoresby Sound in Greenland; and explore one of Iceland's first villages, Grundarfjördur, followed by views of the extinct Snaefellsjokull volcano, setting of Jules Verne's Journey to the Center of the Earth.