HIGHLIGHTS
- Outings and shore visits in zodiac inflatables with a team
of experienced naturalist guides.
- Hiking opportunity.
- UNESCO site: Ilulissat Icefjord.
- Visit traditional villages and meet the Inuit people and
Visit to Nuuk, the capital of Greenland.
- Following in the footsteps of the Vikings, from the east
coast of Greenland to Hvalso, home to ancient remains and Nuuk.
- Sail along the Prins Christian Sund, a narrow, 100-km long
passage that winds its way through cliffs and glaciers.
- Discover the Eqi Glacier, at the bottom of Disko Bay, where
the Paul-Émile Victor base marked the departure of many
expeditions to the ice cap.
- Discover Disko Bay, where you will see the largest icebergs
in the Northern Hemisphere.
- The scenery: fjords, iridescent glaciers and icebergs, wild
tundra, lakes, and mountain ranges.
- The wildlife: humpback whales, orcas, seals, musk oxen,
Arctic foxes.
DATES / RATES
Rates are listed per person in USD
|
Start Date | End Date | Superior Stateroom | Deluxe Stateroom | Prestige Stateroom-I | Prestige Stateroom-II | Prestige Stateroom-III | Deluxe Suite | Prestige Suite | Privilege Suite | Grand Deluxe Suite | Grand Privilege Suite | Owner's Suite |
Aug 12, 2024 | Aug 25, 2024 | 12,700 | N/A | 14,930 | 15,600 | N/A | N/A | N/A | 30,850 | 35,180 | N/A | N/A |
Aug 08, 2025 | Aug 21, 2025 | 12,870 | 13,810 | 15,150 | 15,830 | N/A | 22,530 | 29,890 | 31,370 | 35,800 | N/A | 59,820 |
Rates are listed per person in USD
|
Start Date | End Date | (Starting from) Superior Stateroom | (Mid-range) Deluxe Suite | (High-end) Owner's Suite |
Aug 12, 2024 | Aug 25, 2024 | 12,700 | N/A | N/A |
Aug 08, 2025 | Aug 21, 2025 | 12,870 | 22,530 | 59,820 |
ITINERARY
Day 1-2 :
REYKJAVÍK
Iceland’s capital stretches along the edge of a vast bay in
the west of the country. Perlan, the “Pearl of
Reykjavík”, a museum located on
’Oskjuhlið hill, offers a panoramic view of the lush,
green landscapes. A little further, one can easily spot the signpost
showing the way to the evangelical Hallgrímskirkja church,
and to the historical centre where one can stroll along the
Skólavördustígur and the Laugavegur, two
lively streets with charming small shops. For some relaxation just
outside of the city, visitors have the opportunity to visit the
Reykjanes peninsula and its famous thermal lagoons of the Blue Lagoon.
Day 3 - AT SEA
During your journey at sea, make the most of the many services and
activities on board. Treat yourself to a moment of relaxation in the
spa or stay in shape in the fitness centre. Depending on the season,
let yourself be tempted by the swimming pool or a spot of sunbathing.
This journey without a port of call will also be an opportunity to
enjoy the conferences or shows proposed on board, depending on the
activities offered, or to do some shopping in the boutique or to meet
the PONANT photographers in their dedicated space. As for lovers of the
open sea, they will be able to visit the ship’s upper deck to
admire the spectacle of the waves and perhaps be lucky enough to
observe marine species. A truly enchanted interlude, combining comfort,
rest and entertainment.
Day 4 : TASIILAQ
In Tasiilaq, on Ammassalik Island, follow in the wake of Captain
Jean-Baptiste Charcot’s famous ship, the Pourquoi Pas ?,
which set off with its crew in 1935 to discover this small island of
primitive and wild beauty that remained unexplored until the end of the
19th century. Along with Ittoqqortoormiit, a village with 500
inhabitants located at the entrance of the Scoresby Sound, the village
of Tasiilaq and its surroundings, 800 kilometres (500 miles) further
north, are the only inhabited areas on the east coast of Greenland. The
name of this island is a reference to the capelin, a small flamboyant
silver-coloured fish whose presence in the thousands announces to
inhabitants the return of spring. A surprising discovery in a
spectacular setting.
Day 4 : SERMILIK FJORD
You will be captivated by the spectacular scenery of the Sermilik
Fjord, the largest in the south-east of Greenland. To the north, above
the glacial valleys, the Schweitzerland Alps and their peaks that rise
to an altitude of more than 3,000 metres (10,000 feet) stretch out in
the distance, while in the south, where it opens onto the Irminger Sea,
heavy erosion has carved the landscape. Three main glaciers calve a
multitude of dazzling icebergs that drift serenely along the indigo
waters of this majestic fjord. It owes its name to the Inuit word
Sermilik, which generally refers to a fjord into which a glacier flows.
It was mapped in 1884 by the Danish explorer Gustav Holm and his crew,
while they wintered in the Ammassalik region.
Day 5 : SKJOLDUNGEN
Discover Skjoldungen Island on the south-east coast of Greenland. This
uninhabited land boasts magnificent landscapes that are sure to dazzle
you. The island is surrounded by a stunning fjord, a distinctive
feature of which is its double entrance: it forms a bend before joining
the sea on the other side. Mountains, glacial valleys, rocky outcrops,
tundra and willow forests make up the beautiful scenery which you will
be able to admire more closely when you land here. At this port of
call, surrounded by wild and pristine nature, it is quite common to see
bearded seals, orcas, but also birds such as the common redpoll, the
northern wheatear, or the common raven.
Day 6 : AAPPILATTOQ
(AUGPILATOK)
Aappilattoq (Augpilatok), is a small Inuit village of around one
hundred inhabitants, whose name means “sea anemone”
in Greenlandic. Located in a mountainous region inaccessible by road,
its picturesque, colourful houses stretch out to the southern tip of
Greenland, on the banks of the spectacular Prince Christian Sound. Some
one hundred kilometres long, the sound connects the Labrador Sea to the
Irminger Sea, meandering through stunning landscapes such as majestic
glaciers, craggy peaks, and rocky cliffs with waterfalls fed by the ice
sheet. This region was uninhabited in the 19th century. The village was
created in the 1920s and the main activities revolve around hunting,
fishing and livestock farming.
Day 7 : HVALSO
Around you, a grassy meadow filled with flowers stretches out, dotted
with imposing granite rocks. A few semi-wild sheep and horses greet
you; they are the only inhabitants of this place surrounded by
beautiful mountains. You are in Hvalsø, in the heart of the
fertile lands in Greenland’s south. During the 10th century,
this site was colonised by the Vikings, who established a large
community here. When your ship calls at these lands brimming with
history, you will see the ruins of a church whose remains are still
very well preserved. It was most likely built in the 14th century. It
has lost its timber roof, but its four stone walls continue to stand
proudly as a moving relic of a long-gone era.
Day 7 : NARSAQ FJORD
From your ship, discover the town of Narsaq. You will be dazzled by the
beauty of the surrounding icebergs − large masses of ice in
different shapes and shifting colours. Dominated by lush mountains,
this small town is typical of Greenland and is located in the heart of
a wonderful natural landscape. The multicoloured house facades and the
glaciers with their myriad shades of blue offer a magical setting,
conducive to wonderment.
Day 8 : IKKA FJORD
As you sail through the majestic Ikka Fjord in south-west Greenland,
you will discover over 10,000 years of underwater geology, for
mysterious columns up to 20 metres high, formed several millennia ago,
rise up from the seabed. Their material, ikaite, gives the fjord its
name. Truly magical! You glide over calm, clear waters amidst
breathtaking mountains in the endlessly wild, huge area of Greenland.
Day 9 : NUUK
When Erik Le Rouge, the exiled Norse chief, landed on the coast of
Nuuk, he found a fertile and welcoming land dotted with fjords. He
settled there with a group of his former countrymen, and the Norse
remained the principal inhabitants until, over a period of 500 years,
their population declined and gave way to the Inuit. Nuuk is situated
at the mouth of one of the largest networks of fjords in the world,
where the waters never freeze. The town spreads gently out towards the
Davis Strait and enjoys an historic center that is particularly rich in
national heritage. The vivid reds, blues, greens and yellows of the
houses are a lively contrast to the somber waters of Greenland and
serve to lift the spirits of the locals during the Winter months.
Day 10 : SISIMIUT
During your cruise, we invite you to discover Sisimiut, founded in 1756
and the second largest town in Greenland. This small town is typical of
Greenland, boasting bewitching panoramas: here and there, colourful
stilt houses dot the undulating landscape, and the small fishing port
stands as the gateway to an icy realm. As for the town centre, it is
home to a number of historic buildings, a small church and a museum
which retraces the history of the Inuit people, as well as many craft
shops. When your ship drops anchor here, you will set out to meet the
locals in a typically arctic atmosphere.
Day 11 :
PAUL-ÉMILE VICTOR BASE CAMP, EQI GLACIER
"The most beautiful place in the Arctic" is how Paul-Émile
Victor described Greenland, a land of great icebergs and of towering
ice formations calved by the giant glaciers of the polar ice cap. The
Eqi Glacier is one of the region’s most impressive sights.
Here, the silence is broken only by the roaring and cracking of the
ice. It is impossible to know if one is shivering from cold or from the
sheer thrill of being here... Imagine the vast outline of a glacier,
its translucent crystals glowing with an ice-blue fire in the sunlight.
Paul-Émile Victor’s shelter cannot be overlooked;
it was from here that the French Polar Expeditions’
anthropological and geographic explorations set off in the
1950s.
Day 12 : DISKO BAY
To the east of Baffin Bay, discover Disko Bay, scattered with countless
icebergs produced by the Ilulissat Icefjord, a UNESCO World Heritage
Site. From your ship, admire the majestic ballet of these ice giants as
they slowly drift across the dark waters. This site is a natural marvel
of Greenland, and is also renowned as an observation point for the
region’s many humpback whales. The encounters with wild fauna
and stunning landscapes in the heart of this spectacular and fragile
nature will be pure moments of wonder for you.
Day 13 - ITILLEQ
Itilleq is a tiny island lying within the Arctic Circle, 45 km south of
Sisimiut. Home to barely 100 people, they mainly earn a living from
fishing and hunting in their typical Greenlandic village, whose bright
colours evoke those of their traditional clothing. During your visit,
you will maybe have the pleasure of playing a game of football with
them, enjoying a “kaffemik” (a coffee break) or a
moment of contemplation when the gentle light of the midnight sun
dapples the horizon.
Day 14 : KANGERLUSSUAQ
From 1941 to 1992, the town of Kangerlussuaq in Greenland was home to
an American military base. Nowadays, thanks to its international
airport, it has become a transit point for travellers seeking adventure
in the Far North. Located to the north of the Arctic Circle, this town
is the starting point of magnificent discoveries surrounded by
unspoiled nature. Indeed, just a few dozen kilometres from there it is
possible to get close to the Greenland ice sheet, the largest body of
ice in the Northern Hemisphere. From Kangerlussuaq, admire also the
superb landscapes of tundra in autumnal colours, where Arctic hares,
musk oxen, Arctic foxes, reindeer, falcons and eagles live.
Le Lyrial (Luxury Expedition, 260-guests)
Le Lyrial embodies the subtle alliance between luxury, intimacy and wellbeing which is PONANT's signature. The elegance of her exterior and interior lines and her intimate size (only 122 staterooms and suites) make this a rare and innovative yacht on the cruise market.
(Click image to view Ship details)
WHAT'S INCLUDED
- Flight Kangerlussuaq/Paris selected by PONANT in economy
class.
- Transfer as mentioned in the programme.
- English-speaking assistance.
Excluded
from this voyage:
- Personal expenses.
- Any other service not mentioned in the programme.