We sailed into Disko Bay as we approached Greenland’A persistent, muffled crunch was heard on the west side of the country. The pancake ice floating across the sea was at the root of this commotion.
The frozen scenery was a result of the Ilulissat Icefjord—a UNESCO World Heritage Site—that’s fed by the Sermeq Kujalleq, one of the world’s fastest flowing glaciers. Viking’s inaugural Northwest Passage voyage had brought us to the second port of call. 12-night roundtrip journey The Canadian High Arctic is divided between Greenland’s west coast and Greenland’s west coast.
I could not help but compare the view from my Deluxe Nordic Balcony room to Wilhelmina Bay. AntarcticaI was on an expedition two years before with the cruise line. After only three days on the ship, I overheard other passengers making similar comparisons between their Arctic and Antarctic trips.
Aaron Lawton is the head of Viking’s expedition operations. He says that traveling through the Northwest Passage in itself is thrilling. This legendary route has captured explorers’ imaginations for centuries. Experiencing it firsthand helps bring that history to life.
Visit one of our many Earth’s most remote polar regions—let alone both—is a recent phenomenon for leisure travelers. In the past, only explorers and researchers could access the southern Antarctic and northern Arctic. They were then followed by adventurous expedition travelers. There was a rise in luxury polar class vessels such as the Viking Polaris The following are some examples of how to get started: Octantis Expedition ships can navigate thick ice sheet while providing their passengers with all the amenities and comforts of a five star resort.
Luxury cruise lines have been offering more options to passengers in the Antarctic for years than the Arctic. This is largely because of the lack of port infrastructure and air connectivity as well as the unpredictable weather. In 2024. 87 cruise ships According to the Arctic Polar Code, 58 cruise ships compared to the 58 cruise ship records in 2013 passed through the Arctic Polar Code region. Arctic Ship Passage Data (ASTD). This dramatic increase in a decade still falls far short of the South Pole counterpart where 569 trips were made during the season 2023-2024. 117,000 passengersAccording to the International Association of Antarctica Tour Operators (IAATO).
There are eight countries in the Arctic. Some have long been popular destinations for cruises, like the circumnavigation of Iceland Or sailing? Norwegian fjordsOperators have been pushed further north by the growing desire of travelers to explore off-the-beaten path. When the Nuuk International Airport Greenland will be a hotspot of luxury and expedition cruise lines such as Viking, Ponant HX, Silversea and Quark by the end 2024.
While the two polar regions have some similarities, it is important to note that an Arctic cruise differs from an Antarctic voyage. Mainly: the Arctic’s landscape varies from rugged, lichen-covered rock face to incomprehensibly-sized icebergs. Antarctica is a frozen tundra that remains constant. In the Arctic the focus is on culture, whereas Antarctica promises a day filled with wildlife.
Lawton states that encounters with Inuit groups in places like Greenland or Canada’s Arctic can add a powerful element of humanity to an experience. These interactions give our guests a cultural context which influences their understanding of the area.
The 91-person Greenland settlement of Itilleq has a kaffemik tradition, which is typically celebrated on birthdays and special occasions. We crossed over to Canada’s Arctic Archipelago, and landed on Nunavut, the traditional lands of the InuitA native elder introduced us to Inuit music through a sealskin drum, while the next generation showed off sports like the One Foot High Kick. And on Nunavut’s Beechey Island, we were the only people at the gravesite of Arctic explorer Sir John Franklin’s three crewmen—a fragile archaeological site we were only allowed to access thanks to Viking’s onboard archaeologists (made all the more authentic due to an impending snowstorm).
