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info@ice-tracks.com

Crossing the Arctic Circle

0
13 Days / 12 Nights
Availability : May-Jul
Edinburgh
Scotland

Circu

OverviewMap/ItineraryDates & PricesPhotosReviewsContact Us
Overview

You can start this unique voyage from two iconic points, Edinburgh and Reykjavik. Edinburgh Castle famously rises above Scotland’s capital to give a sense of the city’s eclectic and eventful history. The quaint town boasts not only medieval buildings, but also 18th century architecture in its newer parts. By choosing Reykjavik, however, you will get a glimpse of this magnificent volcanic island. It’s also the only national capital in the world with its very own puffin colony!

Regardless of your starting point, you will visit Jan Mayen before continuing to Spitsbergen, part of the renowned High Arctic archipelago of Svalbard. Visitors will explore fjords on the west side of the island as they search for polar bears and other iconic wildlife. Stunning landscapes and the area’s rich anthropological and geological history will guarantee an unforgettable Arctic experience!

Map
itinerary

Day 1Arrive in Edinburgh

You can start this unique voyage from two iconic points, Edinburgh and Reykjavik. Edinburgh Castle famously rises above Scotland’s capital to give a sense of the city’s eclectic and eventful history. The quaint town boasts not only medieval buildings, but also 18th century architecture in its newer parts. By choosing Reykjavik, however, you will get a glimpse of this magnificent volcanic island. It’s also the only national capital in the world with its very own puffin colony!

Regardless of your starting point, you will visit Jan Mayen before continuing to Spitsbergen, part of the renowned High Arctic archipelago of Svalbard. Visitors will explore fjords on the west side of the island as they search for polar bears and other iconic wildlife. Stunning landscapes and the area’s rich anthropological and geological history will guarantee an unforgettable Arctic experience!

Day 2Embarkation Day

Enjoy the morning and early afternoon at leisure. Each corner of Edinburgh’s old streets opens beautiful unexpected vistas of green hills or a blue flash of the distant sea. In the afternoon, you will be transferred from the hotel to the ship in the nearby Port of Leith. Before dinner, there’s time to explore the Sea Spirit, your home-away-from home for the next days.

Day 3Kirkwall, Orkney Islands, Scotland

Kirkwall is a small, quiet town, with a gentle pace of life. The town is the capital of the remote and amazing Orkney archipelago. Kirkwall is first mentioned in Orkneyinga saga in 1046. Such a long history has left a rich heritage that we explore today. The most famous are the sandstone St Magnus Cathedral, considered the finest medieval building in the north of Scotland, the Bishop’s Palace and the Earl’s Palace.

Included tour “Ancient treasures of Orkney with St Magnus Cathedral.” Depart Kirkwall and head into the west of Mainland, Orkney’s largest island. This tour passes through the gentle rolling landscape of Orkney and into the Neolithic Heartland of Orkney; an area designated as a World Heritage Site due to its wealth of pre-historic archaeology. Passing the Standing Stones of Stenness, we will stop at the Ring of Brodgar; a huge ceremonial circle of stones dating back almost 5000 years. We then continue on to the 5000-year-old village of Skara Brae, beautifully interpreted in the visitor centre. See the remarkable dwellings revealed from beneath the sand dunes by storms only 150 years ago.

Hear some of the stories from your guide today en route back to Kirkwall. Once back in the island capital we will take a tour of St Magnus Cathedral, built by the Vikings during their 500 year reign over the islands.

Day 4Fair Isle, Shetland Islands

Fair Isle is a real paradise for birdwatchers. Huge number of birds inhabits the lush grasslands and spectacular cliffs. Over 345 species have been recorded here – more than anywhere else in Britain. During our walk across the island, we hope to see northern fulmars, kittiwakes, northern gannets, puffins, and great and arctic skuas.

Day 5Torshavn, Faroe Islands

National Geographic Traveler had designated Faroe Islands as “authentic, unspoiled and likely to remain so”. It seems that the Nature spares no colours in “painting” the islands. Deep-green hills, bright blue sea, colourful houses and boats, orange-red puffins’ beaks make the sceneries unforgettable, meanwhile traditional wooden dwellings with turf roofs look like they belong in a fairy tale.

The rugged Faroese are proud of their Viking heritage and their love of the sea. Today we will explore Tórshavn, the capital and largest city of Faroe Islands.

Tórshavn is a unique city, where history meets modernity, where picturesque old turfed houses and modern buildings stand side by side…

Day 6Day at Sea

Presentations and workshops by our expert staff, as well as our range of onboard recreation facilities, ensure that this day at sea is not idly spent. Seabird viewing and whale sightings can be enjoyed from panoramic open decks as well as exterior stateroom windows and balconies.

Day 7Jan Mayen

Jan Mayen hosts the landscapes of breathtaking beauty and northernmost subaerial active volcano on the planet – the Beerenberg. The island is wild and uninhabited not including members of Norwegian weather station. The signboard at the entrance door says (translated from the Norwegian): “Theory is when you understand everything but nothing works. Practice is when everything works but nobody understands why. On this station, we combine theory and practice in a way that nothing works and nobody understands why”. Northern fulmars, Kittiwakes, and Brünich’s guillemots breeding on steep cliffs and slopes represent the birdlife of Jan Mayen.

Day 8Day at Sea

The lectures of our invited speakers prepare us for meeting with the unique Arctic wildlife and awesome landscapes of Svalbard.

Day 9-12Exploring Svalbard

This is a real expedition in a true High Arctic wilderness. As such, our route and exploration opportunities here are heavily dependent on the weather and sea ice conditions we encounter. Our experienced captain and expedition leader decide the itinerary and continually adjust plans as conditions and opportunities warrant. You can be sure that the best possible advantage will be taken of the circumstances presented to us by Nature in this wild and remote corner of the Arctic.
Polar bears and other quintessential Arctic wildlife can be spotted anytime, anywhere in and around Svalbard. We exploit every opportunity to experience excellent wildlife viewing, to discover incredible scenery, and to walk in the footsteps of the historic polar expeditions that came before us.

We anticipate exploring the spectacular fjords, coasts, and islands in the western part of Svalbard. This area contains the archipelago’s most impressive scenery and some of the Arctic’s best wildlife viewing opportunities. Deep fjords and narrow channels are flanked by jagged snowy mountain peaks. Immense tidewater glaciers calve icebergs into turquoise waters. Fields of flowering tundra are home to grazing reindeer and playful Arctic fox. Bountiful inshore and offshore waters are home to walrus and a wide variety of whales. The whole area is alive with migratory birds, including numerous rare species, taking advantage of summer’s fecundity in 24-hour daylight.

To complete the Arctic experience we also explore places rich with history. Our area of exploration contains the historical remnants of whaling camps, coal mining operations, trappers’ cabins, staging areas for historic attempts to discover the North Pole, and even an abandoned polar research station. The days are filled with memorable excursions, sumptuous meals, presentations by our experts, and enough stunning scenery and wildlife to fill your camera and overwhelm your emotions.

Day 13Disembarkation in Longyearbyen, Svalbard

After breakfast we say farewell in the town of Longyearbyen, the administrative capital of the Norwegian territory of Svalbard. We provide a transfer to the airport and a flight to Oslo. Now when the first emotions have subsided you will have time to look back to your unforgettable Arctic experience and maybe to make plans for your next polar adventure?

Dates & Prices
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Price Includes
    • 1 pre-voyage hotel night;
    • Flight Longyearbyen – Oslo on the day of disembarkation;
    • Group transfer to the ship on day of embarkation
    • Shipboard accommodation;
    • All meals on board throughout the voyage;
    • Tea and coffee station 24 hours daily;
    • All scheduled landings/excursions (subject to weather and ice conditions);
    • Leadership throughout the voyage by our experienced Expedition Leader & Expedition Team;
    • Branded Poseidon Expeditions parka;
    • Rubber boots for shore landings for the time of the cruise;
    • Welcome and Farewell cocktails;
    • All port fees;
    • Group transfer upon disembarkation;
    • Pre-departure materials;
    • Digital Voyage Log;
    • Wi-Fi on board.
    •  
Price Excludes

Airfare;

Visa and passport fees (if applicable);

Luggage and trip cancellation insurance;

Soft drinks and alcoholic beverages other than those for special events and celebrations;

Fuel surcharge may be applied for all bookings;

Personal expenses such as laundry and telecommunication charges;

Mandatory Emergency Evacuation Insurance to a minimum benefit of US$ 200,000 per person;

The cost of any applicable medical tests (such as COVID-19) or vaccinations required either by a national government or Poseidon Expeditions before, during or after the cruise;

Staff gratuities.

 

Photos
Reviews
“

My voyage was great. All of the logistics worked out perfectly, right down to the correct size of allocated wellington boots!

I enjoyed Spitsbergen. The wildlife was like nothing I have ever seen before (polar bear, puffins, reindeer, birdlife). I still get a thrill every time we cruise around in Zodiacs and the glaciers were quite spectacular. Looking back at my photo’s reminds me of how astonishing the scenery is in Spitsbergen. The crew were great, and it was nice to meet up again with some familiar faces on board.
June 23, 2018

Steven Briers – South Africa
“

My trip in June to Svalbard was one of the high spots of my life. I am a wildlife devotee and green supporter so for years I have had a huge conflict about pursuing the former without transgressing the latter too much. Somehow, this cruise felt right – Ice Tracks and the entire ship’s crew are really conscientious about their environmental impact and told us about it – very reassuring. I loved the zodiac trips out right up to huge glaciers – one of which we saw calving – and onto the land where we trekked and got a real sense of the presence of polar bears – their tracks and where they’s scrambled out of the water onto the snow. We saw all 3 land mammals of the Arctic – wonderful birds including King Eiders – a bird high up on all birders’ ‘must see’ list, and whales including a Beluga with two calves, swimming so close to us!
I was travelling on my own – but everyone was very sociable and I was never on my own for long. The on board staff were always kind, helpful and hugely knowledgeable. A brilliant trip.
June 20, 2018

Hoonie Feltham
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