Icebergs & Whales of Greenland tour

Details

Transportation

Return flights Reykjavik to Greenland and boat across the Disko Bay to Eqi.

Included

• Flights ex Reykjavik to Greenland west coast with all taxes
• Arrival & departure transfer in Ilulissat
• Welcome dinner
• Daily breakfast
• City walk/tour with local guide in Ilulissat
• Ilulissat accommodation in twin/double rooms
• Boat trip Ilullisat to Glacier Lodge Eqi return
• Two nights at Glacier Lodge Eqi in standard hut with breakfast & dinner
• 24-hour emergency service
• Taxes and service fees

Not Included

Flight tickets to/from start and end points, any airport taxes, travel insurance, visas, gratitudes and any items of personal nature.

Itinerary

Day 1 - Fly Reykjavik to Ilulissat (Saturday)

Midday flight from Reykjavik Domestic Airport to Ilulissat. Meet & greet by an local guide and transfer to the hotel for check-in. After a welcome information meeting we do a guided city walk.

Meals

Accommodation

Day 2 - Ilulissat

Ilulissat is the third largest town municipality in Greenland with more than 5000 inhabitants. About 4500 people lives in the town Ilulissat, and 500 people lives in the four remaining small settlements: Ilimanaq, Oqaatsut, Qeqertaq and Saqqaq.

300 kilometres north of the Polar Circle, Ilulissat lies beautifully situated close to one of the worlds largest glaciers – Kangia. The glacier produces about 20 million tons of ice each day, all floating into the Ilulissat Icefiord and the Disko Bay. All this ice gives at good basis for fishing for Halibut which is the main occupation in Ilulissat. Due to the unique ice and landscape, the area of Kangia and the Icefiord has been a UNESCO world heritage site since 2004.

You have several days, at the start and end of the trip, in Ilulissat with time to join some of the many optional excursions, which allows you freedom to chose what you want to see and do. You can enjoy helicopter flights over the Icecap and visit remote settlements where fishing and hunting still continues as it has for centuries.

Optional excursions during stay in Ilulissat:
• The Icebergs of Sermermiut
• Hunter's Settlement - Rodebay
• Midnight Cruise to the Ice Fiord
• By Helicopter to the Ice Cap (operation depend on weather and helicopter capacity)
• Hunter's Settlement - Ilimanaq
• Feeding the huskies
• Whale Safari

Meals

Accommodation

Day 3 - Boat to Eqi and stay at Glacier Lodge Eqi

We travel out by boat to Eqi, 5 hours by boat through the Disko bay. Very few places in Greenland are as beautiful as the Eqi glacier, which comes out in a fiord about 80 km north of Ilulissat.

Departure from Ilulissat, in a modern and convenient tourist boats, is early. There is tea and coffee on the way and a light breakfast is served. At around midday, you arrive in front of the Glacier, the boat will stay in front of the glacier for approximately 1½ hour, while we hope to spot some amazing calvings and enjoy lunch.

Around 2pm, we land at Port Victor, the harbour at Glacier Lodge Eqi. The camp guides will greet and show everybody their huts. Coffee and cake is served and practical information on the area is given. The rest of the day could be spent by joining the excursions that hike to the lagoon, the moraine and the glacier or enjoying the view from the huts.

You do not need to bring all your luggage along for these two days. We recommend that you only pack the most necessary in a day pack, since after arriving in Port Victor you have to carry you own luggage 400 m upwards to Glacier Lodge Eqi. Remember, however, it can be cold.

Meals

Accommodation

Day 4 - Hiking around the Glacier at Eqi

There are several options for hiking here to view all the angles of the Eqi Glacier. From the huts you can join an optional group hike around the small lagoon at the southern end of the glacier. There are often large flocks of geese in the lagoon in the breeding season. The hike goes further up the moraine where we can look down into the enormous cracks in the glacier few meters away from us. From here you will also get an overview of a large part of the 70m high glacier-front and see the impressive calvings from the glacier.

If you wish to join the optional hike, please book early.

Meals

Accommodation

Day 5 - Boat to Ilulissat

Today we travel back to Ilulissat by boat across Disko Bay.

Around 15 species of whale are regular visitors to Greenlandic waters, but only three of these - the beluga whale, the narwhal and the bowhead whale - remain in Greenland during the winter. Whale species such as the blue whale and killer whale are only rarely seen. During brief stays in Greenland in the summer season it is, however, usually completely different species that can be seen: the humpback whale, minke whale and fin whale. The humpback, in particular, is wonderful to see as it often comes up very close to the boats.

Rich in capelin for the whales to feed on, the Disko Bay waters are excellent places to watch for sea mammals of all types.

Meals

Accommodation

Days 6 - 7 - Optional excursions in Ilullissat

The next two days are free for optional activities around Ilullissat. There is plenty to do, however, if you wish to book a helicopter flight over the Icecap, please organize this with us before departure.

Meals

Accommodation

Day 8 - Flight to Reykjavik

You are transferred to the airport in the mid morning for flight from Ilulissat to Reykjavik Domestic Airport where the tour ends.

Meals

Important Information

If you wish to book a helicopter flight over the icecap, please organize this with us before departure.

Please note that standard huts at the Glacier Lodge Eqi have shared bath and toilet facilities. There is the possibility to upgrade to the new Comfort Cabins with private bathroom, shower, and heated floors or the glamping alternative, Wilderness Tents. In these tents, you can stand up to your full height, you get to sleep in a real bed and the tents are equipped with all the necessary furniture for a great camping experience.

The Wilderness Tents all have large windows which allow for a lot of light and a lovely atmosphere in the tent. All tents are built upon a wooden platform above the ground. Beautiful outdoor space surrounds each of the tents with a direct view of the calving glacier in Eqi. You’ll find sheets and towels in each tent and you have access to the joint bathing and toilet facilities next to Café Victor.