Gunta and Greg Larsen were looking for an expedition cruise that colored outside the lines when they found a 15-day coastal Japan cruise offered through Lindblad Expeditions and National Geographic. And that's exactly what they got.
22.08.2023 - 13:45 / thepointsguy.com
The adventures of Erik the Red are the inspiration for another epic new itinerary from Holland America.
The Seattle-based cruise line on Tuesday revealed plans for a nearly monthlong sailing to the Arctic inspired by the routes that the famed Norse explorer followed a thousand years ago.
The 28-night voyage on the 2,666-passenger Nieuw Statendam will stop at some of the most scenic parts of Iceland — Erik the Red's original home. It'll also stop in Greenland, which he explored, and the Arctic portion of Norway.
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Erik the Red is credited for establishing the first European settlement on Greenland after being exiled from Iceland and setting out to explore westward. He's also credited with giving Greenland its current name. He was the father of Leif Erikson, one of the first Europeans to reach North America.
The new Arctic itinerary — dubbed the Arctic Circle Crossing: Greenland and Iceland — will kick off in Rotterdam in the Netherlands on June 29, 2025. It'll bring calls at 15 ports across five countries.
The trip will start with travel up the coast of Norway to Alesund and Trondheim before crossing the Arctic Circle on the way to Honningsvag and Tromso. From there, it'll continue with a westward ocean crossing to Ittoqqortoormiit on the east coast of Greenland.
In addition to being well above the Arctic Circle, Honningsvag is, notably, the northernmost city in mainland Norway and the gateway to North Cape — the northernmost point in Europe accessible by car.
On the way to Ittoqqortoormiit, Nieuw Statendam will sail around rarely visited Jan Mayen, a volcanic island in the Arctic Ocean known for its active volcano — the northernmost active volcano in the world.
From Ittoqqortoormiit, Nieuw Statendam will head southward to Iceland for stops at Akureyri and Isafjordur before traveling westward to the western side of Greenland. Stops will include Nuuk, Sisimiut, Ilulissat and Nanortalik. This leg of the trip will include three more crossings of the Arctic Circle (two southbound and one northbound).
Related: Holland America is out with another wowzer of a cruise itinerary
After sailing along the west coast of Greenland, Nieuw Statendam will return eastward to Iceland for an overnight stay in the capital city of Reykjavik.
The voyage will end with stops at Stornoway on the Scottish isle of Lewis; Invergordon, Scotland; and Dover, England.
Four of the stops on the itinerary — Nuuk, Ittoqqortoormiit, Sisimiut and Ilulissat — will be maiden calls for Holland America.
The new Arctic itinerary is the latest addition to a new series of so-called Legendary Voyages that Holland America unveiled earlier this year. The extra-long sailings,
Gunta and Greg Larsen were looking for an expedition cruise that colored outside the lines when they found a 15-day coastal Japan cruise offered through Lindblad Expeditions and National Geographic. And that's exactly what they got.
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