SCHEDULE AND COST:
Dates: August 9 - 18, 2024
Duration of cruise: 9 days / 8 nights
Cost per person* (based on TWIN accommodation):
- Cabin with window OM4 19 sq.m 10298$ 6735$
- Cabin with balcony BM5 28 sq.m - 11767$ 8235$
- Cabin with balcony BD6 28 sq.m - 12892$ 9135$
- Suit 44 sq.m - 14878$ 11010$
- Premiun Suite - 17216$ 12135$
* The price is indicated for 1 passenger with accomodation in the DBL cabin and may change. Availability of cabins please check with the manager.
Everything is included (except for flight and medical insurance).
Estimated cost of the flight to Rejkjavik : EUR 1 000 - 1 500.
TRAVEL PROGRAM: TOUR TO ANTARCTICA
Day 0. August 9, 2024. Departure to Reykjavik
Your expedition begins with a meeting at the airport of the northernmost capital of the world - Reykjavik. You will be met by a Swan Hellenic representative. The transfer will take you to the hotel. The next morning after breakfast, all members of the expedition will be taken to the port in an organized manner for registration on board the ship and departure for the expedition cruise.
Meals Included: No
Hotel accommodation
Day 1. August 10, 2024. Reykjavik
Reykjavík, despite its small size, is the capital of Iceland. At the top of the town stands the distinctive Hallgrímskirkja church, designed by renowned Icelandic architect Guðjón Samúelsson. The revitalised harbour area features the futuristic Harpa Concert Hall and the Maritime Museum, showcasing the city's cultural heritage A trip to Reykjavík would be incomplete without a visit to the Blue Lagoon, famous for its therapeutic geothermal waters.
Meals: all inclusive
Accommodation: in cabins on the yacht
Day 2. August 11, 2024 Dynyandi Waterfall
Considered one of Iceland's most impressive falls, the thunderous Dynjandi waterfall in the Westfjords region gives the impression of a bridal veil as it spreads down ever-growing cascades. The walk takes 15 minutes passing five smaller waterfalls. Nearby, Hrafnseyri is the birthplace of Jón Sigurðsson, 19th-century leader of the Icelandic Independence movement. The museum includes an Icelandic turf house.
Meals: all inclusive
Accommodation: in cabins on the yacht
Day 3. August 12, 2024 Isafjordur and Vigur Island
Surrounded by fjords in the Westfjords region, Ísafjördur is a bustling fishing town in northwest Iceland with colourful wooden 18th- and 19th-century houses in its old town, Neskaupstadur. Nearby, Sudavik is home to the Arctic Fox Centre. Iceland's only mammal, the arctic fox, lives on the lush tundra of Hornstrandir Nature Reserve, the northernmost peninsula in the Westfjords with two of Europe's largest bird cliffs.
A jewel of the Westfjords, Vigur is the fjord's second-largest island and a thriving seabird sanctuary. Flocks of arctic terns, puffins, guillemots and eider ducks nest atop rocky cliffs. As one of only two inhabited islands, Vigur supports a family farm continuing the centuries-old eiderdown harvest across 3,500 nests. This remote pillar also houses Iceland's sole windmill, its tiniest post office and a 200-year-old, still-seaworthy rowing boat.
Meals: all inclusive
Accommodation: in cabins on the yacht
Day 4. August 13, 2024 Grimsey and Hrisey Islands.
Grímsey is a remote island located 40 km off Iceland's north coast. Many people travel here for the purpose of setting foot in the Arctic Circle, the only place in Iceland where you can. The island is also home to fewer than 100 people, but over one million seabirds. Birdlife thrives here thanks to the lack of egg predation and the well-stocked surrounding seas. Grímsey has one of Iceland's largest tern nesting sites and largest puffin colonies.
Hrisey Island is a small island in the Eyjafjordur fjord in northern Iceland. It is home to various wildlife, including puffins, seals, and whales. Hriseyjarfjall Mountain is the highest point and offers views of the surrounding landscape and the vast expanse of Eyjafjörður fjord. Despite its size, Hrisey Island possesses a rich cultural heritage. Traditional Icelandic crafts, such as hand-knitting and woodworking, preserve the island's identity.
Meals: all inclusive
Accommodation: in cabins on the yacht
Day 5. August 14, 2024 Akureyri
Iceland's second largest city, also referred to as its northern capital, is actually hardly a city, with only about 20,000 people. Akureyri is the gateway to Iceland's most beautiful natural attractions. Located at the mouth of the Eyjafjordur fjord, the city is surrounded by mountains on all sides. Thanks to them, Akureyri is protected from arctic winds. In the summer, Eyjafjordur is especially beautiful! In Akureyri itself, you can see the colorful old town, houses with peat roofs, well-preserved examples of ancient Icelandic dwellings, the Arctic Botanical Garden, the main church of Akureyri, which has become a symbol of the city, towering over the very center. Winters in Iceland are harsh, so Icelanders deal with seasonal depression in their own way: the traffic lights of this northern Icelandic city glow with red hearts. Ocean waters in the vicinity of Akureyri and Eyjafjordur abound with marine animals, especially whales, dolphins and porpoises. Not far from Akureyri is Lake Myvatn, the main attraction of northern Iceland. Huge lava fields, volcano craters, hot water cave, broken plates, giant frozen figures from lava, pseudocraters are found on the shores and in the vicinity of this lake. Nearby are the Game of Thrones filming locations and one of Iceland's most famous waterfalls, Godafoss. The vertical basalt walls of these cliffs smoothly turn into slopes overgrown with lupins. From here you can see the picturesque mountains of Iceland, located in the south, and the Arctic Ocean stretching to the very horizon, behind which the North Pole is hidden. Other attractions on the island include the Grimsey Church, built in 1867 from driftwood nailed to the shore, a lighthouse from 1937, a windmill, and a monument to American chess player Daniel Fiske, who became the island's patron after learning that chess was an important part of the life of the local population.
Meals: all inclusive
Accommodation: in cabins on the yacht
Day 6. August 15, 2024 Seydisfjordur
Brightly painted wooden houses line Seyðisfjörður's port, regarded as east Island's cultural hub with a lively arts scene disproportionate to its size. Seyðisfjörður has attracted writers and artists and hosts a summer arts festival. Surrounded by incredible nature, the nearby Skálanes nature reserve is known for its diverse wildlife with over 47 bird species, as well as 150 plant species. Reindeer, seals and porpoises often populate the area.
Meals: all inclusive
Accommodation: in cabins on the yacht
Day 7. August 16, 2024. Djupivogur
With Viking-era origins, Djupivogur, a tranquil fishing village with fewer than 500 residents, is renowned for its unhurried pace of life and the art installation 'The Eggs at Merry Bay,' featuring 34 granite eggs representing local bird species. Nearby, Vatnajökull National Park, covering 14 percent of Iceland, offers a wild expanse with Europe's largest ice cap, Vatnajökull Glacier, thundering glacial rivers and active volcanoes.
Meals: all inclusive
Accommodation: in cabins on the yacht
Day 8. August 17, 2024 Heimaey
Ten million Atlantic puffins make Heimaey, a 13-km square island in the Westman Islands off southern Iceland, the largest puffin colony in the world. Despite a population of 4,000 people, puffins have even been spotted in the town of Vestmannaeyjar. The fascinating Eldheimar museum charts the story of the town's devastation by lava from Eldfell volcano in 1973. Nearby, Vestmannaeyjar Bird Cliff is home to puffins, guillemots and razorbills.
Meals: all inclusive
Accommodation: in cabins on the yacht
Day 9. August 18, 2024. Reykjavik. Flight home
The cruise ends, the ship arrives in Reykjavik. After breakfast you will say goodbye
with crew and crew and go ashore. Depending on future plans for
Expedition members will be transferred to a hotel or Reykjavik airport.
Make sure there is sufficient time to explore this diminutive but dramatic capital city. Despite its small size, you won't be short of things to see and do. To get your bearings, take the elevator to the top of Hallgrímskirkja. This church, designed by famed Icelandic architect Gudjón Samuelsson is one of the most distinctive buildings in town. When you return to earth, visit the city's other renowned building Harpa Concert Hall, located at the heart of Reykjavík's regenerated harbour – also the home of the Maritime Museum.
Upon returning home, a pleasant surprise awaits you. By tradition, the Swan team
Hellenic will send each guest a link to download the film, which will include a photo essay and video report of the perfect expedition cruise for a long memory.
Meals: breakfast
Accommodation: no
* Please do not purchase tickets without prior approval from us.
** The program is subject to change due to weather conditions.