Iceland and Greenland with Explore Worldwide

In August ’03 I joined a 15-day Iceland and Greenland tour with Explore Worldwide, the arrangements made through their U.S. contact, Adventure Center (1311 63rd St., Ste. 200, Emeryville, CA 94608; phone 800/227-8747, e-mail ex@adventurecenter.com).

This was a very interesting tour. The weather was warmer and drier than I’d expected, and the guide, whose name was Pietro, was well informed.

We started in Reykjavik, ICELAND. Our group of 22 bused around the island stopping at points of interest. The driver was excellent and the bus had plenty of room in which to spread out. We traveled daily from 9 a.m. to about 5 p.m.

Transportation, lodging, breakfasts and dinners were included in the tour price of $2,980, land. Excursions in Iceland were included in the price, but those in Greenland were all optional extras. If you chose all that was offered (hikes, town trips and boat trips), it could add up to an additional $500.

The airfare quoted to me by Adventure Center, round trip from Boston to Reykjavik, was $910; I made my own arrangements on the Internet and paid $622 on Icelandair. With extra meals, admission charges and so on, I spent another $300, making my total cost $4,500 for 17 days — and I enjoyed every minute of it.

Accommodations were mostly in dormitories of boarding schools, with shared toilet and shower facilities. Also, breakfasts and dinners were provided in the dining halls.

Iceland being volcanic, the terrain was varied, with many hot springs in which to bathe. Thermal water is used for all hot-water needs on the island, including for industrial use, bathing in the home and raising produce in greenhouses.

After a free day in Reykjavik, I flew to Kulusuk, Greenland, where, in this village of about 250 people, there was a helicopter waiting to take me to Tasiilaq, also called Ammassalik, on the east coast of Greenland.

Hotel Angmagssalik (phone +299 98 12 93) is located on one of the high hills. The view overlooking the town and the fjord was beautiful! The small houses are painted in bright colors, the water in the fiord was a beautiful blue color and the icebergs floating around made for a very picturesque sight! This town has about 1,000 inhabitants.

The guide here was a very nice young man, though he was not very well informed. I did enjoy the town tour as well as a boat trip to another small village where along the way we saw humpback and minke whales that came very close to our boat plus many, many beautiful icebergs. I also took hikes on my own. Be sure to take your “bug netting” for any walking around!

I truly enjoyed this entire trip and hope sometime to go to the west coast of Greenland.

These countries are expensive to travel, but I think they’re worth it!

ELIZABETH L. MOORE
New London, CT