Iceland w/Greenland or Norway?

Good afternoon, all. Looking for some advice, please. We're looking at another cruise next summer and between work schedules and places we haven't yet been, we've got it narrowed down to two Explorer cruises. One is London-Reykjavik and the other is Reyjavik-Copenhagen. They're similar in price and length if you do a few days pre-cruise on the 12-day sailing. Neither of us have been to Iceland, Greenland, or Norway.

I'd appreciate any thoughts, suggestions, must-do activities, etc.

Thanks in advance!!

https://www.rssc.com/cruises/EXP170725/summary/default.aspx

Or:

https://www.rssc.com/cruises/EXP170809/summary/default.aspx

LONDON (SOUTHAMPTON) TO REYKJAVIK

VIEW CRUISE DETAILS

Jul 25 - Aug 9, 2017

15 Nights

Suite Fares From:

$14,999

Concierge Suite Fares From:

$17,199

Penthouse Suite Fares From:

$20,999

Seven Seas Explorer

Day 1: LONDON (SOUTHAMPTON), UNITED KINGDOM

Day 2: DARTMOUTH, UNITED KINGDOM

Day 3: DUBLIN, IRELAND

Day 4: AT SEA, INTERNATIONAL WATERS

Day 5: TORSHAVN, DENMARK

Day 6: AT SEA, INTERNATIONAL WATERS

Day 7: AKUREYRI, ICELAND

Day 8: ISAFJORDUR, ICELAND

Day 9: AT SEA, INTERNATIONAL WATERS

Day 10: AT SEA, INTERNATIONAL WATERS

Day 11: NUUK, GREENLAND

Day 12: PAAMIUT (FRDERISKSHAB), GREENLAND

Day 13: QAQORTOQ, GREENLAND

Day 14: AT SEA, INTERNATIONAL WATERS

Day 15: REYKJAVIK, ICELAND

Day 16: REYKJAVIK, ICELAND

REYKJAVIK TO COPENHAGEN

VIEW CRUISE DETAILS

Aug 9 - Aug 21, 2017

12 Nights

Suite Fares From:

$13,599

Concierge Suite Fares From:

$15,199

Penthouse Suite Fares From:

$18,299

Seven Seas Explorer

Day 1:REYKJAVIK, ICELAND

Day 2:ISAFJORDUR, ICELAND

Day 3:AKUREYRI, ICELAND

Day 4:AT SEA, INTERNATIONAL WATERS

Day 5:TORSHAVN, DENMARK

Day 6:LERWICK (SHETLAND ISLANDS), UNITED KINGDOM

Day 7:ÅLESUND, NORWAY

Day 8:BERGEN, NORWAY

Day 9:STAVANGER, NORWAY

Day 10:SKAGEN, DENMARK

Day 11:OSLO, NORWAY

Day 12:GOTHENBURG, SWEDEN

Day 13:COPENHAGEN, DENMARK

One cruise sails east and the other west.

One cruise sails east and the other west.

Actually, the London-Reykjavik sails north, then west, then east...

Ok . . Lol

We haven't been to Iceland (yet) but our favorite itinerary EVER was Norway. Since the second itinerary includes a bit of Iceland, I'd choose that one.

Norway has an interesting problem - with crabs. Long story, but, in order to feed people in Siberia, Russia transported Alaska King Crabs to Norway quite a long time ago. They have no predators so they keep multiplying and eating the fish. They are trying stop the growth. That is the problem....... the wonderful part is that they have the most delicious crab that we've ever tasted.

Everything we did in Norway was amazing. It was a magical experience. JMHO!

P.S. Can't resist posting this "sort of" on topic photo:

We haven't been to Iceland (yet) but our favorite itinerary EVER was Norway. Since the second itinerary includes a bit of Iceland, I'd choose that one.

 

Norway has an interesting problem - with crabs. Long story, but, in order to feed people in Siberia, Russia transported Alaska King Crabs to Norway quite a long time ago. They have no predators so they keep multiplying and eating the fish. They are trying stop the growth. That is the problem....... the wonderful part is that they have the most delicious crab that we've ever tasted.

 

Everything we did in Norway was amazing. It was a magical experience. JMHO!

 

P.S. Can't resist posting this "sort of" on topic photo:

 

So now I'm curious - are these still considered Alaskan King Crabs or are they officially Norwegian King Crabs?!? :D

PS - both listed itineraries have three stops in Iceland...that's why I'm soliciting opinions - so thank you for your reply and the awesome pic!

I would vote for Silver Explorer Longyearbyen to Greenland to Iceland 8 August 2017. Much better itinerary with chance to really see wildlife. I have almost 300 nights on Regent but still prefer Silverseas for exotic itineraries.

Marc

I would vote for Silver Explorer Longyearbyen to Greenland to Iceland 8 August 2017. Much better itinerary with chance to really see wildlife. I have almost 300 nights on Regent but still prefer Silverseas for exotic itineraries.

 

Marc

This is the one we're booked on 08/08/17 - 08/22/17. UUNetBill, why don't you join us? It's not Regent but in January we did Antarctica (including So Georgia) and were sold, it was fantastic! Like Marq said...you'll see more wild life... and it includes Norway, Greenland and Iceland. It's $$$ but it is ALL INCLUSIVE in the best way.

Marc, Marcie - this one looks interesting, to say the least...and I love colder weather, so this would be right up my alley. But unfortunately, most everything is waitlisted for this one, and our choices seem to be either a tiny suite or a bigger ($$$) suite. And from what I can tell, that's cruise-only pricing. Throw in airfare and that starts adding up quick...

If you have not been to Norway and Sweden I would go there. The ports in Greenland are not much to see. Some local houses and hikes across tundra.

Norway fjords are pretty marvelous to see. And the ShorEx's take you to the interior. So it is Viking vs Inuits.

J

Definitely Norway! Iceland was interesting, would recommend the Blue Lagoon, touristy but lots of fun. I was in Nuuk years ago on Crystal and swore I would never return, still haven't figured out why they wanted to go there. The Norwegian coastal cruise was heavenly. Scenery as good as Milford Sound and a lot closer.

I'm currently on the Iceland / Greenland cruise and I would suggest doing the one that hits Norway. All of those ports are amazing! I'm looking forward to Greenland because I have a couple of long runs planned for the ports, but there is nothing much to see there from what I've heard. I'll have the info about the Greenland ports on my other thread later this week.

Michael

Bill, both your Regent itineraries are winners--Iceland and Norway are visually stunning. Please see our Iceland pix below. We have visited (on Silversea) all of the Iceland ports you would visit. Also, below is a link to our SS cruise critic thread with pix of these Iceland, Dublin, Torshaven, Shetland island ports. Out of nearly two dozen cruises our London (sailing down the Thames) to London (which included spectacular: Reykjavik, Isafjordur, Akureyri, Torshavn, and Lerwick) was our absolute fav itinerary sailed.

For (Iceland ports and Shetland Island port, pls see the thread below beginning with post #119)

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1879827&highlight=london+to+london+on+silver+cloud&page=6

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1879827&highlight=london+to+london+on+silver+cloud

We are on the Silver Explorer cruise with Marcie and Marq, but on the two itineraries you list, I would pick the one with Norway. We have been to Iceland 3 times, Greenland once, and Norway twice. Greenland particularly is more suited to a smaller expedition style ship. So while I love Greenland, and am going back, I wouldn't do it on Regent. Just too big a ship for what is there.

Thanks to everyone for the input. Wes, thanks to you for the links to your previous posts. We have until mid-July to decide (so we can book on board) but as of right now we're leaning toward the Norway side of things.

But we're also thinking about SS for something a bit different, too. 😜

Bill - While I agree with many of the posters who have suggested that the Norway option is probably a bit better than the other one, you might want to check the itinerary for the Norway stops to determine whether any of them really include fjords, the treasure of Norway. That itinerary is certainly not the classic Norway cruise with an accent upon the magnificent Norwegian fjords. As I recall from our Norway cruises, none of the ports listed for Norway are closely related to fjords. They do, however, have many other pleasures. Cheers, Fred

I would choose the second one, hitting Norway etc. Why ? On the first one you are spending a lot of time in international waters :-), not much to see. Greenland and Iceland are pretty, but to see much you will need to get inland and I'm not sure the Regent itinerary will allow enough time. Norway on the other hand has a lot of things to see....heck even if the ship only visits one of the many fjords, it's stunning.

just my 2cents

Will keep this short, and to the point. As would be apparent, and having visited all these sites--beginning with Holland America to Norway in 1995; followed by Silversea in 1997 and 1998; then Seabourn via "Sojourn" in 2010; and subsequently to Greenland and Iceland via either sea or land excursions.

Given realities of time and treasure, take Norway every time. Particularly on those ships which can dock at the smaller ports without need of tendering. Then, just walk ashore; and hike into the hills overlooking the various fjords. Gaze down to the green landscape, waterfalls, and quaint cottages.

So--Sue and I will be aboard QM2, certainly a larger vessel, beginning August 9th from Brooklyn to Hamburg; then continuing on yet-another Norwegian adventure to Oslo and north. Perhaps see some of you folks on either the first, or second leg(s) in about a month.

GO ARMY!

Another vote for Norway!!!!!

That's why I love this board (when it's not fluffed up with petty bickering) - there are many helpful people wth an abundance of knowledge that can help other folks maximize their cruise time enjoyment!

We were leaning toward the Norway choice before, but now it's pretty much decided...thank you again to everyone who chimed in, we appreciate the help and insight!

We booked the Norway to Copenhagen cruise in Aug of 2017. See you on board??????

Thanks to everyone for the input. Wes, thanks to you for the links to your previous posts. We have until mid-July to decide (so we can book on board) but as of right now we're leaning toward the Norway side of things.

 

But we're also thinking about SS for something a bit different, too. 😜

We are also considering the Norway cruise you mentioned. What is the advantage of booking on board? We are on the Mariner (NY-Montreal) in September and could wait to book til then. If you receive a better deal by booking on board could I still transfer the booking to my TA?

We are also considering the Norway cruise you mentioned. What is the advantage of booking on board? We are on the Mariner (NY-Montreal) in September and could wait to book til then. If you receive a better deal by booking on board could I still transfer the booking to my TA?

First, anything you book onboard goes automatically to your TA on record (or another TA if you wish). In addition to having a price guarantee (in case prices go down - highly unlikely) you will receive a booking credit.

The amount varies depending upon both the itinerary and your suite category. For the itinerary being discussed on this thread, you would receive a $400/person booking credit for the lowest two categories, $475/person for F1-F2 categories, $500/person for categories D-E, $600/person for A-C and it goes up to $2,000/person for the Regent Suite!

IMO, booking onboard is a nice benefit.

I'm curious to know why Geirangerfjord isn't on this itinerary-- or maybe I'm just missing it? I was under the impression that it's one of the not-to-be-missed parts of Norway, no?

I wish this itinerary-- or something like it-- were on Voyager rather than Explorer, as I suspect it'd be less expensive if that were the case. Though could be wrong about that too.

I wish this itinerary-- or something like it-- were on Voyager rather than Explorer, as I suspect it'd be less expensive if that were the case. Though could be wrong about that too.

Unfortunately, I believe that this itinerary would be expensive on any of the ships. Our 28 night Voyager cruise (mostly in Norway) was unfordable for us. We only were able to do it because we were given an offer to give up our Asian itinerary and take the Scandinavian one. As you probably know, the Scandinavian countries are extraordinary expensive. I'm sure this affects the pricing for these cruises.

As an aside, our Explorer transatlantic cruises are so reasonably priced that we could not believe it. Yes - they are transatlantic but our November cruise has 5 port days in a row at the beginning and 2 port days at the end.... a nice itinerary.