Greenland/Iceland Itinerary from Cape Liberty

[MarieF4861]

I am considering Greenland/Iceland cruise from Cape Liberty on the Celebrity Silhouette for 2025. I would love to hear from others who have done this itinerary in the past, particularly what you did in the ports and how expensive excursions were.I am somewhat concerned about spending 12 days on a ship. The longest cruise I have ever taken was 9 days.Thanks.

[Luvcrusn]

We are doing Greenland/Iceland from Cape Liberty on Eclipse on August 4 of this year. You might want to check out the Roll Call for some information of what some have planned.

[ridgecrest]

We did the B2B Canada, Greenland, Iceland on the Celebrity Summit in August of 2022.  The ship left from Cape Liberty but returned to Boston.  We absolutely loved every moment of the 24 days even though we spent 7 of the days quarantined with Covid on the second leg.  We had an oceanview cabin at the very front of the ship on deck 6 which gave us beautiful views especially when we went through the Prins Christian Sund.

 

We had visited the Canadian ports on prior cruises but enjoyed them none the less.  The excursions were quite pricey but sold out very quickly.  However, there were other slightly cheaper options as fellow cruisers set up private excursions and gave CC roll call folks opportunities to join them.  So, I suggest that you join the roll call and stay active up to your cruise.

 

We did a puffin and whale watching excursion I believe at St. John's.  We just walked around Qaqortoq. We did another sea life excursion in Akureyri.  I forget what we had planned for Isafjordur but we missed it because of rough seas and we were sick on the return to this port.  We had an excursion planned for Reykjavik but Celebrity fumbled the ball on how they went about processing those doing the back to back.  They took so long that we had to cancel our excursion.  

 

A couple of tips.

Dress in layers

Take a mosquito net that goes over your hat to cover your face and neck in case the bugs are out in full force.

Have fun

[Ken the cruiser]

6 hours ago, ridgecrest said:

We did the B2B Canada, Greenland, Iceland on the Celebrity Summit in August of 2022.  The ship left from Cape Liberty but returned to Boston.  We absolutely loved every moment of the 24 days even though we spent 7 of the days quarantined with Covid on the second leg.  We had an oceanview cabin at the very front of the ship on deck 6 which gave us beautiful views especially when we went through the Prins Christian Sund.

 

We had visited the Canadian ports on prior cruises but enjoyed them none the less.  The excursions were quite pricey but sold out very quickly.  However, there were other slightly cheaper options as fellow cruisers set up private excursions and gave CC roll call folks opportunities to join them.  So, I suggest that you join the roll call and stay active up to your cruise.

 

We did a puffin and whale watching excursion I believe at St. John's.  We just walked around Qaqortoq. We did another sea life excursion in Akureyri.  I forget what we had planned for Isafjordur but we missed it because of rough seas and we were sick on the return to this port.  We had an excursion planned for Reykjavik but Celebrity fumbled the ball on how they went about processing those doing the back to back.  They took so long that we had to cancel our excursion.  

 

A couple of tips.

Dress in layers

Take a mosquito net that goes over your hat to cover your face and neck in case the bugs are out in full force.

Have fun

We were on this Aug 2022 B2B as well but in an aft-facing Aqua cabin and had an awesome time! You can see my Live From thread in my below signature area, which highlights what we did in the various ports, what we saw along the way, and what we did on the ship. Hope this helps.

[Mangrove Snapper]

We did this on the Summit in August, 2022. 

 

In Halifax, we took a tour to Peggy's Cove in the morning and then a Titanic tour in the afternoon which went to the Maritime Museum, cemetery, and throughout the city.  In St. John's, we took a city tour, went to the Rooms Museum, and then had lunch and visited shops.

 

In Qaqortoq, we took a boat to the Hvalsey church ruins and later a boat tour to view icebergs.  We also explored Qaqortoq on foot.  We had an Aqua cabin and spent some time there during the sail through Prins Christian Sund but also went up on deck to see other views.

 

In Akureyri we explored the city on foot, had lunch at a hot dog stand (I love Icelandic hot dogs) and later in the afternoon did a tour which went to a local dairy farm for ice cream and then to a horse farm.  In Isafjordur we took a tour to make chocolates in the town of Sudavik, went to the Arctic Fox Center, and then had lunch and explored Isafjordur.

 

We disembarked in Reykjavik and stayed for a few days.  I've been to Iceland multiple times but my husband had never been so we toured the city, went to a Viking Museum and a Whale Museum, did the Golden Circle tour, went to the Blue Lagoon, took a tour of the South Coast and to the Jokulsarlon glacier lagoon and did a boat tour of the icebergs there. 

 

The trip was really enjoyable.  There was plenty to do onboard, though the activity I remember most is the polar plunge. 

[MarieF4861]

Thanks for the info. I have never been to Iceland and would want to spend a couple of days in Reykjavik at the end of the cruise.I have read it is quite expensive there.So, I am trying to anticipate what all this would cost when I factor in airfare, hotel, and excursions.Thanks for the tip about joining the roll call.  Also, about packing layers. That was going to be my next question - weather/clothing. Sounds similar to an Alaska cruise. I guess you need to be a strategic packer in order to make the weight requirements for the flight home!  And, as I said the longest I have ever cruised was 9 days.  This is 12, plus a couple of days in Reykjavik - a long vacation for me and, as I said, a packing challenge!  Ridgecrest - I can't imagine doing 24 days, although I would much rather cruise than fly!

[gretnagirl]

My family and I did this cruise in August of 2022 and it was amazing!  The ABSOLUTE highlight was cruising Prins Christian Sund.  As we were on the inaugural sailing of this itinerary, I think it's safe to say that no one really knew what to expect and we weren't prepared for what was to come, and I think that's one of the reasons why it was so impactful.  We went in with zero expectations and had our minds blown!

 

My parents and I were up on deck in the early morning (before 7am, I'm sure) and I happened to walk past the cruise director on my way onto the deck who was commenting on the fact that so few people were outside and why would they be missing this?  My immediate thought was because none of us knew "this" was a thing!  We happened to get out just as we were entering the sound (we were on the eastbound itinerary from New Jersey to Iceland) and the only word I have to describe the experience is otherwordly.  We spent almost eight hours outside that day, from the time we entered the sound until we were back out in the open ocean.  The bookends of this passage were unreal; from the sheer cliffs at the entrance to the stories-tall icebergs we sailed past after exiting, it was astounding.  I highly suggest that you pack enough layers to support a day spent on deck and get up as high as you can.  You will want to be able to walk back and forth between the sides of the ship as the scenery is different on the two sides.  The temperature was for sure in the single digits (Celsius) but we're hardy Canadians and it truly didn't bother us at all.  As they say: There's no such thing as bad weather, only bad clothes!

 

Beyond that, we did a ship tour to Peggy's Cove in Halifax; took a taxi to Signal Hill, Quidi Vidi, and The Rooms (a museum) and then wandered our way back to the ship; wandered around Qaqortoq, but be warned that if you're there on a Sunday, nothing will be open; we did a full-day tour in Akureyri and saw all the highlights; simply got off the ship and wandered around Isafjordur; and then we spent an additional five days in and around Reykjavik.  

 

This was a phenomenal trip and one that I would happily do again.  I don't think you'll find landscapes like those in Greenland or Iceland anywhere else on earth and I don't think you'd be able to see Prins Christian Sund without a ship.  It was truly the highlight of our trip, by a long shot.  I will try to include some pictures for you but bear in mind that they simply do not do the area justice.  Some things you just have to see (with your own eyes) to believe!

[Ken the cruiser]

Thanks for posting those awesome pictures! They definitely brought back a bunch of memories! On the second leg of that August 2022 B2B, we even saw the Northern Lights around 11 pm as the Summit was leaving Iceland heading towards Greenland. 😁

 

[Torfamm]

I can recommend this Iceberg Safari by RIB boat. It was spectacular even on a rainy day. The survival suits they have you wear kept us warm and dry 

https://sagalands.com/tour-item/icebergsafari/

 

 

[vino123]

Thank you for all your wonderful photos especially the Prins Christian Sund @gretnagirl. We are on the Eclipse 16th Aug Iceland and Greenland cruise and are especially looking forward to the sail through the sound and the chance to visit Greenland.

@KenTheCruiser amazing that you saw the Northern Lights in August, we shall keep our fingers crossed and our eyes peeled. We have a sunset veranda cabin so hopefully we should get a great view if they are visible!

[Ken the cruiser]

1 minute ago, vino123 said:

Thank you for all your wonderful photos especially the Prins Christian Sund @gretnagirl. We are on the Eclipse 16th Aug Iceland and Greenland cruise and are especially looking forward to the sail through the sound and the chance to visit Greenland.

@KenTheCruiser amazing that you saw the Northern Lights in August, we shall keep our fingers crossed and our eyes peeled. We have a sunset veranda cabin so hopefully we should get a great view if they are visible!

Great cabin choice, especially for this cruise! That photo was taken from our aft-facing Aqua cabin! 😀

[RichYak]

Here's what my wife and I did last year.

 

Halifax: Self guided walking tour based on this GPS My City walk. The Public Gardens are spectacular and we enjoyed the Citadel also. We had lunch at Salty's right on the waterfront and spent the afternoon on the boardwalk.

 

St. Johns: We planned to taxi over to Signal Hill but the weather wasn't great. We ended up walking around downtown and had lunch at a local pub before returning to the ship.

 

Greenland: We just walked around the town. Bring mosquito netting!

 

Prins Christain Sund: Be up on deck for this. The fjord is incredibly beautiful and there are views on both sides of the ship.

 

Akureyri: We rented a car to maximize our time. EuropCar has an office right at the port. We visited the Laufus Museum, Viti Crater, Myvatn, Dimmuborgir lava field, and the Godafoss falls. Incredible day. No bus tour could have gotten us to all these places in the time we had available.

 

Isafjordur: We did a Dynjandi & The Westfjords tour with Arctic Shorex.

 

Reykjavik: I organized a private tour with members of our Cruise Critic roll call. It was the Golden Circle and Kerid Crater Tour with Nice Travel. We were picked up at the cruise port, did the full day tour, and the driver made multiple stops near each of our hotels at the end of the day.

[jwlane]

1 hour ago, RichYak said:

 

Akureyri: We rented a car to maximize our time. EuropCar has an office right at the port. We visited the Laufus Museum, Viti Crater, Myvatn, Dimmuborgir lava field, and the Godafoss falls. Incredible day. No bus tour could have gotten us to all these places in the time we had available.

 

 

That's what we did---probably the best day ashore we've ever had.

[NutsAboutGolf]

St John's has a hop on hop off bus

 

https://saintjohn.ca/en/transit/city-bus-tours $35/adult

Edited June 12 by NutsAboutGolf

[RichYak]

1 hour ago, NutsAboutGolf said:

St John's has a hop on hop off bus

 

https://saintjohn.ca/en/transit/city-bus-tours $35/adult

The Greenland/Iceland cruise calls on St John's Newfoundland. The link you posted is for Saint John New Brunswick.

[NutsAboutGolf]

5 hours ago, RichYak said:

The Greenland/Iceland cruise calls on St John's Newfoundland. The link you posted is for Saint John New Brunswick.

 

Wrong Saint John website (lol) but you seemingly can't purchase tickets online anyway.  We had to purchase them in person at the HOHO booth outside of the Alt Hotel on Water St.  Here's the one we did

[MarieF4861]

The pictures are amazing!!!! I did not even know about Prins Christian Sund.until I posted this question. I did not see it listed in the itinerary!

[NutsAboutGolf]

I'll share some random 2023 Cape Liberty to Iceland details and I'm not entirely sure if this all repeats in 2024+

-During sail-away, an NYPD helicopter performed a few flybys; if this sounds appealing to you unless you're on a select few balconies you can see upwards, you'll want to be on the deck

-While sailing we crossed into the Arctic Circle, X put a personalized Arctic Circle certificate in our room.  There was a $599 tour for our sailing that would fly you on a small plane to an island in the Arctic Circle

-We didn't get to see the northern lights on our sailing but the return from Iceland to NJ/NY did see them

-On the return, for whatever reason they changed the Greenland port to Nanortalik

-When sailing in and out of the ports in Greenland and Iceland, you see icebergs of all sizes, the ship got very close to the small ones

-In Reykjavík, Iceland, there's a free shuttle that goes from the port to the central downtown location of Harpa Concert Hall

[NutsAboutGolf]

[gold1953]

11 hours ago, NutsAboutGolf said:

 

Wrong Saint John website (lol) but you seemingly can't purchase tickets online anyway.  We had to purchase them in person at the HOHO booth outside of the Alt Hotel on Water St.  Here's the one we did

Saint John is a port city in New Brunswick and St John's a port city in Newfoundland. It confuses many