High Arctic Explorer

Cross the Arctic Circle
After your charter flight from Toronto, ON, you’ll transfer to the Ocean Endeavour by Zodiac.

Begin your journey by sailing down Kangerlussuaq Fjord (Søndre Strømfjord), a 190-kilometre-long fjord surrounded by mountains and glaciers, and cross the Arctic Circle on your way.

Kangerlussuaq, the settlement at the head of the fjord, is a former US Air Force base and Greenland’s primary flight hub.

Witness Stunning Glaciers, Islands, and Fjords
Explore West Greenland’s complex coastal waterways that includes glaciers, islands, and fjords against a towering mountain backdrop, with plentiful opportunities for hiking and Zodiac cruising.

Learn about the Saqqaq, Dorset, Thule, and modern Inuit cultures that have called the Sisimiut region home for the past 4,500 years.

The waters are relatively warm here, due to the West Greenland Current and the subarctic location.

Take a Zodiac Cruise Around Towering Icebergs
Visit the town of Ilulissat, with splendid museums, cafés, craft shops, and a busy fishing harbour.

View the icebergs from shore on a hike along the boardwalk at this UNESCO World Heritage Site, then board a Zodiac to cruise your way among them!

Ilulissat translates literally to “iceberg”—an apt name for this site at the mouth of the Sermeq Kujalleq glacier, a source of many of the icebergs in the North Atlantic.

Hike the Tundra
Choose the activity you like best during an expedition landing on Greenland’s stunning west coast.

Whether you prefer hiking, walking, photography, or sitting contemplatively, you’ll be delighted!

Admire the mighty mountains and the tiniest tundra flowers—a stop in this area will offer many outstanding features to pique your interest. 

Deepen your understanding of the Arctic as we steam across the Davis Strait towards Nunavut, Canada.

Enjoy workshops and presentations, watch a documentary, and get out on deck with your binoculars to look for whales, seabirds, and marine wildlife.

Attend a cultural performance put on by the talented Tununiq Arsarniit Theatre Group, featuring drum dancing, throat singing, and storytelling.

Mittimatalik is a busy Arctic community in a beautiful setting—the views of nearby Bylot Island are stunning!

Enjoy exploring the town and take the opportunity to purchase unique handcrafted mementos when available, too.

Seek Whales, Seabirds, and Polar Bears
Spend four fun-filled days exploring Tallurutiup Imanga (Lancaster Sound), one of Canada's newest National Marine Conservation Areas.

Cruise by ship and by Zodiac in search of narwhal, beluga, and bowhead whales that transit and feed in this area.

Admire Devon Island’s unique geological character, with its flat-topped mountains, glacial valleys, and substantial ice cap. At the northern edge of Tallurutiup Imanga, it’s the largest uninhabited island on Earth at over 50,000 square kilometres.

Hike the tundra, cruise a glacier face, and keep your eyes peeled for polar bears and other wildlife from ship and from shore.

Visit archaeological sites with expert interpretation to learn about the human history of Inuit and their ancestors who once lived on this now-abandoned island.

Then catch a glimpse of more recent history when you visit the remains of a Royal Canadian Mounted Police and Hudson's Bay Company site at Dundas Harbour.

Visit a Franklin Expedition Historical Site
Pay your respects at this haunting memorial to Sir John Franklin’s failed expedition.

Learn the compelling history of the HMS Erebus and HMS Terror’s attempts to sail through the Northwest Passage.

Franklin’s crew overwintered at Beechey Island, where three of his men died, and numerous search parties later used the spot as a depot and rendezvous. Thomas Morgan of the HMS Investigator was buried here in 1854 alongside Franklin’s men.

Visit their graves and the ruins of nearby Northumberland House while contemplating the poignant history.

Wave a Fond Farewell
Say your goodbyes to the Arctic in Qausuittuq (Resolute). The community’s name, meaning “place with no dawn,” comes from its dark winters, but during your visit at the height of summer, you’ll experience the midnight sun—a time of no darkness.

Take in the unique geography and geology here, characterized by shoreline gravel flats, rocky coastal bluffs, and deposits of glacial moraine.

Learn about the significance of the origin of the hamlet; in 1953, Inuit from Inukjuak, Québec and Mittimatalik were relocated under false pretences by the Canadian government with the aim of asserting Canadian sovereignty.

Today the community is home to just under 250 people and is an important staging point for High Arctic research, tourism, and military activities.

Disembark the Ocean Endeavour and transfer by Zodiac to shore for your charter flight to Ottawa, ON.