The Arctic Circle Crossing ... What to expect if you're thinking about booking it

[xpcdoojk]

I appreciate your review!

 

jc

[ReneeFLL]

Thanks for the info. We will be doing the Arctic Circle next August.

[emeraldcity]

Our next stop was the geyser area. I had been warned there was no guarantee the main geyser would spout any higher than a few feet, but it put on a relatively impressive show and everyone was suitable impressed. Sorry I can't provide any pictures of the great moment. I had equipped myself with a portable charger for my phone but left the charger cord back in the cabin. No one around me on the bus had one for an iPhone ... or else they just weren't feeling particularly neighborly. In any event, I decided to conserve my remaining power for our last stop. After all, I've seen geysers before, but I've never stood on the edge of a tectonic plate -- that was the picture I needed to take home with me.

 

We headed for our last stop while the sun was slowly setting behind the overcast that had traded places with the periodic rain all day. Fortunately, dusk lingers at this latitude and we arrived at our destination with plenty of light left to explore this marvel. I took quite a few pictures of the edge of the cliff and the cracks made by the forces of the plate movements ... but they don't tell much of a story. They are simply little squares of a vast panorama. You have to stand in that spot and visually absorb the entire vista left and right to get  a sense of the amazing piece of this planet that you have the privilege to visit. It really can't be described. The only picture that makes any sense is the one right behind the edge of the cliff where there is a huge cleft in the rock and everyone took turns getting their picture taken there.

 

Our time there was brief, but to me it was the best stop of the day. Perhaps it was even my favorite place in Iceland. It was a unique experience for me and I still marvel whenever I look back and remember those moments.

 

Of course, the other iconic thing to do in Reykjavik is the Blue Lagoon. Two members of our party did do an excursion that same time to go there and they said it was a wonderful experience. One of them was pretty hesitant about going in the first place but he reported back that he's so glad he did and he really enjoyed it.

 

We headed back to Reykjavik and arrived back at the ship sometime after 9:00. Mind you, there were 5 buses doing the Golden Circle and a great number of buses doing other excursions. Our Blue Lagoon folks got back shortly after we did. And Royal Caribbean made sure we were taken care of. As we got off the buses into the cold, there was a table set up before the gangway serving hot chocolate. An officer was announcing that the Windjammer would be open until. "Until what?" we asked. "Until..." he replied. The security scanning set-up was located inside a bit so that people weren't standing on the gangway in the lousy weather waiting for people to get through screening. We dumped out coats in the cabin and went up to get something to eat ... and found that it wasn't a partial buffet awaiting us. The entire Windjammer was stocked with a wide variety of dinner offerings and plenty of desserts. We thanked every member of the crew we saw up there ... repeatedly. They don't get paid extra when they have to give up their free evening or their chance to go to bed early since they have to be up before dawn.

 

 

Edited October 12, 2022 by emeraldcity

[emeraldcity]

Day 2 in Reykjavik was to be our Hop-on/Hop-off day to explore the city. Armed with the information that the buses run every 20-30 minutes, we set off down the pier to find the stop where we would catch the bus. It is not very well marked. This is one of those times when you have to be willing to ask for directions ... and I'm a girl; I don't have a problem doing that.

 

In any event, our bus showed up about 20 minutes after we found the stop and we hopped on. The grand plan was to take the bus to Stop 9 (the iconic church), and then walk back down through the town doing some shopping and exploring and perhaps getting something to eat ... on the way to Stop 7. We would then take the bus back to the ship getting a chance to see the rest of the city and listen to the recorded tour. Since the ship was Stop 16, we figured as long as we got a bus shortly after 3:00 we'd easily be back before the 4:30 all-aboard.

 

I'd seen plenty of pictures of the church so the exterior loses a bit of the impact when you've done a bit too much planning. But the inside was a real find. Simplistic and Peaceful. I was suitably impressed. I'm not posting a picture of that ... I don't want to spoil it for you. I was quite taken by the statue of Leif Ericsson  ... very well done. 

 

So then we wandered down toward Stop 7, poking our nose in some shops and leaving some money behind. Eventually we arrived at Stop 7 before 3:00 and waited for our bus. By 3:20 we were still waiting, and stress was starting to become part of the experience. We huddled and decided to see if we could get a taxi. The nearby police station was our target and Doreen volunteered to play the damsel-in-distress to get them to call us 2 taxies. They grudgingly agreed and four of us crowded into the first one, while the fifth member of our party agreed to share his taxi with 3 women who had joined us by this time (they also had planned on taking the Hop-on bus back to the ship). As our taxi pulled away at 3:40, I looked back at the bus stop where several other cruisers were still waiting and wondered how long they'd hold out before they decided it was time to walk. Sorry about all that boring detail, but I want to make others aware that counting on that bus may not be in your best interest.

 

So we got back in time and got several more photos as the ship pulled away. Next stop -- Greenland.

Edited October 12, 2022 by emeraldcity

[RHDZ]

In Reykjavik, was it a Royal excursion or did you use a private company? 

We have a cruise booked in June 2023 and looking at excursions now. 

Thank you for all the information and pictures.

[FionaMG]

I would love to do a cruise like this one day. Thanks for sharing. 😊

[emeraldcity]

1 hour ago, RHDZ said:

In Reykjavik, was it a Royal excursion or did you use a private company? 

We have a cruise booked in June 2023 and looking at excursions now. 

Thank you for all the information and pictures.

I used Royal Excursions. I looked at private ones and they were scheduled to return  us rather close to sailing time. It wasn't worth the risk.

[emeraldcity]

The scheduled itinerary was to have us at sea for one day (Sunday) at this point, followed by a cruise through Prins Christian Sund on Monday and then port calls on Tuesday and Wednesday. We were soon to learn that there would be some changes due to weather and icebergs. We ended up with two sea days, a port call on Tuesday and the Sund on Wednesday. Since none of my group had tours booked, we didn't have any re-arranging to do. And we are big fans of sea days, so we enjoyed the bonus day on board.

 

We went to bed to the sound of the foghorn, we rolled over in the middle of the night to the sound of the foghorn, we woke up to the sound of the foghorn. The fog lifted from time to time, and then descended again. Taking a stroll on the outer decks held little appeal, but we found plenty to do inside. Doreen had packed Rummikub and we spent many afternoons playing that. It was a bit challenging to locate a table of adequate size, but we made do with tiny bar tables pushed together, if necessary. And there were trivia games to test our knowledge with. It is interesting to note that the Voyager had no prizes to award. Apparently Royal Caribbean has run out of keychains. I know that is hard to believe, but there you have it. Despite the advertised lack of prizes, they still packed the room for trivia games. There was also the He said/She said game every sea day in the Star Lounge. This pitted the ladies against the guys, with a certificate to be awarded to all members of the winning team ... more on that later.

 

When we finally got a chance to step foot on Greenland soil, it was in the colorful town of Qaqortoq. Frankly, the number one topic the previous day was how to pronounce Qatortoq. We came up with something we think was pretty close, but I was careful not to test it on the locals. I'm sure they get plenty of chuckles from the various attempts they overhear.

 

This was a "wander the town" kind of stop. There were carvings in the stone as you made your way out of the port area. And there was a big plastic boot that just screamed to be part of a photo shoot. I couldn't help notice that a large number of apartments had their windows cracked open. Apparently, it must have been a rather warm day by Greenland standards.

 

There was a limited amount of shopping and the stores were doing a brisk business. From what I could see, much of what was for sale was made locally ... but that's just a guess. As for me, I got a genuine piece of Greenland for my souvenir. I found a great piece of granite lying just below the big plastic boot. It even matches my new bathroom countertop. And I have no idea where my countertop came from, but I clearly have enough evidence now to declare it "probably" came from Greenland. Of course, someone is bound to post that there are no quarries in Greenland and ruin my fun.

 

And that stone stairway nestled in the grass ... doesn't it just beg to be climbed?

 

 

 

Edited October 13, 2022 by emeraldcity

[Sunshine3601]

I'm loving your review and photos.   Thank you for sharing with us🤩

[Another_Critic]

1 hour ago, emeraldcity said:

When we finally got a chance to step foot on Greenland soil, it was in the colorful town of Qaqortoq.

 

And that stone stairway nestled in the grass ... doesn't it just beg to be climbed?

 

 

 I walked down the stairway.  🙂

 

Edited October 13, 2022 by Another_Critic

[emeraldcity]

They saved the best for the last. I hadn't research Prins Christian Sund, so I didn't have any preconceived notions. It was a discovery at every turn. From the moment my roommate whipped the curtains aside to display the view till the time we left the sund (about 8 hours later), it was majestic ... stunning ... awesome. It was the highlight of the cruise. And after so much rain and fog on this trip, we were finally blessed with a clear sunny day. Perfect for taking those pictures. This experience alone is worth every dime we spent to get here.

 

 

[emeraldcity]

[emeraldcity]

[emeraldcity]

[Another_Critic]

13 minutes ago, emeraldcity said:

IMG_6981.MOV

Nice video.  🙂

 

Did you see/feel when we hit an iceberg?   I was on the bow and there was quite a jolt after we hit.

[emeraldcity]

10 minutes ago, Another_Critic said:

Nice video.  🙂

 

Did you see/feel when we hit an iceberg?   I was on the bow and there was quite a jolt after we hit.

Actually no. I didn’t realize we nailed one. I did note that the ship tended to hug one side of the passage when there were icebergs on the other side. 

[geffric]

Thanks for sharing.. I am on this cruise next August/September on the Jewel OTS..now I am getting very excited..

Edited October 13, 2022 by geffric

[emeraldcity]

After leaving Greenland, we had 3 sea days before we reached Boston. My flight home would be a direct one, but it wasn't leaving Boston until 8:30 p.m. Generally, I would find this a pretty outrageous schedule, but not in Boston. This was going to leave me enough time to stash my bags at a holding facility and go get New England Clam Chowder ... in a bread bowl, of course. 

 

We encountered fog again a few hours after leaving Greenland and the mournful foghorn came back into play. As we made our way down the western coast of Newfoundland, we hit rough seas from current apparently coming from the St. Lawrence Seaway (according to the captain). Add that to the wind and it played havoc with the neat rows of lashed loungers on the deck. I hope nobody was out there trying to negotiate the running track.

 

We had our final day of He/Said/She Said and the ladies won. The certificate is worth a read. Sounds great until you read the disclaimer on the bottom.

 

When we arrived in Boston three of my cruise buddies agreed that a trip to Quincy Market sounded like a great idea and off we headed. The clam chowder was amazing ... I knew it would be. It was a great way to end a wonderful trip and I look forward to the next time our group can get together on another cruise. I hope it won't be three years before it happens this time.

[clochette]

thank you for your review, I would love to do this cruise, and your review makes me even more eager.

[ssb]

On 10/13/2022 at 9:26 AM, Another_Critic said:

Nice video.  🙂

 

Did you see/feel when we hit an iceberg?   I was on the bow and there was quite a jolt after we hit.

Yes

[ssb]

On your own , Go to Sky Lagoon rather than Blue Lagoon . 

Recently built and where the  locals go .

And in town and much closer than Blue .  

Great views .

 

Edited October 14, 2022 by ssb

[swmichigan cruiser]

Thanks for posting all of this. Looks like your itinerary was very similar to the one we had booked on the Serenade for next fall. Of course Royal did cancel that one but we did switch to the Jewel for next fall but does a somewhat similar itinerary so this does help us.

[Airbear232]

Thank you for the great review, you gave me something new to add to the bucket list.