North West Passage, Bering Sea & Inside Passage

Warmed by the Gulf Stream as well as by highly active thermal hot springs and volcanoes, Iceland is somewhat misnamed. While it is a stark and barren country with three huge areas of glaciers, one theory is that early Norsemen sought to mislead other potential settlers by giving a pleasant name to fierce, inhospitable Greenland, and a forbidding name to the imminently habitable Iceland. Irish monks and hermits established themselves here in the 8th century, but left a century later when the pagan Norsemen arrived. Europe's first Parliament of General Assembly, the Althing, was established in the year 930 and still functions as the legislative body, although it was suspended by the Danes at the end of the 18th century and not reconvened until 1843. Reykjavik was the site picked by the island's first permanent resident, Ingolfur Arnarson in 874, and is home to more than half of the island's total population. The world's northernmost capital, Reykjavik is proud of its virtual lack of air pollution. Both electrical power and home heating are derived from the geothermal activity on the island. The city's large swimming pools are always warm, and in the countryside exotic fruits such as grapes and bananas are cultivated in greenhouses made cozy with the help of underground hot springs.

Sisimiut is Greenland’s second-largest town, and large by Greenland standards, housing some 6,000 people. It is located just north of the Arctic Circle, and is a popular base for visitors seeking adventurous pastimes in the surrounding country. Although there are no shore excursions planned for Sisimiut, guests may wish to investigate the local market, where the products of the country are sold, including meat from whales, reindeer, musk oxen and many kinds of fish. Watch for the stocky little Icelandic horses trotting along the highways, and keep an eye out for sea eagles often seen perched on the surrounding mountains. Whales are also often seen in the sea nearby. On the hill above the harbor, there is an artisan’s workshop where they create and sell Inuit crafts, and nearby is the town museum, which has examples of colonial period houses, peat houses and other early buildings.

Located in Disco Bay, Ilulissat is home to Sermeq Kujalleq, the fastest-moving glacier in the world. This tremendous river of ice flows from the Greenland Ice Shield toward the sea, funneling through a narrow opening at nearly 40 meters a day. Designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site, it is the “Mother of Icebergs” that fills its fjord and the bay with great quantities of floating icebergs that parade down the bay and into the Atlantic Ocean. No formal excursions are planned for the town, which is home to about 4,600 people and some 3,500 sled dogs.

Croker Bay is a 35 kilometer (20 miles) deep fjord on the southern shore of Devon Island and is flanked by colorful 450 metre (1,500’) high table-like mountains. The tidewater glacier at its head descends 20 kilometers (12 miles) from the icefield at the center of the island and terminates in spectacular cliffs of ice. Some 3.5 kilometers (2 miles) wide, the glacial front calves huge amounts of ice into the bay. Here polar bears, seals and even a pod of beluga whales can be seen travelling amongst the brash ice. To the east is the abandoned community of Dundas Harbour. The derelict buildings of the R.C.M.P. post are all that remain and serve as a silent reminder to the 52 Inuit that came here in 1934. Here, set amongst a landscape aglow in the colors of Arctic Autumn, lay the stark white crosses and picket fence enclosure of one of the most northerly cemeteries on Earth. Nearby, 1,000 year old stone remains of earlier Inuit settlers can be found.

Nome is located on the edge of the Bering Sea, on the southwest side of the Seward Peninsula. Unlike other towns which are named for explorers, heroes or politicians, Nome was named as a result of a 50 year-old spelling error. In the 1850's an officer on a British ship off the coast of Alaska noted on a manuscript map that a nearby prominent point was not identified. He wrote "? Name" next to the point. View less When the map was recopied, another draftsman thought that the “?” was a C and that the “a” in "Name" was an o, and thus a map-maker in the British Admiralty christened "Cape Nome." The area has an amazing history dating back 10,000 years of Inupiaq Eskimo use for subsistence living. Modern history started in 1898 when "Three Lucky Swedes”, Jafet Lindberg, Erik Lindblom and John Brynteson, discovered gold in Anvil Creek…the rush was on! In 1899 the population of Nome swelled from a handful to 28,000. Today the population is just over 3,500. Much of Nome's gold rush architecture remains.

Anchorage is the largest city in Alaska, and it's no accident that many of our cruisetours begin and end in this major metropolis. As locals say, "Anchorage is great. It's only 20 minutes from Alaska." Here, you'll find everything you would find in a city in the lower 48. But it serves as a great introduction to Alaska, too.

Located on Unalaska Island at the end of the Aleutian Island chain, approximately 900 miles southwest of Anchorage, Dutch Harbor is one of America’s busiest commercial fishing ports. The island of Unalaska, is full of breathtaking scenery, from windswept volcanic peaks, to green valleys dotted with the vibrant colors of wildflowers in the summer. From the onion-domed churches of the early Russian explorers to rusted Quonset huts from the bitterly fought campaign of World War II, here history surrounds you.

Prince Rupert, set amongst the coastal mountains, is the jumping-off point for travelers joining the coastal ferries to Haida Gwaii, Vancouver or north to Alaska. Highlights include the quaint Cow Bay with its shops and restaurants, the Museum of Northern British Columbia, the totem carving house or the stunning sunken gardens. Prince Rupert certainly has abundant wildlife. Whether you join a local boat for whale-watching, hike along the Butze Rapids or take a scenic flight, you are sure to be pleased. The region is home to the highest concentration of grizzly bears in North America. The Khutzeymateen Grizzly Bear Sanctuary, established in 1994, was the first area in Canada to be protected specifically for grizzlies and their habitat. Founded in 1910, the town was named for Prince Rupert, who was a governor of the Hudson's Bay Company in 1670. Prince Rupert is the northern terminus of the Canadian National Railway and an important port for goods moving towards Alaska. VIEW CRUISES

Johnstone Strait is a well-protected shipping route passing 68 miles/110 km along the northeast shore of Vancouver Island between the island and the mainland of British Columbia. The strait is between 1 ½ miles and 3 miles wide, and leads from the broad Georgia Strait through a narrow channel called Discovery Passage. The strait was named by Vancouver in 1792 for James Johnstone, the master of one of his tenders during the survey expedition that revealed Vancouver Island to be an island. There are no cities or towns on the strait. The Johnstone Strait is the summer range of a large pod of seasonally resident orcas which are frequently seen in the area. VIEW CRUISES Skip Footer Content About Us Our Company News Careers Contact Us Video Gallery Accessibility Seabourn Club Seabourn Referral Program Travel Resources