Having made your way to Toronto, check in at your group hotel near the airport for an overnight stay. Enjoy a drink and meet fellow expeditioners at your welcome briefing this evening. Please visit the Aurora Expeditions hospitality desk to collect your luggage cabin tags and to speak with the ground operations team, who may have information to share with you about pre-embarkation procedures and the charter flight to Nuuk tomorrow. Receive Aurora Expeditions cabin tags for your luggage. Please clearly label the tags with your name and ship cabin number.

Please ensure your luggage has cabin tags clearly labeled with your name and cabin number. Any valuables or personal items should be kept on you throughout the day. Your luggage will be delivered to your cabin ahead of your arrival on board.

After breakfast at the hotel, board your charter flight to Nuuk, where Sylvia Earle awaits. After boarding, there is time to settle into your cabin before the important safety briefings. This evening, meet your expedition team and crew.

Greenland’s second-largest town, Sisimiut, is located approximately 54 kilometers (33.5 miles) north of the Arctic Circle, meaning that during the summer, you can experience the midnight sun here. The town is famous for the old blue church with a gate made of whalebone. In the cozy museum next door to the church, you can find an excellent reconstruction of an Inuit turf house and exhibits of local history and early life in Greenland.

Sisimiut offers hiking trails with various degrees of difficulty. The more accessible trails take you through the town, its outskirts, and into the mountains, where you can find spectacular vantage points.

Some 4,500 years ago, the Saqqaq culture arrived from Canada and settled there. They lived here for approximately 2,000 years, after which they mysteriously disappeared from the area. The Dorset culture came around 500 CE and stayed until the 1200s when the Thule culture replaced them, and today, most of the population of Sisimiut are descendants of the Thule culture.

This compelling island has more in common with Iceland than Greenland. While most of the interior is mountainous and glaciated, its beautiful shorelines boast black sandy beaches, unusual basalt columns, hot springs, and dramatic lava formations. Appreciate the colorful flowers on the Kuannit Hike, where you can walk through stunning landscapes, see ancient basalt columns, and perhaps spot whales in Disko Bay.

Note: In genuine expeditionary style, your itinerary for the following days heavily depends on weather conditions and unpredictable sea ice. The following places are some that you hope to visit:

Uummannaq

Set on an island of the same name, Uummannaq is 600 km (373 mi) above the Arctic Circle and is famous for its heart-shaped mountain. It's also well-known for the Qilakitsoq mummies, Greenland's oldest, that were discovered nearby. The center of town is compact and easy for you to explore independently, and there are several marked hiking trails, many of which lead to mountain lakes, for those who want to stretch their legs. Kayakers can enjoy paddling among the icebergs and keeping watch for whales that frequent the area.

Upernavik

Set amid a labyrinth of small islands, Upernavik is home to traditional settlements and the enormous icebergs that Greenland is famous for. Kayakers can paddle in the serene bay among the glittering icebergs, while other expeditions can discover the town on walks or hikes in the surrounding area. Upernavik is the world's northernmost open-air museum. A walk through the old part of town, which encompasses the original colonial buildings, tells the area's cultural history, including the colonial and Viking periods. Keep an eye out for a traditional old kayak and umiaq boat, highlighting the primary mode of transport locals use to navigate the archipelago during the summer. The shy and elusive narwhal is also known to visit the area, and at nearby Apparsuit, bird enthusiasts will be thrilled to find one of the world's most prominent bird cliffs.

Find a spot in one of the many observation lounges and enjoy the spectacular surrounding landscapes. The talented and knowledgeable expedition members will present informative and entertaining talks about the region that you’re traveling through.

In Qeqertarsuaq, you can enjoy a Zodiac excursion in Disko Bay, often filled with icebergs and a hotspot for marine life, including humpback, fin, minke, and bowhead whales. Enjoy a walk through the settlement, perhaps try some local tea made from fresh local herbs, and learn about the history of Qeqertarsuaq at the museum before walking along the black sand beach towards the colorful colonial buildings.

Known as the 'birthplace of icebergs,' this region produces some of the most dazzling icebergs found anywhere on earth. Explore the ice-filled Ataa Sund and hope to experience a few of the active glaciers from a safe distance. In Ilulissat, visit the UNESCO World Heritage-listed Icefjord and stand in awe at its immensity. Sermeq Kujalleq, also known as Jakobshavn Glacier, is the most productive glacier in Greenland and throughout the entire Northern Hemisphere. It produces 20 million metric tons of ice daily, floating into the Ilulissat Icefjord and Disko Bay.

Ilulissat optional helicopter flight (90 minutes): this excursion is the only way to get close to the gigantic glacier. The 10-seater helicopter departs from Ilulissat Airport, sweeping over hills, lakes, and ice fjords. On the return flight to Ilulissat, fly above the glacier's edge with breathtaking views of the massive icebergs drifting in the fjord. The views of some of the enormous icebergs that become stranded on a moraine underneath the water just outside the town offer a fantastic finale to this excursion. Please note that this excursion requires a minimum of 8 passengers to operate.

Visit a Greenlandic settlement near the Aasivissuit-Nipisat UNESCO World Heritage Site, where the local inhabitants live a traditional fishing and hunting lifestyle that dates back 4,000 years. The settlement also features the remarkable Qaammat Pavilion, built on the ridge at the top overlooking the Ikeertoq fjord. Swedish architect Konstantin Ikonomidis created this stunning, architecturally designed, award-winning crystal structure in cooperation with the local community and the UNESCO team. It is a tribute to nature, the land, and the cultural traditions of the indigenous Inuit people.

Evighedsfjorden, or Eternity Fjord, is one of the more spectacular fjord complexes in west Greenland due to its forested landscape. Hike through a forested valley and witness hills becoming towering snow-capped mountains as countless glaciers pour down from sheer cliff walls. Occasionally, the thunderous sound of a calving glacier breaks the silence in a place where you are unlikely to see another soul.

In Nuuk, the capital of Greenland bid the crew and expedition team farewell and transfer to the airport for your charter flight to Toronto for an overnight stay. 

After breakfast, check out of your room and continue your journey with a transfer to the airport.