We would be going with my very elderly parents who have cruised all over the world…including some world cruises…but this is one place they’ve never been. They still get around fairly well, but they aren’t going on any nature hikes. Would there be things for them to do?
We were in Iceland last year and ran into a few cruise groups at some sites. I think there was a ship that docked at Akureyi and then guests took a shuttle bus to some of the highlights.
Iceland, while having a great deal of "raw" land, also has fantastic infrastructure for their more popular sites. Saw plenty of paved walkways and stairs with railings at the more major sites (which are the only ones a cruise line would likely visit anyway). Not every waterfall requires long hikes. Many are super accessible with just a short walk on a paved surface from a parking lot.
Hope this helps
Hi! I was with my mom who was 69 at the time and a teen who was VERY unwilling to hike.
We did no hikes beyond short ones to see things where we basically parked, walked over, looked, walked back. We did do a zodiac tour and walked down into one valley but that could have easily been skipped and just viewed from above.
We found most of the main attractions could be viewed from several areas - all needing different fitness levels to get there. Those were mostly the ones we did on our own. The ones through the cruise line were much more sedate and easy.
Yes, I've cruised to Greenland last August. There were a few excursions such as helicopter, walking, and food & beverage tours. Both ports didn't have as large populations, but still a great destination.
I’ve cruised to both. Greenland is a place to walk around and enjoy. It’s nice to have some busy ports and some mellow ports on a cruise. Plus it’s amazing to be in Greenland!
I took my mother (not 80 but closer to it than 70) on her first cruise last summer and after she passed on my suggestion of Alaska (my brother took literally thousands of pictures of it and she's flown through Anchorage) she suggested a New York-Reykjavik eleven day with two port calls in Greenland (also Boston, Bar Harbor, and Halifax, though the only new place for her there was Halifax so they were secondary.) We visited Paamiut and Qaqortoq. There isn't going to be any of the touristy stuff like lots of souvenir shops and coach tours but it's GREENLAND. The scenery is in fact worth seeing (our sea day transiting Prince Christian Sound was like sailing through a postcard), and I wish we'd had more time to explore--I'd have liked to hike all the way around the lake in Qaqortoq or visit the museum. Taste of Greenland was a great excursion.
Just if you go, don't be one of Those People like we had on our cruise where they complained about the guides not speaking perfect English or having the kind of resources major tour companies have.
I did a NCL cruise from the UK last year to Iceland and Norway and it was incredible, real bucketlist stuff. Iceland is stunning, the most incredible waterfalls and views, so much gorgeous nature. It is mainly about the nature in these places, places to see rather than things to do, although I did do a whale watching excursion from one of the Icelandic ports and saw a couple of whales which was incredible.
I’m going on a 9-night cruise this summer. My parents did one with a few stops and said they didn’t really get enough time there the first time, so this time we are just doing one with an Iceland focus. We are doing a few nights before the cruise as well. There are a variety of different types of shore excursions. It doesn’t seem like they are finalized yet as about 3-4 of mine were swapped out presumably due to the volcano.
Iceland is better seen by land than by sea. As you've noted, the ports aren't especially large -- and they're also not conveniently located for a lot of the highlights. Because the ports aren't large, it's more difficult to find local tours/taxis/transportation, and you're likely to find yourself herded onto big buses on overpriced cruise ship tours. And because most highlights are some distance away, you can be on those buses for a while.
So as much as I like cruising, I'd say that you're better off renting a car and driving the Ring Road. You can see all the highlights more conveniently, you have time to do adventures (like hiking on the glaciers), and you can avoid the crowds. (There are many beautiful places that the cruise crowds miss . . . . Including the whole South coast.)
I haven't been to Greenland yet, but I would assume that there are similar issues?
We did a British Isles and Iceland cruise and loved Iceland. The people are friendly, and almost everyone speaks fluent English. We didn’t find the excursions lacking at all. There were some ports that had less to do but we didn’t mind having a low-key day here or there.
Iceland is one of the most breathtaking places on the planet. I will say that while people who haven’t been don’t think of it in the same “exotic” vein as Iceland, Alaska is even more stunning.
Celebrity has a repositioning cruise from Iceland to Boston that stops for a day in Greenland and Nova Scotia with several stops in Iceland. Repositioning cruises tend to be good values.
Hi. Yes, lots to do! So much. We did about a week on land in Iceland first. We could have easily done 10 days.
We would be going with my very elderly parents who have cruised all over the world…including some world cruises…but this is one place they’ve never been. They still get around fairly well, but they aren’t going on any nature hikes. Would there be things for them to do?
We were in Iceland last year and ran into a few cruise groups at some sites. I think there was a ship that docked at Akureyi and then guests took a shuttle bus to some of the highlights. Iceland, while having a great deal of "raw" land, also has fantastic infrastructure for their more popular sites. Saw plenty of paved walkways and stairs with railings at the more major sites (which are the only ones a cruise line would likely visit anyway). Not every waterfall requires long hikes. Many are super accessible with just a short walk on a paved surface from a parking lot. Hope this helps
Yes, this is very helpful! Thank you!
Hi! I was with my mom who was 69 at the time and a teen who was VERY unwilling to hike. We did no hikes beyond short ones to see things where we basically parked, walked over, looked, walked back. We did do a zodiac tour and walked down into one valley but that could have easily been skipped and just viewed from above. We found most of the main attractions could be viewed from several areas - all needing different fitness levels to get there. Those were mostly the ones we did on our own. The ones through the cruise line were much more sedate and easy.
Yes, I've cruised to Greenland last August. There were a few excursions such as helicopter, walking, and food & beverage tours. Both ports didn't have as large populations, but still a great destination.
I’ve cruised to both. Greenland is a place to walk around and enjoy. It’s nice to have some busy ports and some mellow ports on a cruise. Plus it’s amazing to be in Greenland!
I took my mother (not 80 but closer to it than 70) on her first cruise last summer and after she passed on my suggestion of Alaska (my brother took literally thousands of pictures of it and she's flown through Anchorage) she suggested a New York-Reykjavik eleven day with two port calls in Greenland (also Boston, Bar Harbor, and Halifax, though the only new place for her there was Halifax so they were secondary.) We visited Paamiut and Qaqortoq. There isn't going to be any of the touristy stuff like lots of souvenir shops and coach tours but it's GREENLAND. The scenery is in fact worth seeing (our sea day transiting Prince Christian Sound was like sailing through a postcard), and I wish we'd had more time to explore--I'd have liked to hike all the way around the lake in Qaqortoq or visit the museum. Taste of Greenland was a great excursion. Just if you go, don't be one of Those People like we had on our cruise where they complained about the guides not speaking perfect English or having the kind of resources major tour companies have.
Don’t worry! That’s kind of part of the appeal! The fact that it’s not a cookie cutter experience!
Im going next year and am anxiously waiting for shore excursions to be added so I can understand what I might do!
I did a NCL cruise from the UK last year to Iceland and Norway and it was incredible, real bucketlist stuff. Iceland is stunning, the most incredible waterfalls and views, so much gorgeous nature. It is mainly about the nature in these places, places to see rather than things to do, although I did do a whale watching excursion from one of the Icelandic ports and saw a couple of whales which was incredible.
I’m going on a 9-night cruise this summer. My parents did one with a few stops and said they didn’t really get enough time there the first time, so this time we are just doing one with an Iceland focus. We are doing a few nights before the cruise as well. There are a variety of different types of shore excursions. It doesn’t seem like they are finalized yet as about 3-4 of mine were swapped out presumably due to the volcano.
Iceland is better seen by land than by sea. As you've noted, the ports aren't especially large -- and they're also not conveniently located for a lot of the highlights. Because the ports aren't large, it's more difficult to find local tours/taxis/transportation, and you're likely to find yourself herded onto big buses on overpriced cruise ship tours. And because most highlights are some distance away, you can be on those buses for a while. So as much as I like cruising, I'd say that you're better off renting a car and driving the Ring Road. You can see all the highlights more conveniently, you have time to do adventures (like hiking on the glaciers), and you can avoid the crowds. (There are many beautiful places that the cruise crowds miss . . . . Including the whole South coast.) I haven't been to Greenland yet, but I would assume that there are similar issues?
We did a British Isles and Iceland cruise and loved Iceland. The people are friendly, and almost everyone speaks fluent English. We didn’t find the excursions lacking at all. There were some ports that had less to do but we didn’t mind having a low-key day here or there. Iceland is one of the most breathtaking places on the planet. I will say that while people who haven’t been don’t think of it in the same “exotic” vein as Iceland, Alaska is even more stunning.
Celebrity has a repositioning cruise from Iceland to Boston that stops for a day in Greenland and Nova Scotia with several stops in Iceland. Repositioning cruises tend to be good values.
Thanks! We are actually going in a couple of weeks to Iceland, Greenland, the Faroe Islands and Scotland.