PHOTO: © LAURENTIU IORDACHE | DREAMSTIME

No matter how many times you watch passengers scrambling into the lifeboats as Leonardo DiCaprio and Kate Winslet bid each other a waterlogged farewell, no matter how often you hear Celine Dion intone “My Heart Will Go On” as you imagine the brave shipboard band sliding into the ocean waters playing away at “Nearer My God to Thee,” no matter how many Titanic movies or musicals or books you absorb, there is no way you can fully understand the scope of the historic disaster until the awesome moment when, gliding peacefully through the fog, your path is suddenly blocked by a majestic hunk of frozen water the size of an entire village.

The surest way to experience that mind-altering encounter is to take a Greenland cruise.

Arctic tourism is growing. Greenland Statistics recorded almost 44,000 pre-pandemic cruise ship passengers, travelers seeking far-flung adventures and those anxious to view the ice fields of the world’s biggest island before the negative impact of climate warming. Even though NASA figures show dramatic ice losses, around 80–90 percent of the Earth’s largest island remains covered in frozen water — glaciers moving toward the ocean where they break off, or calve, into the sea, forming clear-water icebergs which float among the ice floes (frozen chunks of salty seawater).

Although frequently combined with Iceland, Canada and the Northwest Passage on multi-destination itineraries, many cruise lines offer exclusive voyages to Greenland. Besides luxury ships, you can board expedition vessels ranked for their capability to maneuver through ice, with polar class ratings from the lowest, PC7, to the highest, PC1. The season is short, July through September; and since excessive cold and ice in the north make circumnavigating the island unlikely, cruises tend to concentrate on either the island’s east or west side.

© HEL080808 | DREAMSTIME.COM

Nature is the focus on the rugged eastern side. “It’s not a cruise,” HX advertises, “it’s an expedition.” Boats glide up face-to-face with mammoth, ice-blue, glacial walls. Off-boat kayak and Zodiac dinghy excursions zig zag around icebergs, offering sights of puffins and seals lounging languidly on ice floes, the stillness broken only by the shrill ries of terns and the crash of calving icebergs. Few settlements exist on the eastern coast — Tasiilaq on Ammassalik Island and the abandoned Ikateq Bluie East Two U.S. Army Air Forces base — but this is where to experience the Arctic’s ecological wonders.

The west coast highlights sightseeing and cultural activities. Trips often visit the relatively cosmopolitan capital, Nuuk. Shore excursions visit Inuit villages; the open-air fish markets of Qaqortoq village; the ruins of the original Norse site, Brattahlið; and Sisimiut, where the museum exhibits ancient tools, artifacts and a traditional peat house. Polar-rated vessels may venture as far north as UNESCO Heritage site Ilulissat Icefjord, where Sermeq Kujalleq, one of the island’s fastest glaciers, empties into the sea, calving more than 20 miles of ice per year (the prob- able source of the iceberg that sank the Titanic). Journeys may include helicopter flights, dog sledding or soaking in hot springs in the island’s largest southern city of Qaqortoq. Whale sightings are almost guaranteed — belugas, minkes, narwhals and sperm whales will likely appear along with playful, vocal arctic bowheads.

When choosing a voyage, consider the ship’s polar class rating. Talks and lectures offer helpful context, especially when delivered by Inuit speakers who recount personal experiences. The polar plunge — jumping from the boat into the frigid water — is a popular ritual. Cruise amenities may include fitting you out with complimentary parkas, warm vests and onboard boot rental. Whatever you book, be aware weather can affect all activities. Fog, rough seas and resistant ice may impede expeditions; and heeding Titanic history, passengers have to remain flexible.

© AZURITA | DREAMSTIME.COM

GREENLAND GASTRONOMY
Cruise lines’ chefs may offer fare not unlike menus served on the Titanic, but sampling local cuisine extends the experience. Greenland is an autonomous country within the Kingdom of Denmark, so expect to find a lot of mayonnaise-y salads, cured fish and herring, popular smørrebrød sandwiches, and authentic “Danish” pastries at breakfast.

The more adventurous may want to sample whale steak and muktuk, whale skin and blubber of the bowhead, narwhal or beluga whale generously described as “oily and nutty.” Usually eaten raw, it can be deep fried, boiled, frozen or pickled, accompanied by British brown HP Sauce or soy sauce as condiments.

For fine dining, the menu at Nuuk’s Sarfalik Restaurant features cured reindeer with fermented red cabbage, grilled whale carpaccio, musk ox and foie gras — topped off with a dessert of mousse on Greenlandic seaweed.