Artic Cruise - from Reykjavik - 123381

Reykjavik, the trading and cultural centre of Iceland at the South-West coast of the island was named "smoking bay" after the famous hot springs of Laugardalur. Today it has a population of around 130,000 - approximately 1/3 of the total population. The capital of iceland has plenty of tourist attractions. A stroll through the old town leads to the main shopping street, Laugavegur, and the pedestrian zone, past the historic Höfdi House (where Reagan and Gorbatschow held their summit in 1986) to the modern basalt church 'Hallgrimskirka'. The church tower offers the best view of the city. Tracing the footsteps of Icelandic history, there are many archaeological finds and artefacts from Viking times on display in the National Museum and art lovers will enjoy the Einar Jonsson Museum with its wonderful sculpture garden.

Ísafjörður comprises several districts stretching from the end of the Fjords on the Northern side to the original settlement, where the harbour is. On the other side of the fjord is the airport - although really it is nothing more than a runway with a tiny check-in building. Although all of the fjords in the North-West are losing inhabitants to more prosperous areas, Ísafjörður has been successful in keeping its residents and has even recorded a slight growth in population, to around 3,500. The town was founded as a settlement for the Hanseatics and later taken over by the Danes. Ísafjörður is an excellent example of the development of Icelandic architecture. There are five listed buildings in Ísafjörður - all of which were built in the 18th century. The oldest house dates from the mid-18th century, the most recent from 1788. Four of the houses are in Neostikaupstaour and one is in Haestikaupstaour. Other sights include: the museum

Jakobshavn - or Ilulissat as it is called in Greenlandic - lies at 68 degrees North latitude and 51 degrees West longitude, around 290 kilometres North of Arctic Circle in the Disko bay on the West coast of Greenland. The town has a population of around 4,300; the number of dogs here is far greater - 6,000 in total, and all of them sled dogs. There are hardly any cars, and the few cars here are mainly taxis that travel the small number of roads - but not for any great distance, since the metalled roads end just behind the last houses. The dog sleds have right of way during the winter months in any case. A mere two kilometres behind the last houses of Ilulissat, a huge glacier constantly pushes new icebergs into Disko bay. It is these ephemeral creations that gave the burgeoning small town its name: Ilulissat means "Cliffs of Ice".

With a population of 5,000, Sisimiut is the second-largest town in Greenland. The Greenlandic name, Sisimiut, means "foxhole inhabitant". The town has the most northerly port that remains ice-free all year. Accordingly, the fishing industry and the export of prawns are booming. The town is proud to be home to the most modern shrimp factory in the world. Sisimiut is also the first settlement North of the Arctic Circle where the Inuit kept sled dogs for use in the Winter. The museum and the old town with the oldest wooden church in Greenland, which dates from 1775, are particularly worth seeing.

Greenland's capital city Nuuk is the centre of life in this country - it is the centre for trade, shipping, industry and the administration. With a population of 13,500, Nuuk is the largest city not only in Greenland, but in the whole Arctic region. Over the last 30 years, Nuuk has undergone considerable modern development.