A grand adventure in the purest sense, this voyage combines the classic highlights of the Arctic. Starting in Iceland, we’ll discover some of the most remote and scenic parts above and below the Arctic Circle, including an in-depth exploration of Greenland’s east coast, the island of Spitsbergen and the stunning Norwegian coast.

We board Polar Pioneer in the Icelandic port of Keflavik in mid afternoon, settle ourselves in and set sail in the evening.

We will be at sea all day making our way across Denmark Strait and passing over submarine canyons that enrich the whale feeding grounds off Greenland's south-east coast.

We explore the east Greenland coast, along the flanks of Knud Rasmussen Land, where old volcanic lavas, thousands of metres thick, plunge into the frozen sea.

If the pack ice allows, we'll attempt to reach the breathtaking Scoresby Sound and Kaiser Franz Josef Fjord, the world's largest fjords. Massive glaciers that calve here form the birthplace of Greenland's renowned giant icebergs. We plan to visit remote Inuit communities, hike on the vast tundra and cruise in our Zodiacs among the bergs.

We'll be at sea all day, enjoying informative talks as we cruise north-east across the Greenland Sea. We'll keep an eye out for seabirds, whales and pack ice that stretches north across the Arctic Ocean to the North Pole.

We plan to spend two days sampling the delights of Spitsbergen's mountainous west coast, where glaciers calve into beautiful Hornsund and adjacent bays. We hope to observe remarkable bird cliffs and take long walks on spongy permafrost amid dramatic mountain scenery.

Along the north coast we push into the Arctic Ocean pack ice, where we'll search for walrus and seals. In the coastal mountains, we'll visit trapper huts and stay alert for polar bears. East Spitsbergen is a different world - a polar desert. If ice conditions allow we will try to pass south through the narrow Hinlopen Strait, a channel flanked by austere, cream-coloured slopes rich in fossils. On our walks we'll seek eider ducks, Arctic foxes and beautiful ivory gulls.

We'll be at sea this morning, and then hope to explore remote and mysterious Bear Island where we hope to Zodiac around lofty sea stacks, hike amid tundra wildflowers and encounter Arctic fox.

Our aim is to spend the next two days exploring the northern reaches of the superb Norwegian coastline. We may stop at Alta to view 6,000 year old petroglyphs, then sail south to cod fishing villages nestled against towering mountains in the Lofoten Islands. Watch for passing whales as we Zodiac cruise beneath steep bird cliffs alive with razorbills and guillemots and explore narrow fjords.

Sailing south, we hope to land at Torget Island to inspect the bizarre rock formation Torghatten, a legendary hole in the mountain created by a troll's arrow. We may visit the charming fishing village of Sor-Gjaeslingan and and visit the boisterous bird cliffs of Runde. We finish our adventure in the historic waterfront town of Bergen.