Sail Norway to Iceland on a magical voyage that crosses the Arctic Circle
The passage between Norway and Iceland is a most sought after offshore route, and has everything from incredible coastal exploration and open ocean sailing, to crossing the Arctic Circle at sea and plentiful whale spotting. For a truly incredible high latitudes offshore sailing adventure, this is impossible to beat.
Trip highlights
- Spend time sailing and exploring the beautiful north west coast of Norway
- Sail 700nm, crossing the Arctic circle as you go!
- Vast snow capped mountains surrounding Iceland’s fjords
During your sailing adventure you’ll be on board as guest crew with up to eight other sailors alongside two professionals on a 60ft blue water expedition yacht. Onboard expect to learn a lot, brush up skills, explore and have fun with a group of like-minded individuals. With 90% joining these sailing adventures solo it’s usually a 50:50 male and female split. Be it a coastal, offshore voyage or skill building sailing trip these sailing experiences are ideal for both new and experienced sailors joining solo or in groups. Most routes don’t require previous sailing experience and top quality training on the yacht is embedded into all of them.
Complete an enquiry form for full details!
Why you'll love this adventure
- RYA Yachtmaster Ocean qualifying passage
- Explore the southern Lofoten islands
- Enjoy some true open ocean sailing and cross the Arctic Circle!
Dates
Itinerary
No two adventure sailing itineraries are the same! That’s what makes it exciting and so special. If you complete an enquiry we can share an indicative guide to the voyage break down from training days, shore days and life at sea, but the wind and the weather ultimately shape what's possible each day - whether the weather is glorious or cold and harsh - but that's what the adventure's all about! This trip can run in either direction so do check the ‘Dates and Prices’ tab and if necessary just reverse this itinerary!
Enquire for full details.
What's included
- All food and accommodation on board
- All sailing tuition
- Your own bunk and storage area
- Oilskins
- Highest quality lifejacket
- Fladen immersion suits. These will keep you warm in even the coldest, windiest conditions.
- Daily sailing lessons and tuition from two highly experienced instructors.
- RYA sailing qualifications can be earned where applicable.
Not included
- Your travel to and from the start and end points.
- Travel insurance (see our travel insurance page here)
- Any alcohol – but feel free to bring your own or buy some along the route
- Any meals you eat ashore
- Visas
- Any optional paid excursions offered by the crew.
Trip notes
Price
Min age
Accommodation
The 60 foot ocean going expedition yacht was previously a round the world race boat and was built for adventure sailing and long distance blue water sailing! The accommodation on the yacht is comfortable, warm and spacious. Each bunk is 6′ 7″ long and has its own USB charger and light. There are two toilets, a shower, hot water and lots of food!
You get your own bunk on board and sleeping is in one 8 berth cabin not private cabins. This gives everyone plenty of space and each bunk has a lee cloth that you can pull up for a cozy private sleep.
The expedition yacht has two heads (toilets) and two showers, a generous accommodation area and a smaller galley (kitchen) and saloon.
Meals
In three words… Nutritious, delicious and local. Expect to eat very well on board! Ocean sailing is an exercise in using food creatively but you can experience lovely warm meals, as much as you can eat, freshly baked bread and more. The operator can cater for most diets and have loads of fruit and veggies on board. If you have any severe allergies you must check before booking.
Everyone takes their turn at cooking. Don’t panic if you’re not much of a chef – you’ll get paired up with someone else, and the skipper will provide recipes as needed.
In Norway maybe you’ll have roast lamb with all the trimmings, in the Caribbean it may be baked plantain with ackee and butterbeans, and in the Azores, the crew look to find some of their famously sweet pineapples.
Who is this trip for?
Age and Experience: These adventure sailing holidays are open to anyone aged 18 – 70 years. Previous sailing experience is not always required so ask and we’ll share full details on the route.
Fitness to Sail: We believe that as many people as possible should be able to head out to sea and have a great adventure. However, it is essential for everyone’s safety that you are in a fit enough state to be on board.
Ability to complete the five exercises is a prerequisite for joining as a crew member.
Be able to lift 2 full bags of shopping five times, ten jumps with raised arms, stand on each leg for a minimum of five seconds, ten squats, ten step ups.
The exercises are not designed to be physically taxing and almost everyone should be able to complete them. Rather they are in place to check that you have the stability and basic physical condition to be on-board. If when you join the vessel the skipper believes you are not capable of completing these exercises, you will probably not be allowed to embark.
If you have any doubts at all about your ability to complete these exercises safely, you must contact your doctor before attempting them.
Additional notes
An adventure sailing holiday on board an expedition yacht is unlike any other type of holiday you could choose. It’s all about teamwork. Everyone gets involved in every task – cooking, cleaning, prepping, navigating, steering and trimming sails. The skipper and mate are there to show you how and keep things nicely organised to make for a happy crew on board. If you are looking for a beach holiday or a skippered charter, these sailing adventures are not for you. But if you want to be an integral part of an exciting expedition, then you will thrive. Importantly, no one should worry about needing to be good at everything (or anything!).
FAQs
Do I need sailing experience?
For most voyages no, but complete an enquiry to confirm for this particular route. Full training is given on board in any case.
Do people come alone?
Almost everyone comes alone. Couples and groups are very welcome to join too. On the whole, however, most crew join solo and so if you are coming alone, you will be one of the crowd!
How many people are on board?
Except in exceptional circumstances, we limit the crew size to 9 (except for Atlantic crossings) plus two instructors. This means that there are enough people to sail the boat safely, but you will still have lots of time helming, navigating, trimming sails and such like.
Is this a sailing holiday?
Absolutely! First and foremost, it’s about having an amazing time. Sailing is about having fun, experiencing nature at its most majestic and gently pushing yourself to try and learn new things. This voyage will be a unique mix of sailing and training.
Who else joins?
You’ll be in the company of like minded individuals from all around the world. It’s an even mix of men and women and with an average age of 35-65 but we welcome sailors 18 – 70 years. Experience varies from none at all to Yachtmaster. Most of the crew would describe themselves as having a rusty Day Skipper.
What insurance do I need?
All crew must have adequate travel insurance in place for your sailing holiday. Please make an enquiry for this trip in order to get full details on insurance.
Will I be able to get RYA certification and training?
Training is at the heart of these voyages. The opportunities vary depending on the voyage and your existing experience. On Coastal trips, you can earn the RYA Competent Crew certificate. The price is included in the trip price. On Offshore trips, you can earn the RYA Competent Crew certificate and, with sufficient skills and experience, you can act as a Watch Leader and complete your qualifying passage for RYA Yachtmaster Ocean.
Can I join as a watch leader?
You may sign on to an ocean trip as Watch Leader providing you have RYA Coastal Skipper or international equivalent or equivalent skills and experience.
What about my RYA Ocean Qualifying passage?
The Ocean Passage voyages offered by this operator are suitable for Ocean qualifying passages except for the rare exception. Make an enquiry to see if this voyage is suitable. You must have completed a qualifying passage within the past 10 years as skipper or mate in sole charge of a watch on a suitable vessel. You must have been fully involved in the planning of the passage, including selection of the route, the navigational plan, checking the material condition of the vessel and her equipment, storing with spare gear, water and victuals and organising the watch-keeping routine. Your time onboard as a watch leader on board one of the sailing voyages offered by this operator achieves all of these requirements.
Tour operator
We love this sailing company’s ethos – to help people do three things: sail, train and explore. They are passionate about enabling people to experience life out on the open ocean, building sailing skills and exploring some beautiful countries. After years of training people to become professional sailors, and having covered thousands of miles between them, the company Founders realised that so many people had dreamt of setting off across an ocean, but hadn’t the skills, the boat or crew to make those dreams come true.
The company now runs expeditions on a specialised 60’ yacht to some of the most exciting places out there – often largely inaccessible from land. With no previous sailing experience required, the two instructors will guide you every step of the way as you develop your sailing skills, maybe even earning an RYA qualification during the week. Exploring on land as they go is just as important and the bikes and a kayak mean you can head off and enjoy everything there is to see along the route.
Enquire today
Arctic Norway and Iceland
Please complete the enquiry form above with as much detail as you can and we will send you all the trip information and connect you with the operator so you can make a booking directly.
If you have queries and questions about the trip include those in your form and we’ll personally reply to you within 24 hours.
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