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Panoramic view down Nachvak Fjord under a dramatic sky in Torngat Mountains National Park, Labrador, on a Swan Hellenic Canada cruise

The Atlantic Arctic · Torngat Mountains to Saint-Pierre · 46° to 60° North

Labrador and Newfoundland

The autumn coast, where the polar bears come down to a shore of red tundra, the Vikings built the first European houses in the Americas and a piece of France waits at the end. September, when the colour is on the tundra and the bears are on the shore.

Highlights

Why the autumn coast

This is the Arctic voyage with the most variety per mile. It begins in Greenland or Baffin Bay with icebergs and walrus, runs down the Torngat Mountains, the highest peaks in Canada east of the Rockies and the best polar bear coast in the Atlantic, through the Inuit and Moravian history of Labrador, the Basque whalers of Red Bay and the Norse of L’Anse aux Meadows, to the painted houses of St. John’s and the islands of Saint-Pierre and Miquelon. September gives it all autumn colour, humpbacks offshore and the first aurora.

Shaft of sunlight breaking through storm clouds onto a mountainside in Nachvak Fjord, Torngat Mountains, Labrador, on a Swan Hellenic cruise

The Torngat Mountains

Polar bear climbing over granite boulders in Torngat Mountains National Park, Labrador, photographed from SH Vega on a Swan Hellenic cruise

Polar bears on the Labrador shore

Panoramic view of the firelit hall inside the Norse longhouse at L'Anse aux Meadows, Newfoundland, visited on a Swan Hellenic Canada cruise

The Norse longhouses of L’Anse aux Meadows

Sunlight shining through red maple leaves in autumn at Woody Point, Gros Morne National Park, Newfoundland, on a Swan Hellenic cruise

Autumn colour in Gros Morne

Guests visiting a traditional green timber house on Île aux Marins, Saint-Pierre, during a Swan Hellenic Atlantic Canada cruise

Saint-Pierre and Miquelon

Signature locations

Where the voyages go

Ten places from Ungava Bay to the Avalon Peninsula, in the order the ships sail them.

Limestone cliffs running along the gravel shoreline of Akpatok Island, Ungava Bay, seen on a Swan Hellenic Arctic Canada cruise

Akpatok Island

Limestone cliffs rising sheer from Ungava Bay, thick-billed murres on every ledge and polar bears on the beaches below, waiting for the murre chicks to fall.

When to go

September, and why

The coast is sailed from late August to early October, mostly southbound from Greenland. The colour and the bears decide the fortnight. This is how we read it.

The voyages that start in Disko Bay or Nuuk reach Baffin Island and Ungava Bay with the icebergs still around and the tundra just turning. Long days, calm water.

Wildlife

Who you meet, and when

The Labrador coast is where the Davis Strait polar bears come ashore in autumn, and the Newfoundland waters hold the largest humpback feeding ground in the North Atlantic. Sightings are never promised. These are the odds as we know them.

Likely in the Torngat fjords and on Akpatok Island in September, often several in a day, seen from the Zodiacs and the ship with bear guards ashore.

Things to do

How the days are spent

A landing or a village most days, a Zodiac cruise in the fjords, and more time ashore than on any other Arctic route. All included on the ships we sell, except kayaking, booked in advance.

Guests walking a timber boardwalk across the tundra towards a green outport house on a Swan Hellenic Atlantic Canada landing

Boardwalk and coastal walks

Guests in blue jackets seated in the pews of a historic church during a Swan Hellenic Atlantic Canada shore excursion

Village and mission visits

Bearded Viking interpreter behind painted shields inside the Norstead longhouse near L'Anse aux Meadows, Newfoundland, on a Swan Hellenic cruise

Living history at the Norse site

Ribbons of green northern lights seen from the deck of SH Vega near Iqaluit, Nunavut, on a Swan Hellenic Arctic Canada cruise

Aurora watches from the deck

Rugged peaks rising above a fjord in Torngat Mountains National Park, Labrador, seen from SH Vega on a Swan Hellenic Canada cruise

Field notes

What the brochures leave out

The Torngat Mountains National Park is Inuit land, co-managed with Nunatsiavut, and every landing there is made with bear guards from Nain who carry the rifles and set the rules. The bears come down to the shore in September because the sea ice is gone and the char are running, which is why this coast, not Svalbard, gives the closest bear encounters we know of in the Arctic, always from the boats. The ships that sail it, Le Boréal, L’Austral, Le Lyrial, Ocean Explorer and SH Vega, all end in Halifax, St. John’s or Saint-Pierre, and we tell you which end suits your flights home.

The practical things. The voyage crosses from Greenland to Canada and from Canada to France at Saint-Pierre, so carry your passport ashore. Newfoundland is thirteen and a half hours behind Sydney in September, on its own half-hour time zone. The Labrador Sea can be lively for a day. September days sit between 5 and 14 degrees from north to south, and the parka the ship gives you is for the Torngat, not for St. John’s, where a light jacket does. Bring a credit card for Saint-Pierre: euros, not dollars.

  • 1,600 m peaks
  • UNESCO sites, two
  • September only

How we plan it

Four decisions, in the right order

An autumn coast voyage is decided by where it starts and where it ends. This is the order we work in with every guest.

Early September for the bears and the Torngat, late September for the colour and the whales. We tell you which sailing sits in the fortnight you want.

What a Labrador and Newfoundland voyage costs

From A$22,370 per person for fourteen nights aboard Le Lyrial to Saint-Pierre, and from A$23,950 for seventeen nights aboard L’Austral or Le Boréal to Halifax, with the Paris to Nuuk flight included.

From US$12,921 for thirteen nights aboard Ocean Explorer from Kangerlussuaq to St. John’s by Baffin Island and the Torngat, with the charter flights and hotel nights named in the programme.

From A$23,500 for eleven to thirteen nights between Halifax, Greenland and Reykjavík, northbound in May or southbound in September.

Flights from Australia to the charter city and home from Canada, hotel nights, kayaking on most lines and travel insurance are the usual additions. Many of these departures carry offers we hold for Arctic Cruise guests and do not publish. Call us and we quote the whole journey with them, in Australian dollars, on one proposal.


Expeditions

Expeditions to Labrador and Newfoundland

The whole coast from Nuuk to Halifax aboard the Ponant sister ships, Greenland to St. John’s with Quark, the Viking route with Swan Hellenic. Tell us the fortnight and we tell you which sailing, which ship and what we can do on the fare.

All expeditions
17 Nights
Ponant
From A$22,370

Wilderness from Greenland to the East Coast of Canada

Nuuk to Halifax aboard a Ponant sister ship: Baffin Island, the Torngat Mountains, the Labrador coast, the Norse site of L’Anse aux Meadows, Newfoundland and Saint-Pierre et Miquelon. Three sailings across September 2027 and 2028, the Paris to Nuuk flight included. From A$22,370 per person, planned with you by Arctic Cruise.

13 Nights
Quark Expeditions
From US$12,921

Greenland to Newfoundland: Ice, Inuit and the Vikings

Fly Reykjavík to Kangerlussuaq, sail to St John’s. Four sailings from September 2027 to September 2028, with 2029 to follow. From US$12,921 per person in US dollars, planned with you by Arctic Cruise.

11 Nights
Swan Hellenic
From A$23,500

Viking Routes: Canada, Greenland and Iceland

Halifax to Reykjavík in May, Greenland to Canada in September. Sailings in 2027 and 2028, with 2029 to follow. From A$23,500 per person, planned with you by Arctic Cruise.

19 Nights
Ponant
From A$36,870

In the Heart of the Northwest Passage

Greenland to Greenland by way of the Canadian High Arctic: Disko Bay, Pond Inlet, Devon and Somerset islands, the Bellot Strait and Beechey Island, aboard a Ponant sister ship. One sailing in 2027, one in 2028, Paris flights included. From A$36,870 per person, planned with you by Arctic Cruise.

7 Nights
Ponant
From A$17,120

Disko Bay and Inuit Villages

Nuuk to Nuuk aboard Le Lyrial: the Eternity fjord, Disko Island, the Eqi glacier, the Karrat fjord, Uummannaq and the icebergs of Ilulissat in a single week. One sailing in September 2027, one in August 2028, return flights from Paris included. From A$17,120 per person, planned with you by Arctic Cruise.

15 Nights
Quark Expeditions
From US$19,281

West Greenland and the Far North: Ilulissat to Qaanaaq

Reykjavík to Reykjavík via Nuuk, flights across the Denmark Strait included. One sailing in September 2027, one in September 2028, with 2029 to follow. From US$19,281 per person in US dollars, planned with you by Arctic Cruise.

Go further

Pair the autumn coast with the rest of the Arctic

Every voyage here begins in Greenland, and the best way to arrive is from Disko Bay or the Northwest Passage the week before. These are the routes that join them.

All expeditions
7 Nights
Ponant
From A$17,120

Disko Bay and Inuit Villages

Nuuk to Nuuk aboard Le Lyrial: the Eternity fjord, Disko Island, the Eqi glacier, the Karrat fjord, Uummannaq and the icebergs of Ilulissat in a single week. One sailing in September 2027, one in August 2028, return flights from Paris included. From A$17,120 per person, planned with you by Arctic Cruise.

Northwest Passage and the Canadian Arctic

The sea route that Franklin died looking for and Amundsen took three winters to sail. Today it opens for six weeks a year, and the ships that go in come back with stories no other coast gives. Ice decides the route, every year, every morning.

East Greenland

The longest fjord system on earth, the largest national park on earth and a coast with one settlement in a thousand kilometres. September brings the aurora. Ten days here changes what you think a fjord is.

Polar bear walking the boulder-strewn shoreline of Torngat Mountains National Park, Labrador, photographed on a Swan Hellenic cruise

Questions

Labrador and Newfoundland, your questions answered

The bears, the crossings, the history and getting there from Australia. If your question is not here, we are a call away.

Fly to Paris or Reykjavík for the charter to Greenland, where most voyages begin, and home from Halifax, St. John’s or Saint-Pierre via Toronto or Montreal. We book the long-haul flights, the nights either side and the hotel on the way home, so it is one booking with one specialist.

September. The first half for the bears on the Torngat shore, the second half for the autumn colour of Newfoundland and the humpbacks. Late August sailings from Greenland add icebergs at the start.

Likely. The Torngat fjords and Akpatok Island in September are among the most reliable bear shores in the Arctic, seen from the Zodiacs with Inuit bear guards ashore. No one can promise a sighting, and we never do.

The Labrador Sea and the Strait of Belle Isle can be lively for a day each. The fjords and the Newfoundland coast are sheltered. We tell you which cabins ride it best on each ship.

The Ponant sister ships for the whole coast with French service and Paris flights, Ocean Explorer for the Quark adventure programme, SH Vega for the Viking route and the smallest group. We have sailed them all and we say which suits you.

Australians need an eTA for Canada, applied for online in minutes, and nothing for Saint-Pierre or Greenland for stays under 90 days. We walk you through it with the proposal.

From 5 degrees in the Torngat to 14 in St. John’s, with wind and rain possible anywhere. The ships provide the parka and boots. Bring layers, waterproof trousers, a light jacket for the towns and gloves for the aurora watches.

We have sailed these ships on this coast, we know which suite to ask for, and we hold offers on many departures that are only available by talking to us. One Australian specialist plans the whole journey and stays with you until you are home.

Made to measure

Tell us your Arctic, we build the rest

Every guest sails differently. Tell us what you are hoping for, the ice, the wildlife, the light, who you are travelling with, and we match it to the right sailing, the right stateroom and the right year, with flights from Australia and our own offers included. One Arctic Cruise specialist stays with you from the first call until you are home.

The Arctic, by destination

Other Arctic destinations

Seven coasts, each with its own season, its own ships and its own page. Tell us which one you are drawn to and we tell you how it fits with the others.

All expeditions

Svalbard

Nine islands halfway between Norway and the Pole, where the bears outnumber the people and the sun does not set for four months. We have sailed every coast of it.

East Greenland

The longest fjord system on earth, the largest national park on earth and a coast with one settlement in a thousand kilometres. September brings the aurora. Ten days here changes what you think a fjord is.

Northwest Passage and the Canadian Arctic

The sea route that Franklin died looking for and Amundsen took three winters to sail. Today it opens for six weeks a year, and the ships that go in come back with stories no other coast gives. Ice decides the route, every year, every morning.

West Greenland and Disko Bay

The coast where the ice sheet reaches the sea. The fastest glacier in the northern hemisphere, the icebergs it sends into Disko Bay, towns of coloured houses on the rock and, in September, the aurora over the ice. The easiest Arctic to reach, and the one with the most icebergs.

The Geographic North Pole

One passenger ship in the world can take you to the top of the planet, and she sails from Svalbard. Three days through the pack ice, two days on it, every direction south, and nothing else like it on any ship.

Iceland and Jan Mayen

Where most Arctic voyages begin or end, and where the best of them linger: the Westfjords, the whales of Húsavík and the volcano that rises alone out of the Greenland Sea. Two nights in Reykjavík either side, and the whole of the North Atlantic between.