A cruise aboard a Ponant ship blends maritime passion with the French art of living, where the pleasure of discovery is combined with comfort and conviviality. A land of volcanoes and enchanting landscapes, Iceland offers a timeless change of scenery, and we disembarked with appetite every day.
Departing from Reykjavik, this week-long cruise aboard the explorer Le Bellot took us along the west coast from the far south to the far north of Iceland, crossing the Arctic Circle in midsummer. At once soothing and enchanting, the coastal relief and craggy islands shaped by millennia of volcanic eruptions invite contemplation and prompt questions about the power and diversity of nature, but also about the place of Man. The first humans arrived from Norway over a thousand years ago, where they created the oldest Western parliament. They also withstood Europe’s strongest winds. The Bellot’s captain adapts his course to avoid them and keep the cruise comfortable.
Less than four hours’ flight from Switzerland, Iceland’s capital, which means “Bay of Smoke”, is well worth a visit, and a 24-hour stroll before catching your boat. Small, square, colorful houses with pointed roofs dot the two main streets, where the majority of stores and restaurants are located. The HallgrĂmskirkja church, with its unique architecture inspired by the basalt columns fashioned by lava, dominates the small town center and has become the symbol of Reykjavik. Down on the shore, the other emblematic building is a modern glass structure, conducive to the play of light and reminiscent of the northern lights (or the Rolex Tower, for those in Geneva!). This is the Harpa cultural center, with its many spaces and activities, including the Volcano Express experience, which allows visitors to fly over and better understand the country’s volcanic systems. A concise and breathtaking immersion, skilfully staged, that we wish were longer, but which we recommend.
Bonus knowledge
Ponant cruises are renowned for their cultural and educational approach to travel. Aboard the Bellot, an expert lecturer with a passion for Iceland and three guides accompany each outing on a daily basis, greatly enriching the discovery experience. Passengers are free to choose whether or not they wish to take advantage of this teaching, but it would be a shame to miss out. All the more so as the exploration program is varied at each port of call, with a choice of two to four options of varying lengths. In Iceland, where sunbathing on deck is a rarity, this wealth of knowledge is a godsend. Not least because of the unique situation of this land, the youngest in the world, balanced on the mid-Atlantic ridge where the American and European tectonic plates are engaged in a merciless tug-of-war, and where the frequency of eruptions has increased tenfold in recent years.
Journey to the center of the Earth
Iceland of course inspired Jules Verne, whose story begins with a visit to a volcano on the SnĂŠfellsnes peninsula, which alone reflects all the country’s diversity. Its national park is bordered on three sides by the sea, and is home to much of the country’s flora and fauna. The park is home to Arctic terns, small white birds that hold the world migration record for all species, travelling twice a year between the two poles (around 70,000 km per year). The best-known are the amazing puffins, and it’s not uncommon to see seals, too. Even whales, if you’re lucky. Here, nature is raw, dotted with lava of different hues and shapes depending on the rate of cooling and oxidation, sometimes covered with mosses, of which there are over 500 species. Relief is ubiquitous and varied, sometimes steep, sometimes typically volcanic cone-shaped, most often very dark. More than 10,000 waterfalls have been identified, but Iceland has many more. Among the excursions offered on the Vestmann Islands, the ascent of the Eldfell volcano, inactive for 50 years, requires no physical preparation, but thanks to explanations and observation, provides a better understanding of how it has shaped the mentality of the islanders who live mainly from fishing in Heimaey. The rocky lava encircles much of the small fishing port and village, to which it supplied energy for 15 years after the 1973 eruption. Fishing and tourism are Iceland’s two main activities, and the country does its utmost to protect them. The hostility of the elements has forged a natural solidarity between its inhabitants, which is transformed into hospitality and benevolence towards visitors.
ON THIS LAND, THE YOUNGEST IN THE WORLD, TECTONIC PLATES PLAY ARM-WRESTLING AND CREATE A WIDE VARIETY OF LANDSCAPES.
The Mysterious Star of Akureyri
Iceland not only inspired Jules Verne, but also served as the setting for this Tintin album, part of which is set in Akureyri. Its traditional architecture has been preserved, and you can still see the Danish influence that was exerted on Iceland at certain periods in its history. As the main town in the north, and located at the end of a long fjord, it offers easy access to some of the country’s most emblematic sites. The Swiss may not dwell on its ski resort, one of the largest on the island, but its international airport links it well with Zurich. We preferred these three facets of the island’s diversity, albeit within a limited perimeter.
Following a road lined with lakes and craters, it took us less than an hour to reach a geothermal zone with ochre colors and a relief unlike anything we’d seen before, reminiscent of the planet Mars. Swept by a strong odour of sulphur, this area is equipped with footbridges spanning the bubbling expanses, and marked paths to avoid any wrong turns, as well as reddish hills that can be climbed at one’s own risk. 30 minutes away, an ancient lake that lost its battle with a lava torrent has given rise to a labyrinth of volcanic rock, now the summer home of the Thirteen Christmas Goblins, a famous Icelandic myth still celebrated with fervor. A final, equally radical change of scenery before returning aboard the Bellot to set sail again, the Godafoss waterfalls are a reminder of the extent to which water and lava sculpt this country and can swallow everything in their path, not without a certain poetry. These cascades were christened the “Falls of the Gods”, in the wake of the Icelandic parliament’s decision to unify the country behind a single religion in the year To set an example, the leader of the day threw his pagan statues into the waterfall (although pagans were still allowed to practice in private).
Rifts in the Golden Circle
The highlight of this Icelandic cruise, the excursion from Reykjavik to the Golden Circle trilogy, takes visitors to the place where the parliament used to meet, an exceptional geological site shaped by the spreading of tectonic plates. A collapsing basin marked by a succession of faults several kilometers long offered the thousands of people who gathered there a plain large enough to accommodate them, a river to water them and their livestock, and a 40 m cliff to be seen and heard. Today, the Golden Circle spectacularly symbolizes the separation of the American and European continents on this mid-Atlantic ridge. The earth’s crust has collapsed here, and the separation continues at a rate of a few centimetres per year. One of the paths along the way leads to Gullfoss, the impressive two-tiered circular waterfall that seems to disappear into the bowels of the Earth, and arguably Iceland’s most famous. This geothermal zone also includes a natural attraction from which the name “geyser” derives. At Geysir, several geysers spit out their hot water at an altitude of 20 or 30 m every 6-7 min. Iceland’s incredible diversity and untamed power are awe-inspiring, both on land and at sea.
Five-star service
Beyond exploration, Ponant cruises envelop yachtsmen in a cocoon of benevolence and fine dining at every level. With practically one crew member for every passenger, service on board borders on excellence, and the spontaneous smiles of all our staff reflect a good atmosphere and a joy of entertaining. The French “art de vivre”, as claimed by this company belonging to a French luxury group, attracts an international clientele in search of this touch of well-being. The pleasures of the mouth are especially important, as reflected by the 30-member kitchen brigade, supervised by Alain Ducasse, or the well-stocked cellar, described with passion by Le Bellot’s sommelier. Even the captain plays a role of hospitality on a daily basis, giving of himself to welcome guests on his bridge, jovially taking the microphone to introduce his crew at cocktail parties, or mischievously encouraging us to call him “Commandant FX” rather than François-Xavier Avril. On the last day, of course, he greets passengers one by one as they say goodbye. Le Ponant offers hundreds of cruises around the world to discover and explore each destination with comfort, conviviality and curiosity.
