18-Day Voyage of the Vikings

Rotterdam, Europe's largest port, is a city that rebuilt itself from wartime ruin into one of the continent's most exhilarating architectural laboratories — a skyline of Cube Houses, the pencil-thin Westerkade skyscrapers, and the breathtaking Markthal arching over an indoor food market of extraordinary abundance. The Boijmans Van Beuningen collection ranks among Europe's finest, while the art district of Witte de With pulses with galleries and design studios. Day-trip to Kinderdijk's nineteen iconic windmills, a UNESCO World Heritage site rising from the polders just south of the city. Spring and early summer offer the finest conditions.

Cork (via Cobh cruise port) offers Ireland's largest natural harbor, the last port of call for the Titanic, and access to Ireland's culinary capital with its legendary English Market and artisan food culture. Must-dos include visiting the Cobh Heritage Centre, shopping the English Market for artisan cheeses, and day-tripping to gourmet Kinsale. Visit May to September for the warmest weather and longest days.

Dún Laoghaire is an elegant Victorian harbour town on Dublin Bay, renowned for its sweeping nineteenth-century granite piers, literary heritage tied to James Joyce, and vibrant artisan food culture featuring Dublin Bay prawns, boxty, and farmhouse cheeses. Visitors should walk the historic East Pier for panoramic bay views and explore the Sunday market at People's Park. The ideal season is late May through September, when long Irish summer evenings bathe the waterfront in golden light and outdoor dining comes alive along the seafront.

Belfast, Northern Ireland’s capital, is a vibrant port city renowned for its rich shipbuilding heritage, highlighted by the Titanic Belfast museum. Must-do experiences include exploring the historic Cathedral Quarter and tasting traditional dishes like Irish stew and soda bread at St. George's Market. The best season to visit is during the spring and summer when the city comes alive with festivals and outdoor events.

Reykjavik, the world's northernmost capital, distils the entire improbable beauty of Iceland into one compact, creatively charged city. The soaring basalt columns of Hallgrímskirkja dominate a skyline of primary-coloured rooftops, while the Harpa Concert Hall shimmers beside the harbour like a captured aurora. Day trips from the city unlock the Golden Circle's geysers and Geysir hot spring, the black sand beaches of Vík, and the ethereal glacier lagoon at Jökulsárlón. Geothermal pools — from the legendary Blue Lagoon to intimate neighbourhood hot pots — offer warmth year-round. June and July bring the bewitching midnight sun.

Prince Christian Sound is Greenland's most dramatic navigable passage — a forty-kilometer corridor between thousand-meter cliffs and hanging glaciers that expedition ships from Seabourn to Silversea transit when ice conditions permit. Navigate July through September for humpback whale encounters, iceberg-studded waters, and the visceral Arctic experience that empties every cabin and fills every open deck regardless of weather.

Qaqortoq is southern Greenland's largest town, where brightly painted houses climb above a fjord harbour amid open-air stone sculptures and Norse ruins. Must-do experiences include visiting the Hvalsey Norse church ruins, soaking in the Uunartoq hot springs surrounded by icebergs, and tasting Arctic char and musk ox. June through September offers the accessible season, with July and August warmest for fjord exploration.

St. Anthony sits at Newfoundland's northern tip, serving as the gateway to Iceberg Alley, whale-watching waters, and the UNESCO-listed Viking settlement at L'Anse aux Meadows. Must-dos include watching thousand-year-old icebergs drift past and exploring North America's only authenticated Norse site. June and July offer peak iceberg and whale season.

St. John's, Antigua's storied capital, anchors a natural harbor that has drawn seafarers since the seventeenth century, its Georgian cathedral and pastel-painted market hall bearing quiet witness to a complex colonial past. The crown jewel lies an hour's drive away at Nelson's Dockyard in English Harbour — the world's only still-functioning Georgian naval dockyard, set against the turquoise waters of one of the Caribbean's finest anchorages. Antigua's warm, dry climate makes it a year-round destination, though the exhilarating Sailing Week regatta in late April draws the most glamorous international crowd.

Halifax, the historic capital of Nova Scotia, is a refined Atlantic port where centuries of maritime heritage meet a flourishing culinary scene anchored by Digby scallops, donairs, and one of North America's oldest farmers' markets. Visitors should not miss the star-shaped Citadel Hill and the harbourfront boardwalk's constellation of galleries and tasting rooms. The ideal season stretches from late June through October, when autumn's blazing foliage transforms the entire province into a masterwork of colour and the cruise terminal welcomes the world's finest vessels.

Boston is America's revolutionary birthplace and intellectual capital, a supremely walkable city where the Freedom Trail connects sixteen historic sites past Italian North End bakeries and Beacon Hill's gaslit streets. Must-do experiences include walking the Freedom Trail, eating a lobster roll at the Union Oyster House, and exploring the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum. September and October bring peak fall foliage; spring brings the Marathon and blooming gardens.