The Real Deal: Six nights' accommodations, round-trip regional airfare, and round-trip airport-hotel transfers, for $1,149 per person—including taxes and fuel surcharges.
When: Depart Tuesdays Jan. 6–March 31, 2009.
The fine print: Breakfast daily, round-trip airport-hotel transfers, round-trip local flights between Reykjavík and Kulusuk, all hotel and airport taxes, and fuel surcharges are included. International airfare to Iceland is not included. Based on double occupancy; single supplement is $290. Read these guidelines before you book any Real Deal.
Book by: No deadline; based on availability. Must book at least two weeks prior to departure.
Contact: Iceland Experience, 866/949-0129, iceland-experience.com.
Why it's a deal: The $1,149 per person rate breaks down to about $192 a night and includes accommodations, breakfast daily, round-trip airport-hotel transfers, a round-trip flight between Reykjavík and Kulusuk, taxes, and fuel surcharges. What's more, as the currency (the Icelandic krona) continues to depreciate, so does the package price—this package is more than $300 cheaper than it was last week.
Trip details: The Winter Madness package includes six nights' accommodations divided between Reykjavík, Iceland, and Kulusuk, Greenland, plus a round-trip flight between the two cities on an Air Iceland carrier. Transfers between the airports and hotels are also covered in the rate.
Upon your arrival at Keflavík International Airport in Iceland, you'll be transferred to your hotel in Reykjavík via Flybus. Choose from a variety of mid-range hotels, based on availability: Hotel Fron, Hotel Bjork, Fosshotel Lind, Hotel Skjaldbreid, CenterHotel Klopp, or Icelandair Hotel Loftleidir.
After a night in Reykjavík, catch a two-hour flight to Kulusuk, Greenland. The 34-room Hotel Kulusuk will be your base for three nights.
This coastal area is hidden behind impenetrable ice for much of the year, and you're unlikely to run into many other tourists as you explore the small town. A guided walking tour is available at an additional cost, as is a dogsledding excursion (as long as weather and ice conditions cooperate!).
You could also add on a helicopter ride to Tasiilaq, a big town by local standards—about 1,700 residents—in a fjord and surrounded by dramatic peaks. The excursion includes an overnight stay at Hotel Angmagssalik and costs about an additional $640 per person.
Fly back to Reykjavík for the final two nights of the package trip. You're free to explore the nightlife-loving capital of Iceland on your own or tack on a guided sightseeing tour. Just be prepared for chilly weather and dark days.
You'll stop by the Blue Lagoon for a quick restorative dip in the geothermal waters before being transferred back to the airport.
For more on what to expect, visit the official Web sites of the Icelandic Tourist Board in North America and the Greenland Tourism and Business Council.
Getting there: International airfare to Iceland is not included. According to a recent Kayak search, round-trip flights to Reykjavík start at $883 from New York City (multiple carriers), $1,433 from Chicago (multiple carriers), $1,467 from Miami (multiple carriers), $1,517 from Houston (multiple carriers), $1,573 from L.A. (multiple carriers), and $1,574 from Seattle (multiple carriers) for travel in mid-January.