Greenland is a real-life adventure playground where cultural exploration and wildlife watching are like nowhere else on Earth. Here there are towns with more sled dogs than people, scientists engaged in world-leading climate change research, streets where polar bears occasionally wander and welcoming local townships to visit. A visit here will reaffirm your love of the world and a sense of awe in nature; once you’ve been, there will always be a little chip of ice in your heart calling you back.
Day hikes take you to the edge of glaciers, boat tours weave amid icebergs under the midnight sun, dinners offer a taste of the edge of the world, and wildlife watching gives you new perspectives on whales, seabirds and bears. Some of the travel experiences here are intrepid – if that’s your vibe – but there’s plenty for soft adventurers too.
Travel in Greenland is highly seasonal. Summer’s midnight sun gives you light all day and all night, allowing for extra hours of adventuring, fantastic photo opportunities (and the kind of light that makes every shot look exceptional), and nobody, not even nature, telling you when it’s time to go to bed. It’s not exactly warm – you could expect snow flurries and very cold winds from the north at any time in the summer months, depending on where you are – but the constant sunlight certainly helps. The summer is peak season and prices are at their pinnacle too. Note that it’s not possible to see the northern lights in summer; you’ll just have to come back when it’s darker (the exact month depends on the region).
Step 1: Choose where to base yourself
Some things to know before you start planning: Greenland is vast, and you cannot do it all in one trip. You can’t just drive across Greenland, either: communities cluster around the edges of the country with no roads connecting them (there’s an ice sheet in the middle of this large island), so you have to take a boat, a helicopter ride, a ferry or an internal flight to get from place to place. Instead, our advice is to focus on a single region during your trip, so you make the most of it instead of spending all your time and money traveling. Each of the regions of Greenland has a slightly different flavor and there’s something to delight you in all of them.
Place 1 – Ilulissat & North Greenland
Vibes: Greenland’s tourist capital, Ilulisaat, is a bustling hive of kayak tours, midnight sun iceberg cruises and inland icecap adventures during the summer months. Cruise ships arrive for day excursions, the town’s extraordinary number of sled dogs howl day and night, and the path to the beautiful Icefjord Center and its walkway down to the old settlement of Sermermiut is thronged with visitors.
Do: Take a day trip (or longer) to Qeqertarsuaq (Disko Island), which is a couple of hours by ferry from Ilulisaat in Disko Bay. The former whaling capital is now an intimate town of colored houses on the edge of the bay with an indelible charm. To see the best of it, book a tour with local tour operator Disko Adventures, which offers snowmobiling and dog sled experiences on the glacier and guided hikes.
Eat: You are spoiled for choice in Ilulissat for high-end Greenlandic dining. Brasserie Ulo, housed at Hotel Arctic, is one of the town’s newest, and the likes of minke whale and halibut are on the menu; at Restaurant Icefiord, in Hotel Icefiord, you’ll find sea urchin and a blend of Nordic and French flavors. At Hotel Hvide Falk, the restaurant adds Asian flair to the local fish and meat and serves a Greenlandic buffet. Offset the price of all this fine dining by ordering sandwiches at your hotel for lunch.
Stay: There’s plenty to choose from: take in uninterrupted views of icebergs and the ocean at the luxurious Aurora Cabins at Hotel Arctic on the edge of town, or opt for guest house options and budget hotels like Hotel Søma. Book well in advance, especially in the summer, and expect to pay upwards of 1200 kr (£136) per night for a basic double room.
Place 2 – Qaqortoq & South Greenland
Vibes: The south of Greenland offers green fields, Viking history, hiking and horse riding, fjord kayaking and farming communities. Artsy Qaqortoq is the jumping off point for most experiences. This part of Greenland is diverse: you’ll find sheer-sided mountains that are a paradise for climbers, and an innovative greenhouse project tasked with growing the future of Greenland’s food.
Do: Take a boat trip from Qaqortoq to Uunartoq, a remote island with Greenland’s only hot spring pool. The pool on this island overlooks the fjord, icebergs and impossibly tall mountains, and was used for centuries before the Vikings came and enlarged it. Take in the view while thinking about all the people who have rested their muscles in the warm water here before you.
Eat: Inbox Cafe – A Little Thai Corner offers quite a unique experience in Qaqortoq: Thai food made with Greenlandic ingredients. Expect locally-caught red snapper or locally-hunted Musk Ox paired with Thai red curry instead of your usual beef or chicken. This part of Greenland is known for its lamb – the green pastures are home to a number of sheep farms – and it’s pretty delicious too.
Stay: Book well in advance and save up for a camping experience of a lifetime with Tasermiut Camp. Camping tours leave from the South Greenland town of Nanortalik and you’ll camp in Tasermiut fjord with an experienced team who can introduce you to hiking, fishing, herb picking and the wonders of Greenlandic nature. It’s a one-off with excellent guides with a deep passion for the area.
Place 3 – Nuuk & the Capital Region
Vibes: Greenland’s capital is home to just under 20,000 people – over a third of the entire population of Greenland – and is easy to reach and explore. It might be a city with fine dining, museums and cultural centers, but you can still enjoy nature from this cosmopolitan base with day hikes, whale watching and even skiing opportunities.
Do: Go stand-up paddleboarding around the icebergs. Clad in a dry suit, you can take a SUP into Nuuk Fjord and enjoy the peace and calm of nature in the area. Nuuk Watertaxi is one of a number of operators in the town that offers guided tours; you can also explore the area by kayak and by boat. SUP tours are only available between May and September.
Eat: There are plenty of restaurants, bars and cafes to choose from in Nuuk. At Katuaq Cultural Centre, a striking building in the center of the town, you’ll find a range of options, from burgers to Greenlandic tapas, typically small bites of seasonal local delicacies like prawns, mussels, smoked salmon and perhaps whale. They also serve delicious fresh snow crab and their classic “hot sled dog” – a local twist on a hot dog, made from gamey and rich musk ox meat. It’s worth checking out what else is going on in the center, which hosts music nights, cinema and exhibitions, among other things.
Stay: Leave the city behind and immerse yourself in Greenlandic nature at Camp Kangiusaq, one of a number of tented camps a few hours by boat from Nuuk. This one on Nuuk Fjord offers bell tents with a view of icebergs and mountains; on the way there, you might spy sea eagles, whales and seals. It’s a much more characterful accommodation option than Nuuk’s standard business-focused hotels.
Step 2: Book your accommodations
It pays to book your accommodation a number of months ahead – perhaps even a year ahead for the more specialist accommodation, which is limited and in high demand during peak season (June-August). Greenland’s small settlements often have limited capacity, and even in the larger, more tourist-oriented towns, accommodation can be booked out by tour groups well ahead of time.
Most towns offer a mix of hotels, independent cabins and private homestay options via Airbnb and Inuit Home, a locally-run homestay website. Hotels range from basic, former barracks buildings to comfortable and luxurious international-style hotels. In popular towns like Ilulisaat, it is not uncommon for every hotel room to be booked in July; last-minute booking is not usually possible and is certainly not advised. Visit Greenland has a nearly comprehensive list of options on its accommodation listings page.
Greenland has a growing specialist accommodation scene, with snow igloos, tented camps, wild lodges and more to discover. These options are not cheap by any means, but they provide once-in-a-lifetime experiences. If you want to see the northern lights, you’ll need to stay north of the Arctic Circle between the months of September and May.
Step 3: Plan the best things to do in Greenland
You can get to Greenland on your own as an independent traveler – you don’t have to make this trip as part of a tour group – but booking excursions with a local tour operator gives you an insider perspective on the country that’s well worth the effort. And on active outdoor adventures you’ll likely need a little helping hand in this extreme environment. Another couple of things to note: the weather rules everything, so allow room for changing plans due to snow, wind, rain, etc. Seasonality also plays a part: it makes a difference which month of the year you arrive for whale watching, polar bear safaris and more, so do your research and book ahead.
Take a day trip
In North Greenland: This is the country that gave us the word kayak, so it’s churlish not to take a kayak tour – explore ice fjords, weave around icebergs and spot Northern Fulmars skimming the water as you go. Multiple tour operators in Ilulissat offer this option, including World of Greenland.
In South Greenland: Take a hike in Qassiarsuk and discover a UNESCO-listed landscape that encompasses Viking history (including the remains of Erik the Red’s home) and modern-day sheep farms, all with a view of an iceberg-littered fjord and sheep farmers as your hosts. Blue Ice Explorer can help you get there.
From Nuuk: Summit Quassussuaq, a mountain outside Nuuk, with a local guide for epic views of the fjord and the ocean. Pack good hiking boots and snacks – this is a day-long excursion run by local tour operators Two Ravens, who also operate heliskiing and heli hiking options from Nuuk.
Go whale watching
With Greenland’s towns all on the coast, boat trips are everywhere, especially in the summer months. If you’re arriving in early summer, you might catch sight of one of the arctic whales (Bowhead, Beluga or Narwhal) before they move north; otherwise, you’re most likely to see a humpback, fin or minke whale in the clear, cold waters of the Arctic Ocean as they migrate to eat its abundant krill. Whale-watching tours usually take a couple of hours and are in small boats; some outfitters offer a free trip if you don’t see any. Wrap up warm.
Meet the sled dogs
Whether you take a dog sledding tour – on offer in towns like Ilulissat – or just join a local dog owner on a tour, meeting a Greenlandic sled dog is a memorable experience. In the summer, you’re most likely to find a brood of fluffy puppies too. Greenland’s sled dogs have two coats, live outside and eat a diet of mainly fish; note that they are not pets and you should never approach them, pet them or feed them.
Take lots of pictures
The midnight sun, combined with Greenland’s pollution-free air, makes the country a photographic paradise. Snap a pair of fluffy sled dog puppies rolling around on a dusty road. Hike the top of a mountain and take a panorama. Visit sea caves by boat and take shots of icebergs framed by the cave walls. Snap icebergs, again and again and again.
Explore Greenlandic culture
Discovering how life is lived on this most remote island, and spending time with local people, is one of the most rewarding experiences to find on a trip to Greenland. Take time to talk to local people – it’s illuminating! Visiting the country’s small local museums gives an intimate take on how hard life was in years gone by, with artifacts, art and information to tell you more. The Greenland National Museum in Nuuk is packed with stories about everything from the first people to the Vikings, wild expeditions and the whaling period in the country, and has some extraordinary mummies from the 15th century. In Ilulissat, there is both a city museum and the Icefjord Centre, which tells the story of the landscape and culture together.
Step 4: What to eat & drink in Greenland
In major tourist centers, international-style food is possible, but in many places around Greenland, options for vegan and vegetarian food are severely limited. It’s hard – near impossible – to grow much in the country, so nearly all fruit and vegetables are imported, and as a result, they are expensive. Local people forage for crowberries, bilberries and local herbs, but there are not many local veggies and berries beyond that. There’s a growing trend in the country towards local and traditional food which, while it can be challenging if you haven’t tried it before, reflects a very real need to eat food gathered from close to home, including the ocean and the mountains. It’s typical for local people to regularly hunt for their own food, and to have several large chest freezers at home for their catch. You’ll notice the lack of vegetables: diet here is largely meat and fish-based, and has helped people thrive in this extreme, calorie-demanding environment for centuries.
Greenlandic cuisine
A growing number of hotels and restaurants are proudly serving Greenlandic cuisine, which includes lamb, musk ox, halibut, arctic char, seal and even (sustainably hunted) whale, with great results. In Ilulissat, Hotel Arctic’s Brasserie Ulo serves everything from local fish to snow crab and minke whale; in Qeqertarsuaq on Disko Island, Hotel Disko Island serves local Arctic food as a speciality, with a fantastic snow crab and lemon mayonnaise dish as the star of the menu. In Nuuk, drop in to gastropub Killut where you can wash down their platter of Greenlandic tapas with some locally-brewed beer.
Coffee, cakes and more
If you get a chance to go to a kaffemik, a family or local gathering a little akin to a celebratory coffee morning where everyone you know is invited, grab it with both hands. It gives you a chance to find out more about local food, traditions and culture, eat a lot of cake and hear a little about daily life in this remote part of the world. In Nuuk and Qaqortoq, it is possible to book a kaffemik experience via the local tourist office.
What to drink
If you find yourself at a bar, order the local beer. In Nuuk, Godthaab Bryghus has a variety on tap and offers brewery tours; there’s also Qajak microbrewery in South Greenland and Immiaq microbrewery in North Greenland.
Step 5: Decide how will you get there
From mainland Europe, the easiest way to get to Greenland is via Copenhagen, where direct Air Greenland flights fly to Kangerlussuaq and Narsasuaq and on from there to Nuuk, Ilulissat, Kulusuk and Constable Point. From North America, Air Greenland and Icelandair flights route through Reykjavik to the same destinations.
From late 2025, an extension at Nuuk’s airport will allow larger planes to fly directly to the capital city, and it will become the main transit hub for the country, meaning travelers will fly to Nuuk and change for destinations in other parts of Greenland.
From 2026, an extended airport in Ilulissat will mean international flights can also fly there directly without the need to change at Nuuk.
Many cruise companies have Greenland on their itineraries, sailing from North America to Europe via the country.
The Arctic Umiaq Line is a local Greenlandic ferry serving the west coast that offers a unique and authentic way to travel up and down the coast and to remote settlements by boat. Used by local people, the ferry takes 14 days to go from Nuuk down to South Greenland and then via Nuuk again up to Uummannaq, north of Ilulissat. It’s a unique way to get off the beaten track and see smaller communities around the edge of the country.
Laura Hall traveled to Greenland with the support of Visit Greenland. Lonely Planet does not accept freebies in exchange for positive coverage.