First-timer’s guide to Greenland

11.10.2023 - 14:57 / lonelyplanet.com

Greenland, the world’s largest island, is a country of wild extremes: uninhabitable wilderness at its core, and delightfully warm and charming people living in harmony with it. Climbers come to scale its spectacular sheer rock faces, scientists come to see what the melting ice can tell us of the planet’s future, and many visitors come away with a whole new perspective on life.

There’s no question that the must-see attraction for everyone who visits Greenland is ‘big nature’, from the black peaks that undulate on the horizon, to the great gray-blue ice sheet in the center of the island, and the icebergs scattered in the sea around it. Muskox, arctic fox and polar bears roam around, and the northern lights dance in the sky above.

Inhabited since 2,500 BCE, with Viking colonies in the south from the 10th century, Greenland has developed a unique culture and set of beliefs based on its people’s strong relationship with the mountains, ice and sea that surrounds them. It’s impossible not to come away feeling awestruck by what nature can create.

Greenland is a huge island with vast seasonal and geographical variations, and its weather can be unstable and unpredictable all year round. Be sure to take out travel insurance in the event of flight cancellations, and keep plans as loose as possible, as schedules can change suddenly.

For snow, dog sledding and the northern lights, the best time to visit is from late September to May.

If you are keen to do adventure sports, hiking, climbing or kayaking, the Greenlandic summer is more suitable. This period, from May to September, promises more hours of daylight.

Getting around Greenland is complicated (see below). The best advice is to choose one region to explore, or two at most, and spend a week there. This allows you to see the key natural sights and animals without feeling rushed, meet local people (who can be reticent), and have the flexibility to adapt if plans change due to bad weather.

As an example, you could choose to stay in the Ilulissat ice fjord region, where there are options for hiking, whale watching, and exploring Disko Bay and perhaps the ice cap over the course of a week. If you want to follow the Arctic Circle Trail, again, that’s a one-to-two-week trip. Factor in that you’ll likely need to fly via Denmark or Iceland, potentially adding a night to the trip in either direction, and there may be unexpected events due to the weather.

From early 2025 an extension to Nuuk airport will allow larger planes to land in Greenland, making it easier to reach from international destinations. Until the new runways open, flights to Greenland go via Reykjavik and Copenhagen into the country’s international airports, Nuuk, Kangerslussuaq and Ilulissat.

Greenland is large