I visited the south west coast of Greenland last summer and spent sometime in Qaqortoq, Nuuk and Ilulissat, with a very brief stop in Paamiut on a coastal ship between Qaqortoq and Nuuk.

Qaqortoq A nice little town (though the fifth largest in Greenland) with a decent small museum and stone sculptures dotted around the place. Nearby places of interest are Hvalsey Church ruins and Uunartoq Hot Springs. I visited Hvalsey on the way by boat from Igaliku. It should be a relatively easy boat trip from Qaqortoq. I did not go to Uunartoq as it would have meant 4-5 hours getting there and back by boat and not much time at the hot springs. Other activities included a hike up to a headland overlooking the town and the fjord towards Hvalsey in the other direction, a kaffemik or a visit to a local home for coffee and cake, and a tour of a seal skin/fur processing factory.

Paamiut The coastal ship I travelled on from Qaqortoq to Nuuk stopped briefly (30 minutes) in Paamiut and I joined a small group led by the ship’s English speaking guide to walk up to a church on a hill and back. I don’t know what there is to do there for a whole day.

Nuuk The National Museum which houses the Qilakitsoq mummies is worth a visit and also the Art Museum especially if there is a special exhibition. I also did a self-guided ArtWalk looking at sculptures, street art and murals. Nuuk is a small city and you can walk almost everywhere though the harbour is some distance away. Greenland must be one of the few countries where tourists can just walk into the parliament building for a tour. I also went for a Fish’n’Dish dinner at Qooqqut Nuan some 50km away by boat and met people from a cruise ship who managed to squeeze it into their schedule. Interesting but expensive (remember this is Greenland) Thai-influenced fish dishes at one of the world’s remotest restaurants.

Ilulissat Probably the most tourist-orientated destination on this Greenland trip. You can see icebergs from land (hiking trails on the edge of the town), from above by helicopter (I didn’t since I flew into Ilulissat and managed to see icebergs before landing, plus the weather when I was there wasn’t brilliant) or from a boat cruising among icebergs. It was cold! There are also small museums although I didn’t visit them.

I will try and add some photos later.