Greenland - any advice from those who've been?
 

From reasons that I guess make some sense my husband thought we should give our 13-year-old son substantial input on one of this summer vacations. The thinking goes that since he's started high school we can't take him out of school for trips anymore so he's missing out on most of our travel.

Well ... he picks Greenland. Actually, he first picked a kayak trip between Greenland and Iceland, which we quickly nixed for obvious reasons. I remind him that Greenland is icy and Iceland is green and he confirms that Greenland is what he wants.

So far, we've picked up a guide book and learned that wife-swapping is very popular in Greenland. And should a man present you with his wife and you decline, he will be very offended. There's also a mid-summer holiday where if you role nekkid in the dew in a park, you'll be cured of 19 ailments.

Anyway, before we commit to this little adventure, I'm looking for advice and suggestions from anyone who's visited.

mental note: if I ever tire of my wife, take a trip to Greenland. It's been 15 years now so I don't see that happening. By the way, is the man being presented to obligated to present his wife as well?

I think I remember the FTer osstamps (sp?) having said he'd been to greenland. Now only to find the post! http://www.flyertalk.com/travel/fttr...orum/smile.gif Good luck.

The only drawback to such an adventure is how to get there. I think there's only regularly-scheduled service from CPH (Greenland is Denmark's protectorate or some such thing).

There have been stories of ireegular service between Canada's north and Thule.

Advice: One option might be getting a cheap flight to Iceland and taking a ferry over.

Somewhat more reliable advice: Greenlandair (or similar) is scheduled to begin service with an A330 to CPH soon. Service will be thrice weekly, IIRC.

Most reliable advice: it's still a good idea to avoid yellow snow.

http://www.flyertalk.com/travel/fttr...um/biggrin.gif

[This message has been edited by taucher (edited 10-08-2002).]

Well, no info from me, though I have wanted to go for a long time. Iceland was magic, I have to get to Greenland one day. In summer, there are options from the UK: fly Icelandair to KEF, then pick up a small plane to Greenland, usually as a package.

Flying from London to Western US and Canada, we are often routed over Greenland - so near yet so far! - and we even managed the view eastbound between SEA and CPH in June, thankx to the midnight sun.

I remember seeing an edition of the Lonely Planet TV show on Greenland. In fact, I saw it twice - once on terrestial UK TV (Channel 4, I think) - which lasted 30 minutes minus ads and once on Discovery, which was one hour minus ads. Same presenter, etc, just the UK version was edited. (And I thought it was Americans who were supposed to have shorter attention spans ... )

I mention it in case you are able to track down a video or DVD.

Good luck!

[edited to change Lonely Plant to Lonely Planet!

[This message has been edited by Roger (edited 10-12-2002).]

This company has some well-recommended tours to Greenland from N. America.

www.greatcanadiantravel.com

Thanks for the tips!

I have never been to Greenland but having lived in Denmark (the colonial master) one has a pretty negative impression of the place. Offhand it's a bit like going on vacation on an Indian reservation. I can elaborate if you wish........

The wilderness and adventure is probably great, but don't spend too much time in the towns.

gnaget: yes, please do elaborate if you would.

Well, it opens up a political and social can of worms, but the native population has had problems in adjusting to Western life. Also, the Danish socialist planners probably made things worse.

I have seen photos of Danish style suburban low-rise aparment buildings with seal skins hanging over the balcony. Alcoholism is rampant and I have heard crazy stories..... The murder rate is very high (on par with a US ghetto ca. 1986) but a visitor shouldn't feel threatened since it's probably internal alcohol fueled quarrels.

So, I would go for it if you are going spend time in the wilderness but it doesn't sound too pleasant if you are going stay in a town like Godthab (Nuuk), etc.

A quick Google search yielded stuff like:
http://nativenet.uthscsa.edu/archive/nl/9508/0081.html

p.s. When I was a kid my parents won a free trip to Greenland on SK. This was before the 1985 autonomy.... "Um, could we change that for something else?", "Well, we consider this to be a domestic Danish flight" (Great... a 20 minute flight to Aarhus) "Hmmm... but SAS is the national carrier of three countries..." "Ok, you can fly anywhere within Scandinavia"

I just noticed this topic and wonder if you have made plans for your trip to Greenland.

It is one of these places you will either love or hate. If you appreciate nature you will love it.

Have been there twice visiting friends so I had "special" access to hunting trips and was invited into private homes.

This company offers Kayak trips to Greenland

http://www.piragis.com/international

We have been pleased with them as outfitters in Minnesota, but do not know about their international tours.

julleflyer: Thanks for that link. I haven't had a chance to look through it all yet, but I did bookmark it. It looks like they offer some pretty nice trips.

I adore Iceland. It is a wonderful place. I haven't gotten to Greenland as yet. One thing I'm going to mention is the 'camping' that young people do in Iceland. They are very polite about it, but it is obvious that they are doing more than admiring the Midnight sun. The same traditions exist in Greenland. Do you want your son to see this tradition? It's up to you! I've found that young Icelanders are very open about their sexuality, birth control is easily available and single mothers are respected. Some of the summer celebrations are, to say the least, very festive!

I'm beginning to think my son had some other reasons for picking this vacation destination. http://www.flyertalk.com/travel/fttravel_forum/wink.gif

Yep .. flew there once from Iceland to have a look see.

It was named by someone with a sense of humour. Nothing green on the parts I saw .... and that was SUMMER. http://www.flyertalk.com/travel/fttravel_forum/wink.gif Nothing growing except moss. Not a tree shrub or anything more than a few inches high due to the winds.

There is ONE hotel on the entire east coast ..... and remember that is 1000s of miles. Meal one night was a kinda beef stew. We asked what is was. "Whale". Thinking he was joking we asked someone else. They said "Whale". Asked a third ... well you get the picture. It was whale or nothing.

Landed in this Fokker on what looked like the surface of Mars. Gale force winds. The "airport" - a small tin shed had a polar bear skin on the wall, saying it was shot in the car park that year.

Caught some big Bell Jetranger chopper over iceberg laden seas (SUMMER remember) buffeted by cyclonic winds. All houses have a dozen huskies chained to stakes out front etc. Quite a place to visit.

It is a dependency of Denmark, and uses Danish currency, although for 60 years it has issued its own stamps.

Based on ozstamps post, it sounds like you are in for a real adventure http://www.flyertalk.com/travel/fttr...um/biggrin.gif

I have been to Iceland a few times and Greenland once... It is akin to a frontier mentality. NOTHING like fairly developed and good standard of living Iceland.

My visits were limited to a transit two days in Nuuk and overflight to Kulusuk and a visit to Ilulissat.

I would suggest getting the Iceland/Greenland/Faroe Island Lonely planet guide http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg...2362?vi=glance

Some info from their website

http://www.lonelyplanet.com/destinat...land/index.htm

I do concur on the high rates of alcohol abuse and in general an unsafe feeling in large groups in cities/towns that a fight was going to start (in drinking places)....

I have been to Greenland (twice as it happens) but my experiences are limited to one specific area of the west coast.

If you want to know about Kangerlussuaq (Danish name Sondre Stromfjord) which is just north of the Arctic circle, then let me know.

Aaron

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I spent a fantastic 3 weeks in Greenland in 1999, travelling on my own from Kangerlussuaq up to Uummanaq and back.

For photos, see http://pattullo.com/greenland/

Tips? Choose your time of year carefully, depending on what you want to do. It's a country (obviously) seriously affected by climate. Getting around in Winter is dogsled or plane/helicopter, Summer is boat.

Personally, I'd recommend flying from Kangerlussuaq (the biggest internation airport) up to Ilulissat, and basing yourself there. Ilulissat is like no other place I have seen on this earth - it's next to a shallow fjord at the end of a glacier where icebergs form and are stuck until a critical mass builds up and they go crashing out to sea... I sat on the edge of the fjord for hours, awe-struck...

Other places definitely worth going to are Qeqertarsuaq (a beautiful island for walking and dogsled rides) and Uummanaq (the view of the town and 'heart-shaped mountain' as you sail in is worth it in its own right).

For travel - book up when you can. Internal flights are expensive and unreliable, due to weather. As a result, all tickets are flexible and the price reflects this. Do try and take at least one flight in a Sikorsky helicopter, though, it's great fun http://www.flyertalk.com/travel/fttravel_forum/wink.gif The coastal ferries also get very heavily booked up, so get places reserved as soon as you know when you want to go where.

If you're going in Summer, beware the mosquitos! Seriously, be careful.

If you're into marine wildlife, you won't be disappointed. Aasiaat is a fantastic place for whale-spotting (and Aurora Borealis, around September/Octover), but do be aware that people that take you out to see them are those best suited to spotting them: whale/seal hunters. Not everyone is happy with that.

Make sure you eat lots and lots of local fish. The rainbow trout and halibut are fantastic. Don't expect to go out drinking - drinking halls aren't the most welcoming, and neither are the prices. Try some musk ox too...

Don't underestimate how much everything costs. It's an expensive place to visit. Even youth hostels can cost upwards of $35 per night.

Oh, and if you're scared of dogs, you'll hate it. They're everywhere. Really, everywhere. You get woken up by a dawn chorus of barking. In Summer, they tend to get chained up in a field on the edge of town, which means you run the gauntlet of dogs every time you go walking...

Watch shop and bank opening hours. ATMs tend to be inside banks, without out-of-hours access. Many shops are state-run with limited hours, especially in more remote places.

As Billy Connolly says, there's no such thing as 'bad weather', only 'inappropriate clothing'. This is important round here http://www.flyertalk.com/travel/fttravel_forum/wink.gif Read up on the climate - it's not as cold as you think. Invest in 'breathable' fabrics - the sun can be strong through the cold.

That's all I can think of for now, but... It's an absolutely unique place, and, to date, filled with the most beautiful natural phenomena I have ever seen. I highly recommend it.

I would say September is the best time to visit Greenland. Mossies are being killed off by the lower temps, but it's not so cold that it's unbearable.

Aaron

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I very helpful post stut. Thanks!

For those that are interested in going, IcelandAir has periodically had packages that go to Kulusuk and other places. Haven't been yet, but I'm planning to go at some point soon. Sometimes they get announced in the Lucky Fares (discounts) email.

http://www.icelandair.com/ -- the international airline
http://www.airiceland.is/ -- the "domestic" airline (Iceland, Greenland, Faroe Islands)

Please post a trip report when you go.