DAY TO DAY PROGRAM
Day 1: Copenhagen – Kangerlussuaq
Departure from Copenhagen at 09.00am or 10.00am with arrival to Kangerlussuaq 10.40am or 11.40am (local time).
Pick up at the airport and transfer to Old Camp or Polar Lodge Hostel, where you will stay while in Kangerlussuaq. Polar Lodge is a cosy hostel with dbl. rooms and shared toilet and shower facilities.
The first day in Greenland you will go on a trip to the ice cap, which is situated around 40 km away from the old American military base. You will be driving in special build 4×4 truck and the trip runs through a beautiful mountain landscape formed by the ice. If you are lucky, you will see musk ox and arctic foxes. Kangerlussuq has the highest concentration of musk ox: around 20.000 animals. If the conditions are good, we will have the chance of getting all the way up and walk on the ice cap. Some places the ice cap is more than 3 km thick. We will have a beautiful view over the ice cap.
Back in Kangerlussuaq you will have enough time to have a closer look at the old American base, which was handed over to the home rule of Greenland in 1992. A visit on the local museum will give you an interesting insight in Kangerlussuq and the Greenlandic history. Or you can add on an overnight stay at the ice cap in expedition tents.
In the evening we recommend eating dinner at restaurant Roklubben (Rowing Club), which is beautiful situated at the shore of Lake Ferguson. They serve a really good dinner, and it’s a very good area to experience northern light on a clear night. You can book a table upon arrival to the hostel.
Extra – sleep on the Ice Cap??
You can also choose to try to sleep on the Ice Cap and hike with crampons. On this two-day ‘mini-expedition’ you will walk in the footsteps of the legendary polar explorers, and you’ll experience the magnitude and greatness of the ice cap. You’ll sleep in expedition tents on the ice cap. All safety equipment and sleeping gear is included. Request time and prices.
Day 2: Kangerlussuaq – Ilulissat: Guided city walk in Ilulissat
Breakfast at the hostel. Around noon you will fly north for about 45 minutes before landing in Ilulissat (‘Ilulissat’ means ‘icebergs’ in Greenlandic – and for a reason). When you approach Ilulissat by air you will see the gigantic icebergs as long as you can see.
Your transfer will be waiting for you in Ilulissat and drive you to your hotel “Hvide Falk”, which has a fantastic view over the Disko Bay. The first thing on your program is to meet your guide and get a 2 hour city walk. If you have any questions regarding your program in Ilulissat you can just ask the guide. The first day in Ilulissat you will do a walk around town and get to know the interesting history and the town where you will spend the next days. You will see the fishing harbor, the old colonial part of Ilulissat and town museum, which was also home of the famous Polar explorer Knud Rasmussen.
Day 3: Ilulissat – Sermermiut hike and boat tour
Breakfast at Hotel Hvide Falk.
Before lunch you will do a hike with our guide to the Sermermiut Valley, which has been protected by UNESCO since 2004. This hike might be the most beautiful hike you will ever do. It is not hard, it is not long, but the views over Kangia icefjord is a sight to behold! Here you can also experience remains of old Inuit cultures, but the biggest attraction is the amazing view to the icefjord, were 10% of of all ice coming from the ice cap, goes through this narrow straight. The view is breathtaking!
In the afternoon you will go on a boat tour to the ice fiord, where you see the icebergs from a very close but safe distance. During the summer time the glacier Kangia can move up to 50 meters a day.
Day 4: Ilulissat – Dog sled trip
Breakfast at the Hotel Hvide falk.
After breakfast you will be picked up and driven to the dog area. This is where today’s adventure begins, when a local hunter is taking you on a dog sled trip in the plains north of Ilulissat. The trip takes around 1,5 hours, and will take you through different beautiful winter landscapes. Please don’t hesitate to call us for more information about this trip. If you want, you can also prolong the trip for a 4 hours trip, where you will travel further ind the backcountry with amazing views over Disko Bay and towards the Ice Cap (extra for 4 hours dogsled trip is from DKK 1100,-/person)
Day 5: Ilulissat – Igloo Lodge
Breakfast at Hotel Hvide Falk.
Today it is time for another highlight of your trip. You are going to spend the night in a snow igloo! The trip starts after breakfast, when you go on a snow cat out through the winter landscape to the Igloo Lodge. The trip takes around 1,5 hours and after arriving, you will be greeted with hot coffee and refreshments. The igloos has space for 2 persons in each igloo. In the coldest winters, the temperatures can get down to -40 degrees celcius, but inside the iglo the temperature is normally around minus five to zero degrees celcius. You will get warm sleeping bags and reindeer skin to sleep on. Reindeer skin has the advantage that the hairs are hollow and trap the warm air, which will help you stay warm. If you during the night thinks it’s too cold for you, you can always go inside in the nearby hut, where there is room reserved for you.
After lunch you can enjoy the silence and the vast scenery around Igloo Lodge; Take a walk in the wilderness or enjoy a coffee inside the warm hut. Or you can join one of the excursions:
- Snow shoe hike to the view point: Bugle up and get ready for a beautiful tour: After a short introduction, we’ll walk across the frozen lake in front of the lodge, and then up through a small pass entering the UNESCO area. The pass opens out towards Ilulissat Icefjord, and the most beautiful view opens up. Here we’ll take a coffee break, and have plenty of time to enjoy the view, take pictures and maybe spot a ptarmigan or two before heading back towards Igloo Lodge again. The tour is apron 1,5 hours and Price is DKK 295,- per person.
- Snowmobile tour to the fishing spot: We will go by snowmobile to “Aattartoq”, which is the base where all the local hunters and fishermen throughout the winter. The scenery is amazing and we’ll have numerous unique and spectacular views that greets us on the way. We have repeatedly views of “the dead glacier” and the enormous ice sheet in the background. After approx 45 minutes’ drive. we’ll drive at the frozen fiord Sikuiuitsoq. From the meter thick sea ice icebergs emerge in distinctive formations with nuances of blue and shinning white. But the area offers more than ice. In the cabins by the fishing grounds, local fishermen and hunters find shelter from the darkness and the cold. Close by the sledge dogs rest on the sea ice. Upon arrival we park our scooters and give ourselves plenty time to slender on the sea ice among the icebergs – the Giants of Greenland. We also get insight in the life as a hunter/fisherman in present Greenland, before we return to Igloo Lodge. Please note that minimum age is 12 years, and a valid driver license is needed in order to drive the snowmobile The tour is approx 3 hours and price is DKK 995,- per person.
- Dog sled tour: in stead of the included dogsled tour (planed on day 4) consider doing the dogsledding from here in stead. Or if you cannot have enough of the four legged sled adventure, take another tour from here. On the dog sled tour we are already in the back country, so the experience of being out here in the nowhere is simply amazing. Snow and ice conditions determine the route, but often we’ll go to the view point where we have a stunning view to the ice cap. Minimum age is 8 yearr, and the tour is approx 1,5 hours and price is DKK 1700,- per person.
The afternoon program includes a snow shoe hike to a beautiful view point over the Ice Fiord of Ilulissat. When back in the hut, you will have dinner, before you hopefully will see the northern light. If you get to see the northern light, you are in the right spot – it’s pitch black out here with no light to be seen from Ilulissat – an experience you will never forget. It is also possible to purchase a dogsledding tour or a snowmobile tour – please ask us for the price.
Day 6: Igloo Lodge – Ilulissat
We will wake up in our own igloos and slowly everybody will get up and will join the breakfast table inside the warm hut before getting ready to return to Ilulissat by snow mobile.
Back in Ilulissat you will check in at Hotel Hvide Falk again for the last 2 nights. You have no program this afternoon. You have time to relax or just enjoy Ilulissat on your own.
Day 7: Ilulissat – day at leisure
Breakfast at the hotel. You have the day off to explore Ilulissat on your own. We recommend one of the marked hiking routes in the UNESCO-area which offers nice views of the area, or you can visit one of the local museums or workshops for local art crafts
This very last day you can squeeze what you have left of your Greenlandic adventure, in one of the very nice restaurants in Ilulissat
You can also consider trying out our wellness sauna with a panoramic view over the Disko Bay including towels, water, shower and a mix of etheric oils. Scheduled wellness sauna DKK 250,- per person or private sauna DKK 1195,-
Day 8: Ilulissat – Kangerlussuaq – Copenhagen
Breakfast at the hotel. Early morning you fly out of Ilulissat to Kangerlussuaq. The flight will around 45 minutes, before you will catch your flight at 11.40 back to Copenhagen. Arrival in Copenhagen 20.00.
