Greenland Awaits: The Emerging Destination You Need to Visit
A visit to Greenland in 2006 revealed the incredible melting icebergs and the pristine, barely touched surroundings of the world’s largest island. Today, new flights can bring travelers directly from the U.S. to Greenland between June and September. Discover what it’s like to visit Greenland from those who have been there.
Greenland, an enigmatic and largely uncharted territory, beckons travelers with its wide open icy landscapes and melting icebergs, a stark representation of climate change. In our exploration, we delve into the real-lilfe travel experiences GoNOMAD writers who have ventured to Greenland over the years.
Since the advent of new direct flights from the United States, facilitating access from June to September anyone can now visit Greenland. As we recount personal narratives and observations from a visit in 2006, we reflect on the pristine beauty of Greenland’s undulating ice and the rich culinary offerings, which include musk ox and seal, cherished by the local populace.
Additionally, we examine the burgeoning tourist infrastructure and the pressing implications of climate change as witnessed by residents and visitors alike. Join us as we uncover the allure and challenges of Greenland, a destination that is as captivating as it is fragile.
Read more on GoNOMAD https://www.gonomad.com/1535-greenland-the-greatness-of-silence.
Transcript
Today on GoNomad, we visit Greenland, one of those places that very few people have ever seen.
Speaker A:Despite this, Go Nomad published more than a dozen travel features about this foreboding and little known place over the past 20 years.
Speaker A:Greenland has been in the news lately after President Trump made noise about the United States buying the territory from Denmark.
Speaker A:r as a Tourist destination in:Speaker A:In a few of the different travel stories on GoNomad, our writers describe what it's like to visit this remote place.
Speaker A:irst of all, Getting there in:Speaker A:air Force base.
Speaker A:This remote airfield had the longest Runway in Greenland, so it was easy to land the air Greenland Airbus 330 on the ice, pushing hard to attract more tourists during the summer season.
Speaker A:From June to September, United Airlines will launch a nonstop flight from Newark just outside New York on the east coast of the U.S.
Speaker A:,:Speaker A:Joining United is Scandinavian airline sis.
Speaker A:Joining United is Scandinavian airline sas, which will begin Greenland flights from Copenhagen in June.
Speaker A:SAS has served Greenland and OFF for decades, but now can connect to the capital with a larger aircraft.
Speaker A:opened in the Capital Nook in:Speaker A:Yet people who work in tourism in Greenland have said that the infrastructure is not there yet, with only a limited number of small hotels and no chain hotels.
Speaker A:As of:Speaker A:t about visiting Greenland in:Speaker A:It was the undulating ice that rippled and stretched out as far as the eye could see.
Speaker A:It's a winter desert, rippling, curving, going on forever.
Speaker A:It was November then and we made that trip and boy was it cold.
Speaker A:And the wind never stopped blowing when Go Nomad photographer and writer Paul Schewell visited Greenland on two separate occasions.
Speaker A:He liked the taste of the food, one of which was the popular game animal hunted by Greenlanders, the musk ox.
Speaker A:Paul said also that the reindeer, sliced very thin, was like roast beef but sweeter.
Speaker A:Musk ox soup includes a rich broth and a great flavor, he said, 20 times more intense than beef.
Speaker A:The most popular food by far in Greenland is seal I remember stopping into a butcher shop in in Ilulissat where seal was being caught up.
Speaker A:And locals there made it clear that this was their favorite food for dinner.
Speaker A:In Sismiute, there's a sound that never stops and that is the yipping of the sled dogs who remain tied up on short leashes all over town.
Speaker A:Many Greenlanders no longer keep packs of dogs to pull the dog sleds, but it's still the dominant sound you hear all night in Sisamute.
Speaker A:Most of the time these sled dogs prefer to stay outside of their dog houses or on top instead of inside them.
Speaker A:I was told more than once that they aren't pets and nobody should approach them because they bite.
Speaker A:Paul told a funny story about when he met a fisherman in Greenland who said he puts his hands into the ocean water when it's 20 below to warm them up.
Speaker A:One of the interesting characters we met in Greenland was Captain Bo Lyngs, who runs a charter boat company using a 35 foot cruiser he calls Sirius.
Speaker A:Bo said that he's seen for his own the effect of climate change.
Speaker A:This harbor used to freeze every winter until about 15 years ago.
Speaker A:Today it was all open water below the surface.
Speaker A:Here divers can explore wrecks that are remarkably preserved.
Speaker A:Portuguese sailing vessels with the masts upright and even the china still in the cupboards untouched in the chilly waters.
Speaker A:Fishing for cod here feels like kind of a joke because once the big fish are hooked, they just play dead and don't fight at all.
Speaker A:The fish caught on Bo Ling's boat are quickly filled and the fish that Paul caught on Bo Ling's boat were quickly filleted and prepared.
Speaker A:It's about as fresh as you can get.
Speaker A:Greenland is an extraordinary place.
Speaker A:It's like nowhere else.
Speaker A:And even if you come for a summer visit, you'll still see the vanishing icebergs and the seals.
Speaker A:Come for the mucks, come for the musk ox and enjoy Greenland while you can.