Kulusuk

Original culture, ice and pointed mountains. In Kulusuk you experience settlement life the East Greenlandic way. Kulusuk is easy to reach from Iceland, so there are many day visitors here, but we definitely recommend a longer stay.

Kulusuk is the gateway to East Greenland. Thanks to the airport there is a cosy hotel, and you can experience a traditional Greenlandic settlement atmosphere with a view of the nearby, beautiful glacier. You can also hike and fish and enjoy a beautiful view across the Denmark Strait towards Iceland. And let us not forget the incredible ice cave you can visit on an excursion.

The island. The settlement. The airport.

On the small island of Kulusuk, near the settlement of Kulusuk, you will find an airport which, funnily enough, is also called Kulusuk. Between the airport and the settlement lies the hotel, which is called, yes, Hotel Kulusuk. The airport has a long gravel runway and was built by the Americans in 1956 in connection with the DYE project, which could give the Americans early warning during the Cold War.

In summer, several planes land at Kulusuk Airport every day with travellers from Iceland who have come up to make sure they can tick off Greenland on Tripadvisor.

Hunting, fishing and carving

Now that you are here, you should consider whether it is not worth staying a little longer. The settlement of Kulusuk itself is not far from the airport. It is a traditional Greenlandic settlement where hunting and fishing are the very essence of its survival, so there is plenty going on at the water’s edge.

Not many more than 250 people live in the settlement, and because of the airport quite a few people also make their living from visitors. This gives you good shopping opportunities for exciting souvenirs, and just as in Tasiilaq, the people of the settlement are truly skilled tupilak artists.

The culture

East Greenland, this mythical region, was first discovered by the white man in 1884, and that is why you find much of the original Inuit culture here. In Kulusuk, people have managed to hold on firmly to traditional East Greenlandic culture. They have also managed to turn it into something that benefits visitors. There are local storytellers, kayakers who can give demonstrations, drum dancers and, of course, the craftspeople mentioned above, whom you can see at work.

Beautiful nature

There is no view of the ice sheet from Kulusuk. It can feel that way, though, as the settlement lies directly opposite the Apusiaajik Glacier on the neighbouring island. Out here in the archipelago there is also a view of the beautiful and enormous icebergs that drift down along the coast from the North Pole when spring sets in and the sea ice begins to break up. Near the airport you will find the mountain Isikajia, which is just over 300 metres high. It offers a fantastic view across the Denmark Strait. The clear air here also means that you can clearly see the mountain peaks on the mainland – in fact, on good days you can see more than 100 kilometres.

The ice cave

You can also go on an incredible excursion to a glacier with a safe ice cave that you can enter. It is an incredible feeling to stand there in the green-blue glow of ice that is thousands of years old.

Stay close by

Should you get bored in Kulusuk, we would advise against jumping into a kayak and paddling due south. You would probably get both hungry and tired in the arms before you reached land again. The next coast is 10,000 kilometres away in northern Brazil. Instead, you should consider a helicopter trip or a flight in a small propeller plane. You can also visit Tasiilaq, which is 10 minutes away by helicopter or an hour by boat (when the ice allows sailing there). In winter, dog sledding, the northern lights and the snow are the focus of your experiences.