After breakfast, a guide from our local excursion office will welcome you and inform you about the different excursions available but also about experiences you can make on your own during your stay in Ilulissat.
We recommend that you start your adventure with a guided walk around Ilulissat. You get familiar with the town and the guide can point out places to visit on your own at a later time. If you have bought our excursion package, you will go on thre excursions today. The cultural histrocal walk starts after the welcome meeting, the trip to Sermermiut in the afternoon and at night, after dinner, you will go sailing among the icebergs.
Cultural historic walk (optional)
Some people might think: “we can just take a walk around the town on our own.” And yes, you probably could, but with the guided cultural historic tour you will get an enhanced understanding of the Greenlandic culture and history, which will give all your other experiences in Greenland a new perspective.
Ilulissat – Jakobshavn – was founded in 1741 and, today, it is the third largest town in Greenland with more than 4,500 inhabitants. The guide will tell you about the history of the town, the Greenlandic culture and contemporary life 300 kilometres north of the Arctic Circle.
We will visit the fishermen at the harbour and the hunters at their trading post “Brættet”. We will show you the church and famous explorer Knud Rasmussen's place of birth.
This cultural historic walk is a great shortcut to a lot of knowledge.
Afterward, you can have lunch and get ready for the next excursion. The midnight sun makes the days very long, and you will feel full of energy to explore and really take advantage of the entire day.
The sunny nights can only be experienced north of the Arctic Circle where the sun during summer never sets behind the horizon. In Ilulissat, the midnight sun is present in the period from 22 May to 24 July, but also throughout August there will be very bright nights.
Hike to the Ice Fjord and the abandoned Sermermiut settlement (optional)
Beautiful icebergs provide the setting for the old settlement of Sermermiut 1.5 kilometres south of Ilulissat. For 4,000 years, different Inuit cultures lived in the settlement and, today, you can still see the relics, which indicate their presence.
Hear the story about the life of the Inuit people and their traditions before the Europeans came to Greenland. See the ruins and touch the permafrost with your own hands. Visitors often ask, if they can walk these treks themselves? The answer is yes. But it is our experience that most people find it safe having a guide the first time they hike in the Greenlandic mountains.
Furthermore, historic places will be pointed out on the way, and these can be difficult to find on your own. And, besides, it is always nice to share the experience with somebody. Coffee/tea break at “Kællingekløften” with a beautiful view of the Ice Fjord before we head back.
Then it's time for dinner before we venture out again, this time by boat.
Sailing among the icebergs (optional)
Almost every visitor in Ilulissat chooses to try this boat trip among the icebergs at midnight at least once. Every day, more than 40 million ton of ice flow out into the fjord. The floating icebergs are gigantic, sometimes measuring more than 100 metres wide and long – and with a height of more than 100 metres above the water surface as well.
These giants gather at the end of the fjord providing you with a great opportunity to sail among them. You should not miss out on this exceptional experience when visiting Ilulissat. The icebergs are a wonderful sight in every kind of weather; in the sunshine the contrasts are very clear, the blue shades are very beautiful when it is cloudy, and the midnight sun casts a unique glow on the icebergs during the night.
Taking the boat trip on a bright night is definitely an extraordinary experience. Remember to bring warm clothes – otherwise sealskin clothing is available for rent.
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