Are there hotels in Greenland anyway? Do Greenlanders still live in igloos? These are questions we still get asked. Formerly, Inuit used snow, ice, stones, peat and skin, when they built their own accommodation. Today, there are many modern hotels in Greenland. Most Greenlanders live in beautiful, colorful houses with all the amenities of a modern home. But there are also alternatives.
It is always wonderful to get back to your warm and cozy hotel, when you travel. But why not try some whole new ways to spend the night?
Alternative places to stay in Greenland
Most travelers in Greenland stay at comfortable hotels or lodges. But Greenland offers some very special ways to spend the night for curious and adventurous travelers. Get a taste here.
- Try the traditional Inuk Hostel in Nuuk
- Enjoy a night in Hotel Arctic’s Northern Lights cabins
- Spend the night on the Greenland Ice Sheet at Kangerlussuaq
- Try a night as a hunter and sleep on a sled or in a cabin
- Sleep among icebergs on the Sarfaq Ittuk ship
Inuk Hostel in Nuuk
Inuk Hostel is a super cozy hostel located near the water’s edge with an excellent view of Sermitsiaq. Inuk Hostel is centered around Café Inuk, where there is a cafe, meeting facilities and food, prepared with Greenlandic specialties such as reindeer, sheep and fish. In the summer you can come down to the beach and eat fish in the traditional Greenlandic style. Inuk is not centrally located, but it is only a 20 minute walk to the center and the view is worth it!
Around the cafe are four cabins, built according to a type house proposal for Greenland from the 1930s, and it gives a very special atmosphere. There is a living room with TV in each cottage. There are three cabins with four rooms and a cabin with two rooms, and all of them have a fantastic view and free wifi for the guests. Inuk Hostel also offers a special igloo experience. This is not a traditional igloo made out of ice, but a heated igloo that is full of comfort. Here you can lie down in the evening and look up through the glass ceiling, which will hopefully be illuminated by the northern lights.
Northern Lights Cabins – Northern Lights in Winter and Midnight Sun in Summer
If you’re in Ilulissat, try an overnight stay in Hotel Arctic’s Northern Lights cabins, which offer stunning panoramic views of the fjord – with the glittering Northern Lights in winter and the rays of the midnight sun in summer. The cabins are located on a slope above Disko Bay and are specifically designed for Arctic conditions. Each cabin is 20 square meters and equipped with a shower and toilet, Wi-Fi, easy iPad control of lighting, sound, and temperature, and underfloor heating and internal wall heating.
(The images are 3D representations of the cabins.)
Stay on the Ice Sheet
Have you ever thought about how it would be to get on Greenland’s Ice Sheet and sleep where your only neighbor is endless ice? In that case, Camp Ice Cap might be just for you.
The camp is located right on the actual Ice Sheet in Greenland, only a few hours hike from the edge. You are staying in expedition tents on thick bunding and in very warm sleeping bags that make it a very comfortable experience.
Spend the night like a hunter in a cabin
Would you like to measure forces with Arctic winter? Then a mini-dog sledding expedition with an overnight stay in a simple hunters’ cabin might be a good choice for you. Imagine a cabin in the middle of nowhere and no neighbors around you. Only snow, mountains, the fantastic Greenlandic Northern Lights on a dark and clear night sky. In the day time, you are riding on a dog sled with your sled driver. At night, you are going to spend the night – possibly together with others – in one of the small hunters’ cabins that are located along the dog sledding trails.
Our partners at Diskobay Tours specialize in these kinds of trips and do tent camps in the snow.
Read more about dog sledding here.
Sleep between icebergs
Imagine you wake up after a good nights’ sleep with a view of an iceberg so high, that you have to walk to the window to see its top. MS Sarfaq Ittuk is cruising up and down Greenland’s west coast and connects the towns and settlements along the coast. Locals as well as tourists go on the boat, cruising past fjords and glaciers and between the enormous icebergs that break off the glaciers.
In fall, you get a view of the Northern Lights’ dance above the icebergs from the deck. In summer, you can witness dawn and how the sun bathes the coasts and the ice in warm colors. You can get an impression of the many small colorful towns that the ship stops by on its way.
Would you like to spend the night between icebergs? Read more about the coastal ship.
Trips with some of the above-mentioned accommodation
Guaranteed departure on selected departures | incl. tour guide
New Year’s Eve in Greenland
Dec 2024 - Dec 2024 | 5 days | 4 nights
Price per person in double room from
2.765 EUR
Guaranteed departure on selected departures | incl. tour guide
Spring feelings in Greenland
Dec 2024 - Dec 2024 | 2 days | 1 nights
Price per person in double room from
Guaranteed departure on selected departures | incl. tour guide
The Great Greenland Roundtrip
Jun 2025 - Aug 2025 | 15 days | 14 nights
Price per person in double room from
8.075 EUR
Excursions
Dog sleds – the ultimate Greenland experience
A guide to the ultimate Greenland experience. Dogsledding in Greenland is a very special experience. Feel the wind in your hair and listen to the dogs pulling the sled while running on the snow-covered landscape.
Read story
Articles
10 places in Greenland, that your guide loves
We asked our guides and colleagues: "What are your favorite experiences and best places in Greenland? Read more about the most popular spots.
Read story
Towns and settlements
Ilulissat – the place with the famous Ice Fjord
Ilulissat – the city of icebergs – is situated right next to its impressive neighbor, the world-famous Ice Fjord. It became part of the UNESCO World Heritage in 2004.
Read storyLet Tina Customize Your Trip to Greenland
Tina Ravn Lauritsen is from South Greenland and has traveled all over Greenland. Therefore, she knows all about the five places we’ve mentioned above. Therefore, you are in really good hands if you choose to have a trip to Greenland tailor-made by Tina or one of our other specialists.
You are always welcome to contact us to learn more about exciting places in Greenland.
How to contact us
You can call Tina directly at +45 33 76 62 41 or send an email to trl@greenland-travel.dk