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Kangerlussuaq

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A wartime American airfield at the head of a long fjord, and the closest place in Greenland to drive up to the ice sheet.

Fly to Kangerlussuaq All of Greenland
Arrival
Kangerlussuaq Airport · SFJ
To the town
The houses line both sides of the runway
Private jets
2,810 m runway, slots and handling required
Best time
June to August

The city

The runway and the ice.

The Americans built the airfield in 1941 as Bluie West-8, and it stayed Sondrestrom Air Base until it passed to Greenland in 1992. For decades this was where almost everyone flying into the country landed. In November 2024 the hub moved to Nuuk, but the long runway and the steady inland weather keep Kangerlussuaq in use, and in 2025 the flights came back here more than once when Nuuk was shut.

Most people come for the ice. Tours drive out to Point 660 on the edge of the ice sheet, where you can sleep a night out on it, and musk oxen graze the valleys in every season. In summer the days are long and reach twelve to fourteen degrees. The Arctic Circle Trail sets off from here for Sisimiut, about 160 km away on the coast.

  • Point 660 A spot on the western rim of the ice sheet, reached by road from town, with camps on the ice for those who stay.
  • Russell Glacier An ice wall about 60 metres high, shedding blocks into the meltwater river at its foot.
  • Musk oxen Herds roam the tundra around town and can be found on wildlife drives at any time of year.

Arriving

Greenland's old gateway.

The airport is the town: houses, the hotel and the shop sit on either side of a 2,810-metre runway, and Hotel Kangerlussuaq is in the terminal building itself.

Business & First Class Airline flights Since Air Greenland moved its hub to Nuuk, the airline links Kangerlussuaq with Nuuk and Sisimiut all year, adding Ilulissat and Copenhagen in season. Business & First fares Private Jet Private flights Foreign crews can clear in here, giving customs four hours' warning. A handler is compulsory (Access Oslo Executive Handling, American Flight Support and Just Aviation are listed) and slots must be booked. The field closes on Sundays and outside daytime hours unless permission is sought nine hours ahead, for a fee. Charter a jet
Approximate flying time by midsize jet
  • Montreal 3 h 55
  • Dublin 3 h 55
  • Munich 5 h 30
  • Doha 10 h 35 long-range jet
  • Beijing 10 h 40 long-range jet

When to go

June to August.

Inland and very dry, with barely 15 mm of precipitation in a winter month. Winter highs sit around -15 °C. From June to August the thermometer climbs to 12 to 14 °C and in June the sun does not set.

  1. -15° J 15
  2. -16° F 13
  3. -13° M 14
  4. -4° A 13
  5. 6° M 14
  6. 12° J 21
  7. 14° J 29
  8. 12° A 32
  9. 6° S 26
  10. -3° O 23
  11. -9° N 22
  12. -13° D 17
Best months weather2travel.com, long-term averages

Where to dine

A cabin by the lake.

No MICHELIN guide covers Greenland; chosen by National Geographic Traveller.

  • Restaurant Roklubben National Geographic Traveller Modern Greenlandic Lake Ferguson, about 5 km from town

Elsewhere in Greenland

More reasons to come.

All of Greenland

Flying to Kangerlussuaq?

Choose how you arrive.

A Business or First Class seat on a scheduled airline, or an aircraft of your own. Tell us the date and how many are travelling, and we reply with one final price, our margin included.

Business & First Private Jet