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Greenland shore excursions

giraf4

By giraf4,
in Iceland and Greenland

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FlyerTalker Excellent Advice! Rare

FlyerTalker

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Keep in mind -- Nanortalik has a population of about 1700 - Qaqortog about 3000 and Nuuk is the largest city in Greenland with 17000.  There is not a big tourism infrastructure - if you're expecting a Caribbean shorex experience, you may want to reconsider this cruise.

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snowskier

snowskier

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When we were in Qaqortog a few years ago we took off on a long hike behind the town.  Started off walking through the town and then forged on.  It was a great day -- thoroughly enjoyed the sunny day and a the chance to explore away from the crowds. We saw a few locals on our adventure and as we came back into town were able to see the houses and way locals lived. I think we hiked for at least 3 hours.

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giraf4

giraf4

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1 hour ago, FlyerTalker said:

Keep in mind -- Nanortalik has a population of about 1700 - Qaqortog about 3000 and Nuuk is the largest city in Greenland with 17000.  There is not a big tourism infrastructure - if you're expecting a Caribbean shorex experience, you may want to reconsider this cruise.

 

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giraf4

giraf4

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We always do our homework and yes, I knew all this data.  Thanks to the others that were forthcoming with interesting things to do.  Since this is a bucket list place, we want to maximize our time enjoying the wonders of what there is to see.  Since this will be cruise #64 for us, we certainly understand shore excursions in the Caribbean, a place we really don't enjoy.  Maybe in the future be more accommodating and less condescending. 

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Bizmark'sMom

Bizmark'sMom

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The Greenland National Museum really is worth the time to wander through.  I wasn't as happy with the art museum in Nuuk. I loved the grocery stores in Greenland - especially the meat and veggie sections. So much is familiar, and so much is different.

 

Also, you probably know this, but...  Don't get close to the dogs. They are not pets, they are working animals.

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crzndeb

crzndeb

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I have only been to Qaqortoq, and just walked around the town. It was cold and  windy when I was there last Sept. Do make a point of walking up the hill to the Post Office (Mail Center), to get your passport stamped. Enjoy!

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Hlitner "Live from...." Rare

Hlitner

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We thought the highlight of Greenland was cruising through Prince Christian Sound.  When we went ashore in the small towns (every town in Greenland is small) it was just a matter of walking/hiking.   One very nice facet of taking HAL's annual "Voyage of the Vikings" is that it is a round trip cruise (from Boston) which includes cruising through Prince Christian Sound on both legs (to and from Europe).  Since Prince Christian Sound is not always open (it can be blocked by ice and icebergs) having two passages increases the odds of making a complete passage.  When we did that cruise we only got partially through on our east bound passage (we had to turn around an take a different route) but were successful during our return (thanks to a Danish Frigate and helicopter that led the way).

 

Hank

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crzndeb

crzndeb

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4 hours ago, MicCanberra said:

Interesting, what are the highlights apart from passport stamping.

In Qaqortoq, not much!

 

As Hlitner noted, Prince Christian Sound was a highlight.

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wishIweretravelling "Live from...." Rare

wishIweretravelling

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Walking around is nice, but what I enjoyed most about Nuuk was the guide, who painted a fascinating picture of daily life in Greenland. I did a ship's tour, so can't help you find one, but someone above gave a suggestion. If that doesn't work, perhaps Trip Advisor has some ideas. Or if your cruise ship has a concierge, perhaps s/he can give some suggestions.

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Turtles06 Great Review Rare

Turtles06

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Don't miss the Open Air Museum in Nanortalik.  A great historical look at life in this little village, in the original buildings.  Also, one of the local choirs is likely to schedule a few short performances in the church while your ship is there.  All of this is an easy walk from the tender pier.

 

enhance

 

(Nanortalik, by turtles06)

Edited by Turtles06
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giraf4

giraf4

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Thanks for the really inspiring posts.  Sometimes a website or a positive comment gives us some insight as to what to do.  I loved the grocery store comment.  We do that in a lot of foreign countries.  And we want to experience a restaurant or two.  We will certainly check out the hike.  Getting our passports stamped will be a must.    As far as I can determine, we do not do the Prince Christian Sound but what a wonderful description that was given.  Any other suggestions, are greatly appreciated and after we get back in September, I'll post comments from the adventure.  This is a great way to really get a feel for the ports.

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Bizmark'sMom

Bizmark'sMom

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When we pulled into Sisimiut, some people were doing traditional dances, explaining their clothing, and offering traditional foods to try.  A little old guy literally grabbed my arm and pulled me over.  It was so interesting, and so memorable.  I ended up telling others from the ship to go and check it out.

 

One thing you will need to be careful about when looking at souveniers; it is illegal to bring items made from marine mammals into the US. And they make beautiful things from skin and bone.

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GeorgeCharlie "Live from...." Rare

GeorgeCharlie

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We visited Greenland (including Qaqortoq & Nanortalik) last fall on HAL's Zuiderdam and we really enjoyed our visits to these ports. As others have mentioned, these towns are small, quaint and with very friendly residents - overall refreshingly relaxing compared to some of the other shore excursions we have been on.

 

If you are interested, I did a photo review of this cruise and you can see it here.

 

The Greenland portion starts at about post #220.

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  • 4 years later...
stwbear

stwbear

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On 4/14/2019 at 3:56 PM, GeorgeCharlie said:

We visited Greenland (including Qaqortoq & Nanortalik) last fall on HAL's Zuiderdam and we really enjoyed our visits to these ports. As others have mentioned, these towns are small, quaint and with very friendly residents - overall refreshingly relaxing compared to some of the other shore excursions we have been on.

 

If you are interested, I did a photo review of this cruise and you can see it here.

 

The Greenland portion starts at about post #220.

Hi,

 

I'm hoping this gets to you CharlieGeorge. Loved your review of Greenland.

We are cruising on the Caribbean Princess August 14, 2023 to Greenland.

 

We're trying to decide on our cruise cabin. Either a side balcony (facing land left side of ship looking forward) or an Aft Balcony.

 

We're not sure which would be better to see Greenland as we cruise. 

We love Aft balconies (wake view) but not sure if it would be the best in regards to seeing Greenland as we sail in.

 

Being you cruised also, we're hoping you would be able to advise.

 

Much appreciated, Tina

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Essiesmom "Live from...." Rare

Essiesmom

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42 minutes ago, stwbear said:

Hi,

 

I'm hoping this gets to you CharlieGeorge. Loved your review of Greenland.

We are cruising on the Caribbean Princess August 14, 2023 to Greenland.

 

We're trying to decide on our cruise cabin. Either a side balcony (facing land left side of ship looking forward) or an Aft Balcony.

 

We're not sure which would be better to see Greenland as we cruise. 

We love Aft balconies (wake view) but not sure if it would be the best in regards to seeing Greenland as we sail in.

 

Being you cruised also, we're hoping you would be able to advise.

 

Much appreciated, Tina

If you want the poster to see this, you need to tag him @GeorgeCharlieand hope that he has notifications turned on.  He seems to be hanging out on the HAL board now.  EM

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GeorgeCharlie "Live from...." Rare

GeorgeCharlie

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Unfortunately, we have never sailed in an aft-facing cabin and have always had a side balcony cabin, reasonably high on the ship. 


In the case of Greenland, the only real scenic section was sailing in the Prince Christian Sund and we mainly wandered around on the ship in order to see as many views as possible. Staying in the cabin would have only given us a partial perspective of what there was to see. In an aft-facing cabin you would likely have the ability to see all the views after they have passed by, but they may be farther away, and you wouldn’t get as good of a view.


We found the sailing into/out of, the ports-of-call, tended to rather limited in scenic views and in those cases your aft-facing cabin would likely be as good as any.
 

 

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