Walking tours in Greenland

[Reagan0712]

I looked in the Ports of Calls section and couldn’t find Greenland so I’ll ask here. Has anyone done the walking tours for the HAL stops in Greenland, Qaqortoq and Nanortalik.  I have them booked but after looking at the websites for each town I’m thinking maybe I could just walk around on my own. Thanks.

[Mary229]

I think there was one walking tour in  Qaqortoq around a lake. We easily did it ourselves - be sure to have mosquito netting and DEET. Most of the towns are one road towns so you simply start walking.  It is hard to get lost. 

[PC 462]

1 hour ago, Mary229 said:

I think there was one walking tour in  Qaqortoq around a lake. We easily did it ourselves - be sure to have mosquito netting and DEET. Most of the towns are one road towns so you simply start walking.  It is hard to get lost. 

I've only heard of mosquito netting for beds to prevent malaria, so the hat netting is a new one for me!

Are the mosquitoes bad in the town, too?

[Red Haired Lady]

I was in both towns last July. You don't need a tour in my opinion. I did not see any mosquitoes or anyone wearing netting on their heads

Very cute towns!

Edited June 26, 2023 by Red Haired Lady

[OlsSalt]

Agree, both towns you can walk around on your own.

 

Sorry, I do get them mixed up now but one does charge a small fee to walk around a small inlet with very interesting buildings and little museum - great photo ops - the locals reasonably want to earn some income for us to wander around their very picturesque spots. And yes, the head gear mosquito net was a must, when walking around the lake.

 

One of the towns was the jumping off spot for a boat trip out to the ancient Greenlander church ruins which played a role in the final chapter of the tour de force bood on this country, aptly named "The Greenlanders". A very haunting spot  with the ghosts of those prior residents who had resided in the area for over 500 years are still whispering in the winds and the vistas across the bay.

 

Both towns are not developed for tourism, so you will get a sense of what life is like and how they go about their daily lives, support local businesses and shopping just by wandering around.

 

Hope your trip includes passage across the Prince Christian Sound - one of the grand highlights of cruising, with only a sail by visit of a very small and remote fishing village - but they do come out in their very nice boats and greet the ship slowly passing by. 

 

 

 

Edited June 26, 2023 by OlsSalt

[kplady]

We were in Qarqotok and Nanortalik last August. We didn't plan anything in either town. They're both very small and easy to walk around the town. We enjoyed the local vendors and found some interesting souvenirs. I saw the HAL tours at the pier - they had a local taking about 20-30 people around. You could do the same thing without paying!!

[Mary229]

You will need a head net with hat to walk around the lake.  We didn’t encounter mosquitoes anywhere else and we hike every port.  We did encounter very bad swarms of black flies at Red Bay. 

[lissie]

1 hour ago, PC 462 said:

I've only heard of mosquito netting for beds to prevent malaria, so the hat netting is a new one for me!

Are the mosquitoes bad in the town, too?

Or black flies in Canada if the OP is on the same cruise as I  We have them from outback Australia - once you've experienced them you'll just keep them in a pocket - the flies are beyond annoying when you can't open your mouth without swallowing them. Amazon.com : Bug Head Net Mesh - Bug Face Netting for Hats - Insect Net Mask Cover from Gnats, No-See-Ums & Midges with Extra Fine Fly Screen Holes - Outdoor Protection for Men & Women : Patio, Lawn & Garden 

[lissie]

3 hours ago, Reagan0712 said:

I looked in the Ports of Calls section and couldn’t find Greenland so I’ll ask here. Has anyone done the walking tours for the HAL stops in Greenland, Qaqortoq and Nanortalik.  I have them booked but after looking at the websites for each town I’m thinking maybe I could just walk around on my own. Thanks.

It's really hard to find you have to go to Western Europe and then go back to Europe and choose Northern Europe Northern Europe & Baltic Sea - Cruise Critic Community 

 

We haven't been yet but I've looked at Google street view and cant' see why  we need a tour either - we're going to walk around on our own 

[Mary229]

1 hour ago, lissie said:

It's really hard to find you have to go to Western Europe and then go back to Europe and choose Northern Europe Northern Europe & Baltic Sea - Cruise Critic Community 

 

We haven't been yet but I've looked at Google street view and cant' see why  we need a tour either - we're going to walk around on our own 

The only thing we did not do which we were told by reliable sources was worth doing was the native dance and museum at Nanortalik.  We had time after our walk but chose to do some rock collecting instead 

[Reagan0712]

3 hours ago, lissie said:

It's really hard to find you have to go to Western Europe and then go back to Europe and choose Northern Europe Northern Europe & Baltic Sea - Cruise Critic Community 

 

We haven't been yet but I've looked at Google street view and cant' see why  we need a tour either - we're going to walk around on our own 

Are you on the Zuiderdam leaving July 2nd?

Besides their websites, I looked at Google street view also that’s why I’m thinking of canceling the tours I’ve booked.

[Reagan0712]

3 hours ago, lissie said:

Or black flies in Canada if the OP is on the same cruise as I  We have them from outback Australia - once you've experienced them you'll just keep them in a pocket - the flies are beyond annoying when you can't open your mouth without swallowing them. Amazon.com : Bug Head Net Mesh - Bug Face Netting for Hats - Insect Net Mask Cover from Gnats, No-See-Ums & Midges with Extra Fine Fly Screen Holes - Outdoor Protection for Men & Women : Patio, Lawn & Garden 

I ordered netting today from Amazon. I hope the mosquitos aren’t as big as the ones in Alaska last summer. You could have thrown a saddle on those.😂

[Reagan0712]

@OlsSalt Yes, we are cruising Prince Christian Sound on our way to Greenland.

[lissie]

9 minutes ago, Reagan0712 said:

Are you on the Zuiderdam leaving July 2nd?

Besides their websites, I looked at Google street view also that’s why I’m thinking of canceling the tours I’ve booked.

No we're on the Zaandam leaving 29 July! Similar ports as I considered both itineraries before booking! Have a great trip! 

[iceman93]

Yes, both of these charming towns are walkable and explorable on one's own.  That being said, I did the HAL walking tours in each and found them well worth the small expense.  Our guides pointed things out and told stories about the local culture that we never would have learned just walking around by ourselves.

[GeorgeCharlie]

 

We visited both of these ports in 2018, while onboard the Zuiderdam.

 

We had enjoyable walks around the towns on our own, including chatting with a number of the local residents. Although, I do agree with @iceman93 that taking a guided tour can give you added insight into an area.

 

If you are interested in seeing some pictures of the towns, you can see them starting at post #231 of the cruise review we did. 

 

[REOVA]

I did my own hiking and walking around in Greenland. For black flies and mosquitoes (especially Red Bay Canada not so much Greenland) we just took the netted bags that ropes came in from the cabin and put those on our head. The do offer a food tour which was interesting if you like dried fish. 

[OlsSalt]

55 minutes ago, REOVA said:

I did my own hiking and walking around in Greenland. For black flies and mosquitoes (especially Red Bay Canada not so much Greenland) we just took the netted bags that ropes came in from the cabin and put those on our head. The do offer a food tour which was interesting if you like dried fish. 

 

Assume you mean the net bags the **robes** came in. What a clever  suggestion. Thanks.

 

We got our net head gear for a cruise into the Russian White Sea - again black fly country. Will be taking them along on this trip, but will pass your tip on to others who might not have them.

 

Never forget my first trip to Alaska and seeing teeshirts showing their infamous mosquitos landing on aircraft carriers.

[oakridger]

My recent cruises in fall 2022 the robes were in plastic bags.  Please don't put those over your heads!!!

Ha ha.

😉

 

~Nancy

[Reagan0712]

Tours cancelled. Nets came yesterday.

Thanks for all your input. 😘

[Cruiz'nBaers]

I agree with all that these small towns are quite walkable on your own, we do both.  The guided walking tours give us a lot more information than we would gather on our own.  Walking on our own after the tour gives us a bit more familiarity with the town and we are able to linger longer where we might want to.  We always try to end our visits with a stop for some local flavor, usually a local beer and snack.  The worst black flies we encountered last year were in Red Bay, Labrador.  

[Reagan0712]

18 minutes ago, Cruiz'nBaers said:

I agree with all that these small towns are quite walkable on your own, we do both.  The guided walking tours give us a lot more information than we would gather on our own.  Walking on our own after the tour gives us a bit more familiarity with the town and we are able to linger longer where we might want to.  We always try to end our visits with a stop for some local flavor, usually a local beer and snack.  The worst black flies we encountered last year were in Red Bay, Labrador.  

No longer need to worry about Red Bay. Received notification during the night that Red Bay is out and we are now stopping at Corner Brook.

[Mary229]

5 minutes ago, Reagan0712 said:

No longer need to worry about Red Bay. Received notification during the night that Red Bay is out and we are now stopping at Corner Brook.

Cornerbrook is a pleasant town and they do have a nice lake hike also.  No flying insects when we were there.