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Day 1
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Fly to Copenhagen
Your trip begins with a flight to Copenhagen, Denmark's cool, cosmopolitan capital. On arrival, check into your hotel, which is conveniently positioned right next to the airport and just 15 minutes from the city centre by metro. Spend the rest of the day exploring Copenhagen at leisure, either on foot (it's highly walkable) or, as many of the locals do, by bike. It's a remarkably vibrant and photogenic city filled with attractive architecture, fascinating museums, trendy bars and coffee shops and a vast and eclectic array of world-class restaurants. Highlights include the colourful 17th-century canal-side houses of Nyhavn, Tivoli Gardens amusement park, the Round Tower (which offers wonderful views over the city from the top), Torvehallerne food market and Rosenborg Castle. Each neighbourhood has its own unique charm, from ultra-trendy Nørrebro and leafy Østerbro to laid-back Christianshavn and hip, post-industrial Vesterbro. There's far more to see and do than you could possibly cram into a day, but you'll have time to get a taste of one of Scandinavia's most enticing cities.
Stay:
Clarion Hotel Copenhagen Airport
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Day 2
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Copenhagen to Ilulissat (via Nuuk)
After breakfast today, you'll fly from Copenhagen to Nuuk, the capital of Greenland – a journey of around four-and-a-half hours. Then, after a short stopover, you'll catch a flight north to Ilulissat, which takes around one hour and 20 minutes. The colourful houses of Greenland's third-largest settlement stand in stark contrast to the rugged Arctic surroundings and the enormous icebergs that flow down the Ilulissat Icefjord. On arrival, a transfer will bring you to Hotel Arctic, nestled on a rocky outcrop just outside the town centre of Ilulissat. Here, you'll be staying in an ultra-sleek, glass-walled Aurora Cabin facing out across the iceberg-dotted waters of Disko Bay. Each cabin comes with heated floors and walls, meaning any snow will slide off and won't obstruct you from being able to marvel at the celestial ripples of the Northern Lights if and when they make an appearance throughout your stay.
While staying in such spectacular accommodation, you'll feel totally immersed in the serenity of the surrounding Greenlandic nature. Once you've settled in, you'll head out on a guided walking tour of the town, which offers a comprehensive introduction to Ilulissat's history and culture. While the settlement was founded in 1741, the region has been inhabited for over 4,000 years. In the evening, a delicious two-course welcome dinner is served back at the hotel.
Stay:
Hotel Arctic, Ilulissat
Meals: Breakfast, Dinner
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Day 3
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Sermermiut hike & Icefjord boat cruise
Enjoy breakfast at the hotel before setting off on a guided hike to Sermermiut, an ancient settlement just outside Ilulissat where numerous Inuit peoples lived for around 4,000 years. Along the way, you'll gain an understanding of life in Greenland prior to the arrival of Europeans and learn about the flora, fauna and geology of the region while traversing the permafrost and marvelling at the icebergs floating from the Icefjord into Disko Bay.
Later on, you'll get the chance to appreciate the icebergs up close, as you meander among them on a boat cruise to the mouth of the Ilulissat Icefjord, which is fed by one of the most active glaciers in the world (Sermeq Kujalleq, also known as the Jakobshavn Glacier). Some of these majestic ice structures are the size of buildings, but as 85-90% of them lies beneath the water's surface, you only see the very top part. After taking in this extraordinary natural phenomenon, return to the hotel and spend the evening at leisure. Remember, of course, to keep an eye out for the Northern Lights once darkness falls.
Stay:
Hotel Arctic, Ilulissat
Meals: Breakfast
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Day 4
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Husky sledding & Northern Lights safari
Prepare for an exhilarating day ahead, which begins with an age-old Inuit tradition: gliding across the Arctic wilderness by husky sled. This mode of transport has been used by the Inuit people for thousands of years, and is a truly thrilling way to experience the pristine nature around Ilulissat. The ride takes place on largely flat terrain just outside the town, and unlike in other Nordic countries, you will not be 'mushing' (driving) the sled yourself; instead, you'll sit below alongside another person as the driver takes the reins.
Come nightfall, you'll be picked up and driven to a dark sky spot near Ilulissat with optimal conditions for hunting the Northern Lights. Given Ilulissat's location right beneath the auroral oval at 69°N, it's an ideal place to try to see them – but, as ever, some good fortune is required when it comes to clear skies and geomagnetic activity. Your guides will do their best to maximise your chances and, should the conditions be favourable, you may witness this dazzling spectacle as the night sky lights up with dancing ribbons of green, pink, and possibly even red.
Stay:
Hotel Arctic, Ilulissat
Meals: Breakfast
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Day 5
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Day at leisure or optional excursions in Ilulissat
Today is free for you to spend independently in Ilulissat. Alternatively, you may opt to join an extra excursion (with an additional supplement). One option is to go snowmobiling in the Ilulissat backcountry, heading out of town, via a gorge, and up a winding mountain road where you'll be treated to magnificent views overlooking Ilulissat and Disko Bay. After passing numerous frozen lakes and winding past rocky mountainous terrain, you'll stop for a hot drink before returning to Ilulissat.
Another truly unforgettable option is to take a helicopter sightseeing tour, during which you'll fly all the way to the edge of the immense Greenland ice sheet and take in breathtaking views of the Sermeq Kujalleq glacier and the Ilulissat Icefjord from above. Bear in mind that this tour is highly weather dependent and not always possible given the unpredictable and often extreme nature of the conditions in the Arctic.
Enjoy dinner back at the Hotel Arctic or at one of the local restaurants as you cap off your final night in Greenland.
Stay:
Hotel Arctic, Ilulissat
Meals: Breakfast
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Day 6
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Ilulissat to Copenhagen (via Nuuk)
After one last breakfast at Hotel Arctic, return to the airport for your flight back to Nuuk, and then onwards to Copenhagen, arriving later the same day.
Stay:
Clarion Hotel Copenhagen Airport
Meals: Breakfast
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Day 7
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Return to UK
After breakfast, it's time to catch your flight back to the UK, bringing with you a whole host of special memories from your epic adventures in Greenland.
Meals: Breakfast
