How to get to Greenland: airports, flights and border crossings

Greenland has no international road or rail link, so the question is which airport and which hub you connect through. Nuuk (GOH) became the country's main international gateway when its new airport opened in late 2024, and it now takes wide-body flights from Copenhagen. Kangerlussuaq (SFJ), farther north, has long been the transfer point for the ice sheet and for domestic flights along the west coast, and it still handles a share of international traffic.

From Europe the standard routings are Copenhagen to Nuuk or Kangerlussuaq, and Reykjavík/Keflavík to Nuuk, Ilulissat or Narsarsuaq on a shorter hop. Fares and frequencies change with the season, so treat any schedule as a starting point and confirm with the airline. From North America there is no scheduled nonstop to Greenland; you fly to Copenhagen or Reykjavík first and continue from there. That connection is the part that decides your total travel time and cost.

Greenland sits between Europe and North America, but almost all scheduled service runs from Europe, so your total time is dominated by the connection rather than the final leg. The Copenhagen–Nuuk and Copenhagen–Kangerlussuaq legs run roughly four to five hours; the Reykjavík hops are much shorter, around two to three hours to Nuuk and less to Ilulissat or Narsarsuaq. Add a connection in Europe and the door-to-door trip from the US East Coast is commonly a full day or more.

These are planning bands, not timetables. Seasonal schedules, aircraft changes and weather delays all move the numbers, and domestic legs inside Greenland are the most likely to slip.

Not by land. Greenland is an island with no road or rail connection to Canada, Iceland or anywhere else, and there are no roads between its own towns either. Any overland travel you read about is a local trail, not an entry route.

By sea, the options are expedition and cruise ships, which run mainly in the summer months along the west coast and to the east. These are booked as trips rather than as transport, and there is no regular public car ferry from Europe or North America. If a ship is your plan, treat it as a cruise with a Greenland stop rather than a way to move between towns on a schedule.

Book early for June to September, when demand peaks and seats on the short Reykjavík and Copenhagen legs fill first. Winter travel is possible and cheaper in places, but weather cancellations are more common and some services are seasonal. Build a spare day into any itinerary that includes a domestic flight inside Greenland; delays cascade and there is no road alternative.

Greenland is not in the EU, but it is part of the Danish realm, so entry rules follow Danish and Greenlandic rules rather than Schengen ones. Many nationalities can enter visa-free for short stays, while others need a visa; check the current rule for your passport before booking. Bring a card as well as some Danish kroner, since cards are widely accepted but not everywhere. Travel insurance that covers flight disruption and remote-area medical care is worth arranging before you fly.