Kangerlussuaq

About Kangerlussuaq

Kangerlussuaq sits at the head of a 100-mile fjord on Greenland's west coast and serves as the main air-sea interchange for expedition cruises. The town is tiny — a few hundred residents anchored by the former US Air Force base runway that now handles most international flights into Greenland. The signature excursion is an off-road drive to Point 660 on the Greenland ice sheet, where passengers walk onto the ice.

• Kangerlussuaq means 'Big Fjord' in Greenlandic — the settlement sits at the very head of a 160 km long fjord, making it the only town in Greenland not directly on the open ocean.
• The town and airport were built as a U.S. military base during World War II, known as Bluie West-8 and later Sondrestrom Air Base; it was handed over to Greenland in 1992.
• Until the rebuilt Nuuk Airport opened in 2024, Kangerlussuaq Airport was Greenland's primary international air hub and the main gateway for the entire territory.
• The Kangerlussuaq area has Greenland's most diverse terrestrial wildlife, including muskoxen, caribou (reindeer), and the powerful gyrfalcon — the world's largest falcon.
• The entire settlement has a population of only about 399 people, and its economy depends almost entirely on the airport and tourism, particularly from visitors seeking the midnight sun, dog sledding, and Arctic trekking.