How to Get to Greenland

Two direct gateways from Europe in 2026

Flying to Greenland works differently in 2026 than it did only a few years ago. Nuuk has had direct jet service from Copenhagen since its international airport opened on 28 November 2024. During 2026, Ilulissat’s own new airport also opens for direct flights from Copenhagen. Travellers therefore have two direct gateways from Europe where reaching Greenland previously depended on a longer routing.

That makes some itineraries simpler, but it does not remove the need to plan each flight carefully. The right gateway depends on your final destination, the domestic schedule on your dates and whether the connection allows a sensible margin. Flying in Greenland is weather-dependent, so the route that looks shortest on a map is not always the most practical one.

We recommend starting with the town you actually need to reach. From there, work backwards to the international flight and any domestic sector. Do not buy the cheapest flight into Greenland first and assume that a suitable onward connection can be added later. International and domestic flights run on different schedules, and a connection needs to be checked rather than assumed.

Direct flights from Copenhagen to Nuuk

Nuuk International Airport opened on 28 November 2024. Direct jet service from Copenhagen operates five times a week, increasing to six flights a week over Christmas and New Year and eight a week in summer.

This makes Nuuk a practical entry point if Nuuk is your destination or if you are continuing to another town in Air Greenland’s domestic network. The weekly frequency is only part of the calculation. You also need to establish whether the international arrival on your chosen date connects sensibly with the relevant domestic departure.

Five or eight weekly international flights do not mean that every domestic connection can be completed on the same day. Nor should you assume that operating days and departure times remain identical throughout a season. Search using your actual travel dates rather than planning from a general description of the summer or winter programme.

The confirmed planned frequencies are five flights a week as the standard schedule, six over Christmas and New Year and eight in summer. Airlines can still revise exact operating days and times. Check the current live schedule before buying a non-refundable domestic flight or any separate onward connection.

Direct flights from Copenhagen to Ilulissat

Ilulissat’s new airport opens during 2026, with direct Copenhagen service on Wednesdays. The schedule increases to Mondays and Wednesdays over Christmas and New Year. The same two operating days are planned for the winter period from 1 to 27 March 2027.

Once the airport and route have opened, travellers whose final destination is Ilulissat can avoid a domestic transfer in Nuuk. That is the main practical difference offered by the direct service. The limited weekly frequency still requires careful planning in both directions. A trip of five or nine days, for example, will not necessarily fit a route that operates only on Wednesdays.

The additional Monday flight applies only during the stated periods. Pay particular attention to dates at the beginning and end of the Christmas and New Year schedule and around 1 and 27 March 2027. Do not assume that the Monday service operates in the preceding or following week. Search each calendar date in the live timetable.

This is a new route, and schedules for new services are precisely the details that can be revised. The service and stated frequencies are confirmed plans, but that does not make every departure time for every date permanent. Check that Ilulissat Airport has opened for your travel date, review the current programme when booking and check it again before departure.

Choose the gateway that fits your destination

If you are travelling only to Nuuk, the direct Copenhagen–Nuuk flight is the straightforward routing. If you are travelling only to Ilulissat after the new airport opens, first check whether the Wednesday service fits the length of your stay. Over Christmas and New Year, and from 1 to 27 March 2027, include the Monday departure in your search as well. If the dates work, the direct route removes the need for a domestic transfer.

For other towns, Nuuk is the main connecting point within the services covered here. Air Greenland flies from Nuuk to Aasiaat, Ilulissat, Kangerlussuaq, Kulusuk, Maniitsoq, Paamiut, Qaqortoq and Sisimiut. You can therefore fly the international sector directly from Copenhagen to Nuuk and continue on a domestic flight.

That list does not mean every route connects with every international arrival. Domestic flights have their own schedules, which can vary by date. Search the complete journey on the day you intend to travel and repeat the process independently for your return. A workable outbound connection does not establish that the same routing works in reverse.

If Ilulissat is the first stop on a longer trip, check the next sector separately. The direct Copenhagen–Ilulissat flight solves the international part of the journey, but it does not automatically provide onward connections to other destinations. We recommend writing every sector into the itinerary with its date and scheduled departure. This makes it clear which transfers are supported by the actual timetable and which are based only on an assumption.

International and domestic flights are separate parts of the journey

A typical journey through Nuuk has at least two sectors: Copenhagen to Nuuk, followed by Nuuk to the final town. These are separate flights running on two different schedules. They are not automatically issued as one through-ticket simply because you place them in the same itinerary.

During booking, check whether the sectors are being issued together or whether you are making two reservations. Confirm which flights appear in each booking and retain the details for both. If you buy the sectors separately, do not assume that a delay to the first flight will automatically result in changes to the next ticket. The terms applying to each reservation need to be checked before payment.

Assess the connection using the real timetable. It is not enough that the international flight is scheduled to arrive before the domestic flight departs. The transfer also needs a realistic margin, and very tight connections are less robust when flying is weather-dependent. We would normally rather allow additional time than rely on every sector operating exactly as originally scheduled.

If an overnight stay creates a more workable itinerary, treat it as part of the route rather than as unused time. The same principle applies on the return journey. Additional margin before an international departure can be relevant when the preceding domestic sector is necessary to reach a ticket that cannot be changed.

How to search for a multi-flight itinerary

Begin by writing down your final destination and the dates on which you can travel. Then establish whether the destination is Nuuk, Ilulissat or another town requiring a domestic flight. This avoids comparing international fares that do not produce equivalent complete journeys.

For travel beyond Nuuk, use this sequence:

1. Find the direct flight between Copenhagen and Nuuk on your intended date.
2. Find Air Greenland’s domestic flight from Nuuk to your final destination on the same day and on the following day.
3. Compare a same-day transfer with an itinerary that includes an overnight stay.
4. Repeat the search in reverse for the return journey.
5. Check whether all sectors are issued together or as separate reservations.
6. Wait before buying non-refundable additions or onward connections until the complete flight sequence has been verified.

For Ilulissat, compare the direct Wednesday service with an itinerary through Nuuk. Over Christmas and New Year and from 1 to 27 March 2027, also search for the Monday flight. Compare the complete journey rather than only the international sector. A direct outbound flight may fit well even when the preferred return date requires a different routing.

Search nearby dates where possible. This is particularly useful for the direct Ilulissat route because the number of weekly departures is limited. Moving the trip can determine whether you fly directly or need a domestic transfer.

Travellers starting outside Copenhagen should apply the same method to the flight that brings them there. Treat that flight as another sector in the itinerary, particularly if it is booked separately. Check its timing against the Greenland departure rather than assuming that the two services form a protected connection.

Plan for weather without trying to predict it

Flying in Greenland is weather-dependent. This does not mean you can know in advance whether a particular departure will be affected. It means the itinerary should be able to accommodate the possibility that a flight does not operate at exactly its original time.

Take particular care when a domestic flight comes before your international journey home, or when you plan to continue from Copenhagen on a separate ticket. Each independent reservation placed close to the next creates another point at which the itinerary depends on the schedule remaining unchanged.

Do not treat a scheduled arrival time as a guarantee that every later departure will be reachable. Look at the current alternatives before booking. Check whether a later flight appears in the timetable and consider whether an overnight stay would make the plan less sensitive to disruption. This is ordinary journey planning, but it matters more when the international and domestic sectors follow separate programmes.

It is also sensible to keep the first or final day relatively free of fixed arrangements. We do not recommend one standard connection margin for every trip because the appropriate choice depends on the date, route and ticket conditions. What matters is that the margin is chosen deliberately rather than being whatever time happens to remain between two flights.

Use calendar dates, not broad seasons

Terms such as summer, winter and holiday period are not precise enough when buying tickets. For Nuuk, the stated programme is five direct flights a week from Copenhagen, increasing to six over Christmas and New Year and eight in summer. For Ilulissat, the direct operating day is Wednesday, with Monday added over Christmas and New Year and from 1 to 27 March 2027.

Use those confirmed plans to understand the routes, but use the current live timetable to make the booking. This is particularly important near the boundaries of the higher-frequency periods. If you travel immediately before or after Christmas and New Year, do not assume that an additional departure has already begun or continues into your week. Apply the same care to 1 and 27 March 2027: check the exact date rather than relying on the month alone.

Check both the weekday and the calendar date. This reduces the risk of building an itinerary around a Monday departure that operates only within a defined period, or selecting a Wednesday in the wrong week. Once booked, keep the displayed itinerary with your reservation and check later for changes to the operating time.

Check both directions independently

It is easy to focus on reaching Greenland and leave the return journey until later. That can produce an itinerary with a convenient outbound connection but no equivalent option on the way home. International frequencies and domestic schedules need to line up separately in each direction.

For a journey through Nuuk, search the domestic flight back to Nuuk before committing to the international departure. Confirm whether it arrives with a sensible margin or whether an overnight stay is the more robust arrangement. If you then continue beyond Copenhagen on another booking, assess that connection separately as well.

For direct travel to Ilulissat, make sure the available operating days suit both arrival and departure. A Wednesday flight into Ilulissat does not mean there will be another direct service on whichever day you prefer to leave. The additional Monday frequency is limited to Christmas and New Year and the winter period from 1 to 27 March 2027.

Booking checklist

Before paying, you should be able to read the full journey as one coherent plan even if it consists of separate tickets. Check the following:

• Is your international gateway Nuuk or Ilulissat?
• Does that gateway suit the town you are actually visiting?
• If you plan to use the new direct route, will Ilulissat Airport be open on your travel date?
• Does the direct flight operate on the exact weekday and calendar date selected?
• Do you need an onward Air Greenland flight from Nuuk?
• Have you found every domestic sector in the current timetable?
• Is a same-day connection realistic, or would an overnight stay provide a better margin?
• Are the sectors contained in one reservation or purchased separately?
• Which parts of the journey can be changed or refunded?
• Have you avoided placing a non-refundable onward connection too close to your scheduled arrival?

Apply the same checklist to the return journey. A simple outbound itinerary does not establish that the reverse connection exists on the required date.

Our practical recommendation

In 2026, Greenland can be reached through two direct gateways from Copenhagen. Nuuk has had international jet service since 28 November 2024, with five weekly flights, six over Christmas and New Year and eight in summer. Ilulissat opens during 2026 with direct Wednesday flights and additional Monday service over Christmas and New Year and from 1 to 27 March 2027.

Choose Nuuk when it is your destination or when Air Greenland’s domestic network from Nuuk provides the onward route you need. Choose the direct Ilulissat service when Ilulissat is the destination and its operating days fit the stay. Unless your actual reservation clearly shows otherwise, treat international and domestic flights as separate sectors running on different schedules.

The frequencies and operating days stated here are the confirmed plans, but exact times and weekly schedules can be revised. Before finalising the trip or purchasing any non-refundable onward connection, verify the current live schedule for your own dates. Check it again closer to departure, especially near the beginning and end of the Christmas and New Year programme and the 1–27 March 2027 period.