In the harsh yet beautiful Nordic landscape of West Greenland, on the edge of the UNESCO-protected Kangia Icefjord – Kangiata Illorsua – Ilulissat Icefjord Centre blends effortlessly into the vast terrain, offering a unique vantage point from which to experience the astonishing Kangia Icefjord and the surrounding area, as well as a daring attempt to comprehend the dramatic consequences of climate change on this irreplaceable location.

Known to native Greenlandic speakers as Kalaallisut, Kangia Icefjord – Kangiata Illorsua – Ilulissat Icefjord Centre conveys the significance of the ancient landscape, both challenging and expanding the world’s understanding of the ice sheet and its importance for the world.

© Adam Mørk

In 2021, Kangia Icefjord – Kangiata Illosua – Ilulissat Icefjord Centre opened to a crowd of Greenland tourism officials and local residents of Ilulissat (there were no international tourists at the event since COVID-19 regulations did now allow visitors access to the island until 2023). Despite the sparse number of visitors, everyone knew larger crowds would soon be coming.

Kangia Icefjord – Kangiata Illosua – Ilulissat Icefjord Centre was designed by Danish architect Dorte Mandrup, whose Copenhagen-based Dorte Mandrup arkitekter A/S has been highly successful in Nordic destinations.  The 1,000-square-foot Ilulissat Icefjord Centre building is located just 155 miles north of the Arctic Circle and is uniquely designed, complete with space for exhibits, a café and shop. The building’s series of steel frames is placed in a soft curve from triangle to square, and back to triangle again on the opposite side.

Dorte Mandrup said the inspiration for the building’s design came to her  “…when watching a snowy owl’s flight through the landscape.” The building’s aerodynamic, light structure appears to levitate over the magnificent, rugged terrain, like an outstretched wing gently touching the bedrock. The building’s shape frames the views towards Kangia fjord while preventing snow build-up and creating a shelter from snow and freezing winds. As in many modern buildings, visitors can access the roof, and from the highest point of the roof they can see the main attraction: the stunning Ilulissat Icefjord Centre, Kangia Icefjord – Kangiata Illosua and beyond.

© Adam Mørk

As climatologists, residents and repeat visitors to the area are aware, Ilulissat’s glacier (Sermeq Kujalleq) has always deposited broken-off huge mountains of ice into Disko Bay, but in recent years the melting zone has moved further inland, and the fjord no longer freezes over every winter. Although this may disappoint tourists, seeing the effects of climate change on Disko Bay in person is a true “global warming” lesson.

Ilulissat Icefjord Centre caps the number of visitors at one time at 120 people. Thus, tickets are sold in time slots of 1.5 hours at a time. See the center’s website for current ticket prices and opening hours.

Sled dogs in Ilulissaat © Ron Bernthal

Ilulissat is a small fishing village on Disko Bay, which offers an amazing backdrop for whale watching during the summer (assaq), when humpback, minke and fin whales float through the bay, sometimes getting close to the huge white icebergs slowly meandering through the same bay. Most visitors arrive during summer, when fishing boats occupy most of the picturesque harbor, and heavy parkas aren’t required during sub-zero days. During summer, the almost 5,000 permanent residents of Ilulissat take good care of their thousands of sled dogs, used for transportation during the long and snowy winters. Visitors get used to year-round barking.