What to do in Uummannaq

When you aren’t out on one of our summer Tours or winter Tours.  We encourage you to explore Uummannaq itself on the following self-guided excursions.

Even though it is a relatively small town, there is a lot to see and do on your own – most of which is available no matter which season you visit.

Join us on our pursuit of a Santa Claus Tour Greenland scenery surrounding Uummannaq! Spend as much time visiting the Greenland Ice Sheet, marveling at the northern lights, musk oxen, sled dogs, and loads of snow fun. You might have a question in mind what Things to Do in Greenland? Explore Greenland’s outdoor and natural activities, cultural experiences, hunting and fishing excursions, coastline sailings, and cruises.

Photocredit Fabrice JCK Two happy men standing together in awe of a beautiful architectural structure, united by their shared emotion. The settlement Saattut near Uummannaq in Greenland
Family Friendly Tours in Uummannaq

Family-friendly hike to Santa’s home

Uummannaq’s most famous resident is none other than Santa Claus himself!

Popularised by the 1989 Danish Christmas TV series Nissebanden i Grønland (Elves in Greenland), Santa’s traditional Greenlandic-style residence is an easy 2.5km walk from the centre of town in Spragle Bay.

Take a picnic and follow the red dots for the quickest and easiest route to Santa’s estate.

Become one of Santa’s helpers

You can’t miss the enormous red post box just down from the beautiful stone church in the centre of Uummannaq. This is where Santa’s mail is delivered to.

Thousands of letters from children all over the world are collected from this postbox and taken into Santa’s Office in the old yellow “Doctor’s house” just behind it. You can write your own letter to Santa, or give him some much-needed help (especially if you speak other languages) by replying to some of the other letters in his never-ending pile of mail.

It is a fascinating look into the wishes of children all around the world, and you will help fuel the imagination and excitement of a small child somewhere on the planet.

A coffee break in Oqaatsut while on a dog sledding trip in the Ilulissat area in Greenland Uummannaq
Santa Claus Tour Greenland

Visit the Uummannaq Museum

The main building of the Uummannaq museum contains a small reading room and several exhibitions relevant to the area. In Alfred Wegener’s expedition on the Ice Sheet. He used a propeller-driven sled, and across the fjord from Uummannaq in 1972. They discovered replicas of the clothing of the Qilakitsoq mummies. The mummies themselves are in the National Museum in Nuuk National Museum.    

Have a chat with the curator for more local history, and ask for access to the other buildings of the museum if they aren’t open already. These include the “Doctor’s House”, which often hosts temporary art exhibitions and is where Santa’s office is located, the long “whale blubber house”, which is filled with an eclectic mix of items and artworks, and the peat huts that occupy the land in front of the church.

Entrance to the Museum: USD$10 – per person.

Visit the Uummannaq Church

Uummannaq’s most iconic building is Greenland’s only stone church. Stonemasons carved out the granite blocks used to build the church from the hillside behind it in 1935.

The church is not always open and the easiest way to see inside is to attend a mass with locals. Greenlandic holds the mass and provides a fantastic opportunity to listen to this Inuit language. It also offers a chance to experience what modern religion. And make you feels like in a country that embraced Christianity only a few hundred years ago.

If you don’t feel comfortable attending the mass, pop to the church just before or just afterwards for a peek inside. Whatever you do, please respect the privacy and faith of others who may be in the church when you visit with your camera.

Uummannaq church in Christmas time
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