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When it comes to hot springs in Greenland there’s only one place you need to know about – Uunartoq. These might just be the most beautiful hot springs in the world!
It felt like we had reached the end of the world when we arrived to the Uunartoq hot springs.
Considering we were so far away from any civilisation on the furthest edges of Greenland, that’s exactly where we were. This is a place that hardly anyone gets to see, which is a shame because these hot springs in Greenland might just be the most beautiful hot springs in the world.
As I stepped out the wooden changing room, the cold bitter air immediately hit me. When you can see icebergs all around you though that’s not much of a surprise.
However, the long journey and the coldness were worth it, because as soon as we slipped into the hot springs, all our worries melted about.
Or maybe that was the bottle of wine we brought with us too.
To see what Greenland hot springs are really like, make sure you check out my video below. And yes, it really is that beautiful…
Planning a trip to Greenland? Then bookmark my guides on the best places to visit in Greenland, on what the food is like and my top tips for Greenland too. I’ve also written individual desination guides to Nuuk, Igaliku, Narsaq, and Qaqortoq.
Contents:
Getting to Uunartoq hot springs
About an hours boat ride away from the small town of Qaqortoq in Southern Greenland sits the island of Uunartoq, which literally translates to “the warm place”. Ironically, it isn’t warm here, but thankfully the hot springs are. They are like an oasis you’d find in the middle of the desert, a pool of warmth in an otherwise freezing place.
To get to the Greenland thermal pools, you’ll have to take a water taxi from the harbour at Qaqortoq. We arranged a tour beforehand and there was just two other people with us. Obviously there’s not a huge amount of tourism in Greenland so there’s a good chance you’ll have the place to yourself.
Hot springs are abundant in Greenland. However, Uunartoq is the only hot spring that is actually warm enough to bathe in. The water consistently sits at a pleasant 38 degrees making it ideal for soaking in for an hour or so.
These hot springs are ancient. Apparently Viking warriors used to wash off their blood in the hot springs after battle, so there’s a lot of mythology and history associated to the place.
We arrived at the hot springs just after dinner when the light was still bright. When you visit Greenland in summer, it rares gets dark at night.
Once we climbed out of our water taxi we had a rocky beach to our right and huge mountain landscape to our left.
As if we weren’t excited for the hot springs enough, the beauty of the place just heightens that sense of anticipation.
Being in the middle of nowhere
Something about Greenland that I’ve never experienced anywhere else in the world is the silence: the feeling that we were really the only ones there. It’s a sense of peacefulness that seeps into your whole body, and I absolutely love it.
A short walk from the dock, the first glimpse of the hot springs was the small, white structure that sits in an otherwise wild setting. The small hut serves as a change room next to the springs. And yes, they have different sides for male and female.
Changing into my swimming trunks had to be quick, as the arctic air outside was biting at my skin. It also made scampering into the pool that much more satisfying.
As you can see though, these thermal pools really are in the middle of nowhere. It’s what makes then such an incredible place to visit in Greenland.
Greenland hot springs
We were in awe as we sat back and looked over the hill at giant icebergs floating by, with layers upon layers of rustic mountain edges in the background.
Brian flew the drone while we relaxed and the shots do not lie. Flying overhead, the birds eye view picks up the vastness of the land, the colours that seems painted on and the serene power of natural beauty.
I found a few spots in the black, coarse sand at the bottom of the pool to dig my hands and feet in for maximum warmth. It felt like the world held it’s breathe for a moment.
The only negative of visiting this place is getting out of the warm water afterwards.
When it was time to go, I used all my strength to bolt from the springs, dry off and quickly change back into my clothes at lightning speed. I was grateful for the extra socks and hat that I had brought along for the ride back because it was absolutely bitter!
Riding home in the boat, it was around 10pm and we were safely stowed in the cabin.
Just in time for sunset, the grey skies that had been hanging all night lifted slightly, like a curtain being peeked under, and we caught one of the most glowing, gorgeous sunsets I’ve ever seen.
It is certainly worth the trip to make it to Uunartoq. Make sure to bring some whiskey or wine to make the pools even more enjoyable, sit back and soak in the natural wonders.
Do you think these hot springs in Greenland are the most beautiful in the world? Let me know what you think in the comments below!
You could have shown more pics like why mention you got drone footage if you’re not going to show any images? I get that you want to people to go watch your YouTube video but it’s a turn off when you make it so obvious
Have you watched the video though? Because it’s very rare to get footage from somewhere like Uunartoq, especially on a drone. At the time we were focused on making a video showcasing the area – the blog post came afterwards so we didn’t have as many photos as we would’ve like.
It looks beautiful and we would like to visit while in Qaqortoq this August. How did you get to the springs?
The hot springs are genuinely the most beautiful I’ve ever been to. You can hire a water taxi down by the harbour very easily – I really recommend it Lori!
@Macca Sherifi,
Do you know the transportation costs for a round trip to Qaqortoq and back? I looked at the water taxi website and it didn’t specify costs for that route.
Excellent question Nancy, but I can’t quite remember myself! I know Visit Greenland are very quick at responding on Facebook, so maybe ask your question there? I hope that helps!