In recent years, I’ve moved away from leading photography tours to Iceland in favour of Greenland. It’s nothing against Iceland – it’s one of the most photogenic places on the planet. It’s just that Greenland was more raw, less-touristed, and a bit more unique. But, Greenland was also really kind of a pain to get to.
However, this past year Iceland and Greenland have become much more connected via flights. You can now go to Nuuk and Ilullisat directly from Iceland. The result? A perfect opportunity for an epic winter photography trip!
The goal: ice caves, waterfalls, black sand beaches, glaciers, sled dogs, icebergs, and northern-freaking-lights!
Dates: February 2, 2027 to February 13, 2027
Start City: Reykjavik, Iceland
End City: Nuuk, Greenland
Fitness Difficulty: B/C
Tour Type: Classic
Price: €5390 (€990 Deposit)
The Itinerary
Due to the flights on this trip, the schedule is fairly fixed. However, winter weather conditions often mean that we need to make adjustments on the fly. I don’t think I have ever done a photography tour in Iceland or Greenland where things happened exactly the way the itinerary was set. As a result, we’ll have to stay a little bit flexible and always have backup plans.
Day 1 – Arrival in Reykjavik. Nothing planned. Just arrive and maybe go for an evening photo walk.
Day 2 – Leave town early and head towards Vik. Sunrise at Seljalandsfoss along the way.
Day 3 – From Vik we’ll head to the glacier lagoon. We’ll photograph the famous diamond beach. We’ll photograph the Aurora if they’re out.
Day 4 – Leaving the Glacier Lagoon we’ll head to Hofn, famous for their lobster soup and epic landscapes. Hopefully there will be northen lights visible above Vestrahorn.
Day 5 – We’ll photograph Vestrahorn at sunrise and then start making our way back west. We’ll visit an ice cave!
Day 6 – In the morning we’ll get to Skogafoss and photograph it’s sheer power. Then, it’s back to Keflavik to spend the night near the airport.
Day 7 – Early morning we’ll catch a flight to Nuuk, then transfer to Ilulissat. Hopefully the northern lights will be out above the famous church in town.
Day 8 – In the morning, we’ll photograph the old harbour. In the afternoon we’ll go on a walk to ice the massive ice fjord from above.
Day 9 – Still in Ilullisat, we’ll photograph sled dogs, then by boat, we’ll explore the incredibly Disko Bay at sunset.
Day 10 – Early morning we’ll fly to Nuuk. In the afternoon, we’ll photograph one of the most classic views in Greenland.
Day 11 – We’ll take a boat cruise into the fjords around Nuuk to photograph icebergs and an abandoned village.
Day 12– Sadly, the tour ends after breakfast. Participants will start their journeys home.
Photography Tour Cost
From a comfort level, this trip is upper midrange. The hotels in Iceland are all 4 stars. In Greenland they are 3 stars.
What’s Included
- All accommodation.
- Photography Instruction by Brendan van Son
- Internal Greenland Flights
- Flight from Iceland to Greenland
- Nuuk Ice Fjord Excursions
- Disko Bay Excursion
- All other excursions and local transportation
- Breakfast on all days
What’s Not Included
- Transport to Iceland
- Transport from Nuuk, Greenland
- Meals other than breakfast
- Visas, if needed.
Ready to Book?
If you’re ready to book, please click the button below to pay the deposit. Final payments will be due 120 days before the tour starts. For full payment terms and conditions please visit this page.
FAQs
The answer depends greatly where on the planet you live. However, I’d recommend searching for 2 flights rather than 1 (although Icelandair.com might get you round trip results).
Look to book one-way from home to Reykjavik. Then, look to book a seperate one-way flight from Nuuk to home.
Alternatively, you can try a multi-stop trip somewhere like Kayak or Trip.com to go home -> Reykjavik — Nuuk -> Home
Remember, the flight from Reykjavik to Nuuk is included.
Air Greenland doesn’t list their flights on the typical search engines. So, the best thing to do is to book flights to Copenhagen, and then onwards to Greenland. There are also flights from Iceland, so it’s worth checking there as well.
If you prefer having someone organize the flights for you, we do offer flight a flight booking service as well to help out.
The price of the tour is based on double occupancy. So, if you book the trip as an individual, you’ll be matched up with a roommate of the same gender.
However, if you prefer to have your own private room for the duration of the trip, you’ll need to pay a single supplement charge.
For this trip, it’s 1,800 Euros.
Obviously, this is something we can’t predict. That said, we’d have to be very unlucky to not see them at least a couple of nights.
This far north, aurora activity can happen every single night. It’s more a matter of having clear skies.
So while I can’t guarantee northern lights, I would be shocked if we didn’t see and photography them at least a couple times. I would hope to be able to photograph them at least 50% of the nights.
We will have a maximum group size of 10. If the group is larger than 6, I’ll be bringing along an assistant photographer to help.
Honestly, it can be any. We’ve had people who were new to cameras on trips, and we’ve had professionals. We’re here to make sure you get the best photos you can, and have the most amazing time – regardless of your skill level.
The winters in Iceland Greenland can be harsh. However, we’re fairly close to the coast so they’re not as extreme as you might expect.
That being said, you’ll definitely want to be kitted out in cold-weather clothing.
Nuuk and Sisiumiut see February average temperatures as -5 as a high and -10 as a low.
That being said, you’ll need to be prepared. During the 2025 trip we were hit with a massive cold front and saw temperatures down to as low as -28c.
In Iceland, most of the photo locations are really close to the car. So you don’t need to walk much.
In Greenland, there’s a bit more walking. But most locations we can take taxis to. All fitness levels are welcome – we’ll adjust as needed.
If you have any other questions about this tour, please feel free to shoot me an email to brendanvanson at gmail dot com. I’ll get back to you as quickly as possible.
Can’t Join this One?
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