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Ocean Calling

Ocean Atlas · Europe and Mediterranean

Europe and Mediterranean

Greenland

Arctic summer whales among the icebergs of Disko Bay, Nuuk Fjord and East Greenland, all watched from the boat.

Iceberg reflected in calm water at Ilulissat, west Greenland
Ilulissat, Disko Bay · Photo: ArcticDesire.com Polarreisen on Unsplash
Exploring

Ethics pass, with care. We found a way to visit this country that meets our animal-welfare standard, as long as we work with the right local operator. Checked by Ocean Calling on 26 Sep 2026. Sources: Greenland, aboriginal subsistence whaling, International Whaling Commission; Whale Watching Handbook: Denmark (Greenland) country profile, IWC; Narwhal, NAMMCO.

🧭 Travel advice, checked 30 Sep 2026. The US State Department rates Greenland at Level 2, exercise increased caution, updated 29 October 2024. It cites extreme weather, remote areas, limited emergency services and very limited consular help. Sources: US State Department travel advisory, Greenland Advice differs by passport: check your own government before you plan.

ScubaWhalesWildlife watching

Why Greenland

Greenland is a very wild and very cold ocean place. At Ilulissat the icebergs from the UNESCO Icefjord float out into Disko Bay, and from June to September humpback, fin and minke whales feed there. A small group of humpbacks comes back to Nuuk Fjord each summer, and in East Greenland around Tasiilaq whales feed in the fjords from July to September. In late winter and spring, bowhead whales use Disko Bay before the humpbacks arrive. We watch all whales from the boat, with slow speed and good distance. Please know that Inuit communities in Greenland still hunt some whales, narwhals, belugas and seals under legal quotas, as part of local food and culture. Diving here is only for experienced drysuit divers, and there is no recompression chamber in Greenland. Greenland is not in the EU or Schengen, so most guests need a passport.

Conservation-led. Ocean Calling guests never chase, touch or bait animals.

CanadaUnited States of AmericaRussiaNorwayGreenlandFranceBelgiumNetherlandsIrelandUnited KingdomIcelandIlulissat and Disko Bay, GreenlandNuuk Fjord, GreenlandTasiilaq, East Greenland, Greenland

When to go

Jun-Sep. Timing changes by place and by animal, so check each place below.

We have researched this place and keep learning about it. There is no trip here yet.

Our ethics check

Can we travel here ethically?

Ethics pass, with care

Good with the right operator. Here is how we choose.

Inuit communities hunt some whales and narwhals under quotas, as part of food and culture, and we respect this. Whale watching rules here are only voluntary, so we keep our own stricter standard: slow boats, good distance, no chasing and short time with each whale. We watch only from the boat and we never buy whale or narwhal products, and we skip narwhal trips because some narwhal groups are at risk.

Checked 26 Sep 2026. Places change, so we look again every year.

Sources for this check
Places we are exploring

Where in Greenland

Short notes from our research. Wildlife is never guaranteed.

Ilulissat and Disko Bay

Exploring

Icebergs from the UNESCO Icefjord and summer humpback, fin and minke whales, watched from the boat.

🤿 In the water: Grounded icebergs and cold kelp for experienced drysuit divers (possible, 0 to 4°C)

⛵ From the boat or shore, never in the water: Humpback whales (June to September), Fin whales, Minke whales, Bowhead whales (late winter and spring, before the humpbacks), Seals, Icebergs of the Ilulissat Icefjord

When: Jun-Sep. Humpbacks feed here from June to September, and July to August is usually calmest, with light all night. Bowheads use the bay from about February to May. The sea is 0 to 4°C all year.

Nuuk Fjord

Exploring

A long fjord near the capital where a small group of humpbacks returns each summer, watched from the boat.

⛵ From the boat or shore, never in the water: Humpback whales (summer, often the same whales each year), Minke whales, Seals

When: Jun-Sep. Humpbacks feed in the fjord in summer. Because the same few whales come back every year, slow and calm boats matter a lot here.

Tasiilaq, East Greenland

Exploring

Remote East Greenland fjords with icebergs, where humpback, minke and fin whales feed in late summer, watched from the boat.

⛵ From the boat or shore, never in the water: Humpback whales (July to September), Minke whales, Fin whales, Orcas (sometimes), Seals

When: Jul-Sep. Whale trips run from July to September. Weather here changes fast and strong winds can stop boats. This is polar bear country, so walks outside town are only with a local guide who knows the safety rules.

Animals

Animals recorded in Greenland

Tap an animal to learn how it lives, where it travels and how to meet it respectfully.

Land animals
Humpback whale swimming close with long pectoral finHumpback whaleMegaptera novaeangliaeSeen in 87 countries in the AtlasLeast ConcernFin whale surfacing, showing its white right lower jawFin whaleBalaenoptera physalusSeen in 37 countries in the AtlasVulnerableMinke whale surfacing and exhaling, seen from aboveCommon minke whale (North Atlantic)Balaenoptera acutorostrataSeen in 30 countries in the AtlasLeast ConcernSperm whale mother raising her fluke beside her calf off DominicaSperm whalePhyseter macrocephalusSeen in 114 countries in the AtlasVulnerableOrcas surfacing close together in calm Arctic Norwegian watersOrca (killer whale)Orcinus orcaSeen in 55 countries in the AtlasData DeficientWild beluga lifting its head from the brown water near Churchill, ManitobaBeluga whaleDelphinapterus leucasSeen in 10 countries in the AtlasLeast ConcernSpotted harbor seal lifting its head out of calm waterHarbor sealPhoca vitulinaSeen in 13 countries in the AtlasLeast ConcernHarbour porpoise rolling at the surface off Berry Head, DevonHarbour porpoisePhocoena phocoenaSeen in 20 countries in the AtlasLeast ConcernBowhead whale head with twin blowholes breaking the surfaceBowhead whaleBalaena mysticetusSeen in 8 countries in the AtlasLeast ConcernNarwhal surfacing with its spiral tusk showing, Nunavut, CanadaNarwhalMonodon monocerosSeen in 5 countries in the AtlasLeast ConcernAtlantic walrus with long tusks resting on sea ice, SvalbardAtlantic walrusOdobenus rosmarus rosmarusSeen in 6 countries in the AtlasNear ThreatenedRinged seal lying on snow and ice, dark with pale ring markings on its backRinged sealPusa hispidaSeen in 13 countries in the AtlasLeast ConcernHarp seal raising its head and chest out of green water with spray around itHarp sealPagophilus groenlandicusSeen in 10 countries in the AtlasNear ThreatenedYoung hooded seal with a spotted coat lying on drifting sea iceHooded sealCystophora cristataSeen in 8 countries in the AtlasEndangeredLarge bearded seal resting on snow and ice with its head raisedBearded sealErignathus barbatusSeen in 7 countries in the AtlasNear ThreatenedPolar bear looking up at the camera on sea ice, close view of the face and earsPolar bearUrsus maritimusSeen in 5 countries in the AtlasLives on landVulnerableGreenland shark swimming just above the seabed in deep water, filmed by a research vehicleGreenland sharkSomniosus microcephalusSeen in 8 countries in the AtlasVulnerableBlue whale blowing a tall spout off San DiegoBlue whaleBalaenoptera musculusSeen in 29 countries in the AtlasEndangeredTwo long-finned pilot whales surfacing side by sideLong-finned pilot whaleGlobicephala melasSeen in 24 countries in the AtlasLeast ConcernSei whale's tall dorsal fin breaking a calm sea surfaceSei whaleBalaenoptera borealisSeen in 24 countries in the AtlasEndangeredDwarf minke whaleBalaenoptera acutorostrata (dwarf form)Seen in 30 countries in the AtlasLeast ConcernOceanic whitetip shark with pilot fish in sunlit Red Sea waterOceanic whitetip sharkCarcharhinus longimanusSeen in 43 countries in the AtlasCritically EndangeredLion's mane jellyfish with long hair-like tentacles, Highland, ScotlandLion's mane jellyfishCyanea capillataSeen in 13 countries in the AtlasNot EvaluatedA male northern bottlenose whale lifting its head above the surface in the Gully, Nova Scotia, during a research expeditionNorthern bottlenose whaleHyperoodon ampullatusSeen in 15 countries in the AtlasNear ThreatenedShortfin mako shark at Condor Bank in the North Atlantic, AzoresShortfin makoIsurus oxyrinchusSeen in 40 countries in the AtlasEndangeredBlue shark swimming in open blue water off the Azores with a diver in the backgroundBlue sharkPrionace glaucaSeen in 50 countries in the AtlasNear ThreatenedSpiny dogfish resting on the seabed at the Josephine Marie shipwreck, Stellwagen Bank National Marine SanctuarySpiny dogfishSqualus acanthiasSeen in 47 countries in the AtlasVulnerableWhite-beaked dolphin surfacing, head and beak at the water lineWhite-beaked dolphinLagenorhynchus albirostrisSeen in 14 countries in the AtlasLeast ConcernAtlantic puffin spreading its wings on a cliff in IcelandAtlantic puffinFratercula arcticaSeen in 21 countries in the AtlasVulnerableA single silvery herring angled through deep blue water off Skjervoy, northern NorwayAtlantic herringClupea harengusSeen in 21 countries in the AtlasLeast ConcernWhite-tailed eagle in flight low over calm water with a fish in its talons, near Raftsund, Lofoten, NorwayWhite-tailed eagleHaliaeetus albicillaSeen in 38 countries in the AtlasLives on landLeast ConcernGreat cormorant perched on a branch, with white head plumes and a glossy blue-black backGreat cormorantPhalacrocorax carboSeen in 90 countries in the AtlasLeast ConcernHuge flock of sooty shearwaters flying low over the sea beside a rocky coastSooty shearwaterArdenna griseaSeen in 53 countries in the AtlasNear ThreatenedClose view of a northern gannet face, with pale blue eyes and a golden headNorthern gannetMorus bassanusSeen in 38 countries in the AtlasLeast ConcernLeach's storm-petrel in flight over water, wings spread, with a pale patch at the base of the tailLeach's storm-petrelHydrobates leucorhousSeen in 35 countries in the AtlasVulnerableManx shearwater banking just above the sea, white underparts and dark upperparts visibleManx shearwaterPuffinus puffinusSeen in 34 countries in the AtlasLeast ConcernGreat shearwater flying low over calm water, its reflection belowGreat shearwaterArdenna gravisSeen in 32 countries in the AtlasLeast ConcernNorthern fulmar sitting on a cliff ledge, facing the cameraNorthern fulmarFulmarus glacialisSeen in 19 countries in the AtlasLeast ConcernStarry ray resting on a sandy seabed, with a spotted back and thorns along the tailStarry ray (thorny skate)Amblyraja radiataSeen in 12 countries in the AtlasVulnerablePelagic stingray seen from above, swimming over the seabed in clear blue waterPelagic stingrayPteroplatytrygon violaceaSeen in 11 countries in the AtlasLeast ConcernBlack dogfishCentroscyllium fabriciiSeen in 7 countries in the AtlasLeast ConcernRound skateRajella fyllaeSeen in 6 countries in the AtlasLeast Concern
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