First Time in East Greenland - a Travel Documentary Guide

A Glimpse of the Remote

The Ammassalik region: Unknown to many people across the globe, existing close to the edge of the massive Greenland Ice Sheet and an irresistible once-in-a-lifetime destination for adventurers. A place that only reveals its true nature once you’ve experienced it yourself.

Before diving into such an unfamiliar world, it’s reasonable to want to prepare. But how do you prepare for such a journey? What does it mean to step into a landscape that seems unlike anything you’ve ever seen or imagined? Anna Riedel-Jahn and Lucas T. Jahn’s travel documentary offers a rare glimpse into that experience, a self-guided summer adventure. As individual travellers, they chose Tasiilaq, the biggest town in East Greenland, as their base. They explored a variety of landmarks in the Ammassalik region and spent some time in one of the smaller settlements, Tiilerilaaq.

This travel guide documentary is an invitation. A source of inspiration to fuel your own journey, and a way to ease the unease that often comes with exploring somewhere truly remote. It helps bridge the gap between fear and wonder, between uncertainty and anticipation. And while it can’t answer every question, it offers a spark that enables you to feel just a little more ready to take the leap. Keep in mind that even the most thorough guides can’t control East Greenland’s dramatic weather shifts and remote terrain. Soak in the landscapes, the silence, the strangeness, and the beauty. Because what lies ahead is rare and unforgettable.

A killer whale surrounded by gulls in the foggy waters of Ammassalik.

Trading Tires for Tides: Rugged Roadtrips Explore East Greenland

Anna Riedel-Jahn and Lucas T. Jahn are known for their ‘Rugged Roadtrips’. Their specialty is exploring destinations with a 4×4 vehicle. But this time, they dared to venture beyond their usual setting. Knowing well that a ‘road trip’ approach in East Greenland would have led to a very short drive, as the longest road in Tasiilaq spans only about 7 kilometres, they instead relied on boats. East Greenland’s trusted mode of transport for the summer season allowed them to reach some of the most beautiful spots the region has to offer.

Drawn to remote Arctic destinations and Nordic places, they consider East Greenland a ‘rare gem in today’s overpopulated world’, a place where you can deeply immerse yourself in nature. In their travel documentary, they describe the raw beauty, the unknown, the rugged scenery, and the endless kilometres of pristine coastline as a powerful and mysterious source of attraction.

Watch their comprehensive East Greenland travel documentary filled with practical information, impressive footage, as well as their firsthand experiences on YouTube: GREENLAND TRAVEL DOCUMENTARY | East Greenland 🇬🇱

Iconic poca boat in front of Knud Rasmussen Glacier.

Walking on the massive Greenland Ice Sheet, easily accessible from the area of Isertoq, East Greenland.

Finding Stillness in the Movement of Ice

Anna and Lucas have made a slow travel style their quiet motto of exploration, and it echoes throughout their documentaries. In a world overwhelmed by constant stimulation, where dopamine hits come fast and fleeting through push notifications and bite-sized content, they offer something radically different. Their films invite you to slow down, to linger, to truly see the beauty of a place. Each documentary’s goal is to immerse viewers in the raw, untamed beauty of our planet, not just to inspire awe but to awaken care. They strongly believe the more we know and cherish a place, the more we feel compelled to protect it. Their storytelling captures that tension.

What stands out vividly in their memory is ‘without a doubt, our time in the village of Tiilerilaaq, where we spent many hours above Sermilik Fjord. Thousands of icebergs slowly drifting across the watery expanse. Silence enveloped us, only to be broken by the howl of sled dogs or the thunderous turning of a frozen leviathan. And then, all of a sudden, a slow whoosh indicated the presence of a humpback whale. Once we spotted it, our excitement knew no bounds.’

‘Nothing we have ever seen compares to this spectacle. The scene was so captivating that it was almost cheesy, especially when the sun tinted the landscape in a golden colour for sunset. And, as if that weren’t enough, Lady Aurora soon started to dance gracefully below the stars. This scenery left such a deep impression on us that we even wrote a poem about it.’

A small boat sailing in still and ice packed waters of Sermilik Fjord.

First Steps into the Wild

Unsure of how to prepare for your East Greenland travel adventure? Here are 5 tips Anna and Lucas believe are essential to know for first-time visitors to East Greenland:

TIP #1

Meet your destination with the right mindset

TIP #2

Be realistic about the weather

TIP #3

Take your time

TIP #4

Remain spontaneous and flexible

TIP #5

Luxury is the remoteness of the adventure, not the amenities

Taking their own recommendations to heart, they were mentally prepared and ready for spontaneous adventures. They used the ‘bad weather’ to relax and recharge, and enjoyed every unexpected moment of their trip. This mindset will help every traveller feel ready and at ease.

A conversation with Anna and Lucas

Visit East Greenland: Tell us your story about filming travel documentaries and how you ended up in East Greenland.

Anna and Lucas: We are filmmakers from Germany who love to explore the world together. Our passion for road trips awoke during a gap year in Australia when we nearly circumnavigated the continent. Since then, we have explored many more countries and produced 23 travel documentaries. We are magically drawn to the Arctic. The raw beauty of its rugged scenery is immensely alluring. Time and again, we have found ourselves travelling North. Alaska, Canada, Iceland, the Faroe Islands, and Norway have all left a deep impression on us. Therefore, a visit to Greenland was only a matter of time. For us, the main criterion when choosing a destination is the depth of its wilderness. Few places allow a deeper immersion into nature than Greenland. In 2023, we finally visited the Ammassalik region in East Greenland, spending two weeks exploring.

Visit East Greenland: What was the most surprising thing you learned or experienced while filming in East Greenland?

Anna and Lucas: We came home with several newfound learnings, many of which involved the Inuit culture. For starters, we developed an appreciation for their adaptation to the local climate. We were previously unaware that each kayak was fitted to an individual hunter. This made no two kayaks the same. Additionally, our visit to an Inuit winter house gave us a glimpse of the harsh living conditions these people endured during the long, cold winters. Last but not least, the staggering size of the glaciers is something one needs to experience firsthand. Words don’t do them justice.

Visit East Greenland: In what ways did the weather influence your experience during your trip?

Anna and Lucas: Tales of other travellers had us mentally preparing for the worst, including the possibility of being stuck at the airport due to a raging storm. In the end, we were quite lucky with the weather. Aside from one heavy downpour that wouldn’t stop for three days, we enjoyed a lot of sunshine and almost balmy temperatures.

Watching the sun com out after a few days of storm and cloudy weahter.

Panorama of Tiilerilaaq seen from the sky.

Visit East Greenland: How did the remote environment of East Greenland influence your approach to capturing footage?

Anna and Lucas: One thing we heavily relied on was the use of a drone. This bird’s-eye view is an ideal way to emphasize the dimensions of the landscape. Putting a small boat side by side with an iceberg highlights their massive size. Additionally, a drone opens up views that are otherwise restricted to air travel. This allowed us to shine a spotlight on the enormity of Greenland’s nature.

Visit East Greenland: Did you encounter any unexpected differences in day-to-day life compared to other regions you’ve visited?

Anna and Lucas: Life in East Greenland is unlike anywhere else we’ve ever been. Even with modern technology and globalization, East Greenland remains a time capsule of the past. We have rarely visited a place where living with and off the land continues to be so fundamentally important. The local way of life is perfectly adapted to the harsh realities of the Greenlandic climate. To this day, hunting and gathering are an integral part of Inuit culture. The first day of our visit fell on the arrival of the supply ship. The excitement in Tasiilaq was palpable. Everyone was looking forward to finally getting their hands on fresh fruits and vegetables. We can only imagine how ecstatic everyone is when the first ship arrives after 6-7 months of winter.

Visit East Greenland: In what ways did the trip challenge you, both personally and creatively?

Anna and Lucas: One of the biggest challenges was travelling on a small boat in rough seas. Having grown up far from open waters, we are unfamiliar with this type of locomotion. One ride was especially challenging. Even some of the local passengers with whom we shared the ride were a little uneasy about the rough up and down. Luckily, the boat captain seemed to know what he was doing and so we safely arrived at our destination.

Creatively, it was a challenge to limit our final documentary to a reasonable length. When almost every landscape looks magnificent, it is easy to get carried away.

Curious to see the result of this creative process? Let the Greenland travel documentary guide take you to all the highlights of the Ammassalik region: GREENLAND TRAVEL DOCUMENTARY | East Greenland 🇬🇱

While they started out creating their documentaries exclusively in English, they have now put an immense effort and work into making their documentaries available in several languages to share their passion for travel with a global audience. For example, their East Greenland Travel Documentary is now available in 5 languages. You can watch it in English, German, Spanish, Portuguese and Arabic. Follow the links below to watch impressive landscapes alongside valuable firsthand information in your preferred language: