Camping In This Country Offers A One-Of-A-Kind Experience Full Of Stunning Nature Views

Pop quiz: try to describe everything you know about Greenland. Most of us can probably locate it on a map, especially on a mercator projection, which makes this North Atlantic island look gigantic. We're aware that Greenland is generally cold, since it overlaps the Arctic Circle, and is sparsely populated. There must be something valuable there, since Denmark has held onto Greenland for 300 years, and the U.S. recently expressed interest in buying it. We may know that Vikings colonized tiny pieces of Greenland, before the settlers eventually died off, and that Indigenous people have lived there for thousands of years. We have likely heard that Iceland and Greenland should switch names, an overused tourist joke that locals in Iceland hate.

For most of us, that's all we know. Greenland doesn't come up much in conversation, nor do friends express their desire to vacation in beautiful Qaqortoq, the nation's fifth-largest city. With the exception of an occasional cruise ship, tourists never seem to have a reason to visit. How does one even get to Greenland? And what would travelers do when they arrive?

Well, there's one big reason to visit Greenland: the outdoors. The country may look distorted on maps, but it really is huge, at 1,660 miles across, which is about the driving distance from Boston to Miami. Greenland is, in fact, the world's largest island, and yet the population is only 56,000. That leaves a lot of space to set up your tent, in one of the most remote corners of the globe.

If you love untouched wilderness, Greenland is the place: humans have barely left a mark on this landscape. Greenland has only a handful of towns, most of which are tiny. No highways connect these towns to each other; there are fewer than 100 miles of road on the whole island, and roughly half those miles are paved. Some 80 percent of the land is permanently covered in ice.

Yet plenty of people in Greenland live familiar, modern lives. The capital is Nuuk, a city of 19,000 on the southwestern coast. This community has a university, shopping mall, and cultural center, among other amenities. The airport was recently rebuilt, making it the nation's new transport hub, and replacing the once-busier airport of Kangerlussuaq. Pricing for flights is pretty steep from the U.S., so budget for at least $2,000 round-trip, if not significantly more. Once you arrive, though, Nuuk has colorful, Scandinavian-style cottages and a few high rises, which cluster along the oceanfront. Here you'll find the same stores and restaurants that sustain residents year-round. You'll also find an impressive range of hotels, averaging about $150 per night.

So, suppose you've arrived, you've explored Nuuk, and now you're ready to camp. What's the next step? Well, you can legally set up a tent almost anywhere in Greenland, as long as you're not too close to a private residence. The roads don't extend very far, but you can take a hike in almost any direction, exploring the rocky, treeless landscape that seems to stretch on forever.

With great freedom comes great responsibility. You may find it liberating to wander terrain without fences or telephone poles, and the primal surroundings are beyond description. In Greenland, it's easy to imagine some ancient eon, when herds of Pleistocene mammals confidently roamed the vast expanses. But this also means you can get lost, in a climate that's routinely wet and fogged over. The size of this land can't be overstated; because Greenland lies on the North American tectonic plate, Northeast Greenland National Park is the largest national park in North America. This gives you a lot of room to get lost. Those denuded mountains may be spectacular, but you can easily confuse one for the other, and few people in the world are equipped to survive out here on their own.

Meanwhile, few experienced tent-campers ever have to contend with polar bears, yet around 2,200 of these massive creatures live along the coasts of western Greenland. Unlike brown or black bears, which are generally shy around people, polar bears are statistically more assertive. When you combine the rugged environment, the erratic weather patterns, and the presence of giant man-eating predators, Greenland requires a high level of skill and caution.

There's an alternative, though: You could always join an organized tour. Greenland has lots of guided camping options, if you don't mind spending the extra money, and many incorporate kayaking, photography hikes, backcountry skiing, and other once-in-a-lifetime activities. If you don't feel like going it alone, you'll find a nation brimming with hospitality. One of the more unique experiences of all: Stay in your own private igloo at this magical Greenland lodge.