Sisimiut has become the first Greenlandic town to launch its own Community Specific Guidelines. The guidelines inform tourists on how to be thoughtful visitors. The guidelines were created by the local business association Destination Arctic Circle with support from the Association of Arctic Expedition Cruise Operators (AECO) and funding from NORA (North Atlantic Cooperation).
Sisimiut, the second largest town in Greenland, is a well known tourism destination and adventure hub. The town launched new guidelines for tourists visiting their community. The regulations offer tips and tricks to get to know the town and information on how to be a mindful guest.
Namely, the guidelines instruct guests to ask locals before photographing them and keep into consideration that local dogs are specifically for work and not play or pet.
Moreover, visitors are motivated to purchase and taste the local cuisine to experience the culture up close, while supporting the community and its traditions. They are also advised to relish the archaeological areas of the town from a respectful distance and instructed to leave only footprints behind.
Anette Lings, Arctic Incoming:
Sisimiut is a popular tourist destination and these guidelines will help visitors understand our town. Tourists often visit for a short period, and these community guidelines are a great way of communicating local knowledge directly to visitors
Finally, Frigg Jørgensen, executive director of AECO, hopes local communities and visitors will embrace the idea of community specific guidelines. He states that the guidelines are an effective way for the considerate behaviour tourists should have. Community engagement is a major aspect of sustainable tourism and Community Specific Guidelines is one way of making information flow easier between communities and visitors.
