When the new airport in Qaqortoq opens in April, the number of tourists is expected to increase significantly.
Better passenger and freight transport will increase demand for hotels, restaurants and other tourist services.
When the new airport in Qaqortoq opens in April, the number of tourists is expected to increase significantly.
Better passenger and freight transport will increase demand for hotels, restaurants and other tourist facilities.
When the airport finally becomes a reality after several years of discussion, it will give a significant boost to business life in Qaqortoq, says municipal council member in Municipality of Kujalleq, Simon Simonsen (Democrats).
The new airport will pave the way for multimillion-dollar investments, says Heidi Mortensen Møller, who is self-employed in Qaqortoq.
She runs the hotel Inuit House and Café Heidi and plans to build a new hotel with 60 rooms along the airport road.
Uncertainty about the future
Since 2000, Heidi Mortensen Møller has run the hostel Siniffik Inn, which today is called Inuit House, as well as the associated Café Heidi. Already in the first year, the project proved to be a success among tourists and formed the basis for further development.
As the political debate about an airport in Qaqortoq gained momentum, she had plans to expand.
– When the debate about the airport flared up in 2016, we had plans to expand the hotel. But after the debate, it became uncertain whether the airport would become a reality.
– That made it very difficult to plan for the future, she says.
In the following years, when the debate gathered pace again, she became more optimistic about the future, emphasizes Heidi Mortensen Møller.
An open door
In 2018, Inatsisartut decided that three new runways should be built in Nuuk, Ilulissat and Qaqortoq. However, in connection with the expansion of Inuit House, Heidi Mortensen Møller had all her applications for land rejected by the Municipality of Kujalleq in 2018 and 2019.
She has long considered how to move forward, but after the municipal elections last year, when a new municipal council and mayor took office in Kujalleq Municipality, new opportunities opened up.
– It felt as if everything got easier from there. I was asked by the municipality to present a project to foreign investors who wanted to build a new hotel in the city.
– Although it was difficult to find the right plot at the beginning, I assembled a group that could help realize the hotel project.
– As a result, the municipal council approved the desired area for the hotel on 22 February with the requirement that a building permit be obtained within a year, says Heidi Mortensen Møller.
A public consultation on the future use of the area is currently underway.
A big step
The new hotel, which is planned to be built along the airport road in Qaqortoq, will have 60 rooms, a restaurant with room for around 140 guests and a conference centre.
– The airport in Qaqortoq forms the basis of a two-digit million dollar project.
– It is a big step from a small inn to a modern hotel.
– If everything goes according to plan, I hope that construction can begin in September or October and that the hotel can open in the summer of 2028, says Heidi Mortensen Møller.
The airport in Qaqortoq opens up new opportunities for investment in business life in South Greenland, believes the self-employed entrepreneur.
Growing private business operators
According to Simon Simonsen (Democrats), a member of the economy and business committee in Kujalleq Municipality, the airport in Qaqortoq means that business has already grown significantly.
– There is an increase in the number of self-employed people who are primarily involved in tourism, and we are of course happy about that.
– In April, work will begin on a new municipal plan with external assistance, which we expect to be approved by the municipal council in the autumn.
– In this connection, we hope that there will be more building sites available along the airport road, he says.
There are currently two applications for hotel construction in Qaqortoq, but Simon Simonsen states that several other projects have not yet been submitted.
