A Taste of North Spitsbergen - Compact Arctic Adventure

You arrive in Longyearbyen, the administrative center of Spitsbergen, the largest island in the Svalbard archipelago. You can walk around this former mining town and visit places such as the parish church and the Svalbard Museum. Although the landscape looks bare, more than 100 plant species have been recorded here. In the early evening, the ship sails out of Isfjorden, where you may see a minke whale.

You visit Ny Ålesund, one of the northernmost settlements in the world. Once a mining village served by a railway, it is now a research center, and the old tracks can still be seen. The area is a breeding ground for barnacle geese, pink-footed geese, and Arctic terns. You can visit the anchoring mast used by polar explorers Amundsen and Nobile for their airships in 1926 and 1928, as well as a small museum and historic buildings. There may also be time to send a postcard from the post office. In the afternoon, you sail into Krossfjord, and overnight the ship continues north along the west coast.

Today, you head for Ytre Norskøya, where you have the chance to hike in the footsteps of whalers from the 17th century, who used the promontory here to spot bowhead whales. Several graves dot the landscape here, while sea cliffs play host to several species of seabird. At Raudfjorden, on the north coast of Spitsbergen, you can take in an expansive fjord spilling with glaciers – and maybe even be visited by ringed and bearded seals.

The cliffs and shoreline of this fjord also support thriving seabird colonies, rich vegetation, and the possibility of seeing polar bears and Arctic foxes on the prowl.

You sail due north until you reach the edge of the pack ice the next day. From there, you sail southwest in the outer fringes of the sea ice south to west of Spitsbergen, where you expect to see seals, polar bears, ivory gulls, and whales, including bowhead whales. Explore the fringes of the sea ice, providing superb photography opportunities and a chance to explore this ethereal landscape.

In the course of the afternoon, you arrive at the southern end of Prins Karls Forland, where you want to land some way into Forlandsundet at Poolepynten, a haul-out place for walruses.  Alternatively, you might sail to Alkhornet at the mouth of Isfjorden and land there. Seabirds nest on these cliffs, Arctic foxes search below for fallen eggs and chicks, and reindeer graze the sparse vegetation. In the mouth of the fjord, the minke whales are often seen, so spending time on deck is recommended!

Early morning, you arrive in Longyearbyen once again. Here, with memories made, you say your goodbyes before you explore more of the settlement or prepare for your flights home.