Spitsbergen Circumnavigation

Day 1: Oslo

Check-in to your airport hotel, and attend our voyage briefing to enjoy a welcome drink and meet fellow expeditioners, before spending the night in preparation for your flight to Longyearbyen.  

Note: Flights between Oslo and Longyearbyen are not included. 

Days 2 to 3:  Longyearbyen and Magdalenefjorden

Fly to Longyearbyen and upon arrival, there may be time for a short sightseeing excursion of Longyearbyen prior to embarkation, depending on the flight arrival time.

Board your vessel and settle in to your cabin as we set sail for Svalbard.

In Magdalenefjorden, you will Zodiac cruise a safe distance from the aqua-blue ice cliffs of 14th July Glacier or Waggonway Glacier, and take long walks among summer flowers, alert for reindeer and Arctic fox. Thanks to the nutrient-rich Gulf Stream and relatively mild temperatures, Atlantic puffins and guillemots fill the cliffs. Look for bearded seals, with their precious curling whiskers. You may visit the remains of a 350-year old Dutch whaling settlement on Amsterdam Island and learn of an ill-fated ballooning attempt over the North Pole.

Days 4-6: Moffen Island

Rounding Spitsbergen's northwest coast, enter the Arctic Ocean and the world of pack ice. Ghostly beluga whales rise up in open leads and polar bears stalk ringed, bearded and harp seals. Offshore, walruses feed on clams or haul out on beaches, especially on Moffen Island, a walrus sanctuary. Visit trapper huts and stay alert for reindeer and Arctic fox. Delightful walks reveal delicious berries and some of the tundra's 164 exquisite flowering plants including purple saxifrage, yellow spider plants and Svalbard poppies. If ice conditions allow, attempt to cross latitude 80 degrees north before turning south to Woodfjorden.

Days 7-8: Hinlopen Strait

Attempt to pass through narrow Hinlopen Strait, a channel flanked by austere, cream-coloured slopes rich in fossils between Spitsbergen and ice-capped Nordaustlandet. This polar desert is a landscape eroded by severe frost. Even in summer, pack ice could bar our way, but there is much to strive for. Zodiac cruise beneath Alkefjellet, sheer basalt cliffs rising at more than 250 metres - literally buzzing with some 200,000 nests of Brunnich's guillemots. During shore excursions, you seek eider ducks, Arctic foxes and the elusive Svalbard ptarmigan. As you pass Barentsoya and Edgeoya islands, you cross polar bear migration routes.

Days 9-10: Hornsund and Bellsund Fjords

This is true expedition cruising. If ice conditions allow, round South Cape and sail north toward Hornsund and Bellsund, deep fjords home to stunning glaciers and wildlife. If ice bars the way, the itinerary will be adjusted, backtrack and delve deeper into the wonders of Spitsbergen's north and west coasts.

Day 11: Longyearbyen

A midnight cruise of glorious Isfjorden returns you to Longyearbyen and the end of the voyage.

NOTE: This itinerary is for guidance only as each voyage will vary depending on ice and weather conditions, and opportunities to see wildlife. Flexibility is key and all part of the adventure of an expeditionary cruise.