Svalbard Explorer

Day 1: Longyearbyen, Svalbard

Arrive in Longyearbyen and transfer to your hotel.

Days 2-11: Expedition cruising

Today you embark on your expedition ship in the afternoon. Journey through the spectacular Isfjorden as you sail deep out to sea.

Travelling in a part of the world where you are totally dependent on the ice and weather conditions, the exact itinerary depends on these factors and on the wildlife encountered. The ambition is to make landings or cruises every day with the zodiacs. Examples of places you may visit include:

Northwest Spitsbergen

The scientific village of Ny-Ålesund is situated in Kongsfjorden. It was from here that Amundsen and Nobile started their heroic expeditions to the North Pole. Two other courageous attempts to reach the North Pole started on the island of Danskøya. Swedish explorer Andrée made an attempt with a hydrogen balloon and American journalist Wellman started with an airship. There are still interesting remnants from these expeditions left on this site.

Magnificent fjords

Svalbard is home to countless spectacular fjords, some of which you'll be able to see during the journey. Liefdefjorden, meaning 'the fjord of love', is lined with snow-covered mountain peaks and many common eiders and pinkfooted geese nest in the area. If weather allows you will be able to cruise along the face of the spectacular Monaco Glacier. Revel in the beautifully sculptured front of the 14 July Glacier in Krossfjorden, while greeted by a large number of kittiwakes and Brünnich's guillemots nesting on the nearby cliffs. The bird cliffs in Raudfjorden are bursting with activity, also a favourite spot for seals and an area of immense natural beauty, dominated by beautiful glaciers.

Hinlopen Strait and Alkefjellet

If the ice allows you'll journey into the Hinlopen Strait and discover Alkefjellet, an impressive, basaltic cliff, where an estimated 200,000 Brünnich's guillemots live. You may also continue into the beautiful bay Palanderbukta on Nordaustlandet, again dependent on conditions.

Eastern Svalbard

The island of Nordaustlandet is covered by an enormous ice cap and fascinates naturalists as well as historians. There are huge glacier fronts here, intersected by hundreds of waterfalls.

Barentsøya and Edgeøya

Both offer magnificent landscapes and vast tundra. You'll have good chances of encountering walruses, Arctic fox and Svalbard reindeer here.

Southwest Spitsbergen

The grand fjords of Hornsund host spectacular glaciers and a breathtaking landscape of towering mountain peaks, often reaching above the clouds. On a clear day you can see the summit of the highest mountain Hornsundtind, measuring 1,431 metres. Hornsund is also a favourite haunt for some of Svalbard's polar bears, and bearded seals are often seen resting on the fjord ice.

Day 12: Longyearbyen

Early morning disembark the expedition ship and begin your journey back home/onwards.

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.