Arctic Cruises
Expeditionary cruising is a very practical way to discover the Arctic, allowing you to comfortably explore often untouched areas of wilderness you can’t otherwise reach from …
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Swoop says
Some people assume the Arctic is an empty, frozen void, but its history is the story of human ambition. For many thousands of years, indigenous cultures learned to master this icy realm, long before European navigators raced to find the mythical Northwest Passage. The High North is a fascinating archive of human triumph and tragedy.
Alex Mudd Head of Swoop Arctic
Arctic history
It was around 40,000 years ago that humans first arrived in the Arctic. They settled in the Eurasian and Siberian Arctic, adapting their hunter-gatherer culture to the sub-zero environment.
Not until about 5,000 years ago did humans arrive in the North American Arctic and Greenland. Paleo-Eskimo people migrated across the Bering Strait to permanently settle in Alaska, northern Canada and Greenland.
From the year 1,000 the Thule people, direct ancestors of modern Inuit, spread rapidly across the North American Arctic, as far as east Greenland, using kayaks and dog sleds. A few hundred years later Paleo-Eskimo culture had completely disappeared.
Stunning scenery at Ilulissat
About the same time, Norse Vikings reached Greenland, led by the exiled Erik the Red. He explored southern Greenland, established settlements and returned to Iceland to encourage people to move to his newly discovered 'green' land.
By the late-1500s, European powers were focusing on the possibility of a Northwest Passage. Numerous voyages, led by esteemed navigators such as Martin Frobisher, Henry Hudson and John Franklin, failed to find a breakthrough and more often ended in terrible tragedy.
It wasn't until the beginning of the 20th century, that Roald Amundsen finally traversed the Northwest Passage by sea.
Graves of explorers on Beechey Island
The 20th-century Cold War saw the Arctic transformed from a remote frontier to a highly militarised region with the 63 radar stations of the Distant Early Warning Line stretching 4,800km from Alaska to Iceland, and US air bases on Greenland
Today, climate change is accelerating the recession of sea ice, affecting the native wildlife, opening up the Northwest Passage and increasing global geopolitical tensions over the vast, untapped natural resources in the region.
Icebergs of Greenland
Regional history
Svalbard history
It was in 1596 that Dutch explorer Willem Barentsz discovered the archipelago, calling it Spitsbergen – 'pointed peaks'. The maps he produced of the islands showed an abundance of whales, triggering Dutch and English whalers to descend on Spitsbergen in the 1600s.
After they had decimated the whale population, Norwegian trappers arrived to hunt Arctic foxes for the fashions of Europe. They lived in basic huts with only sporadic radio contact and occasional supply ships.
By the turn of the century, Svalbard was the gateway of choice for North Pole expeditions. Both Salomon August Andrée and Roald Amundsen were here launching ships, airships and balloons, with Amundsen reaching the pole on a flight from Ny-Ålesund in 1926.
The old coal industry in Ny-Ålesund
Industry in the form of coal mining bought permanent settlement to the archipelago, established by American John Munroe Longyear in 1906. This was the dynamo for Svalbard's economy and infrastructure for decades to come, until mining ceased in 2025.
The Soviet Union also operated a coal mine at Pyramiden from 1927 until 1998. At its peak around 1000 people lived there – miners, scientists and their families. The world's northernmost Lenin statue still overlooks the main square.
Many of the historic trappers' cabins, mining towns and polar expedition launch sites still exist today and some can be visited by the public.
Ny London, Svalbard
Northwest Passage history
Early attempts to find the Northwest Passage were plagued by both failure and tragedy: Martin Frobisher was distracted by fool’s gold in 1576, James Knight vanished mysteriously in 1721, and Captain Cook was blocked by ice in 1778 and headed for Hawaii.
It was post-Napoleonic Britain that renewed the quest, sending legends like John Ross, William Edward Parry, and John Franklin. Though they all failed to navigate the passage, they did map much of the Arctic.
Franklin’s 1845 scientific expedition ended in disaster, with all 129 crew lost. Much remains a mystery, but the shipwrecks of HMS Erebus and HMS Terror were discovered by 2016.
Leopold Island, home to thousands of thick-billed murres
Robert McClure completed the first transit in 1853, partly by sled after his ship became trapped in ice, while searching for Franklin.
But it was Roald Amundsen who finally made the first full navigation by ship, the Gjoa (1903–1906).
Later milestones include Knud Rasmussen’s dog-sled crossing (1921–1924), Henry Larsen’s 1942 voyage, Ranulph Fiennes’s 1981 open-boat transit, and the first full transit by a commercial expedition cruise in 1984.
Navigate the ice of the High Arctic
What our customers think of the Arctic
Beyond my expectations, and I would recommend unreservedly. Read the full review
Travelled: November 2018
Val Chiswell - United Kingdom
Once again, Swoop’s service and advice were immaculate. The fact that we are returning clients says it all! Read the full review
Travelled: August 2018
Charles & Lesley Cook - United Kingdom
Kayaking in the thick brash ice by a big glacier, on a beautiful sunny day was a highlight....but then again, so was when the walrus popped its head up out of the water right in front of me when in the zodiac! Read the full review
Travelled: June 2018
Leslie & Nancy Steenbeke (Grossman) - United States Of America
We were really lucky with sightings; saw polar bears on four occasions, blue whales twice, lots of fin whales and about 70 beluga whales in an hour on one day, as well as a couple of lovely white arctic foxes and a few walruses.
Travelled: August 2017
Declan - UK
Greenland history
The first settlers on Greenland were the Paleo-Eskimo Saqqaq and Dorset cultures around 2,500 years ago. They were replaced around 1000 years ago by the Thule people, ancestors of modern Inuit, who had migrated across North America.
At a similar time, the arrival of Norse Vikings in the 980s, led by the exiled Erik the Red, started a period of settlement that lasted until the late-1600s.
In 1721 the missionary Hans Egede started a Dano-Norwegian colony on the island which Denmark retained control of after the separation from Norway in 1814. Greenland remained a Danish colony until 1953, when it was full integrated into the Danish Realm.
Locals share their culture
During both WWII and the following Cold War, Greenland had major geopolitical importance, being the location for strategic US military bases. These engaged in early warning and radar tracking, plus bomber refuelling and interception.
A call for self-determination led to Danish Home Rule in 1979 and an expanded Self-Government in 2009. Greenland manages its internal affairs as an autonomous territory within Denmark.
It's strategic location, coupled with climate change, has thrust it to the forefront of interest untapped natural resources and Arctic shipping routes.
Colourful houses in Sisimiut
North Pole history
The North Pole, located on a permanently shifting sheet of sea ice, existed for centuries only as a myth. Exploration of the high Arctic only got going in the 1800s and it wasn't until the early 1900s that the race to be the first to arrive at 90° North really hotted up. This quest was full of interesting international characters.
On April 6th 1909, American explorers Robert Peary and Matthew Henson claimed to be the first to reach the pole, though the veracity of their claim is heavily debated due to their navigational accuracy, or lack of.
It's Roald Amundsen who, on May 12th 1926, has the first undisputed claim to reaching the North Pole. This was by means of an airship, the Norge, in which he flew over, but didn't set foot on the pole.
Forging a path through the ice
That honour goes to the Soviet Union who, in 1948, landed three aircraft on the pole after flying from their temporary base at 87°N.
Since then a nuclear submarine, the USS Nautilus, made a submerged transit in 1958 and a year later the USS Skate surfaced through the ice of the North Pole.
In the Cold War the North Pole became a place of major strategic importance with both US and Soviet attack submarines regularly patrolling beneath the ice and conducting surveillance.
With climate change causing the rapid melting of sea ice, the North Pole is now even more a subject of geopolitical ambitions with both the US and Russia maintaining a heavy undersea presence.
90º North - the ultimate goal
Swoop says
The history of the Arctic is an epic saga of human survival, tragedy and untamed ambition. Scratch the icy surface of this region and you're sure to find something that will draw you in further.
Plan your trip to the Arctic
Arctic Cruise Ships
We partner with selected ice-strengthened Arctic expedition vessels from small yachts and nimble little ships with convivial atmospheres, to larger Russian research boats and …
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What to expect on an Arctic cruise
Choosing to visit the Arctic is the easy part, but what can you expect to do and see once you arrive? From daily zodiac safaris, guided shore landings, insightful lectures and …
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Arctic Animals & Wildlife
The Arctic is one of the most diverse wildlife habitats on Earth, harbouring a vast array of animals adapted to the extreme cold. Polar bears and walrus can be spotted on the sea …
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