Bear Island And Svalbard Explorer

The trips are aimed at anyone with a passion for exploring the Arctic with a small group of like minded individuals on a comfortable small ship cruise and include :

Amazing Wildlife
We will visit areas where walruses haul out, encounter reindeer and Arctic foxes on land, observe whales and other marine life and explore coasts where polar bears are known to roam.

Stunning Scenery
We will encounter mighty glaciers, cruise tranquil steep-sided fjords and spend time outside exploring the beautiful untouched wilderness. 

Expedition Vessel With 12 Guests
We believe the best way to experience an environmentally sensitive place such as the Arctic is with a small group of travellers. With the new expedition cruise ships now taking over 300 passengers, we believe smaller is better.

Expedition Leader and Guide
An aspect of our journeys is to learn about the place you are visiting. Our onboard guides are the core of what we do and will share their passion and knowledge of Svalbard throughout the trip. We offer the best guide to guest ratio available.

Zodiac landing craft for shore landings
Shore landings are the essence of every expedition and your guides will take you exploring on a daily basis. The vessel is equipped with landing craft that can be used to reach remote beaches so you can experience the wilderness firsthand.

Climate Compensated
Caring for the environment is what we do. For every trip, we run we plant trees in Greenland to offset the emissions. As a member of AECO, we follow strict guidelines to ensure we do not cause a disturbance to wildlife.

Day 1  Depart Tromso
Day 2  Crossing the Barents Sea
Day 3-5  Exploring Bear Island
Day 6  Sailing north to Svalbard
Day 7-9 Exploring southern Svalbard
Day 10  Arrive Longyearbyen 

Days 1 : Tromso, Norway
The voyage casts off from the city of Tromso, situated at the top of mainland Norway above the Arctic circle. Tromso is served with good air connections making it the perfect departure place for a cruise from Norway to Svalbard. Depending on the weather we will either spend a day exploring the fjords close to Tromso or if we have a favourable weather window head straight north towards Bear Island.

Days 2 : Crossing the Barents Sea
With the compass pointing north, we will say goodbye to mainland Norway as we head across the Barents Sea. Our expedition leader will do a lecture on Bear Island so you learn about its history, wildlife, and some of the places we plan to land.  This is a good day to do some relaxing for the adventure ahead. Spend some time out on the deck watching out for wildlife or read a book in the comfortable saloon.

Days 3 to 5 : Exploring Bear Island
After a day at sea, we will make our first sighting of the seldom visited Bear Island, first discovered in 1596 by Dutch explorers William Barentz and Jacob van Heemskerck. We will have 3 full days to explore the island and make landings at different sites including the remains of a whaling station. The island is also home to an abundance of birdlife and if conditions allow we will explore the bird cliffs by Zodiac landing craft. We plan to do some hikes ashore. As it is early in the season the shores will likely still be snow-covered and we will supply snowshoes for walking.

Days 6 – 9 : Exploring Southern Spitsbergen
After spending another day at sea will reach the southern coast of Spitsbergen, the largest of Svalbard’s Islands. We have a full three days to explore the coast with the plan on doing shore landings each day to experience the frozen wilderness of Svalbard as it emerges from the winter months. We will visit the area around Hornsund and use the opportunity for some short hikes ashore. As we sail towards our final destination we will enter the Isfjord where we plan to visit a glacier.

Day 10 : Longyearbyen
After an exciting Tromso to Svalbard cruise, we have our final breakfast together before we say our goodbyes. We disembark in the morning at the port of Longyearbyen after making new friends and sharing an exciting adventure together. Longyearbyen is well served by domestic airlines that connect to Oslo in Norway. Longyearbyen is also a great place to spend a few additional days. Please see our Longyearbyen guide for some suggestions of places to stay and things to do.

The above itinerary is a guide only. A part of any Tromso to Svalbard cruise is the flexibility to take advantage of the weather and ice conditions. Our expedition leader will make sure you see as much a possible.