Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Spitsbergen Travel ( 79 02 61 00;
www.spitsbergentravel.no
)
has at least
three summer cruises. Its five-day Spitsbergen Adventure Cruise (from Nkr7930)
sails the length of Spitsbergen's west coast, including Magdalenefjord, with just one
sailing in early July. Its eight-day Spitsbergen Expedition Cruise (from Nkr23,950)
goes as far as northeastern Svalbard, weather permitting, and is the ultimate Svalbard
cruise. Its nine-day Spitsbergen Explorer Cruise (from Nkr18,400) runs from
Bjørnøya in the south to Magdalenefjord in the northwest.
Basecamp Spitsbergen ( 79 02 46 00;
www.basecampexplorer.com
)
also has
a small range of boat trips with three-/five-/10-day cruises starting from Nkr8790/
13,500/22,900, while
Svalbard Wildlife Expeditions ( 79 02 56 60;
www.wildlife.no
)
has three-day, twice-weekly summer cruises to a wildlife camp at
Ymer Bay.
Hurtigruten (
www.hurtigruten.com
)
has at least six coastal summer
cruises.
A handful of international companies also offer guided cruises around the ar-
chipelago. These include
Discover the World (
www.discovertheworld.co.uk
)
,
GAP Adventures (
www.gapadventures.com
)
,
Naturetrek
(
www.naturetrek.co.uk
)
and
Exodus (
www.exodus.co.uk
)
.
Around Longyearbyen
AlthoughonthecuspofLongyearbyen,eventheseshorthikescarrytheriskofapolarbear
encounter. For that reason, you'll either need to seek permission (to hike
and
carry a gun)
from the governor's office (
Click here
) or, more likely, join an organised group with an
armed guide.
PLATÅBERGET & BJØRNDALEN
TheextensiveuplandregionthatoverlooksLongyearbyentothewestisknownasPlatåber-
get(commonlycalledThePlateau)andmakesforapopulardayhike.Eitherascendasteep,
scree-covered route from near the governor's office or sneak up Blomsterdalen, not far
fromMine No3.Youcan also get ontoPlatåberget via Bjørndalen (yes,it means 'bear val-
ley'), south of the airport. Once on the plateau it's possible to continue to the summit of
Nordenskiöldsfjellet (1050m), where a Swedish observatory is said to have once operated.
