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Your arctic voyage begins in Oslo, Norway’s vibrant capital city. If you arrive early, there are many museums, restaurants and green spaces to keep you busy before retiring at your included airport hotel.
The Introduction to Spitsbergen: Fjords, Glaciers and Wildlife of Svalbard itinerary gives you a taste of everything this region has to offer, beginning in Longyearbyen, the island’s largest settlement. Geared toward optimum wildlife viewing, this expedition provides plenty of opportunities to witness polar bears, walrus and reindeer, and the occasions to capture some amazing photographs in the
continuous daylight are as bountiful as the landscape itself. While exploring the remarkable scenery and colourful tundra, you’ll also learn about the history and geology of Spitsbergen.
The Arctic has been inspiring explorers for centuries, and our expeditions offer the chance for you to discover why.
IMPORTANT VOYAGE INFORMATION: This voyage has a mandatory charter flight component with an additional cost of AU$1,300 per person.
Day 1 - Arrive in Oslo, Norway
Your arctic voyage begins in Oslo, Norway’s vibrant capital city. If you arrive early, there are many museums, restaurants and green spaces to keep you busy before retiring at your included airport hotel.
Day 2 - Longyearbyen, Spitsbergen: Embarkation day
This morning, the group will transfer to the airport and board our private charter flight to Longyearbyen, Spitsbergen’s largest settlement, where you’ll have some time to explore before embarkation. As your ship sets sail, enjoy your first view of the island’s rugged, glacier-topped mountains rising
majestically from icy waters.
Day 3/9 - Exploring Spitsbergen
You’ll cruise around this magical island on a constant search for wildlife. Your expedition will cover western Spitsbergen as well as stunning fjords and outlying islands to the north. From polar flora to immense glaciers, the natural landscape here is just as varied as the wildlife.
Each expedition presents new opportunities and different weather and ice, so there is no fixed itinerary; however, we do have some favorite destinations, including the 14th of July Glacier, Smeerenburg, Alkefjellet and the Hinlopen Strait. The destinations visited will be selected for optimum wildlife viewing and appreciation of the history and geology of Spitsbergen. Polar bear viewing is almost guaranteed, with Hornsund being one of their preferred hunting areas, and the towering cliffs of Alkefjellet providing many free bird egg meals for both them and the arctic fox.
Poolepynton is great for walrus viewing and photography. Coming across a walrus haul-out is a moment you won’t forget. These lumbering giants of the Arctic create quite a noisy scene as each walrus vies for a choice spot of coastline.
If you’re itching for a more personal and intimate view of the arctic scenery, then taking an optional kayaking excursion to some of the more isolated pockets of Spitsbergen is highly recommended. Smeerenburg is a great place for an optional snowshoeing excursion, if conditions permit. You can visit a memorial erected in 1906. This historical site honors the whalers who lost their lives in the 17th and 18th centuries while working in extreme arctic conditions.
There is no shortage of natural beauty in Spitsbergen. The tundra can be surprisingly colorful in summer, with wildflowers bursting for a taste of sunshine. Each day, you’ll see something new, whether it is a rare bird species, a polar bear on the hunt, or a century-old abandoned hut.
Day 10 - Longyearbyen, Spitsbergen: Disembarkation day & fly to Oslo.
The time to say goodbye to your Expedition Team and shipmates has come. Your adventure ends as it began, in the historic frontier-style settlement of Longyearbyen. From here, we’ll transfer you to the airport for your return group charter flight to Oslo.
Please consider that our voyages are expeditionary in nature. This means, that there are no concrete itineraries, your captain and expedition leader will utilise their vast experience to chart the best course for your expedition depending on the climatic and environmental conditions. Mentioned highlights and wildlife cannot be guaranteed.
Led by experienced staff, exploring in foot is the best way to appreciate the polar landscapes. Our guides are able to accommodate a range of skill levels to suit every passenger.
Daily chats with on-board experts—our guides, scientists and other special guests—let guests rub shoulders with historians, ornithologists, biologists, geologists and more.
This rite of passage, experienced just once per expedition, sees you safely jumping into icy ocean waters under the watchful eye of our staff—and just about every single camera lens on board!
Documenting your voyage so you can take the memories home is a rewarding experience. Our photography guides will help you learn skills to capture the beauty of the Polar Regions.
If you’re interested in kayaking and would like to try something less in depth than Sea Kayaking, you can still enjoy the benefits of adding an on-water experience to your expedition with a Paddling Excursion. Sign up for a onetime paddle on our sit-on-top kayaks, which are stable and unencumbered— perfect for anyone with little to no kayak experience. Expert guides take rotating groups of passengers on calm days to connect with the sea.
Required as part of this voyage are return charter flights from Oslo, Norway to Longyearbyen, Svalbard.
Kayaking is probably one of the most intimate and inspiring ways you can explore the rugged coastlines and calm bays of the Polar regions.
Kayaking in the Polar Regions is highly weather-dependent, however we guarantee at least one outing throughout your voyage, but your kayak guides will take you out as many times as possible throughout your voyage.
Svalbard is the Arctic North as you always dreamed it existed. This wondrous archipelago is a land of dramatic snow-drowned peaks and glaciers, of vast icefields and forbidding icebergs, an elemental place where the seemingly endless Arctic night and the perpetual sunlight of summer carry a deeper kind of magic. One of Europe's last great wildernesses, this is also the domain of more polar bears than people, a terrain rich in epic legends of polar exploration.
To many people, the polar bear is the Arctic. The sight of such an impressive silky white bear wandering the frozen Arctic seas in search of seals symbolizes the cold, isolated nature of the Arctic so well. Polar bears are marine mammals because they spend so much of their lives away from land. In the high Arctic where there is always some sea ice to travel on, polar bears range over ice floes in the pack ice hunting seals all summer. In some areas (e.g. southern Hudson Bay, southern Svalbard) they are simply forced to come ashore. Polar bears rarely venture inland.
Comfortable expedition boots and a high quality expedition parka, specifically designed for the polar regions.
Transfers are included on your embarkation and disembarkation days, as well as the day prior to embarkation from the airport to your hotel, should you arrive early
WORLD EXPLORER
Distinct and comfortable, refined and roomy—these attributes and more describe World Explorer. Not only will it be among our fastest ships, it will also be one of our finest, with six tiers of deluxe accommodation. The personal space is exceptional. Every cabin has either a private walk-out or Juliet balcony for direct ocean views. World Explorer also delivers plenty of public areas to unwind in after a day outdoors, including the glass-domed Observation Lounge for quiet contemplation and full skyline views, the Explorer Lounge for a drink and a chat, and the library for more intimate relaxing and reading. Presentations and discussions are facilitated in a dedicated lecture theatre. Health and wellness facilities feature an outdoor running track, a small gym and a sauna, plus a spa with change rooms, showers and lockers. For the active adventurers, add-ons include kayaking, camping and stand-up paddleboarding. Blending high design with total functionality, World Explorer is all set to be your home away from home on the seas.
| Luxury star rating: | 4 |
| Guests #: | 176 |
| Crew #: | 125 |
| Ice Class: | 1B |
| Speed: | 16 |
| Refurbished: | 2018 |
| Year built: | 2018 |
| Length: | 126m |
| Width: | 18 |
| Draft: | 4 |
| Tonnage: | |
| Registry: | Portugal |
| Elec Outlets: | 220V / European plug |
We understand that the trip of a lifetime takes planning, so we make the financial commitments easy to manage.
