The Spitsbergen Archipelago is located in the Arctic Ocean, halfway between Norway and the North Pole. Here you will find a virgin arctic nature and a unique fauna in a rugged and fragile environment at the same time.
Svalbard has fascinated travelers for years. Unique fauna, Arctic nature and ancient mining towns are found in these islands, which emanate their own beauty and mystery. In addition to a few thousand polar bears, the islands are home to almost 3,000 inhabitants, more than 2,000 of whom live in Longyearbyen, the administrative center and one of the largest settlements in the archipelago. “Svalbard” means “cold coasts” and was mentioned for the first time in Icelandic texts of the 12th century. However, in reality this archipelago enjoys a relatively mild climate compared to other areas of the world at the same latitude. In Longyearbyen the average temperatures range between -14 ° C in winter and 6 ° C in summer.
Historically, hunting and whaling have been man-made activities in the archipelago, but nowadays sustainability is what prevails in all aspects of life in this place: almost two-thirds of Svalbard’s surface are protected. There are a large number of archeological remains from its whaling and mining past. The famous abandoned Soviet mining town of Pyramiden presided by a statue of Lenin or the Russian mining settlement, still active, of Barentsburg; both are a must visit. The only other settlement of the Archipelago is the scientific village of Ny-Alesund, the northernmost permanent settlement of the world.
Traveling from a sailboat you can get to know its coasts and fjords along with the local flora and fauna, including seals, walruses or reindeers; with some luck you will also be able to observe the Arctic king, the polar bear. It is a wild territory dominated by ice and bears but with our expedition steel sailboat and its expert crew you will be able to know this Arctic territory in a safe way.
There are direct flights from Oslo and Tromsø with SAS and Norwegian companies.
