The Polar Travel Company

An unforgettable encounter at the top of the world, with an English & Spanish speaking guide exclusively for our group, provided by The Polar Travel Company.
Meet your dedicated guide at the included hotel the day before boarding.

FEATURED TRIP

� Sebasti�n Arr�bola

Duration: 9 days
Starts: Longyearbyen, Spitsbergen
Ends: Longyearbyen, Spitsbergen
Language: English speaking voyage, accompanied by our representative, who speaks english and spanish

� Exclusive guide from The Polar Travel Company

Included

Optional

This expedition focuses on the versatility of north Spitsbergen�s visually stunning landscapes, vast spans of sea ice, and many opportunities to spot whales, polar bears, seabirds, walruses, and other such wildlife. Enjoy the fantastically beautiful landscapes, adventurous landings, and shoreline hikes.

Sebasti�n Arr�bola

Sebastian was born in Buenos Aires, Argentina, where he earned a degree in Tourism. He took a one-year mountain guide training course, climbing and hiking in different parts of Argentina. In 2000, he moved to Ushuaia, Argentina, where he became a tour guide in Tierra del Fuego. Concurrently, he worked on several vessels visiting sea mammals and birds colonies at the southernmost tip of South America. He sailed to many places, including the Mediterranean Sea, the Canadian Arctic, Svalbard, Antarctica, Argentina, Chile, and around the mystic Cape Horn. In 2002, he moved to England for almost two years, where he took different courses accredited by the Royal Yachting Association.
Sebastian has specialised in polar tourism and natural history. His first trip to Antarctica was on board a 36 ft (12 m) sailing boat, during this one-month voyage he developed skills on ice-navigation, and familiarised himself with the Antarctic Environment. He has led several expeditions to Antarctica on board different vessels, lecturing on Geography, Ice, and Antarctic History. Since 2008, he extended his polar experience to the Arctic, sailing in the Canadian Arctic, part of the Northwest Passage and Svalbard.

� Sebasti�n Arr�bola

Day 1: Arrive at Longyearbyen
Arrive in Lonyearbyen and make your way to your included hotel, where you will meet your guide, who will accompany you throughout this Arctic Adventure.

Day 2: Largest town, biggest island
Longyearbyen is the administrative center of Spitsbergen, the largest island of the Svalbard archipelago. Enjoy strolling around this former mining town, whose parish church and Svalbard Museum make for fascinating attractions. Though the countryside appears stark, more than a hundred species of plant have been recorded in it. In the early evening the ship sails out of Isfjorden, where you might spot the first minke whale of your voyage.

Day 3 to 8: North Spitsbergen�s natural beauty, wildlife, and pack-ice
This voyage will take you into the pack ice and along the remote shorelines of rugged north Spitsbergen. Places we might visit include the following:

Raudfjord
On the north coast of Spitsbergen, you can enjoy this expansive fjord spilling with glaciers � and maybe even visited by ringed and bearded seals. The cliffs and shoreline also support thriving seabird colonies, rich vegetation, and the possibility of polar bears. We will try to land at Alicehamna or Buchananhalv�ya.

Monaco Glacier
Depending on the weather and sea ice, we could sail into Liefdefjorden, land at Texas Bar and cruise within sight of the 5-kilometer-long (3.1 miles) face of Monaco Glacier. The waters in front of this precipitous glacier are a favorite feeding spot for thousands of kittiwakes, and the base of the ice is a popular polar bear hunting ground. If ice conditions prevent us from sailing here early in the season, we may sail along the west coast of Spitsbergen.

Highlights of Hinlopen
We aim to sail into Hinlopen Strait, home to bearded seals, ringed seals, and polar bears. At the entrance, there is even the possibility to spot blue whales. After cruising among the ice floes of Lomfjord in the Zodiacs, you can view the bird cliffs of Alkefjellet, with their thousands of Br�nnich�s guillemots. On the east side of Hinlopen Strait, we may attempt a landing on Nordaustlandet. Here we may see reindeer, pink-footed geese, and walruses. We can take an alternate route if ice prevents entry into Hinlopen.

The Seven Islands
The northernmost point of the voyage may be north of Nordaustlandet at Chermside�ya or Phipps�ya, in the Seven Islands. Here we may reach 80� north, just 870 km (540 miles) from the geographic North Pole. Polar bears inhabit this region, so the ship may park for several hours among the pack ice before wheeling around west again.

Sailing the continental shelf
While retracing our route west, keep watch for polar bears and elusive Greenland (bowhead) whales. About 40 nautical miles west of Spitsbergen, we sail the edge of the continental shelf. Here fin whales forage during the summer in the upwelling zones (where cold, nutrient-rich water wells up from below the sea�s surface) that run along the Spitsbergen banks. At the mouth of Kongsfjorden, you have a good chance of sighting minke whales.

Forlandsundet, St. Johns Fjord, or Alkhornet
Walruses sometimes haul out in Forlandsundet at Sarstangen or Poolepynten. Alternatively, we might sail into St. Johns Fjord or south to the mouth of Isfjorden, landing at Alkhornet. Seabirds nest on these cliffs, Arctic foxes search below for fallen eggs and chicks, and reindeer graze the sparse vegetation.

Day 9: There and back again
Even great adventures must eventually come to an end. The vessel arrives back in Longyearbyen in the early morning, and bus transportation to the airport will be provided.