There are so many ways to cruise Svalbard, and I’m just back from one of them. A 11-day Svalbard Explorer expedition aboard Ultramarine. My trip was timed in the early season (late May into early June). Being able to travel during this time felt special because we were able to see a variety of scenery.
On one end of the spectrum we hiked through the tundra-laden, wildflowers starting to creep in, warmer region along the west coast. We also got pristine snowy shorelines in the north and also in Hinlopen Strait, where we were the first boot prints of the season for multiple landings.
Overall Standout – Expedition Leadership
From the moment I stepped on the gangway, the expedition team on this trip stood out. Protocols, expectations, safety and professionalism were apparent and communicated right away. But my attention was really caught when the Expedition Leader, Ryan McDevitt, pulled a handful of screenshots covering the weather system coming our way. He walked us through many maps covering air temp, precipitation, ice coverage and so forth. But the one that really stuck with me was wind.
This map showed almost all of Spitsbergen in the red zone (red=bad), and most specifically it was all around where we were coming from, which was embarkation out of Longyearbyen. Ryan then pointed out the nearest green/blue (green/blue=good) area to us. This area was Alkefjellet cliffs which is a popular stopping point for most cruises, but usually on days well into their cruise. This area is on the far north end of Spitsbergen as you enter the Hinlopen Straight, and it houses thousands of the mating sea birds, Brünnich’s guillemots. Needless to say, this was a very long distance away from us.
It’s so far, in fact, that this particular expedition leader had never pushed that far for his first excursion. It would require cruising straight through the night and into the next afternoon, including through a bit of tumultuous ocean. This was an ambitious objective for many reasons. It would use up a lot of costly fuel, it would expose us to open ocean, and there was no guarantee that it would be good when we got there… because weather maps can lie. But it was a risk he was willing to take to give us our best chance at a top-tier first excursion.
The gamble absolutely paid off, and we enjoyed clear calm skies and seas for our first impression of the great white north. So calm in fact that both the sea kayaking and paddle board excursions groups were able to go out: a feat I am told is rare for this location.
This was the first real-time example of many to come that displayed how well seasoned this guiding team, Captain and crew were at navigating the dynamic decision making that is required in this region.
Time and time again as the voyage progressed, we were faced with obstacles of weather, vessels already being in our targeted area, and even polar bear sightings where we had intended to go ashore. Each one of these hurdles presented an opportunity for the guides to interpret information, use their experience, and always pivot to an equal (or even better) opportunity.
When you have 150+ excited souls on board looking for the best experience possible, this is a pressure that could make some fold. But this tenured group of guiding superstars rose to the challenge with ease.
Best Wildlife Moment – A Unique Polar Bear Encounter
On our fourth day into the trip, in Hinlopen Strait, we spotted our second polar bear. The first one we had seen the day prior had been feasting on a carcass (but very far in the distance), so at first this felt similarly far away, just without the feast. It laid down for a nap, and the guide team used that downtime to cruise up the fjord, turn around and reposition in a better area. We were told that we would wait there until the bear awoke from its nap and then would see what it did next.
After a few hours which gave us time for dinner and half of a presentation, it was announced that the bear was awake and moving around. Guests shuffled to the to the outer decks to glean a glimpse, and to our surprise the bear seemed to be coming closer to us. The vessel was shrouded in sea ice on all sides, which was not unsafe. But it meant to turn around, or reverse, would be very effortful and loud.
There are rules in place that ascertain you cannot get within 500 meters of a polar bear, which we were well outside of. But as the bear walked closer, curious what this big opaque spot on the horizon was, it started to come within that boundary. This is when the rules gets grey because you are also not supposed to behave in a way that would alter the natural course of a polar bears behavior. So, turning the ship around in thick ice would become very noisy and certainly impact the bears behavior.
We ended up with the very curious bear getting close enough to be in “my cell phone can take a decent photo” range, which was pretty special and unique. Eventually the boat had to make the decision to move anyway. The Captain did have to report this to AECO (Arctic Expedition Cruise Operators) as is the professional standard. It was concluded that given the circumstances, the correct decisions had been made. We had simply been the benefactors of a very lucky encounter.
Don’t Miss – Guide Talks, both Official & Unofficial
With such an experienced crew on board, there were decades worth of adventure and stories among the guides. The “official” bar talks were held after dinner on some evenings when guides would take us through some of their most awe-inspiring adventures via a casual slideshow. My favorite of these was from guide Tara Mulvaney, who was the first woman to circumnavigate all of Spitsbergen via sea kayak. It took her 71 days and she was accosted with extreme weather, sea ice conditions and the constant threat of polar bears.
The “unofficial” talks at the bar with guides happened at random moments and were always a great one-on-one way to get to know the guides, where they are from, how they got into this career path, what they do in the off season and what adventures they have been on. The ability for the guides to assimilate into our daily onboard experiences created a great family feel and directly boosted the camaraderie on board.
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Svalbard Explorer
Classic, long-running expedition cruise with active options
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Spitsbergen & Svalbard Cruises
Find your Svalbard cruise from our diverse selection. Use our insight into the various options including partial and full circumnavigation, or combinations with Iceland and Greenland. Learn how to get there and when to go. Our Svalbard cruising guide is your resource to start planning a polar bear cruise.
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Expert Aboard: Ultramarine Ship Review
Read a detailed ship review from our expert who was aboard Ultramarine, plus see traveler ratings on everything from the food & helicopters to his Greenland itinerary highlights.
My Advice for Booking a Svalbard Expedition
There are so many factors to choosing your trip that are too personalized to get into here. But speaking from my experience on this trip and booking my clients on Svalbard expeditions, I have the following advice:
Focus on the Expedition Experience, Not Just Polar Bears
When planning a Svalbard expedition, I would not get too focused on seeing a polar bear—especially making that your top priority when you book your trip. It is impossible to predict what kind of wildlife interactions you will have, if any, based on the time of year. The entire expedition staff knows that every person on board wants to see a polar bear. They do too! They will make a discernable effort to do this using their experience, expertise and knowledge of the time of year you are cruising, and where they can typically be found.
I think it’s very rare that expeditions see no bears, and also rare for a situation like mine where it came close to us on its own (although I will say this luck struck me on my North Pole expedition a few years ago too).
Instead of making the whole trip about the bear sightings, I recommend instead embracing the exploratory nature of being so far north! Place your trust in the capable hands of the operator you have chosen, and let them show you the goods.
On my trip, their top-tier decision making led us to sunny blue skies and no wind for 80% of our journey. We saw all the wildlife highlight reel that one could want when going to the Arctic: walrus, reindeer, Arctic fox, Brunnich’s guillemots in mass. And rather than making my trip about one thing, I appreciate greatly that it delivered such a well-rounded experience.
Consider the Full Itinerary & Gateways
One thing to also consider in the mix is your preferred gateway, especially if you consider this to be one of the few times you’ll be in the greater region. We work with a range of itinerary options, most departing direct from Longyearbyen, Svalbard. For these cases, you are in charge of booking standard domestic flights into Longyearbyen, with Oslo being the gateway. You’ll also need a pre-cruise hotel night in Longyearbyen or Oslo.
For my Svalbard Explorer itinerary, the unique component is that it included a charter flight from Helsinki, Finland, and a hotel night there. This was great in that I got to explore Helsinki for the first time. The potential negative can be not having more time in Longyearbyen. But my itinerary allowed for two hours of free time to explore the town before embarkation, so that is more than enough for most travelers to see this very small town. Paris is another charter flight gateway we see available on select routes. Our specialists have done it a number of ways, so talk with us about the full range available.
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