Young Pioneer Tours
Svalbard: Soviet Frontier Arctic Cruise
Join YPT on a bespoke tour in the northern reaches of the world on a cruise around Svalbard visiting Russian settlements and abandoned coal mining outposts turned ghost towns!
Not only will we be on an arctic cruise on the m/v Janssonius – the most advanced vessel Polar Class 6 cruise ship which exceeds all the latest green requirements of the Polar Code, but you’ll be in one of the most inspiring natural environments on the planet, as well as ticking off most YPT boxes on this trip.
We begin your adventure in the main town of Longyearbyen where you’ll get a feel for the kind of people who live amongst reindeer and polar bears, before setting sail to the Monaco Glacier, a 5 kilometre long (3.1 miles) wall of ice that you can hear groaning and cracking as it slowly slides into the sea. Named after the first Prince Albert of Monaco, the base of the ice is a common hunting ground for polar bears.
You’ll then reach the northernmost point of your voyage with us within the Seven Islands. Here you will reach 80° north, just 870 km (540 miles) from the North Pole. Along the journey you’ll have the chance to spot mink whales, bowhead whales, blue whales, bearded seals, ringed seals, and various seabirds.
On our return we’ll stop and disembark at Barentsburg, an old Russian mining settlement still populated by about 500 people. Here even though we’re still officially in Norway we’ll see the northernmost statue of Lenin in the world and grab a drink at the northernmost brewery! We’ll then finish the voyage back in Longyearbyen with farewell drinks onboard.
Throughout this tour your guide be conducting a multi-activity programs for our YPT travellers interested in exploring such topics as geology, marine biology, glaciology, and macro-photography.
Monday 20th June – Longyearbyen
- Arrival into Longyearbyen which has flights from Oslo or Tromso
- Longyearbyen is the main town in Spitsbergen, the largest island in the Svalbard archipelago, and the northernmost settlement in the world.
- Meet at 6:00pm at our hotel for dinner and pre-tour meeting where you can get to know your fellow travellers and YPT guide
- Relax at Barentz Pub, the world’s northernmost bar. Fortunately being tax-free, a pint in Svalbard is way cheaper than the Norwegian mainland!
- Overnight in Longyearbyen Coal Miners’ Cabins
Tuesday 21st June – Longyearbyen and the Beginning of the Voyage
- After breakfast head out to explore Svalbard, we may bump into reindeer but it’s not advisable to leave the town centre without a rifle because of polar bears!
- Head first to the Svalbard Museum which delves deep into the human history and rich natural history of the archipelago
- Lunch in Longyearbyen
- Visit the northernmost church in the world, Svalbard Church
- In the late afternoon we make sure we have all our provisions for the voyage
- Early evening departure on the m/v Janssonius from Isfjorden
- Look out for whales or just take in the scenery as dusk approaches
- Dinner and overnight on the ship
Wednesday 22nd June – Raudfjorden
- Breakfast on the ship
- We’ll continue our course to the north of Spitsbergen, taking in the expansive fjord spilling with glaciers where we’ll be scanning the waters for ringed and bearded seals. The cliffs and shoreline of this fjord also support thriving seabird colonies, rich vegetation, and the possibility of polar bears.
- Lunch, dinner and overnight on the ship
Thursday 23rd June – Monaco Glacier
- Breakfast on the ship
- Trip highlight – Providing that the weather holds up well, we can further set sail to Liefdefjorden and cruise within sight of the 5 kilometre long (3.1 miles) face of the precipitous Monaco Glacier. The waters in front of this glacier are a popular feeding spot for thousands of kittiwakes.
- The base is a common polar bear hunting ground. If the ice conditions on this day prevent us from sailing here, we’ll take an alternate route along the west coast of Spitsbergen.
- Lunch, dinner and overnight on the ship
Friday 24th June – Hinlopen Strait
- Breakfast on the ship
- We continue our voyage to Hinlopen Strait – home to bearded seals, ringed seals, and polar bears.
- At the entrance to the Strait we may also have the chance to spot blue whales.
- After cruising among the ice floes of Lomfjordshalvøya for those who sign up for our Zodiac option you can get closer to view the bird cliffs of Alkefjellet with their thousands of Brünnich’s guillemots.
- Lunch on ship
- Once we arrive at the east side of Hinlopen Strait – here we’ll disembark at Nordaustlandet where we may spot reindeer, pink-footed geese, and walruses. If weather does not permit us to disembark we may take an alternate route into Hinlopen.
- Dinner and overnight on ship
Saturday 25th June – Seven Islands
- Breakfast on ship
- We’ll reach the northernmost point of our voyage which is north of Nordaustlandet within the Seven Islands. Here you will reach 80° north, just 870 km (540 miles) from the North Pole.
- Today will be spent spotting polar bears as they inhabit this specific region. The ship will sit still for a few hours among the packed ice before wheeling around west again.
- Lunch, dinner and overnight on ship
Sunday 26th June – Continental Shelf
- Breakfast on ship
- As the ship begins to retrace our route west, we can keep our eyes peeled for the Greenland (bowhead) whales.
- About 40 nautical miles west of Spitsbergen, we’ll set sail to the edge of the continental shelf where fin whales forage during the summer in the upwelling zones caused by the cold, nutrient-rich water from below the sea’s surface. At the mouth of Kongsfjorden, we’ll have a good chance of sighting more minke whales.
- Lunch, dinner and overnight on ship
Monday 27th June – Barentsburg
- Breakfast on the ship
- Our last stop before our vorage comes to an end is at Forlandsundet where walruses are well known to be.
- If the waters are in our favour we’ll visit Colesbukta, a former Russian coal mining settlement long since abandoned
- Trip highlight – we arrive in Barentsburg, the only Russian settlement in Spitsbergen still inhabited with a population of about 500 people, almost all of Russian or Ukrainian descent
- Explore this old mining town and meet its very friendly Russian locals, we’ll even head to the Russian consulate – the northernmost diplomatic mission of any kind in the world
- Visit the Barentsburg Pomor Museum, a Soviet era museum from the 1960s. The museum mainly deals with the Pomors – Russian settlers from the Novgorod region – but has great sections on the Second World War and Soviet Era as well as local history. Barentsuburg is named after the Dutch explorer Willem Barentsz, who discovered Svalbarg in 1596, though the Russians claim it was Pomors who got there first.
- Get your kit off and swim in the heated seawater swimming pool
- Spot the Communist Star and Slogan “Peace to the World” on the hillside above Barentsburg
- This may be officially Norway still, but we’re still YPT and so we pay our respects to the statue of Lenin! Never will you see a statue of Lenin looking out over a fjord with the colourful Scandinavian style houses in the background.
- Grab a couple of drinks at the northernmost brewery in the world, the Red Bear
- Back aboard our ship for dinner and overnight
Tuesday 28th June – Longyearbyen
- We’ll arrive back into Longyearbyen at 9:00am
- End of tour with YPT with transfer to the airport according to your flight schedule. We are able to arrange extra activities like hiking or snow mobile expeditions for those who want more of a taste of Svalbard or airport transfer and onward transport.
Tour Extensions
Want to extend your YPT adventure? Join one of our great tour extensions
