Svalbard

Svalbard: Polar Bears Outnumber People and That Is Not Metaphor

Svalbard is a Norwegian archipelago at approximately 78 degrees North, midway between mainland Norway and the North Pole. The main island, Spitsbergen, holds the only significant settlement: Longyearbyen, population around 2,400. The total polar bear population of the archipelago is approximately 3,000. You are required to carry a rifle when travelling outside the settlement perimeter, and you are required to know how to use it.

This is not a normal destination. It is one of the most remote, sparsely inhabited places accessible by commercial flight on earth, and the wildlife, ice, and landscape are extraordinary in ways that are difficult to encounter anywhere else without an expedition budget. Getting there is cheaper than most people assume.

Getting There

Norwegian Air and SAS fly to Svalbard Airport (LYR) in Longyearbyen from Oslo in approximately 3 hours. Flights are scheduled multiple times daily. There are no visa requirements for Svalbard; the Svalbard Treaty of 1920 grants nationals of signatory countries the right to settle and work on the archipelago, which means Longyearbyen has an unusual mix of Norwegians, Russians (from the mining settlement at Barentsburg), and various other nationalities.

When to Go

Summer (June to August): 24-hour daylight, temperatures 5-12 degrees Celsius, access to hiking trails and boat tours. This is when most wildlife is accessible: seabirds nesting, reindeer calving, polar bears moving across the tundra. Midnight sun photography possibilities.

March to May: polar spring, snow on the ground, dog sledding and snowmobiling at their best, and the return of daylight after the polar night. The late winter light at this latitude, with low sun angles across ice and snow, is what serious Arctic photographers come for.

November to February: polar night (continuous darkness), northern lights, and extreme cold (-15 to -30 degrees Celsius common). The northern lights at Svalbard are visible from early September through March but require clear skies and dark nights.

Longyearbyen

The town is industrial-looking and functional: wooden houses on stilts to prevent permafrost melt, a church, a museum, a supermarket, a handful of restaurants, and the infrastructure for the tourism and mining economy. The Svalbard Museum covers the natural history, human settlement, and hunting culture of the archipelago. The Global Seed Vault is 2 kilometres from town – a repository for the world’s crop seeds built into the permafrost, opened in 2008. It is not open to general visitors but is visible from the road.

The Svalbard Social Club restaurant at the old coal company headquarters building is the best option in town for dinner; it serves Norwegian-influenced food with local produce. Eating in Svalbard is expensive by any standard.

Boat Tours and Wildlife

Summer boat tours from Longyearbyen cover the western fjord system and can reach areas where polar bears are regularly sighted, walrus are hauled out on beaches, and the cliffs hold large seabird colonies (little auks, Brunnich’s guillemots, and Atlantic puffins in the millions). Arctic foxes are present throughout the tundra and are relatively unfazed by people. The Svalbard reindeer subspecies is small and shaggy and visible near Longyearbyen.

Polar bear sightings on tours are not guaranteed but are common in summer on longer expeditions to the ice edge in the north. The bears are swimming from ice floe to ice floe; the ice coverage in summer is variable and moving north as climate change reduces it. Shorter day trips cover local fjords and have variable polar bear probability; multi-day expeditions to the northern ice give the best access.

Dog Sledding

Dog sled tours in March and April cover the mountain terrain around Longyearbyen and reach the frozen fjords where the landscape in polar spring is at its most dramatic. Both guided day tours and multi-day expeditions are available from local operators. Prices are proportional to the remoteness of the experience; a full-day dog sled tour runs approximately 3,000-4,000 NOK.

Practical Notes

Pack for temperatures 10 degrees colder than forecast when planning outdoor activities. Layering is the approach; multiple thin layers retain heat better than one heavy layer. Mosquitoes are a genuine issue in summer (June-July) in valleys and near standing water; repellent is useful.

Accommodation in Longyearbyen: Radisson Blu Polar Hotel and Mary-Ann’s Polarrigg are both reliable; the latter is in a more atmospheric building. Several guesthouses operate at lower price points.