19 Days Extensive Arctic Ocean - North Spitsbergen Explorer

Crossing the North Sea and sailing by Dogger Bank, we hope to be lucky enough to spot such species as white-beaked dolphins, harbour porpoises, minke whales, and orcas.

Passengers who boarded in Vlissingen will be offered an excursion by bus to Fowlsheugh, a seabird cliff south of Aberdeen. Over 100,000 pairs of seabird of different species can be seen here. Alternatively, you can join an excursion to the Ythan Estuary, where the beaches are teeming with harbor seals, grey seals, and birds that keep to the shorelines. Both outings are included in the price of booking.

We will have at least one dedicated expedition guide in our team who will share their expert knowledge about bird species and who will be available to help you identify, photograph on deck and learn more about the birds that we see. In addition to outdoor sessions, our guide will focus on species and related information on the birds of the Arctic in re-caps and lectures onboard.

You arrive in Aberdeen, the Granite City, frequent winner of the Britain in Bloom competition. This is the true start of your trip. Several cetaceans, including orcas (killer whales), are native to these seas. To the south you see the lighthouse on Girdle Ness that was designed by the grandfather of Robert Louis Stevenson, the famed Scottish writer who gave us such classics as Treasure Island and Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde. More passengers join you in Aberdeen.

We plan to stay the day on Fair Isle, an island in the Shetlands whose seventy-odd inhabitants are known for their beautiful knitwear. This is a fantastic location with accessible seabird breeding grounds, and you may even spot grey seals.

You sail north to the Norwegian island of Jan Mayen, 300 nautical miles northeast of Iceland. Your two days at sea do not pass idly, however. Keep a close lookout for any spouts of water from the surrounding seas, heralding the arrival of a minke, fin, orca, or blue whale.

Jan Mayen is a stark volcanic island crowned by the snow-capped summit of Mt. Beerenberg. From the slopes of this imposing 2,300-meter-high (7,545 feet) volcano, broken glaciers grasp out into the frigid sea. With permission from the Norwegian authorities, you can now visit the weather station. You can also walk to the remains of a 17th-century Dutch whaling station amid the thick moss beds of this stark volcanic landscape.

Basking in the midnight sun, you sail north along the edge of the sea ice in search of bowhead whales, harp seals, polar bears, and a variety of seabirds. You then change direction after about 79° north, cutting west to the rocky edges of the continental shelf of west Spitsbergen. Here you have a good chance of seeing fin whales and – near the glacial mouths of the gaping Spitsbergen fjords – surfacing minke whales.

Forlandsundet, between the main island of Spitsbergen and the narrow Prins Karls Forland, is a place of great beauty and fascinating wildlife. Walruses sometimes haul out here.  Alternatively, you might sail into St. Johns Fjord or head 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.

Every adventure, no matter how grand, must eventually come to an end. You disembark in Longyearbyen, the administrative center of Spitsbergen, taking home memories that will accompany you wherever your next adventure lies. But if you’re still craving additional chances to spot the Arctic’s most iconic apex predator, stay on board for our seven-night North Spitsbergen Explorer - Versatile landscapes, sea ice & wildlife voyage.

You touch down in Longyearbyen, 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.

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 Buchananhalvøya.

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.

The Seven Islands

The northernmost point of the voyage may be north of Nordaustlandet, in the Seven Islands. Here we may reach 80° north, just 870 km (540 miles) from the geographic North Pole. At Phippsøya there is a walrus haul-out site, while Rossøya is the northernmost landmass in Spitsbergen. The vessel may sail deeper into the pack ice when wheeling around west again.

Sailing in the pack ice

We aim to sail into the pack ice at quite some distance from the coast of Spitsbergen, watching for polar bears and other animals at the edges of the pack. Our voyage through the pack ice may be a multi-day affair, depending on the position of the ice and local sea and weather conditions. Regardless of how long we spend in the ice, these days at sea will be a highlight of the trip. Note that while the ship navigates the pack ice, we will not make any shore landings or excursions from the ship. However, wildlife encounters are the main draw here, with good chances to encounter many species that thrive in this icy habitat, including polar bears, seals, and whales.

After our time on the ice, we will retrace our route west, keeping watch for polar bears, ringed seals, and elusive Greenland (bowhead) whales. This is also the habitat of ivory gulls. About 40 nautical miles (74 km) west of Spitsbergen, we will sail along 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 will have a good chance of sighting minke whales.

Forlandsundet wildlife

Walruses sometimes haul out in Forlandsundet, at Poolepynten. But if we cannot go there, we might sail to the mouth of Isfjorden, where we may see different species of rorqual whales. Our intended landing site is Alkhornet, where seabirds nest on the cliffs, Arctic foxes search below for fallen eggs and chicks, and reindeer graze the sparse vegetation. Another possibility is the glacier front in Ymerbukta, where you can see congregations of various eider duck species.

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.