Svalbard Summer
Expedition

Arriving into the High Arctic airport of Longyearbyen, you will be met by our team and transferred to your basecamp lodge for dinner and a good night’s sleep. 

The next morning after a hearty breakfast you will transfer to our expedition logistics base. Here you will meet your guide team, learn about the forthcoming days adventures and receive a full safety briefing. You will be kitted up in polar clothing, repack your kit and equipment and be transferred to the port to board your private ice-breaking expedition vessel. 

From here you will set off to experience a multi-night sailing adventure into the wildlife rich ocean habitat of Western Svalbard.

After a home cooked breakfast you will be transferred with all your kit to our expedition base to meet your guide team. Here you will get kitted up and repack and receive a full safety briefing before you begin the next leg of your expedition. A short hop by 4×4 to the port and you will board your expedition vessel and head off along the fjord to the open ocean.

For the next few hours you will motor approximately fifty nautical miles towards a stunning colony of huge walrus. After lunch you will transfer to the shale beach and observe your guide interacting with the hareem of walrus and the great bulls. This is without doubt a world-class wildlife spectacle. On re-boarding your vessel, drinks and dinner will be served.

Life at sea

During your time onboard you will slip into a wonderfully varied routine – a sound night’s sleep followed by fresh coffee and a delicious home-cooked breakfast. Your days will be set up with a range of activities ranging from a snow-machine excursions, snow-shoe adventures, zodiac inflatable cruise or just a morning spent on the bridge spotting polar bear tracks in the summer pack ice.

The crew and skipper of your vessel will be on constant alert for polar bear activity and the further north you go the more likely good sightings will be. 

On board lunch will be served and can be followed by a siesta, or a quiet time with a good novel before a full afternoon of activities. In the evening, drinks and dinner are served with a chance to share tales of the days activities and sightings.  

Due to the ever-present summer sunlight at this time of year we will have zero restrictions to wildlife sightings. Some days we will enjoy a packed lunch out in a remote fjord, other days we might be shielding from a passing squall in a sheltered cove. Each day brings with it the promise of a new adventure. Just about any wilderness activity can be catered for and traditionally we discuss your preference for the coming day over a whisky the night before. This is a most civilised expedition.

Accommodation: Ice rated expedition vessel

Exploring the remote Arctic wilderness requires a vessel fit for the job and you will stay on a classic and intimate cruise expedition vessel. There are only a handful of passenger cabins, each with private facilities and porthole. The smaller vessel allows more exploration into the smaller fjords so wildlife could potentially be much closer than from bigger boats. The boat is ice-strengthened and fully equipped to negotiate the Arctics conditions.

Excellent food and wine will be served on board by your dedicated expedition chef and plenty of exercise can be had in the form of land expeditions, kayaking, snow machine trips, snow shoe and hiking in remote ice filled bays in the company of your armed guide.

Your last two days will be spent exploring glaciers and mountain passes as we sail south again. 

For your final evening we transfer you to a luxurious hotel where a piping hot sauna, 3-course dinner and a great night’s rest in this rustic Arctic lodge awaits.

Accommodation

The destination