Svalbard Autumn Light with M/S Stockholm

Day 1: Longyearbyen, Svalbard

Explore Longyearbyen on your own before meeting up your fellow travellers and guides. In the afternoon we embark the expedition ship and sail out through the spectacular Isfjorden - the Arctic expedition has started! 

Day 2 - 10: Expedition cruising

We are now in a part of the world where we are totally dependent on the ice and weather conditions. Our exact itinerary depends on these factors and on the wildlife we encounter. Our ambition is to head out on Zodiac cruises every day and to go ashore when the opportunity arises. Here are some examples of places we may visit:

Northwest Spitsbergen

The scientific village of Ny-Ålesund is situated in Kongsfjorden. It was from here that Amundsen and Nobile started their heroic expeditions to the North Pole. Two other courageous attempts to reach the North Pole started on the island of Danskøya. Swedish explorer Andrée made an attempt with a hydrogen balloon and American journalist Wellman started with an airship. There are still interesting remnants from these expeditions left on this site.

Magnificent fjords

Svalbard offers the visitor countless spectacular fjords. During our journey we will explore a few of them such as: Liefdefjorden, meaning “The fjord of love”, is lined with snow-covered mountain peaks and here we hope to cruise along the face of the spectacular Monaco Glacier. Many common eiders and pinkfooted geese nest in the area. In Krossfjorden we revel in the beautifully sculptured glacier front.

Hinlopen 

The strait between the two largest islands in Svalbard, Spitsbergen and Nordaustlandet, offers a range of interesting landing sites. Among them is Kinnvika – a research station built by Sweden and Finland during the International Geophysical Year of 1957/1958. From here, observations were made in various fields of geophysics, including meteorology, aurora borealis, and geomagnetism.

Eastern Svalbard

The island of Nordaustlandet is covered by an enormous ice cap and fascinates naturalists as well as historians. Here the giant glacier
Bråsvellbreen stretches for 200 kilometres! Barentsøya and Edgeøya offer magnificent landscapes and vast tundra. Chances to encounter walruses, Arctic fox and Svalbard reindeer are good here.

Southwest Spitsbergen

The grand fjords of Hornsund offer spectacular glaciers and a breathtaking landscape of towering mountain peaks, often reaching above the clouds. On a clear day we can see the summit of the highest mountain Hornsundtind, measuring 1431 meters.

Day 11: Longyearbyen

Early morning we disembark our expedition ship and begin our journey back home.

Please note: All itineraries are for guidance only. Our exact route will depend on the ice, weather conditions, wildlife and government regulations. The places mentioned are just examples of some of the many sites Svalbard has to offer. We always strive to maximise your experience. Please remember that flexibility is the key to a successful expedition!

Important!

To ensure responsible tourism and protection of the environment, new regulations come into force in Svalbard on 1 January 2025. Read more about the regulations and PolarQuest's comments about these changes.

Magnus Martinsson joins as a special lecturer 

Magnus Martinsson, born in 1964, is a photographer, author, and physical geographer who has lived on Gotland since 1988. Since then, he has dedicated his career to nature conservation. His passion for nature and photography has taken him on numerous journeys around the world and has also given him extensive knowledge of his home region of Gotland.

Magnus actively shares his expertise in various ways with a broad audience. He is a frequently invited speaker, excursion guide, and tour leader.

Magnus Martinsson has contributed both photography and text to numerous publications. As a member of Naturfotograferna, he is recognized as one of Sweden’s leading nature photographers.