Spitsbergen Cruise

MS Nordstjernen, Page 7
Continued from page 6

ABOVE: A panoramic view of the Monaco Glacier in the Liefdefjord.

Planning your cruise

Hurtigruten offers Spitsbergen adventure cruises on the MS Nordstjernen and on another ship, the MV Polar Star. To learn the differences between the two vessels and their itineraries, see our Nordstjernen vs. Polar Star comparison.

Hurtigruten also owns Spitsbergen Travel, which is the leading travel agency and expedition outfitter in Svalbard. This makes it easy to buy a standard or customized package that includes the cruise, air travel from your home city to Svalbard Airport Longyear, hotels in Oslo and Longyearbyen, and optional add-ons.

Tips:

• If you're coming from any distance, I'd strongly urge you to do more than just the cruise. For example, you could combine the cruise with a vacation on the Norwegian mainland: Fly to Oslo, take the scenic train ride to Bergen, and catch a Hurtigruten cruise ferry to Tromsø, which has frequent air service to Longyearbyen.

• Bring a good pair of binoculars, which will make it much easier to view whales, seals, polar bears, and other wildlife. (I can't emphasize this point enough--instead of seeing a bear as a spec or a blob, you'll be able to look the animal in the eye.)

Web link

Hurtigruten.com
This international portal has links to Hurtigruten's national sites in Norway, the United Kingdom, France, Germany, Sweden, and the USA.

Related articles with photos at Europe for Visitors

Longyearbyen, Svalbard travel and tourist information

Bird cliffs of Spitsbergen boat trip

Next page: Cruise photo diary