Longyearbyen

Spitsbergen, Svalbard, Norway
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ABOVE: The 54-cabin MS Nordstjernen offers 3- and 4-night adventure cruises from Longyearbyen, with arctic wilderness landings by boat.

Cruises from Longyearbyen

Overnight cruises

Norwegian Coastal Voyage offers Spitsbergen adventure cruises on the small ships MS Nordstjernen (3 or 4 days) and MV Polar Star (7 days) during the sumer months. During the voyage, you'll see glaciers and arctic wildlife, visit the settlements of Barentsburg and Ny Ålesund, and make shore landings in places that big cruise ships can't reach.

See my MS Nordstjernen cruise review, which includes a 114-page day-by-day photo diary. Also see my Nordstjernen vs. Polar Star comparison chart.

Note: Norwegian Coastal Voyage is the American subsidiary of Hurtigruten, which runs a year-round transportation service along Norway's West coast and cruises in Antarctica. If you live in the British Isles, see Hurtigruten UK; in countries other than the U.S. and Britain, visit the main Hurtigruten Web site.

Day and evening boat trips

The MS Langøysund operates day cruises to the Russian mining settlement of Barentsburg and the Esmark glacier, day cruises to Pyramiden and the Nordenskiöld glacier, and evening cruises to the Tempelfjord and the Tuna- and Von Post glaciers. These normally run from June to September.

Local trips by open boat are another possibility. See my article on a PolarCirkel boat trip (complete with flotation suit) to the bird cliffs of Fuglefellet.

Other cruising opportunities

In a typical year, several dozen cruise ships, expedition ships, and icebreakers call at Longyearbyen during the navigation season. (I took this photo of the QE2 when it was anchored off Longyearbyen in June, 2006.)

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