Spitsbergen

Spitsbergen is the largest  island of the Svalbard archipelago. Being 78 degrees north it borders the Arctic Ocean, the Norwegian Sea and the Greenland Sea. Spitsbergen is the largest island in Norway and the 36th-largest in the world.

Four important mammalian species inhabit the archipelago: the Arctic Fox, the Svalbard reindeer, polar bears and Southern Vole. There are fifteen to twenty types of marine mammals, including whales, dolphins, seals  and walruses. Polar bears are one of the main tourist attractions in Svalbard. Svalbard is a breeding ground for many seabirds. About thirty types of bird are found on Svalbard, most of which are migratory. The Barents Sea is among the areas in the world with most seabirds, with about 20 million individuals during late summer. The most common are Little Auk, Northern Fulmar, Thick-billed Murre and Black-legged Kittiwake. Sixteen species are on the IUCN Red List. Particularly Bjørnøya, Storfjorden, Nordvest-Spitsbergen and Hopen are important breeding ground for seabirds.

The island has many glaciers, mountains and fjords. Here you will encounter an Arctic climate, with classic northern seasons of dark winters and night sun from spring through summer.

Whaling, fur trapping and later coal mining led to the habitation of Spitsbergen. Although mining still continues, the majority of the population are involved with scientific research and tourism.

Longyearbyen, from where we base our holidays, is the largest settlement and the administrative centre of Svalbard. It is located on the western coast of Spitsbergen. There are good hotels, guesthouses, and restaurants here. Longyearbyen airport is located only a few minutes from the town. Gane and Marshall can organise your flights to Longyearbyen, if you are travelling from the UK.

Activities and Excursions

From Longyearbyen we can organise your programme of activities to make up an adventurous and interesting short break. Gane and Marshall organise Spitsbergen holidays and expeditions for individuals and groups. We offer dog sledding, snow mobile expeditions, cruises through the Svalbard archipelago, and more local Spitsbergen coastal cruises. We also offer trekking on foot in summer and for skiers we organise ski and sledge expeditions on the snowfields and glaciated valleys.  In the winter there are Polar night safaris, dog sledding, visits to the ice caves and excursions on the powerful snowcat, which carries up to 15 passengers across the snowfields.

We can specially design for you adventurous expeditions in this amazing Arctic environment.

Contact Gane and Marshall to try a short break in Spitsbergen to experience the Arctic.