Sail to the North of Spitsbergen with zodiac visits to the shore and opportunities to witness arctic wildlife at it's best. 50 Degrees North offers unique, small-group expedition voyages to the Arctic that allow you to enjoy the natural wildlife and scenery of some of the world’s most spectacular and pristine shorelines.

Countries visited

• Svalbard

Places visited

• Longyearbyen
• Ny Ålesund
• Hinlopen Strait
• Spitsbergen
• Alkefjellet
• Isfjorden

Transportation

M/v Antarctic Dream is a Dutch built ice-reinforced vessel that served under the name Piloto Pardo for the Chilean Navy. She was rebuilt as a passenger vessel and completely refurbished in 2005, and features a spacious dining room / observation lounge, bar, lecture room, fitness room plus sauna and an accessible passenger bridge. The vessel offers accommodation for 84 passengers in 42 twin cabins with private toilet and shower. 4 Suites, 16 Superior cabins and 20 twin private cabins have portholes or windows and either two separate lower beds or queen beds. 2 Additional twin private cabins have no portholes / windows (inside cabins). All cabins have furthermore a desk, closed circuit TV, and inter-cabin phone service. Satellite email and phone service is available on the bridge.

Included In Price

Voyage aboard the indicated vessel as indicated in the itinerary.
All meals throughout the voyage aboard the ship including snacks, coffee and tea.
All shore excursions and activities throughout the voyage by Zodiac.
Program of lectures by noted naturalists and leadership by experienced expedition staff.
All miscellaneous service taxes and port charges throughout the programme.
AECO fees and governmental taxes.
Comprehensive pre-departure material.

Meals Included

This tour includes 26 meals; 9 breakfasts 8 lunches 9 dinners

Not Included In Price

Any airfare, whether on scheduled or charter flights; pre- and post land arrangements; transfers to / from the vessel outside Spitsbergen; passport and visa expenses; Government arrival and departure taxes; meals ashore; baggage, cancellation and personal insurance (which is strongly recommended); excess baggage charges and all items of a personal nature such as laundry, bar, beverage charges and telecommunication charges; and the customary gratuity at the end of the voyages for stewards and other service personnel aboard (guidelines will be provided).

It is agreed that if world fuel prices will reach or exceed US Dollar 80 per Barrel Brent 90 days prior to departure Oceanwide Expeditions reserves the right to levy a fuel surcharge of EURO 18 per passenger per night, to be paid by the contracting party of Oceanwide Expeditions.

Important Information

The ice conditions will determine the sailing plan, either the North or around Spitsbergen itinerary. The chances that we can complete a full Spitsbergen Circumnavigation (based on our experiences from 1992 until 2010) are about, 30 % in the first half of July, 60 % in the second half of July, 90% in the first half of August, 95% in the second half of August. In case we cannot complete a full circumnavigation we will mostly resort to a program in Northeast or Southeast Spitsbergen.

Day 1: Embark in Longyearbyen

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Arrive in Longyearbyen, the administrative capital of the Spitsbergen archipelago of which West Spitsbergen is the largest island. Before embarking there is an opportunity to stroll around this former mining town, whose parish church and Polar Museum are well worth visiting. In the early evening the ship will sail out of Isfjorden.

Accommodation

MV Antarctic Dream

Meals Included

1 x Dinners

Day 2: Ny Ålesund

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Heading north along the west coast, we arrive by morning in Krossfjorden, where we go on the Zodiacs for a cruise along the sculpted front of the 14th of July Glacier. On the green slopes near the glacier, a colourful variety of flowers bloom, while large numbers of Kittiwakes and Brünnich’s Guillemots nest on the nearby cliffs. There is also a good chance of spotting Arctic Foxes, who patrol the base of the cliffs in case a chick falls from its nest, and Bearded Seals, who cruise this fjord. In the afternoon we sail to Ny Ålesund, the world’s most northerly settlement. Once a mining village - served by the world’s most northerly railway, which can still be seen - Ny Ålesund is now a research centre. Close to the village is a breeding ground for Barnacle Geese, Pink-footed Geese and Arctic Terns. Visitors interested in the history of Arctic exploration will want to walk to the anchoring mast used by Amundsen and Nobile in the airship Norge in 1926 and Nobile in the airship Italia in 1928 before their flights to the North Pole.

Accommodation

MV Antarctic Dream

Meals Included

1 x Breakfasts
1 x Lunches
1 x Dinners

Day 3: Liefdefjorden and Andøya

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Near the mouth of Liefdefjorden, we will go ashore for a walk on the tundra island of Andøya. Many common eiders and pink-footed geese nest here, and the more rare king eider may also be seen. Sailing into Liefdefjorden, we will cruise near the face of the impressive Monaco Glacier. The waters of the glacier front are a favourite feeding spot for thousands of kittiwakes and occasionally polar bears are seen on the glacier.

Accommodation

MV Antarctic Dream

Meals Included

1 x Breakfasts
1 x Lunches
1 x Dinners

Day 4: Reach northernmost point at Phippsøya, in the Seven Islands

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Today we will reach our northernmost point at Phippsøya, in the Seven Islands north of Nordaustlandet. Here we will be at 81 degrees north, just 540 miles from the geographic North Pole. Polar bears inhabit this region, along with ivory gulls. We may sit for several hours in the pack ice, taking in our spectacular surroundings and seeing a Ross gull, before we turn south again.

Accommodation

MV Antarctic Dream

Meals Included

1 x Breakfasts
1 x Lunches
1 x Dinners

Day 5: Look for Walrus at Laagøya and Sorgfjord

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We will visit Laagøya today, a low island with a big lagoon where a big herd of Walrus tends to congregate. Sabine’s Gulls nest on the island as well. At Sorg Fjord we may find another herd of walruses not far from the graves of 17th century whalers. On a nature walk, we may encounter families of ptarmigans.

Accommodation

MV Antarctic Dream

Meals Included

1 x Breakfasts
1 x Lunches
1 x Dinners

Day 6: Hinlopen Strait, landing at Augustabukta on Nordaustlandet

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Today we will sail into Hinlopen Strait, home to Bearded Seals, Ringed Seals, Polar Bears, and Ivory Gulls. We’ll navigate the ice floes of Lomfjordshalvøya in our zodiacs and explore the bird cliffs of Alkefjellet with thousands of Brünnich’s guillemots. On the east side of Hinlopenstrait, we’ll attempt a landing at Augustabukta on Nordaustlandet, home to Reindeer, Pink-footed Geese, breeding Ivory Gulls, and Walruses. Near Torrelneset, we will explore the polar desert of Nordaustlandet, next to the world’s third largest ice cap, which meets the sea nearby. We will walk along beautiful coastline covered in smooth rocks, sculpted by the surf over thousands of years. We may encounter walruses along the way.

Accommodation

MV Antarctic Dream

Meals Included

1 x Breakfasts
1 x Lunches
1 x Dinners

Day 7: Land at Sundneset on the island of Barentsøya

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In Freemansundet we plan to land at Sundneset on the island of Barentsøya to visit an old trapper's hut and then take a brisk walk across the tundra in search of Spitsbergen Reindeer and Barnacle Geese. Later we cruise south to Diskobukta on the west side of Edgeøya. After a Zodiac cruise through the shallow bay, we land on a beach littered with whale bones and tree trunks, which have drifted here from Siberia. We can also climb to the rim of a narrow gully which is inhabited by thousands of Kitttiwakes, together with Black Guillemots and piratical Glaucous Gulls. During the breeding season, the base of the cliffs is patrolled by Arctic Foxes and Polar Bears, especially females with young cubs, searching for young birds that have fallen from the nesting ledges.

Accommodation

MV Antarctic Dream

Meals Included

1 x Breakfasts
1 x Lunches
1 x Dinners

Day 8: Hornsund area of southern Spitsbergen

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We start the day quietly cruising the side fjords of the spectacular Hornsund area of southern Spitsbergen, enjoying the scenery of towering mountain peaks. Hornsundtind rises to 1,431m while Bautaen shows why early Dutch explorers gave the name ‘Spitsbergen’ - pointed mountains - to the island. There are also 14 magnificent glaciers in the area and very good chances of encounters with seals and Polar Bears.

Accommodation

MV Antarctic Dream

Meals Included

1 x Breakfasts
1 x Lunches
1 x Dinners

Day 9: Land on Ahlstrandhalvøya at the mouth of Van Keulenfjorden

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Today we land on Ahlstrandhalvøya at the mouth of Van Keulenfjorden. Here piles of Beluga skeletons (the Beluga is a small white whale), the remains of 19th century slaughter, are yet another reminder of the consequences of thoughtless exploitation. Fortunately, Belugas were not hunted to the edge of extinction and may still be seen locally. Indeed, there is a good chance that we will come across a pod. Cruising into Recherchefjorden during the afternoon we can explore an area of tundra at the head of the fjord where many Reindeer feed.

Accommodation

MV Antarctic Dream

Meals Included

1 x Breakfasts
1 x Lunches
1 x Dinners

Day 10: Disembark at Longyearbyen

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Meals Included

1 x Breakfasts