21 July
Adelaide
You start your adventure today, flying from Adelaide to Oslo.  Arriving into Oslo on the 22nd of July

22 July
Oslo
Today you arrive into Oslo, and will be transferred to your accommodation for your 1 night stay.

23 July
Oslo - Longyearbyen
You fly from Oslo to Longyearbyen today, where you will stay for 1 night before your embarkation tomorrow.
 
24 July – 3 August
Longyearbyen - Embarkation Day
Your voyage will depart in the afternoon from the Longyearbyen pier. A transfer from the town centre to the pier for embarkation onto the ship will take place at 4pm. Full details will be sent with your final joining instructions. Once onboard, our expedition team will welcome you and once you’ve settled in we’ll set sail from Longyearbyen.
Meals included: 1 dinner

Around Svalbard
These days are spent exploring the coast, moving generally in a clockwise direction. There will be ample time for shore excursions, where we can simply sit on the beach and take it all in or enjoy energetic hiking, wildlife spotting or stunning Zodiac cruises. Since our itinerary is difficult to predict due to ever-changing ice conditions, we’ve provided some samples of possible excursions we may undertake from Day 2 through to Day 10. We won’t have time to visit all these spots, but no matter where we end up, it is guaranteed that our explorations will involve many memorable moments. We may also visit other locations should their beauty or interest warrant it.

GLACIER/NYÅLESUND
This is an almost certain destination, located on the west coast of Spitsbergen. We generally drop anchor before breakfast on Day 2 at 14th of July Glacier. Following a briefing on landing procedures and polar bear precautions, we board our Zodiacs and steer toward the glacier. We also spend some time cruising near the spectacular ice cliff face. After lunch on Day 2, we visit the settlement of Ny Ålesund - one of the northernmost communities in the world. Ny Ålesund serves as a base station for international Arctic research, with a population of approximately 80 scientists and support staff. Everyone will have a chance to visit the station shop, where we can send mail from the most northerly mailbox in the world! Bird-watchers should see Arctic terns, Arctic skuas, long-tailed skuas, purple sandpipers and chicks, common eiders, barnacle geese, long-tailed ducks, kittiwakes, glaucous gulls and snow buntings. Reindeers are often seen on the periphery of the community. We also get a taste of some remarkable Arctic history as we stand near the mast used by the famous airships, 'Norge' and 'Italia'. In 1926 the Norwegian, Roald Amundsen, used the 'Norge' to fly over the North Pole from Ny Ålesund to Alaska. A few days earlier an American named Richard Byrd had also undertaken the journey and later claimed to have reached the North Pole before Amundsen. Next, it was the Italians' turn. Umberto Nobile decided to mount an airship expedition from Ny Ålesund with the 'Italia' in 1928. However, this ended in disaster when the airship crashed on the pack ice north of Spitsbergen. Many expeditions were sent out to find and rescue Nobile and his crew. One included Roald Amundsen, who disappeared during the search. In the vicinity there is a small museum and a husky dog compound. We also frequently spot Arctic fox nearby.

SMEERENBURG
Another history lesson can be found in Smeerenburg, located on the north-west corner of Spitsbergen. Also known as Blubber Town, Smeerenburg was once a settlement of Dutch whalers in the first half of the 17th century. We explain the whaling techniques that were used in the 1630s when almost 200 whalers spent the summers here. Blubber ovens, whalebones and other remnants can be observed in the shadow of the mountain that Basque whalers used as a lookout-point for the bowhead whale. This is near the spot where the explorer Fridtjof Nansen's ship sheltered after being free from the Arctic pack ice. The Swedish balloonist Andree departed for his ill-fated flight to the North Pole from a small nearby island. This area is also great for walks and also kayaking.


YTRE NORSKØYA / NORVESTØYANE, HAMILTONBREEN / 80ºN / MOFFEN ISLAND
It will get noticeably cooler as we near our most northerly destination, Norskøya. After landing we walk to a 17th century blubber oven that was used by whalers to process whales into valuable oil. Our guides will explain the history of whaling, the methods employed and the harsh life experienced by the early whalers. This latter point is so clearly emphasised by the hundred or so graves of whalers that stand nearby. Some of the group may wish to explore the lower area of the island, while others may climb to a cairn at the top. Later on we gather everyone on the bow as we cross 80° North - just 965 kilometres (600 miles) from the North Pole. After supper, we visit a small atoll-like island further to the northeast called Moffen Island. This island is a protected walrus sanctuary and there are often some walruses seen basking on the shores while others are seen coming out to greet our ship. In the past we have been lucky in this area, spotting the Sabine's gull and quite often polar bears on shore.

PHIPPSØYA & MARTENSØYA (SJUØYANE or SEVEN ISLANDS)
In the early hours, we approach our most northerly landing and drop anchor close to Phipps Island. This is directly beside Small Blackboard Island - the termination point for the British Trans-Arctic Expedition led by Sir Wally Herbert in 1969. This is a great place for hikes and a good spot to see bears and walruses. Here we also find a small hunters’ hut with large whale vertebrae and bones strewn about, as well as an old boat. All this adds to the overall sense of antiquity in the area. Later on we may try to land on Martensøya. The geology is Precambrian - about five hundred million to one billion years old! As staggering as that fact is, the thing that will strike us most about this place is not the age of it, but rather the large accumulation of driftwood on the beach. Many of the logs have originated from Canada or Russia travelling through currents and ice floes. In 1890, adventurer Fridtjof Nansen conjectured, if the polar drift could carry articles across the Polar Sea, this drift “might also be enlisted in the service of exploration”. Using a specially designed ship, he mounted an expedition intentionally beset in the ice. After spending three years travelling the currents of the Polar Sea, the ship finally exited via the north-west side of Spitsbergen in 1896. So it’s conceivable that some of those logs we see today travelled the same route as Nansen’s ship more than a hundred years ago.

ÆKONGEN, TUSENØYANE (THOUSAND ISLANDS)
We may drop anchor near the small island of Ækongen, Tusenøyane in the Thousand Islands. Once on shore, we quietly approach a small pond inhabited by several pairs of red-throated divers. We also see a bowhead whale skeleton that has been reconstructed on the beach, giving us a sense of the mammal’s gigantic size. Other bones including walrus and polar bear skulls may also be found littering the lower part of the island.

GÅSHAMNA/ HORNSUND
We land on a gravel beach near a small hut in Gåshamna and walk around the area admiring the old whale bones. Some may wish to hike up to the face of a glacier to enjoy the fantastic views on top of the moraines. After lunch we sail into Hornsund, a spectacular sound with several glacier-filled bays. Seabirds, bearded and ringed seals, as well as polar bears are often spotted here. It is also home to a colony of little auks (dovekies).

BOURBONHAMNA (AHLSTRANDHALVØYA)/ BARENTSBURG)
Belugas or white whales often transit the narrow sound near Bourbonhamna. The adults are pure white and the younger animals a mottled grey colour. They are the only whales that can articulate their heads to nod and turn sideways. It’s estimated that there are approximately 5000-10,000 belugas in the Svalbard population. The beluga has no dorsal fin, which is a diagnostic feature of other whale species that live in the high Arctic, like the narwhal and bowhead. Since a dorsal fin could be damaged when the animal surfaces in areas with ice, it has been postulated that the lack of dorsal fin is an adaptation to living in waters that are frequently covered by ice. We search for the belugas and also hope to go ashore to Bourbonhamna. A hunter’s cabin, grinding wheel and two overturned boats are points of interest a short walk away at Ingebrigstenbukta. However, it’s the massive piles of beluga whale bones that catch everybody’s attention. The bones and all the artefacts are protected by the Svalbard Government and can’t be removed. While wandering amongst these bone relics, we may also expect to glimpse dozens of reindeers in the area. There is good scenery and an adundance of wild flowers.
Meals included: 9 breakfasts, 9 lunches, 9 dinners

Longyearbyen
In the early morning we arrive back in Longyearbyen, where our cruise ends
Today you have finished your journey through the Arctic, and will be taken to the airport for your flight to Oslo
Overnight in Oslo.
Meals included: 1 breakfast

4 -6 August
Oslo – Adelaide
After breakfast we will make our way to the airport for our flight back to Adelaide.  Arriving in on the 6th of August.