Polar Bears Spitsbergen!?

[rhyfedd121]

Anyone been to Ny Alesund in Spitsbergen? Going there in July aboard the Oriana, what's the sail in like? Any chance of seeing some exciting wildlife and glaciers?

 

Thanks!!

[cross eyed sailor]

Hi

We went to Spitsbergen on the Oriana three years ago - it was our first ever cruise and we loved it. For me Spitsbergen was the highlight of the trip. We did not see any polar bears although we were warned about them but it didn't matter. The weather was perfect ; clear blue skies , wonderful visibility and such peace and quiet. We hung about so that we were on the last tender back and it felt as if we were alone on the planet.

It will be very cold so be prepared. On the way back the Captain took us very close to a couple of glaciers so that we could take pictures and videos. I am sure you will enjoy it .

[Lair Bear]

A few weeks ago I asked the director of the research station at Ny-Alesund, at the tip of Spitsbergen, what he thought about having cruise ships coming to his 'village'. Here was his response, and I like to share that with you all. Keep in mind they are in total darkness during the long, cold months when I asked the question. In the summer the staff increases significantly.

 

Hello Sir!

Thanks for your mail, I normally don’t have time to respond on “small talk”, but you made some interesting points.

Last summer 31.000 cruise tourists visited us. 2/3 were overseas tourists, the rest came by local boats.

It’s only tourists by ships who can visit us in addition to researchers and my staff.

 

For the moment it isn’t really crowded here. Including my staff and the researchers from Germany, France, Korea, China, Japan and some constructors we are nearly 60 persons.

We are only 1231 km from the North Pole, but living in a well situated society. Due to the Golf-stream the conditions are better than expected.

 

According to the cruise tourists, - yes they make some disruptions from time to time. But we can manage!!

You have to stay on the roads in my village, it’s prohibited to walk on the tundra due to environmental damages. And please, don’t leave any garbage as plastic, paper, cigarettes, etc.

Some also try to feed the polar foxes, and that’s not allowed. We try to leave the wilderness undisturbed to the best for arctic research and monitoring. (Flowers, birds and animals.)

The crew from your ship has to establish armed guards at some road junctions to fight polar bears, if they appear.

We have an information centre you can visit, and we also have a small museum which tells the story about the northernmost settlement and the mining period and polar expeditions.

In addition our small shop will be open, and they accept both visa-cards and different valuta (dollar, euro). Many like to buy some souvenirs as T-shirts, socks, pullovers, etc.

 

Hopefully you will enjoy your stayJ

Best regards

Roger Jakobsen

Managing Director

[kaisatsu]

We haven't been to Ny Alesund, but we sailed to Longyearbyen a few years ago. We didn't have a lot of luck spotting wildlife, and from reading the few posts about Svalbard back then, it seems that very few cruise passengers spot any polar bears, since they typically (and thankfully) stay away from the towns. A lot of people seem to see reindeer, though.

 

Our sail-out was very scenic, and Svalbard has the highest number of clear days in all of Norway. Although there wasn't much wildlife (just a few birds), the area is geologically interesting. Since this was our first visit to an Arctic climate, we found the scenery incredibly different from any place we'd been.

 

Here are some of our photos, if you're interested.

 

Also, if your itinerary includes Longyearbyen, I recommend contacting some of the local tour operators and arranging an excursion to get out of the town a little bit. On our trip, there were no organized excursions, and while the town of Longyearbyen is kind of interesting and has a great little museum, I really loved getting to see a little more of the scenery and the flora and fauna (even if it was just a few wildflowers, some birds, and a seal that peeked out of the water just long enough to realize there were kayaks around)! Just be sure to follow up before your trip to reconfirm, and be very explicit in arranging the details of where/when/how to find and meet the guide and make sure you have enough time in port for the activity you choose. We had a great day, but a few other people from our ship weren't as lucky. They couldn't find the group for their hike, and since it was a Sunday when the excursion companies' offices were closed.

[EOS-User]

Anyone been to Ny Alesund in Spitsbergen? Going there in July aboard the Oriana, what's the sail in like? Any chance of seeing some exciting wildlife and glaciers? Thanks!!

 

By the sound of it - we were on the same cruise as 'Cross Eyed Sailor' above! June 2007 Oriana...

 

Ny Alesund was the highlight of the trip; fantastic weather and great scenery.

 

Wildlife = NONE! Some claimed to have spotted a reindeer far off... but that was it apart from some Arctic Terns & a few other arctic birds in ones & twos.

 

TOP TIP: Be prepared and make the effort to get off the boat as early as possible. It's a tendered landing. Get your tickets before breakfast! Some pax on our trip didn't get off until after midday, and then had only a brief period ashore.

 

It's an interesting walk around - moreso if you get lucky with the weather; but, as has been said - it's COLD! Even with still air & sun, it was only 2C, and we were wrapped up with 3 or 4 layers! Again some pax just hadn't planned ahead, and brought only springtime wear!

 

Enjoy!

[LHT28]

Also, if your itinerary includes Longyearbyen, I recommend contacting some of the local tour operators and arranging an excursion to get out of the town a little bit. .

 

Nice photos

We will stop in Longyearbyen this summer ..how far is it to the town walking?

Is there any transport to town from the docking area?

 

Thanks for the photos

 

Lyn

[kaisatsu]

Nice photos

We will stop in Longyearbyen this summer ..how far is it to the town walking?

Is there any transport to town from the docking area?

It's about 20 minutes' walk from the tender pier to the town center. I think Cunard arranged a shuttle bus, but it didn't start running until around 10 am, and only ran every 30 minutes or so. A lot of people just opted to walk along the road.

[LHT28]

It's about 20 minutes' walk from the tender pier to the town center. I think Cunard arranged a shuttle bus, but it didn't start running until around 10 am, and only ran every 30 minutes or so. A lot of people just opted to walk along the road.

 

Thank you

[luvnorway]

We have been to Ny Alesund 3 times (and looking forward to another trip this summer), and, on every cruise, rumours that someone has seen a polar bear have spread among the passengers.

 

When they go ashore, they see the warning signs re the bears that are posted on the roads leading out of town and/or they hear on the ship that cruise staff etc are assigned to be stationed at these locations to warn people not to go further out of town and their imaginations run wild.

(Mine runs wild thinking of what some North American cruise staff person, who has never been north of the 49th parallel, would do if they ever did encounter a polar bear!)


The reality is that, if any polar bear had been sighted near town recently, the cruise ship would not be allowed to land passengers.

 

The funniest situation we experienced re cruise passengers “seeing” polar bears in Ny Alesund occurred several years ago when we arrived at the barrier blocking access to the road leading up to the airport. There were about a hundred cruise passengers, all with cameras, very excitedly taking pictures of what they believed was a polar bear about half a kilometer away up the slope. They saw something white in the distance and started snapping photos and this attracted others who followed their example. Looking through binoculars (and confirmed by a local who was very amused by the whole thing), we could clearly see that the object of the photos was the white backside of a grazing reindeer!

I have visions of these people proudly showing the the photos they had taken of the ‘polar bear’ in Spitsbergen to the neighbours at home!

 

BTW - watch out for the terns when wandering around in Ny Alesund - they will really dive bomb you and peck at your head if you get too close to their nests