Itinerary
In collaboration with National Geographic Expeditions. With PONANT, set off to discover the west coast of Spitsbergen during a 9-day expedition cruise into the heart of the Svalbard Archipelago. Aboard L'Austral, fall under the spell of the magical Arctic Far North, with its ice floes, polar bears and breathtaking glaciers. Your ship will depart from Tromsø, in Norway, and head north to bring you closer to Bear Island, a refuge for many birds, in the western part of the Barents Sea. You will then reach the southern tip of Spitsbergen and discover the Sor-Spitsbergen National Park, where you will be able to admire some of the island' most beautiful fjords, like the Hornsund with its impressive glacier front. Further north, in the Nordvest Sptisbergen National Park, follow in the footsteps of the former whalers who once settled there. Some sites that are home to the graves of many sailors and are still frequented by various species of cetaceans. Before your disembarkation in Longyearbyen, you will discover the glaciers of the Kongsfjorden and you will maybe have the opportunity to discover Ny-Alesund. This international scientific station is a former mining town, which was the departure point for many expeditions towards the North Pole. We are privileged guests in these extreme lands where we are at the mercy of weather and ice conditions. The itinerary, landings on certain sites and the observation of certain wildlife cannot be guaranteed. They vary from day to day, making each PONANT cruise a unique experience. The Captain and the Expedition Leader will make every effort to ensure that your experience is as rich as possible, while complying with the safety rules and instructions imposed by the AECO.
