
For those who are in constant exploration and search!
Spend a full weekend to immerse into the roots of the Arctic discovery. During 3 days, you will get acquainted with Barentsburg, a town of Arctic stories. It is the coal mining settlement on the western side of the island with the rich history, local traditions and plenty of things to do:
-visit the only operating coal mine in the world where the tours are allowed;
-try yourself as a real musher while dog sledding;
-create handicraft in traditions of Russian trappers’ from the North.
You will follow the way of Arctic pioneers and real explorers on the day snowmobile trip to trappers’ settling place of the XVIII century and weather and radio station with a view on the open Greenland sea.
3 days of real Arctic experience!

3 days on snowmobile

No experience
required

Available for children from 12 y/o

Comfortable hotel accommodation
OPEN DATES IN 2023:
no dates
TOUR PRICE PER PERSON:
Driver on the snowmobile
price TBA
Passenger on the snowmobile
price TBA
THE PRICE INCLUDES:
Transfer
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Transfer to/from your place of accommodation in Longyearbyen
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Snowmobile trips between the settlements
Accommodation
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2 nights in the hotel Barentsburg (TWIN/DBL accommodation)
Meals:
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2 Breakfasts
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3 Set Lunches
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1 Set Dinner
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Beer tasting
Activities:
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Guided tour around Barentsburg
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Excursion in the ArtArctic Gallery
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Snowmobile trip to Starostin hut and Isfjord Radio
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Lynx Commander 600 E-TEC, fuel
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Rental of winter overalls, boots, gloves, and a helmet
Safety
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Guide services
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Insurance covering search and rescue, evacuation costs in case of emergency
THE PRICE DOES NOT INCLUDE:
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Flight to/from and accommodation in Longyearbyen
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one a-la carte dinner in the restaurant
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Bar drinks or a-la carte orders beyond the tour program
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Souvenirs
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Individual travel insurance
ADDITIONAL SERVICES:

450 NOK / Person

100 NOK / Person

690 NOK / Person

500 NOK / 2 hours
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Visit to the Husky Center – 150 NOK /person
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Tour to the Mine – 600 NOK/person
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Handicraft Center – 150 NOK/person
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Dog sledding 12 км – 790 NOK/person
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Dog sledding 10 км – 690 NOK/person
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Dog sledding 3,5 км – 250 NOK/person
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Dog-trekking 3-4 hrs – 490 NOK/person

DAY 1
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09:00 - Pick-up from your place of accommodation in Longyearbyen to the Expedition Center Russkiy Dom
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Tour briefing, safety and snowmobile instructions, equipment fitting and packing
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Departure by snowmobile to Barentsburg by route: Longyearbyen – Todalen – Skiferdalen – Grøndalen – Barentsburg
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Snowmobiling: 75 km, 3 - 4 hours
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Arrival to Barentsburg, check-in, unpacking
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Lunch in the hotel restaurant Rijpsburg
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Guided tour in Barentsburg and visit to the ArtArctic Gallery
Barentsburg is the warmest place in the Arctic as you feel at home as soon as you arrive. On the tour, your guide will get you acquainted with the town stories of then and now and you will live through traditions of the locals. While in the ArtArctic Gallery, you’ll follow the history from Willem Barents to present-day and will go back to the roots of Svalbard discovery.
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Overnight in the hotel Barentsburg
Restaurant Rijpsburg is named after the first Dutch coal mining settlement on Svalbard that was founded in 1920 on the peninsula Bohemanneset on the northern coast of Isfjorden. It was named after Jan Cornelisz Rijp, a captain leading one of the ships of Willem Barentsz’s expedition, who dis-covered and opened Svalbard in 1596. Our menu includes dishes made with Arctic fish species that we catch ourselves in waters near Barentsburg (cod, haddock, wolffish, and the Arctic char), and the product is completely prepared with our own hands.
Barentsburg is the Russian «capital» of Svalbard. It is a town of Arctic stories written by Dutch explorers, Russian and Norwegian trappers, American and German merchants, adventurers, Soviet builders of communism and Russian miners. Barentsburg was founded in 1921 by the Dutch as a coal-mining settlement. Since 1931 it has been under the State Trust «Arcticugol» administration. The population is approximately 500 people.

DAY 2
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Breakfast in the hotel
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Snowmobile trip around Grønfjorden to Starostin Hut by route: Barentsburg – Linnevatnet – Isfjord Radio – Russekeila – Festningsodden – Barentsburg
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Snowmobiling time: 80-110 km, 6,5 hours
It’s time to follow the trails of the real pioneers and explorers of the Arctic. You will go around Grønfjorden and through frozen glacial lakes you will get to Isfjord Radio Station. Then you will go to the Starostin Hut – a place with a special atmosphere that was named after a legendary Russian trapper Ivan Starostin.
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Lunch in warm and cozy interiors
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Arrival in Barentsburg
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After the snowmobile adventure you’ll have some time to enjoy the local activities of Barentsburg.
You may visit the Handicraft Center for the traditional Russian workshop and make a souvenir with your own hands. Also you will be able to enjoy the sauna of the hotel after the intense trip or just rest before the dinner. At extra cost.
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A-la carte dinner in one of the restaurants (at extra cost) and tasting of local beer (included)
To summarize the impressions of the day you’ll head to the first brewery on Svalbard – Red Bear, where you will taste locally made beer brewed on water from the glacier lake Stemme located across the fjord. You will find out what sorts are there and define which one is your favorite.
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Overnight in the hotel Barentsburg
Isfjord Radio is a former shore radio and weather station on the cape Linné. A century ago it turned into a connection chain between the archipelago and the mainland, serving as a navigation system and collecting weather data. Nowadays, the station is completely automatically controlled and includes nice accommodation and restaurant facilities.
Starostin hut got its name after a legendary pomor trapper, Ivan Starostin, who spent 39 winters on Svalbard never leaving the island during the last 15 years. He lived at the Russekeila river mouth located not so far from Grønfjorden. There you will see the reconstruction of Starostin overwintering camp and Russian trappers funeral cross.

DAY 3
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This day there is an option to visit the mine of Barentsburg (at extra cost).
It is the only operating coal mine in the world where you can get into with a tour. You can see cooperation between man and nature, mechanisms of getting into the ground depth and mine reinforcement. The tour is guided by a real miner so that you will get first-hand knowledge.
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Breakfast in the hotel restaurant
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After the breakfast, you are welcome to visit Barentsburg Husky Center (at extra cost)
The Husky Center is unique because we have almost all the Arctic sled dog breeds. This is a place where images of the pole exploration by Amundsen and Peary take on life right in front of you. You can try yourself as a real musher and go for dog sledding along the shore of Grønfjorden to see one of the most breathtaking views around (at extra cost).
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Visit to the souvenir shop and post office
You will be able to buy the authentic souvenirs, that are made either in the Handicraft Center or in Northern Russia. The Post Office with the interiors of the Norwegian post offices of the 19-20th Centuries will also be on the way, so you could send some postcards to your family and friends from one of the Northernmost towns on the Earth.
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Lunch in the hotel restaurant
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Departure to Longyearbyen by route: Barentsburg – Colesdalen – Fardalen – Longyearbyen
Snowmobiling: 65 km, 3-3,5 hours
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Arrival in Longyearbyen (approx. 18:00)
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Transfer to your place of accommodation in Longyearbyen
Barentsburg Husky Center would probably be the cutest and fluffiest location in Barentsburg. 80 doghouses on the Grønfjorden shore stand against the background of the magnificent Esmark glacier (Esmarkbreen). When we started the project, we soon realized that there is plenty of various North sled dog breeds and at different times they all were actively involved in the exploration of the Arctic and dog sledding sport. Thus we had an idea to create a project of the kennel with all the Arctic sled dog breeds. Nowadays, there is no kennel of the sort. Our task is ambitious but so far, we've been doing pretty well.
*On Svalbard, weather conditions change quickly so that is why for the safety and comfort of our guests, the tour program might be changed regarding the itineraries and destinations.
MAP OF THE TOUR

ACCOMMODATION

Comfortable accommodation in Barentsburg