Svalbard

Fast Facts

Location: Located in the Arctic Ocean, north of mainland Europe and midway between mainland Norway and the North Pole.
Attraction Type: Archipelago.
Significance: It is the northernmost permanently inhabited area in this planet.
Best time to Visit: June to August. However, for winter sports, you need to go during March through May.
Visiting Hours: During daytime.
How to Reach: It is an expensive and time-consuming journey to reach Svalbard. Svalbard Airport is the nearest airport located at Longyearbyen. Flights are available from Oslo and Tromsí¸.
Nearest Airport: Svalbard Airport (LYR).

It was the site of the battle of Stalingrad during the Second World War. And it is surely a thrilling experience to step in to a city with such an eventful past. Full of history and arts, Volgograd is a destination for those who want to explore Russian history and culture in the most meaningful way. The city also happens to be one of the longest cities in the world that stretches over 70 km along the Volga River.

Located in the Arctic Ocean, north of mainland Europe and midway between mainland Norway and the North Pole, Svalbard comprises a group of islands, only three of which viz. Spitsbergen, Bear Island and Hopen are populated. Longyearbyen is the largest settlement of Svalbard. The uninhabited islands of Svalbard are usually inaccessible without special permission and are the nature reserves. One can categorize the Svalbard islands into two parts — the Spitsbergen group of Barentsí¸ya, Prins Karls Forland, Edgeí¸ya, and Nordaustlandet, which are easily accessible and the other part includes more remote islands like Kvití¸ya, Bjí¸rní¸ya, Hopen, and Kong Karls Land.

Things to Do

Svalbard is known best for its Arctic nature. A whole bunch of travelers flock in here to experience the Arctic nature in its rawest and purest form. The untouched glaciers and rocky mountains are the biggest attractions of Svalbard. The place provides you an amazing experience to see polar bears, polar foxes, reindeer, seals, walruses and various species of arctic birds. One can also find tundra vegetation and delicate flowers during the short summer.

You can also visit the various settlements like Barentsburg, Homsund, Sveagruva, Ny-í…lesund and Longyearbyen. One can also see the midnight sun in Svalbard from April 20 to August 23. You can also enjoy the various local festivals that are organized at different parts of the year like Polar Jazz (end of January), Sunfest Week (around 8th March), Blues Festival (end of October) and KunstPause Svalbard (around 14th November).

Accommodation

You will find plenty of hotels in accommodation that will suit the budget of all sorts of travelers. Some of the hotels in Svalbard could be listed as below:

Radisson SAS Polar Hotel
PO Box 554
9171 Longyearbyen
Svalbard

Spitsbergen Hotel
Postboks 500 N- 9170 Longyearbyen
Svalbard

/>