Walrus safari - Two tons of happiness - Better Moments

Experience Svalbard's unique wildlife from up close! Everyday we use our closed and comfortable RIB boats to go to a well-known walrus colony. Here we do a landing on the beach. We will then have the opportunity to observe these funny and extraordinary mammals in the arctic landscape. 

Experience Svalbard’s unique wildlife from up close! Everyday we use our closed and comfortable RIB boats to go to a well-known walrus colony. Here we do a landing on the beach. We will then have the opportunity to observe these funny and extraordinary mammals in the arctic landscape. 

The walrus is one of the most intriguing animals in the Arctic. They stay in the same area most of the summer, and love to sunbathe on the beach. One of the best known colonies close to Longyearbyen is on Poolepynten on Prince Karl’s Forland. With our special designed speedboats, we can easily reach this colony on a day trip. Our boat is comfortable, closed, dry and heated, with a panorama view, bar and toilet.

We will start the day crossing the beautiful Isfjord. On the way, we are accompanied by the many different birds that nest on Svalbard. A frequent visitor is the Atlantic puffin. Halfway towards the walruses, we get to Trygghamna, at the northern entrance of the Isfjord. Here, the rugged mountains rise 900m above us, making them a perfect home to many of the sea birds we have already seen. Below the cliffs, reindeer and foxes alike are profiting for from the fertile tundra. This area has beed used by hunters and trappers for centuries and our guides have many stories to share with you.

We then leave the Isfjord and head north along the scenic west coast of Spitsbergen. We pass dramatic mountains, rising high above the sea and massive glacier fronts advancing into it. If the weather allows it, we will do a landing on the beach at Poolepynten. On a regular day, there are around 30 walruses in the colony. We have time on land to observe the group, often there are some on land and some in the shallow water close to shore. In case the weather does not allow us to have a landing, we will still be able to see them from the boat.

Once back on board, we serve a light lunch and start heading back towards Longyearbyen. On the way, we will pass the abandoned mining settlement Grumant, tucked into the steep mountain sides of the southern shore. the southern side of the Isfjord features an entirely different geology as what we have see so far on this trip.

We can never guarantee wildlife, however, this is a well-known hauling-out place for walruses. Better Moments has the right to change the route and destination of the trip due to the weather conditions. The weather forecast is never completely reliable in the areas we are travelling in, therefore like on all other boat trips, we always want to go out and see for ourselves if we can reach our destination. In case the weather prevents us form getting all the way, we will spend the day in the beautiful Isfjorden, visiting glaciers and searching for other wildlife. 

We require a minimum of 5 persons on this trip. The minimum age is 4 years. Children under 12 years old: NOK 800 discount.

Please let us know if you have any food allergies or restrictions.