Svalbard, Norway

01/05/06

Just returned from a trip to the arctic. Overall very dissapointing indeed. If you ever go there you should do some significant research to ensure you know what you are getting.
I went with Gap Adventures (a Canadian company) on the "MV Expedition" because their brochures and web content pointed towards very heavy focus on Polar Bears. The reality was that there was a set itinerary with little flexibility and a high content of non-bear activities; this included a large colony of seabirds, a lot of tundra, a lot of fjords and some very random (vaguely) historical sites which in my view were over "worked". Total time spent at the very edge of the polar ice cap for which it was said were excellent viewing conditions for bears was just 90 minutes!! (1.5 hours!) - this was the most dissapointing point of the journey for many travellers since there was approx 50 miles of excellent conditions to explore. We were taken from this amazing place to a pile of rocks and a bunch of huts because the tour leader appeared impatient and decreed there would be no bears to be seen in this place.

So the moral of this story is you should do your research well, speak to those who have been; my bad experience on this trip was shared by many other participants. I have had correspondance with Gap Adventures
about this and as you might expect they had a "valid" argument for their content and operational decisions for which I do not personally agree with (they surely would not admit providing a bad experience!) but they did agree they did agree that their brocure was polar bear "heavy" (afterall thats what sells the holiday right? ..or am I being cynical?)
A good point was the hotel aspects of the MV Expedition - It reall was exceptional but I didn't go there for the food.

So, "The Realm of the Polar Bear" trip with Gap Adventures will cost you getting on for 5000 USD per person including flights et al. Take notice of the brochure, the web content and the tour title; the reality is that you could well be presented with something completely unexpected - so check the small print closely.
Make sure you you check out all of the tour operators of which there are several, I wish I did!