Svalbard

The updated Bradt Svalbard guidebook, now in its seventh edition, remains the only detailed, standalone guidebook from a major publisher to this evocative high Arctic archipelago. Spitsbergen, Franz Josef Land and Jan Mayen collectively constitute Europe’s wildest frontier. In this remote destination, perfect for ecotourism and adventure sports, the Global Seed Vault safeguards plants in case of environmental disaster, there are 4,000 snow scooters for a population of just 2,500 and reindeer graze beside icy roads, keeping a wary eye open for polar bears. More than 50 nationalities live together in the tiny capital city of Longyearbyen, where no-one can easily be born in hospital (due to limited medical facilities) nor buried (due to the permafrost). Once populated by trappers, miners and whalers, the Norwegian city is now home to climate scientists. Moreover – as the updated Bradt Svalbard guidebook makes clear – it provides the hub for a thriving tourist destination, where you can: •take expedition cruises in summer (June–August) to explore coastal areas, looking for thrilling wildlife including polar bears, walruses, beluga whales and Arctic foxes; •during the so-called ‘light winter’ months (March–May), Svalbard’s glorious mountains, majestic fjords and sprawling valleys provide spectacular settings for husky-sledding, skidooing, cross-country skiing, hiking, kayaking, ice climbing and fossil-hunting, for exploring the mining ghost towns of Barentsburg or Pyramiden, or even notching up geographic superlatives (such as the world’s most northerly kebab, most northerly souvenir shop); and •during winter (November/December–March), when the sun disappears for four months, enjoy polar ‘noctourism’, admiring ink-black skies filled with stars and the dance of the aurora borealis (northern lights). Interest in the region has never been higher, partly thanks to travel vlogger Cecilie Blomdahl’s New York Times bestseller, Life on Svalbard. The updated Bradt Svalbard guidebook provides all of the practical and background information you'll need to explore this wild place, turning the hostile into the hospitable. Freshly researched and amended, this seventh edition reflects important recent changes in the archipelago, from climate-responsible travel innovations to eco-minded tours, plus a slew of new hotels and restaurants, making it the indispensable guide to this once-in-a-lifetime destination.