Every bookable Svalbard boat tour from Longyearbyen, from a short Isfjorden wildlife trip to private charters and week-long expeditions. Real prices and real review counts.
Three GetYourGuide listings plus one on Viator, from $311 for a short Isfjorden trip up to $2,252 for a week-long yacht expedition. Small samples, shown honestly: 8 reviews across the four that carry a rating.
Listings checked by Lars Hansen, Norway tour specialist
Short answer
Boat tours on this page depart from Longyearbyen and head out into the surrounding fjord waters of the archipelago. Four listings leave Longyearbyen: a short Isfjorden wildlife trip at the cheap end, a private glacier and wildlife charter, and two multi-day expeditions at the other. Read the duration and the price basis on each card before you compare them.
There is no road out of Longyearbyen. That single fact is why the boats matter here in a way they do not in Norway proper: a vessel is not a scenic add-on, it is the only way to reach Pyramiden, Barentsburg, the bird cliffs and the glacier fronts in summer. The fjord decides the season, not the calendar. Ice clears from Isfjorden around late May and starts returning in October.
The four listings split into three jobs. The shortest listing is a wildlife trip on the fjord. A second listing charters the whole vessel for a single group, focused on glacier and wildlife scenery. The remaining two are voyages that spend several nights aboard. Read the duration and the price basis on each card before comparing.
Ratings and review counts are the platforms' own figures, read off each live listing. Where a listing has no reviews yet we say so rather than leaving a blank. Prices are the from-prices shown at the time of reading and move with your date and country.
Most reviewed in this category
A small-group boat trip into Isfjorden to the remains of the Russian mining settlement of Grumant and the Fuglefjella bird cliffs, with a closed, heated boat, drinks and snacks.
Explore Oscar II Land on a private full charter boat (for up to 3 persons) adventure from Longyearbyen. Discover remote glaciers, Arctic landscapes and wildlife with your local guide.
A twelve-guest micro cruise into the fjords and ice larger ships cannot reach, private and fully guided.
Eight days under sail around Spitsbergen: Sassenfjorden, Tempelfjorden and the Tunabreen glacier, with polar bear and walrus watching and a stop at the abandoned Soviet town of Pyramiden if ice allows.
Built from the live listings themselves: duration, from-price and rating exactly as the platforms show them.
| Tour | Duration | From | Rating | Category |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Isfjorden wildlife boat trip, 2.5 hours | 2.5 hours | $311 per person | 5 (4 reviews) | Boat tours |
| Private glacier & wildlife boat charter | 8 hours | Not stated | 5 (2 reviews) | Boat tours |
| Private 8-day Svalbard micro cruise | 8 days | Not stated | 5 (1 review) | Boat tours |
| 8-day Arctic wildlife yacht expedition | 8 days | $2,252 per person | 5 (1 review) | Boat tours |
| Season | Boats here run in the polar summer, and each listing states the dates for its own trip. |
|---|---|
| Group size | Group size differs from one boat trip to another, and each card links to its own listing for the specifics. |
| What you wear | The operator supplies the outer flotation or thermal suit on every one of these. You bring warm base layers, a hat and gloves. It is colder on the water than in town by a noticeable margin. |
| Pickup | Included on almost all of them, from Longyearbyen accommodation to the harbour. |
| Weather | Wind on Isfjorden cancels boats. It is the single most common reason a Svalbard tour does not sail, so book the boat day early in your trip and keep a spare day behind it. |
| Seasickness | Isfjorden is sheltered, but the longer crossings take you into open water. If you are prone to it, take something before boarding rather than after. |
Visit Svalbard defines the polar summer as 17 May to 30 September, and each listing states the dates its own trip runs. Check the date range on the listing you want.
Some of the longer trips include a glacier front among their stops, and the listing names which one. Routes vary between trips, so read the route description on each listing. Shorter trips generally stay nearer to Longyearbyen.
Worth a look for the winter route to the same settlements.
See all 10 snowmobile listings →Worth a look for what you can honestly expect to see.
See all 5 wildlife listings →Worth a look for shooting the ghost towns properly.
See all 5 photography listings →Reading first: which month puts you on the water · what Pyramiden and Barentsburg are like · where the boat day sits in a total budget
Compare all eight categories by season or go back to every Svalbard tour.