A night in the arctic wilderness with guide

This is a guided overnight camp in the Svalbard wilderness, starting and ending in Longyearbyen. A guide collects guests outside their hotel at 12:00, and a short drive leads to a valley. From there the group walks to a campsite the guides have chosen for the season. The walk is short, on mostly flat ground with some gentle slopes.

At the campsite guests help put up the tents, and the guides teach how to spend a night out in the Arctic. Afterwards there is time for a short hike, or in winter for building snow caves. Dinner is cooked together. During the night the guests take turns as polar bear watch over the sleeping camp. On day two there is breakfast, the camp is taken down, and the group walks back through the valley. Wildlife that may be seen includes Arctic fox, ptarmigan and Svalbard reindeer. The return to the hotel is around 12:00.

The tour lasts two days and one night. The group has a maximum of six guests per guide. In winter guests pull a sled (pulk) and carry a backpack, and in summer they carry a backpack. The season runs from 1 March to 5 October.

The operator rates difficulty at 4 out of 5 and asks for average fitness: walking at a relaxed pace for a couple of hours on uneven ground. No earlier Arctic experience is needed. The operator says the tour does not suit people with limited fitness, knee or joint problems, or back problems, because of the backpack.