Originally established as a mining town along breathtaking Isfjorden, Longyearbyen is now Svalbard’s largest city, a vibrant cultural hub and an ideal launching pad for your polar adventures. Fulfill a lifelong dream by riding a sled pulled by huskies and visit a mysterious ice cave, whose translucent walls gleam in shades of blue and white. Journey to the Russian mining ghost town of Pyramiden, where fascinating vestiges of a once-thriving operation still stand, and continue to Barentsburg, an inhabited Russian settlement that offers a compelling contrast to Longyearbyen. For an invigorating adventure, kayak among small chunks of ice floating offshore or hike through Svalbard’s lunar-like landscapes, perhaps ascending to Plateau Mountain for superlative views or trekking to the critically important Global Seed Vault, a repository for Earth’s plant life. Learn the exhilarating tales of intrepid explorers at the North Pole Expedition Museum, where exhibits shed light on some of history’s most daring voyages. Hang up your coat at Huset, a sophisticated eatery that wouldn’t be out of place in the world’s culinary capitals, and try unusual and impeccably prepared regional dishes such as reindeer and seal steak.

Slicing into the southern tip of Spitsbergen Island, Hornsund is treasured as one Svalbard’s most beautiful fjords. Its somewhat misleading name derives from a set of reindeer antlers found by explorers in the 17th century, as well as the belief that it cut through to the other side of Spitsbergen, which would have made it a sund, or sound. The fjord’s tallest peak is the towering, serrated Hornsundtind, but dramatic rock formations are plentiful along the shore, including the needle-like Bautaen. To the east, imposing plateau-shaped mountains with horizontal layers of sediment recall an American West landscape, albeit a perpetually frigid one. Where the tundra has taken hold, vibrant flowers emerge and substantial colonies of little auks congregate, ideal conditions for reindeer and Arctic fox. Of the people who have settled here throughout history, the most fascinating may be Wanny Wolstad, a Norwegian woman who joined an expedition to Svalbard in 1932 and settled in Hornsund, becoming an expert trapper in defiance of the era’s social norms and expectations. With luck, you might see the formidable polar bears she once hunted, brought into Hornsund atop floating icebergs carried by ocean currents.

The earliest known explorer of this fjord was Jonas Poole, an Englishman who bravely made his way here in 1610. Trekking about a mile inland, he left across as a marker indicating the date of his arrival, which in turn provided the fjord with its name. Other crumbling traces of human activity can be found in the area, most memorably a secret WWII German weather station, which provided valuable data for planning attacks on convoys. The landscape of the fjord and its tributaries is utterly majestic, with several glaciers coming to an end in the frigid waters. You’ll be mesmerized by Lilliehook, a uniquely horseshoe-shaped glacier that extends for approximately 4.5 miles. Interrupting the stillness, awesome chunks of ice periodically collapse into the fjord, forming slow-moving islands of ice. Elsewhere, gently sloping hills that descend to the shoreline are carpeted with tundra, attracting reindeer, Arctic fox and barnacle geese, hardy residents of this magical land.

At 16 miles long, Kongsfjorden is one of Svalbard’s shortest fjords, but it is ringed by no fewer than six impressive glaciers that continually feed the water with newly calved hunks of ice, each seemingly lit from within by supernatural blue light. Polar bears may claim these icebergs as temporary homes since they provide optimal staging points from which to hunt seals. The latter creatures are abundant, with ringed and bearded seals often clustered along the shores of venturing into the water for prey. Early whalers favored this waterway, which is still frequented by minke whales and Belugas that skim through the fjord in sociable pods. The industrial zeal of the early 20th century is evident on the island of Blomstrandhalvøya, where a marble quarrying operation called Ny London was established in 1911. Today, only remnants of the housing and equipment remain, as the marble was quickly found to be of inferior quality. From enthralling history to gorgeous scenery, Kongsfjorden perfectly encapsulates the essence of Svalbard.

As the island of Spitsbergen’s longest fjord and the second-longest in all of Svalbard, Isfjorden offers ample opportunities for thrilling exploration. To the north, the frozen mountains of the Nordre Isfjorden National Park give birth to massive glaciers that meander into the fjord. In Ekmanfjorden, one of Isfjorden’s branches, step ashore for views of impressive Kolosseum Mountain, keeping your eyes peeled for Arctic fox skittering about and seals relaxing on ice floes offshore. While cruising past Isfjorden’s tallest cliffs, you’ll observe significant populations of sea birds such as kittiwakes, Brünich’s guillemots and even alluring puffins, whose large, bright-orange beaks are instantly recognizable. The fjord also shelters most of Svalbard’s human residents, with the archipelago’s largest population found in the capital of Longyearbyen and a few Russians in the smaller settlement of Barentsburg. Perhaps most intriguing of all, Pyramiden is a mostly abandoned Russian mining colony that evokes the communist era with its severe apartment blocks. Surprisingly, the inviting Hotel Pyramiden opens for business during the warmer months, an excellent place to sip on hot tea and discuss the day’s adventures.

Disembark after breakfast