Walrus Safari – Two tons of Happiness
with Better Moments
- Price: 3200.- NOK
- 1 May to 15 August 2025
- Duration: 5 hours
- Difficulty Level: 3/5
- Age limit: 4 years old
- 09:00-14:00
Svalbard’s wildlife is unique and fascinating. Join us on our day trip to experience it from up close! Every day we use our closed and comfortable RIB boats to go to a well-known walrus colony. Here we do a landing on the beach. We will then have the opportunity to observe these funny and extraordinary animals in the arctic landscape.
The walrus is one of the most intriguing animals in the Arctic. Most of the summer, they stay in the same area and love to sunbathe on the beach and feed on clams in the surrounding waters. Our boat is comfortable, closed, dry and heated, with a panorama view, bar and toilet.
We will start our trip crossing the beautiful Isfjord towards Borebukta. On the way, we are accompanied by the many different birds that nest in Svalbard. A frequent visitor is the Atlantic puffin. Our guides will try to point out all the interesting birds we get to see during this trip.
On a regular day, there are around 10-30 walruses in the colony. Standing on the beach in silence, we will be able to clearly hear the walruses argue over who gets the best sun beds. Don’t forget your camera, you will have many perfect photo opportunities. In case the weather does not allow us to have a landing, we will still be able to see them up close from the aft deck of the boat. On some days we can come to an empty beach, but our guides will try their best to find walruses nearby. Keep in mind that we cannot guarantee any wildlife, however, the walrus is an animal we frequently see in this area.
Once back on board, we serve a lunch and start heading towards the Bore glacier. This beautiful wall of blue ice will fill the bay with floating icebergs, bergabits and growlers. If we are lucky, we will see it “calving”, this is when ice falls off the glacier front. After the visit at the glacier front, we start making our way back to Longyearbyen.
Early in the season (May and June) there is a good chance that there is still sea ice in the area, and then the walrus does not have access to the beach and will rest directly on the sea ice. If so, it is also not possible of us to do a landing, but we will enjoy the animals from our boat.
We can never guarantee wildlife, however, this is a well-known hauling-out place for walruses. Better Moments has the right to change the route and destination of the trip due to the weather conditions. The weather forecast is never completely reliable in the areas we are travelling in, therefore like on all other boat trips, we always want to go out and see for ourselves if we can reach our destination. In case the weather prevents us from getting all the way there, we will spend the day in the beautiful Isfjorden, visiting glaciers and searching for other wildlife.
Practical Information
Important Information
- Please note that we can never guarantee wildlife sightings. However, we operate in areas well known for their wildlife, and our experienced guides will do their best to spot animals during the trip.
All animals on Svalbard roam freely. Later in the season, chances for wildlife encounters may decrease, as many species begin migrating south. In these cases, we place greater focus on Svalbard’s dramatic nature, rich history, and the beautiful light conditions of the Arctic autumn. - Minimum participants: 6
- Minimum age: 4 years
- Children under 12: NOK 700 discount
- Please include the information about your food allergies or dietary restrictions upon booking
- Landing is not guaranteed if the condition doesn’t allow us
- In accordance with Svalbard regulations, we must maintain a minimum distance of 500 meters from polar bears, 150 meters from Walruses
- These rules exist to protect both your safety and the well-being of Arctic wildlife. Our guides will ensure all regulations are strictly followed during the trip.
Cancellation Policy
•22 days prior to arrival give a full refund
•8-21 days prior to arrival gives a 50% refund
•0-7 days prior to departure gives no refund
Svalbard is beautiful, but also unpredictable. For your safety, our guides may need to move activities to another day or replace them with a different trip if conditions do not allow the original plan.
In rare cases, if the weather makes it impossible to run an activity at all, it may be cancelled. Should this happen, you will of course receive a full refund for the affected trip.
Your safety and comfort always come first, and we’ll do our best to make sure you still have a memorable experience.
Included in the trip
Dress in layers – it’s the best way to stay warm. Remember: it is better to be too warm than to be too cold. And also – there is no bad weather, just bad clothing!
- Boat transport on a heated, closed RIB
- Landing at walrus site by dinghy (if weather and sea ice conditions allow us)
- Professional Arctic guide
- Safety equipment
- Packed lunch, soft and hot drinks
- Insurance (SAR)
