This journey began with a sudden idea that occurred to me last October. Growing up in the south, I have always longed for snowy days. However, the lowest average temperature in the city where I currently live is 9 degrees Celsius, which doesn't even resemble winter at all. So every winter, I would deliberately leave this place and go to a cold place to search for winter. That day, I suddenly thought: Since I want to experience winter, why not go further away and head to the northernmost place in the world?
I opened Apple Maps and the first thing I noticed was Norway within the Arctic Circle. I was pleasantly surprised to find that the background image on my previous computer was actually Tromsø, a city in the northern part of Norway. I was immediately captivated! Looking further north, I discovered that there was another place on the map called Svalbard. After doing some research online, I learned that the world's northernmost city: Longyearbyen, is actually located there.
There weren't many online guides, but the more I read, the more I got excited. The price of the plane ticket and hotel was also reasonable. Without any hesitation, I immediately made a decision: On Thanksgiving Day, I would go to Norway to drive around and chase whales while watching the aurora borealis. And I would also go to the northernmost city in the world to experience the polar night!
In the following few days, I delved into the travel guides crazily. Within a week, I finalized this 12-day itinerary: starting from the western part of the United States during the Thanksgiving holiday, I would travel all the way to Longyearbyen via the northern part of Norway, then transfer to Copenhagen in Denmark for a flight back to the western part of the United States. Nothing could give me more motivation than traveling.
Let's return to this northernmost city in the world - Longyearbyen.
Regarding Longyearbyen
Longyearbyen is located in the Svalbard archipelago, at a latitude of 78 degrees north. It is the northernmost permanently inhabited city in the world. Although the Svalbard archipelago offers visa-free access to Chinese citizens, traveling to Longyearbyen requires entering and exiting through Norway, thus a Schengen visa for multiple entries and exits is necessary.
Because polar bears might appear on the island, Longyearbyen has been divided into "safe zones" and "unsafe zones". Within the safe zones, one can freely walk around. Major hotels, restaurants, supermarkets, museums, etc. are all concentrated here. While facilities such as the mining area, airport, dog sledding, seed bank, etc. are located outside the safe zones and require carrying firearms for travel (if joining a local tour group, there will be armed tour guides). However, if you are like me and travel in winter, especially during the polar night, polar bears are generally in a hibernation state, and the probability of encountering them is very low. Due to its remote location, all supplies in Longyearbyen rely on transportation from the mainland, so the prices are relatively high.
Schedule/Time Table
We have chosen to fly from Tromsø, Norway to Longyearbyen on Friday, November 25, 2024, and then leave for Oslo, the capital of Norway, on Sunday, November 27, 2024, at noon.
As the end of November marked the start of the polar night (with the sun never rising and 24 hours of darkness throughout the day), we were concerned that prolonged exposure to darkness might affect our mood. Therefore, we only arranged for a stay of exactly 48 hours in Longyearbyen. Now it seems that this was a very wise decision. Two days was just right, sufficient to experience the polar night and not causing any feelings of depression due to excessive darkness.
Weather conditions
In Longyearbyen at the end of November, the temperature was around -10 to -15 degrees Celsius. The ground was covered with very hard and thick ice layers. Although it was the polar night, the weather was still subject to change. Different weather conditions resulted in different perceived temperatures.
Sunny day: The perceived temperature is quite warm. The sky is dark but clear. At one o'clock in the afternoon, you can still see the stars!!
Cloudy / partly cloudy / windy: It will be several degrees colder. The coldest feeling might reach around -20 degrees Celsius.
Apparel
Upper body: Since I didn't have a down jacket, I wore multiple layers. A base shirt + a sweater + a lightweight cotton coat + an outer windproof jacket. When it was cold, I would add another sweater or a larger cotton coat.
Lower body: I wore three pairs of pants, long underwear + fleece pants + sports pants.
Shoes: The ground in Longyearbyen is thick ice formed by years of snow accumulation, which is very slippery! It is recommended to wear shoes suitable for walking on ice. I wore Dr. Martens boots myself, but ended up falling several times...
Island activities
The activities that can be participated in during the polar night are quite limited. Many activities such as taking a polar icebreaker, visiting other islands, watching polar bears, etc. cannot be carried out. The ones that can be participated in include the Svalbard in a Nutshell bus tour, dog sledding, snowmobile, polar night ice cave hiking, visiting abandoned mines, and chasing the aurora (due to the high latitude of Longyearbyen, the possibility of seeing the aurora is not as high as in Tromsø, Norway). All activities are recommended to be booked through the official website Visit Svalbard. The website also provides detailed precautions and weather alerts.
So, if you just want to experience 24 hours of darkness, then November to January (the Polar Night) would be a great choice. This period can also be considered the off-season. However, if you want to have a better exploration of Longyearbyen, it is recommended to come in spring or summer when the daylight hours are longer.
Accommodation
There are about a dozen accommodation options on the island, ranging from hostels to standard hotels and guesthouses, and the choice can vary from simple to luxurious.
We stayed at: Haugen Pensjonat Svalbard. We had to share the bathroom and toilet with the other room occupants. However, since it was relatively the off-season at the end of November, there weren't many people, and the hotel was very clean and quiet. The hotel was equipped with a kitchen and a lounge area (with complete kitchenware, allowing for cooking), and also provided a simple breakfast (cookies + coffee). The price for two nights was NOK 2200 ($199), which was very reasonable considering the scarcity of resources in Longyearbyen. The owner was also very friendly, who gave us detailed information about the local situation upon check-in. The experience was excellent! On the day we left, the owner even booked a taxi for us.
Detailed itinerary
Day 1 - Friday, 11.29
Flight: Tromsø (Tromsø) 12:00 → Longyearbyen 13:40
Airlines: Norwegian Airline (This is Norway's own airline. You can also choose SAS. There is often a youth ticket discount for those under 26 years old)
Ticket price: Approximately $160 - $178 one-way
On that day, Tromsø was hit by a snowstorm. 95% of the flights were cancelled. Our flight, being at noon, had slightly less snowfall and was very fortunate to take off successfully, with only a slight delay.
smoothly arrive
At this moment it's 14:28. Hahaha, it's completely dark. The place with the green light on the opposite side is the seed bank.
After arriving in Longyearbyen, take the bus at the airport entrance to the safe zone. Tell the driver which hotel you are staying at, and the driver will take you to the hotel entrance. Don't worry about not having a vehicle when you exit the airport, or the driver not knowing your hotel, because the flight schedules for entering and leaving the airport are fixed every day, and the driver has lived here for several decades and knows every hotel in this area very well.
Ticket price: Adult 110 NOK
After taking a short break, we began to explore this Arctic city.
Although the map shows it only take
s 15 minutes to walk from the hotel to the business district, the distance is actually quite short.
This was the end of the world. Walking on the icy expanse of the night, my first impression was silence.
I stayed outside for three hours, from around four o'clock to seven o'clock. I explored most of the main areas of Longyearbyen and got familiar with them. I also made a big shopping trip to the supermarket. The prices of the ingredients were acceptable and were similar to those in London and Los Angeles.
Perhaps if a person stays in a dark environment for a long time, they might lose track of time and also become easily drowsy. We went to bed around 11 o'clock that day.
The first day of the polar night has come to an end.
