Sleeping in a former radio station
Presentation
Practical information
A radio station awaits you between land and sky, even farther than the northernmost city on the planet.
Lost in the northernmost reaches of Europe, Svalbard is a Norwegian archipelago where the sun does not set from late April to late August.
The entrance to the Isfjord (the ice fjord), on the west coast of Spitsbergen, the main island, is marked by two important landmarks: Alkhornet to the north, with its bird cliffs, and Cape Linné to the south. This is where the buildings of Isfjord Radio stand. This former maritime traffic radio station and later weather station was of great importance until 1979. From that time, the implementation of satellite communications and then fiber optics (2004) rendered the facilities quite obsolete.
While the exterior of the buildings remains unchanged and tells the station's story, the interior is now fully renovated, calm, and very comfortable. 23 rooms (49 beds) in four buildings, with shared toilets and showers, but there is also a library, a large fireplace, a sauna, a bar, and the Norwegian cuisine of the chef. From the dining room, there is a spectacular view of Isfjord and towards Greenland. From autumn to spring, the phenomenon of the northern lights is spectacular above the peaks covered with eternal ice. Between earth and sky, in these chiaroscuro landscapes where everything seems unknown and still spared from mass tourism, the wonder is total.
To get there from Longyearbyen - the capital with 2,500 inhabitants - boat, snowmobile, or dog sled, but in this case, it will take you two days.
Label Rose of St Olav, distinguishing the promotion of Norwegian cultural heritage.
✯ Open from early February to late September ✯
Lost in the northernmost reaches of Europe, Svalbard is a Norwegian archipelago where the sun does not set from late April to late August.
The entrance to the Isfjord (the ice fjord), on the west coast of Spitsbergen, the main island, is marked by two important landmarks: Alkhornet to the north, with its bird cliffs, and Cape Linné to the south. This is where the buildings of Isfjord Radio stand. This former maritime traffic radio station and later weather station was of great importance until 1979. From that time, the implementation of satellite communications and then fiber optics (2004) rendered the facilities quite obsolete.
While the exterior of the buildings remains unchanged and tells the station's story, the interior is now fully renovated, calm, and very comfortable. 23 rooms (49 beds) in four buildings, with shared toilets and showers, but there is also a library, a large fireplace, a sauna, a bar, and the Norwegian cuisine of the chef. From the dining room, there is a spectacular view of Isfjord and towards Greenland. From autumn to spring, the phenomenon of the northern lights is spectacular above the peaks covered with eternal ice. Between earth and sky, in these chiaroscuro landscapes where everything seems unknown and still spared from mass tourism, the wonder is total.
To get there from Longyearbyen - the capital with 2,500 inhabitants - boat, snowmobile, or dog sled, but in this case, it will take you two days.
Label Rose of St Olav, distinguishing the promotion of Norwegian cultural heritage.
✯ Open from early February to late September ✯
Isfjord Radio
Basecamp Explorer Spitsbergen
P.O.Box 316
9171 Longyearbyen, Norvège
Tel : +47 79 02 46 00
From 1990 NOKBasecamp Explorer Spitsbergen
P.O.Box 316
9171 Longyearbyen, Norvège
Tel : +47 79 02 46 00
Pricing details
Rates 2019, from 1990 NOK per person in a double room, including dinner and breakfast. ⊹ High season, from March 1 to May 15, from €2190 per person
⊹ From June 1 to September 30, from €1990 per person
22 rooms, sauna, wi-fi connection.
Note: All prices are provided for informational purposes only and must be confirmed directly with the establishment.
Comments
The city center and Longyearbyen airport are 90 km away.
