Meanwhile, in the Russian Barentsburg on Svalbard run in new routes for tourists, and we hope that in July, Norway will open its borders to foreign tourists.
As told “RG” the head of the Center of Arctic tourism “Grumant” Timofey Rogozhin, “for Norwegian tourists and we hope to open in June, maybe even earlier. I hope that the external borders of Norway will open in July.”
Meanwhile, tells Rogozhin, the Russians, working on Spitsbergen, the greatest joy – may 5 new helicopter trust “Arktikugol” MI-8 MT made its first flight in the archipelago. The helicopter brought the Russian cargo plane Il-76 in mid-March, when Svalbard was introduced quarantine. A new car was necessary because the old Mi-8 has fulfilled all conceivable extensions of the regulations. However, because of the isolation measures imposed by Norway, the helicopter is only collected and deposited at the airport of Longyearbyen, the capital of the Spitsbergen archipelago. Then for more than a month had to coordinate the delivery of crew of the helicopter in conditions of quarantine. Finally, on 5 may, after complying with all quarantine regulations on both sides of the border, the crew flew to their destination the same day, after test flight, was moved to Barentsburg, situated about fifty kilometers from Longyearbyen. And the next day a helicopter flew to the Pyramid preserved the village Soviet miners, transformed in recent years into one of the main tourist attractions in Svalbard, the Museum under the open sky, which the king of Norway Harald V called “the pearl of the archipelago”.
Meanwhile, the may day holiday in Barentsburg opened the bar “Icebreaker Krasin”, which recreated the interiors of the Soviet icebreaking fleet, in compiling the interior of the world’s first atomic icebreaker “Lenin” and the legendary icebreaker “krassin”. The opening of the bar was literally next day after a visit to Barentsburg polar bear.
meanwhile, says Timofei Rogozhin, a Russian travel company “Grumant”, a subsidiary of the trust “Arktikugol”, working in the archipelago, quarantine using the lull to develop new routes for tourists.
“Last winter, exploring the Western side, one of our guides, max Matakovich, his track came from Dixanthogen in Nordfjord and thereby gave me the idea of being able to get in the winter in the abandoned village of Ramsburg on the Peninsula Tundra of Boheman, founded by the Dutch and abandoned in the 1920-ies, – said Rogozhin. – We there for a long time was going to come in the summer and about winter and thought. But put in the plan for this winter-spring. Three weeks ago we finally got to the Tundra of Bagaimana. Understand that the route in��can, and should do further exploration to understand possible alternatives for different weather conditions. Along the way, to add a route different beautiful places. Earlier our guides have drawn, found and tested different routes to the Swedish house – one more known place and important Chapter in the history of the development of Spitsbergen. Plus, the mountain of the Torah, where what is called “the view” one million, lifting it developed a different our guide, Daniel turumin. And all these sketches together in one whole. In fact, in two full day of interesting routes, which brought together in itself, and historical objects (Swedish house Ramsburg), and history (a field Outpost of the Norwegian hunter and a few huts-havens in case of bad weather), as well as two walls of the glaciers, some beautiful canyons and three panoramic nodes. The highlight of these routes is the abundance of diverse landscapes and panoramas. Then you look at Svalbard from the height of bird’s flight, then go straight along the coastline, then cross on the ice of the big fjords, watching the tall mountains on the horizon, storming up and down the narrow canyons”.
meanwhile, Norwegian travel company in Svalbard are asking the Governor of the archipelago to cancel the quarantine as soon as possible. The local newspaper Svalbard Posten published a great letter from the leadership of the Norwegian travel company, Basecamp Explorer. “As soon as possible to stop the practice of 14-day quarantine for all arriving at the archipelago,” – said in the letter. Otherwise tourist companies of the archipelago is unlikely to recover from the crisis. Tourism is the main industry of Spitsbergen: the return is in 2019 amounted to about 1 billion NOK 97 million dollars. Already today in the three largest tour companies laid off more than 300 people. Given that the population of the archipelago – about 2700 people, this is a significant figure. The closure affects, for example, and dog farms. Archipelago bred sled dogs, but they require expensive care and feeding. The costing should take into account that Svalbard is located just a thousand kilometers from the North pole, and virtually nothing of their own there, except that of coal. Everything else must be brought from the mainland.
