Barentsburg

Art Arctic Gallery

The main exhibition isn't about art, it showcases whalers' items from clothes to carved Orthodox crosses all the way back from the 17th century as well as parts of the wooden ship that Willem Barents expedition used when sailing the waters in 1596. Temporary exhibitions include traditional and folk art by Arctic peoples and paintings of Svalbard by Anna Mikhailova, a Russian painter.

adults (15 years or older) 75 NOK, 10-14 years 25 NOK, under 10 years free

Barentsburg Husky Center

Visit the husky center to see eight different dog breeds used as sled dogs. You can go trekking with the dogs, and dog sledding is available both in winter and summer (when they pull a cart instead of a sled).

Brewery and restaurant Krasniy Medved

One of two breweries in Svalbard (the other one is in Longyearbyen), the "red bear" is also a restaurant, bar and party place. The food menu features cod dishes, burgers, meat dishes and soups, the bar menu their own beer and several cocktails.

Tue-Sun 13:00-01:00

Cape Finneset

South of Barentsburg, named so because according to someone it was a fine peninsula to land a ship.

Chapel

A small Orthodox wooden chapel, erected in 1996 to commemorate the 140 victims of a plane that crashed while bringing in a new shift of miners to Barentsburg.

Handicraft center

Russian-style souvenirs here, made by locals. There are workshops for baking, painting and making finger puppets.

Icebreaker Bar Krasin

With an interior designed like a Soviet icebreaker, the hotel bar specializes in different types of aquavit on the one hand, and drinks from the Soviet Arctic on the other. Traditionally on expeditions, pure alcohol was diluted to the same strength as the latitude and then drunk. Order a "78° latitude" to experience how strong the stuff was when they were around Barentsburg!

Tue-Sun 08:00-23:00

Lenin statue

It may be only the world's second most northernly statue of Lenin (the top spot still belongs to Pyramiden), but it's still a popular spot to take a picture.

Mt Olaf

Towering over Barentsburg, there are large satellite dishes here.

Polar Star

Souvenir shop offering matryoshka dolls, Lenin pins and assorted other Soviet-Russian kitsch.

Restaurant Rijpsburg

Rijpsburg, named after a short-lived Dutch settlement nearby, is a fish restaurant serving dishes prepared from fish from the Arctic waters, though they also have some meat dishes.

Tue-Sun 08:00-23:00

Sport Hall

Two sea water swimming pools and assorted other sports facilities. Also used for competitions with Longyearbyen

Star and slogan

Look up on the hillside above Barentsburg — there's a five-pointed star and the Communist-era slogan Миру Мир/Miru Mir, or "Peace to the World". The sign also serves a useful function during winter, as when the star becomes visible again, the polar night has ended and summer is coming.

Fishing

The tour company also offers fishing tours, ocean fishing from boats and lake fishing from the shore of Lake Linné.

Kayaking

A few different kayak tours are available, from a few hours around Grønfjorden to 11-day expeditions around Svalbard.

Mining tour

You can visit the coal mine on a guided tour. It's said to be the world's only operating coal mine that can be visited, and it's also the northernmost in the world. Tours are available in English, Norwegian, French and Russian.

700 NOK

Cape Heer

Heerodden

The cape where the heliport is, north of Barentsburg.

Pomor Museum

Stuffed polar bears, a dinosaur footprint and lots of rocks.

Entry 50 kr