First cruise line to be allowed to sail to Franz Josef Land without calling at mainland Russian port
By
Rebecca Gibson |
Poseidon Expeditions has become first cruise line to be permitted to sail to Franz Josef Land without calling at a mainland Russian port.
Granted to expedition ship Sea Spirit on 8 July, the permit marks the first time in history that a non-Russian, foreign-flagged vessel has been allowed to enter Franz Josef Land territorial waters without previously calling at larger ports such as Murmansk or Arkhangelsk.
“Speaking as both a company official and as a passenger, I truly appreciate the hard work that everyone put forward to make this happen, all designed to give our guests a truly unique polar expeditionary experience that was previously unattainable,” said Nikolay Saveliev, president of Poseidon Expeditions. “We also commend the Russian authorities for their cooperation in making the incredible polar landscape of Franz Josef Land more readily accessible to visitors.”
Sea Spirit is currently sailing in the Russian High Arctic after departing from the port of Longyearbyen, Svalbard, on 3 July. The ship and its 106 passengers are scheduled to call at Alexandra Land, Northbrook Island, Hooker Island, Rudolf Island, Champ Island and other historic or wildlife-significant areas of the uninhabited Franz Josef Land archipelago, sea ice permitting.
Franz Josef Land consists of nearly 200 islands, with much of the terrain covered with glaciers. The archipelago served as point for notable attempts to reach the North Pole during the nineteenth and twentieth centuries.