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shugoey Says: In the main street the is a Museum, which is suppose to be very interesting. We never had the time to visit on our short stop.
tini58de Says: have fun looking for details!One thing that our tourguide pointed out to us were those little boxes within the windows. No, they are not airconditions - they are Arctic refrigerators!!!
tini58de Says: A guided tour through Barentsburg is a matter of a few minutes, maybe half an hour - not counting a visit to the museum, of course!There is not much to be seen in this little village: the sports center, the church, the museum and a few houses, along with explanations of the...
tini58de Says: The Church of Barentsburg is a very new one: it was built after a terrible plane crash, in which 141 people were killed at Operafjellet outside Longyearbyen in August 1996. These were mostly families of the miners - a terrible loss!The church is a tiny church, more like a...
tini58de Says: This really was a highlight and I am so glad we had time enough to visit this museum! They have excellent exhibitions on geology, history and flora and fauna.It is very well described both in Russian and in English - much better than the (old) museum in Longyearbyen.Entrance...
agalta Says: the russian mining town (less than 1000 inhabitants, mostly men! watch out girls!)note the wooden thing in the foreground: all pipes have to be isolated and kept above ground, like all the buildings ... otherwise they sink... (the usual permafrost problems!)
agalta Says: here they can be completely self sufficient: they have a hothouse and they raise cattle indoor too! they say it's the northernost cows...and this must be the northernmost Lenin too!
agalta Says: another thing that we could not see... closed? not enough time? hmmm
Talking and walking along side the locals.
shiran_d Says: The Locals told me that There aren't police because the occasional troublemaker ''just gets a little advice from the mine manager,So nice.
shiran_d Says: These are originals caps worn during the old Russian times. The Picture was taken inside the souvenir shop.
Barentsburg hotel: The bar at the hotel
shugoey Says: There is a bar at the hotel. Here they sell souvernirs and of cause a lot of Vodka. A shot of vodka was sold at NOK 10,-. I never saw a menu so maybe vodka was it....
The mine workers' cafeteria: The mine workers' cafeteria
shiran_d Says: Our quest for food and drinks took us to the mining company cafeteria, which is not generally open to tourists (since the food is free), but after sitting around for a while, they kindly offered us a meal and some tea for free. Very hospitable, indeed. And it was quite a...
tini58de Says: There are no streets leading to Barentsburg, so it is necessary to take the boat! We went on a boat tour from Longyearbyen to Barentsburg. There are two tour companies offering day trips and they are basically identical. The departure times differ a little and what I heard,...
Transport during Summer months
shiran_d Says: Transporting Coal.
they sure know how to party!!!
tini58de Says: When we visited Barentsburg we were very lucky: it was the Russian National Holiday!That meant:people had been partying from early morning on and were expected to keep doing so until late in the evening. On the party square south of the church there were lots of stalls -...
tini58de Says: As everywhere in Svalbard and also in many places of the Arctic, it is a custom to take off the shoes before entering a building. The photo shows the lobby of the local museum and as you can notice, they do have slippers available for you!The custom of taking off the shoes...
tini58de Says: As I mentioned before, Barentsburg is a Russian settlement on Norwegian grounds. Most inhabitants are Russian and Ukrainian coal miners and their families. Everything still looks like in old Soviet times: Mr. Lenin still greets you (our guide said, this was merely a "joke"...
tini58de Says: There is not much information on Barentsburg, except that it is the only Russian settlement on Svalbard, that according to www.world-gazeteer.com it has a declining number of inhabitants and that a few VTers have already been there...That's about it....
tini58de Says: Starting in 1986 Barentsburg has opened up to tourism. Now it is possible to visit the town - usually on a boat tour from Longyearbyen. It is required that you take a guided tour with a local (that is Russian) tourguide. You get a "tour" through the town and get quite a bit...
Plan a Barentsburg vacation with reviews, tips and photos posted by real travelers and Barentsburg locals
Signs of the "good old days" of the Soviet era are still visible here...
Q: I've just been reading about Svalbard and was fascinated to learn there is a Russian Community there. Can anyone explain more -...
A: I am not sure what you mean by "developing Eastern Russian culture", but Russians have a permission to mine due to the state agreement with Norway from I believe 1950s....
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Barentsburg is the main Russian community on Spitsbergen. It is now open to tourists, and this is where our snowmibile trip across the mountains from Longearbyen took us.
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Barentsburg - the last Soviet frontier
We went to Barentsburg on a daytrip from Longyearbyen Barentsburg is a Russian settlement on the Norwegian archipelago of Svalbard - and although I have seen a few Russian/Soviet places, boy, THAT......
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Barentsburg is a Russian settlement on Svalbard. It has around 700 russian and ukainian inhabitants. It is more or less built on top of the coal mine.
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Barentsburg , the pearl of Svalbard
Barentsburg is a very cool place ! I was there in december and the temperature wasn't so cold as I expected.It's a place worth of visiting , the russians are very nice and welcoming .
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