Plane
At the moment there is a flight monopoly to Svalbard held by the joint companies SAS/Braathens. For flight schedules etc. check their web page (www.sas.no). Tickets can be bought at Spitsbergern travel's agency, on the web or you may choose a "sjansebillet" = last minute ticket at the airport. This will cost you NOK 800,- to Tromsø and 1450,- to Oslo (one way) - but may not always work out...
The airport bus leaves Nybyen 80 minutes before departure. It costs NOK 30,- for students. See the bulletin board at Svalbardbutikken (7) or UNIS for more details. If it is stormy or foggy, flights may be cancelled or delayed. Experience shows that it is way cheaper to buy the flight from Oslo to Longyearbyen seperately from your flight to Oslo.
Boat
During the summer and early autumn there are several boats which depart from the quay (29), heading for mainland Norway. Nordsyssel is Sysselmannen's ship. It may be possible to hitch-hike with her. A safer bet may be research vessels, which are operating around Svalbard, like Jan Mayen or Lance. A dirty freighter called Nordbjørn delivers lots of cargo. You have to pay to get a ride and will have a lot of fun (if you can arrange yourself with the Russian crew and its drinking habits). The journey from Spitsbergen via Bjørnøya to Tromsø takes about 40-45 hours - remember to bring something against seasickness. You may also be able to get cheap cruises in the early summer and late autumn, when the companies offer a limited number of tickets to the residents. Just check Svalbardposten.
At the moment there is a flight monopoly to Svalbard held by the joint companies SAS/Braathens. For flight schedules etc. check their web page (www.sas.no). Tickets can be bought at Spitsbergern travel's agency, on the web or you may choose a "sjansebillet" = last minute ticket at the airport. This will cost you NOK 800,- to Tromsø and 1450,- to Oslo (one way) - but may not always work out...
The airport bus leaves Nybyen 80 minutes before departure. It costs NOK 30,- for students. See the bulletin board at Svalbardbutikken (7) or UNIS for more details. If it is stormy or foggy, flights may be cancelled or delayed. Experience shows that it is way cheaper to buy the flight from Oslo to Longyearbyen seperately from your flight to Oslo.
Boat
During the summer and early autumn there are several boats which depart from the quay (29), heading for mainland Norway. Nordsyssel is Sysselmannen's ship. It may be possible to hitch-hike with her. A safer bet may be research vessels, which are operating around Svalbard, like Jan Mayen or Lance. A dirty freighter called Nordbjørn delivers lots of cargo. You have to pay to get a ride and will have a lot of fun (if you can arrange yourself with the Russian crew and its drinking habits). The journey from Spitsbergen via Bjørnøya to Tromsø takes about 40-45 hours - remember to bring something against seasickness. You may also be able to get cheap cruises in the early summer and late autumn, when the companies offer a limited number of tickets to the residents. Just check Svalbardposten.