How to Photograph Polar Bears in Svalbard

For polar bears, the surface of sea ice provides a platform for long-distance movement, resting, mating, denning and accessing their primary prey, ringed seals and bearded seals. Polar bears are slower and less agile swimmers than seals and unlikely to catch them in the open water. A lack of sea ice thus restricts polar bears to less accessible, fat-poor terrestrial food sources.

In areas like the Svalbard Archipelago, female polar bears with cubs prefer inshore, landfast ice during spring if available, and they spend a lot of their time near glacier fronts. Their preference for landfast ice in springtime is linked to ringed seal breeding biology, which provides polar bears with access to prey. Moreover, the ice itself forms a stable platform for polar bear cubs.

Polar bears are intelligent, curious and opportunistic, all traits important for survival in a diverse habitat that changes dramatically from season to season. After thousands of years adapting to sea ice and seal hunting, the condition of their sea ice habitat is crucial. But as sea ice dwindles, polar bears may need to adopt other strategies and hunting techniques for surviving in a warmer climate. Will their extreme physical and behavioural adaptations to sea ice and seal hunting be disadvantageous in a future of changing conditions?

Svalbard is one of the best areas in the Arctic to observe and photograph polar bears. However, there is no guarantee that you will see a polar bear during your visit, but there are ways to increase your chances:

Join a Ship-Based Expedition: Staying in Longyearbyen offers very low chances of seeing a polar bear. Photo expeditions by ships, especially those travelling to remote northern and eastern regions, significantly increase the likelihood of polar bear encounters. Learn more about ship-based photo expeditions.

Extend the Trip Duration: Spending more days in Svalbard improves the odds. On most 8-10 day ship expeditions you can see polar bears multiple times.

Choose a Small Group with a Flexible Itinerary: Travelling with a small group without a fixed itinerary allows the expedition to adapt to changing weather and ice conditions, which maximises wildlife viewing opportunities.

New (2025) regulations in Svalbard require a 500-metre distance from polar bears during winter and spring (1. March - 30. June) and 300 metres during the rest of the year. This will make photographing polar bears more difficult, especially from zodiacs. However, it will still be possible to observe and photograph polar bears in the drifting sea ice (pack ice) north of Svalbard, where there are no distance rules.

It will still be possible to photograph polar bears in the great Svalbard landscape, with the required distance. However, if you want closer meetings with polar bears you have to join an expedition ship to the drifting sea ice (pack ice) where closer distances are still allowed.