Ski & Sail
Svalbard
Tour the mountains of the wild west coast of Svalbard for a week. In collaboration with experienced guides, and as the conditions allow, we choose the best slopes for each daily, new adventure.
Live on board our 65 feet sailing ship Ylva, a comfortable home at sea designed for adventure. Our crew makes sure you are safely transported between destinations, and provide you with nourishing meals each day.
Help out sailing if you like, and catch some fish as we go.
Ski & Sail
Svalbard
Tour the mountains of the wild west coast of Svalbard for a week. In collaboration with experienced guides, and as the conditions allow, we choose the best slopes for each daily, new adventure.
Live on board our 65 feet sailing ship Ylva, a comfortable home at sea designed for adventure. Our crew makes sure you are safely transported between destinations, and provide you with nourishing meals each day.
Help out sailing if you like, and catch some fish as we go.
The Arctic is different. Raw, wild, and unrealistically beautiful. With the midnight sun shining 24 hours a day, it’s impossible not to fall in love with this place. Here, you can ski at any time of day – and every run feels like an adventure in an untouched landscape.
Svalbard’s ski-and-sail season begins in May, a time when the light and the landscape create truly unique conditions for skiing. Few places in the world can offer anything like it.
On board our sailing yacht Ylva, you find your floating home and secure basecamp for this expedition. The moment you step aboard, you feel the calm: the sea lapping against the hull, the view shifting from mountains to glaciers to endless ice, and an atmosphere that instantly relaxes you.
Ylva is more than a boat – she is an oasis in the Arctic, where comfort, camaraderie, and unforgettable nature experiences come together.
Arctic isolation
Svalbard is a Norwegian island halfway between the mainland and the North Pole.
The capital, Longyearbyen, is as far north as you can get travelling on a regular scheduled flight.
Available Svalbard tours 2026
Life on board Ylva
A selection of cabin options
Our two rear cabins (nos. 3 and 4) both have double beds and generous storage space. Waking in the morning to the view of the sea is unforgettable.
Comfort for everyone
All cabins have private bathrooms and heads (one share with the guide cabin). Warm duvets, blankets, towels and toiletry is provided.
Nature provides
We are proud of our Norwegian food culture, and the abundance that nature provides in the sea.
Our guests will at the very least enjoy the bounty with us through our menu composed with love. If we are lucky, we may even catch our own dinner, and you can learn how to cook the Norwegian way.
Be a part of the crew
On board our experienced captain and mate will ensure safety and comfort for all, while allowing our guest the opportunity to take part and learn our love for sailing and and our arctic waters.
Nice to know
Here are some common questions from our guests.
We provide a full board to all our guests on Ylva, and it is our goal that your experience with us is one of warmth and comfort.
We serve 3 delicious meals each day; Breakfast, lunch and dinner. Usually, lunch is taken on the slopes, and we provide options to pack and bring your own from the boat in cooperation with the guide. There is always snacks and fruits available should you feel the need for more energy. Coffee, tea, juice and milk is complementary. Beer and wine is for sale on board.
Your bunk is equipped with comfortable linen and a warm down duvet. There are towels and soaps for your use in your bathroom.
Sailing in the Arctic can be cold and windy in winter. However, Ylva is a large boat, and only rarely will there be much sea spray over deck. Your skiing gear - goretex trousers and jackets, with proper woolen layers as well as mid-layers underneath, will usually be sufficient.
However, Ylva has an indoor steering house, so going on deck to work the sails is only done during manouvers and sail changes, and assisting the crew in these phases is a voluntary experience.
Longyearbyen Airport (LYR) is reachable only from the Norwegian mainland. The carriers that serve the route are Scandinavian Airlines and Norwegian. You may find flights from Tromsø (TOS), but the easiest is to fly directly from Oslo (OSL).
Norway abides by the Svalbard Treaty that grants rights to citizens of signatore states equal rights on the island. Therefore, Svalbard is not part of Schengen even though the rest of Norway is. Make sure you bring your passport. If you do not, you may be refused boarding.
Once you land in Longyearbyen, you will find both local buses and taxis available at the airport. The town centre is only a 5 minutes drive away.
Yes, each cabin has a private shower and toilet, except one of the forward cabins (nr. 2) that shares these with the guides. Towels and toiletries are provided.
We provide protected storage for all skis in large crates on deck. Ski boots are kept in a locker behind the steering house, to save space inside. All your equipment is safe from sea spray and other sources of dirt.
Indeed there is!
We fill it up with sea water and heat it with a wood-burning stove. Our goal is to fire it up at least a couple of times each trip. The stove can comfortably hold six people, but a couple more can fit between good friends.
On a boat, we strongly recommend that you pack in soft bags that can be rolled up and stowed away. A suitcase would pose a problem to store in your cabin.
As you are a skiier, you are probably well aware of how to dress in winter conditions. Just make sure you keep in mind that the wind in Norway can be strong, adding to the other challenges of low temperatures and humidity.