The wonders of the Arctic don't just come to you - you have to seek them out. The same goes for Spitsbergen and north-eastern Greenland. Journeys through icy worlds, cruising off polished rocky coastlines, Zodiac landings and hikes: uncover the secrets of these regions in a small group of explorers on board the HANSEATIC spirit. In the best season for cruising, explore an extreme habitat with magnificent landscapes. The ship's course will be decided day by day depending on the weather and best possible experiences - a flexibility only possible with a small expedition ship and an experienced polar crew. The Observation Lounge, spirit Walk and glass balconies will become your front-row seats for unique natural spectacles. Perhaps you'll catch sight of the "king of the Arctic"? The best way to watch polar bears is from the deck of the ship or from a Zodiac at a respectful distance. With a little luck, you will spot reindeer, Arctic foxes and walruses on a shore visit. The backdrops to your fascinating hikes range from mighty glaciers to vast rocky landscapes and tundra. Awestruck by the bizarre nature, allow gazing in wonder to become your new passion on this expedition.
The first goal of the HANSEATIC spirit is clear: to circumnavigate Spitsbergen. This route takes in many remote locations, such as Cape Lee on the north-western tip of the island of Edgeoya. Will the Zodiacs manage to land in a sheltered bay? The cruise through Freeman Sound, a strait of water only around 5 km (3 mi.) wide, is accompanied by the play of colour and light in the Arctic. You may be able to enjoy particularly weighty observations on Nordaustlandet, in the original territory of the walrus. These colossal creatures often like to lounge on the beach on the Torellneset headland. An almost mystical atmosphere will envelop you as you cruise through the Hinlopen Strait if the brownish and black beaches and rocks are cloaked in fog and ice. Peaked mountains surround the Liefdefjord. The mighty Monacobreen rises up at the end of the fjord, one of the largest glaciers in Spitsbergen. From the deck, its shimmering blue foot is quite simply an overwhelming sight. The Smeerenburgfjord is equally spectacular with its fantastic glacial backdrop. The 14th July Glacier also awakens feelings ranging from awe to wonder. Ny-Alesund combines the pioneering spirit of the past and present - it was here, in 1926, that Roald Amundsen and Umberto Nobile set out for the North Pole in an airship. If you succeed in circumnavigating Spitsbergen, your traveller's CV will boast an outstanding feat.

A distant island world, shrouded in ice for most of the year, with mountains rising up into the sky, untouched by humanity: north-eastern Greenland is the beautiful unknown. The history books on exploration still have empty pages - for you to fill! The HANSEATIC spirit follows a flexible course to the deep fjords of Northeast Greenland National Park - the largest of its kind in the world and home to musk oxen, Arctic foxes and Arctic hares. You will encounter very few humans here. What you will find, however, is fascinating history, for example on the Wollaston Peninsula, explored by the Second German North Polar Expedition in 1869 to 1870. The team also named Clavering Island after polar explorer Douglas Clavering. Find traces of earlier expeditions on walks with your experts. A small ship such as the HANSEATIC spirit is in its element in the labyrinth of the Kaiser Franz Josef Fjord: steep rock faces alternate with glacier snouts, from which icebergs large and small drift off into the sea. Triangular Ella Island is overwhelming with its almost 1,200 m (3,937 ft) high mountainside - just like the King Oscar Fjord, where the peaks rise up from the shore.

Further south, breathtaking scenery reigns in Scoresbysund, the world's longest fjord system - isolated and endlessly vast.

Iceland provides the finale to your experiences. The vast bay near Patreksfjordur seems almost Caribbean when (depending on the weather) the beach shimmers turquoise - one of many images that will stay with you after the cruise.