The Far North journal
Arctic wildlife, polar phenomena, travel tips and life on board: stories from the Latitude Blanche team.
40 articles

Northern Norway is one of the best places in the world to see the northern lights. You still need the right season, the right place and a clear…

Seeing a polar bear in the wild is the dream of many travelers heading to Spitsbergen. The archipelago is one of the best places in the world to…

Since January 1, 2025, Norway has enforced some of the strictest protection rules in the Arctic in Svalbard: no more large ships in protected areas, supervised landings, mandatory…

It is a question we are often asked: can you go to the North Pole by ship? The honest answer comes in two parts: the Pole itself is…

A Spitsbergen cruise is a once-in-a-lifetime trip, and its price depends on the length, the season and the cabin. Here are our rates, what they include and how…

Spring, summer or fall: in Spitsbergen, every season reveals a different Arctic. Sea ice and snow-covered landscapes in April and May, the midnight sun in summer, the first…

There are a thousand ways to prepare for a voyage to the Far North. Poring over a map, dreaming over photographs, following the weather, imagining the fjords, the…

Traveling in the polar regions means learning to slow down and pay attention to details we often overlook in everyday life. In these places, where the absence of…

Aboard Polarfront, memories are made at the table as much as on deck. After a day spent watching wildlife, walking on the sea ice or admiring the northern…

In the white vastness of the Arctic, a discreet silhouette sometimes crosses the snow-covered tundra. Fast, agile and perfectly camouflaged, the Arctic fox (Vulpes lagopus) is one of…

Humankind has always dreamed of communicating with the other species we share our planet with. Understanding birdsong, interpreting the signals of primates or decoding the sounds of the…

Imagine witnessing the birth of a sperm whale on the open sea. It is so rare that most marine biologists will never see it in their entire careers.…

It wasn’t an easy choice... To celebrate our 10th anniversary, we invite you to rediscover 10 of the artists who have left their mark on our story!

Svalbard is the name of the whole archipelago, while Spitsbergen is just one of its islands.

The phenomenon, never before observed from the Earth’s surface, is thought to be the result of a polar rain of electrons coming straight from the solar corona.

People who live in Earth’s icy polar regions experience almost constant night every winter. This phenomenon is called the polar night, but what exactly is it? When does…

Wild fjords, colorful cabins, crystal-clear waters and jagged peaks: the Lofoten archipelago is famous for its breathtaking views and picturesque villages. But how much do you really know…

The polar regions are known for the polar night, an almost unbroken winter night. In summer, on the other hand, the days grow longer and longer. The phenomenon…

Brilliant green, deep red, purple, pink or even blue… Polar auroras can put on a true light show. Green is by far the most common color, but it…

Greener than ever, Polarfront put back to sea on March 21, after a complete overhaul of her propulsion and power generation systems. It took four months in Concarneau…

With its black-and-white coat, the orca is instantly recognizable. An animal of superlatives, it is the only species that can take on the great white shark. But behind…

Scientists have studied the mechanisms that allow baleen whales to swallow their food underwater without drowning. They present their conclusions in a new study.

We are delighted to announce our new partnership with SEA.AI, a company that develops artificial intelligence (AI) solutions for the automatic detection of floating objects. A data collection…

Stocky, almost round on its short legs, the Svalbard reindeer does not look quite like the reindeer you see in Scandinavia or Lapland. Its unusual build is the…

On February 19, we celebrated World Whale Day, an opportunity to remind everyone how important it is to protect these ocean giants and, more broadly, all marine mammals.

With their haunting songs, their epic journeys and their fishing skills, these giants of the sea fascinate us! Here are five things you (maybe) didn’t know about humpback…

The Sun’s new cycle of activity, the 25th, is one of the most intense ever recorded since solar cycles were first documented in the 18th century.

Picture the scene. A seal is desperately trying to escape a pod of orcas in the middle of a hunt. Suddenly, a huge humpback whale surges up, places…

The hikes led by your naturalist guide along the shores of the fjords and around the Svartisen Glacier; The northern lights: October marks the start of the northern…

Geographically, Greenland is part of North America, but politically it belongs to Denmark. It is, however, an autonomous territory. Greenland was discovered by the Vikings in the 10th…

It is a widespread idea: since brown bears hibernate, polar bears must surely do the same. The reality, however, is quite different.

It may sound paradoxical. We all learned that snow melts as soon as the temperature rises above 0°C. And yet it is not unusual to see snowflakes falling…

Every fall, forests put on a display of magnificent colors before a carpet of golden leaves covers the ground. Then, little by little, the branches are left bare…

When the Sun disappears below the horizon for several months, the Arctic seems to fall into a deep sleep. The polar night wraps the landscapes in almost constant…

Borealis in the north, australis in the south: everywhere, auroras fascinate young and old alike. According to the European Space Agency (ESA), “the night is adorned with these…

Fast, powerful, organized and remarkably intelligent, orcas sit at the top of the marine food chain. No natural predator threatens them, and few animals can escape them.

Green curtains rippling across the sky, red veils setting the horizon ablaze, delicate shades of violet that seem to dance above snow-capped mountains… The northern lights are among…

When we think of dry docks, we often picture huge modern facilities built to take in merchant ships or naval vessels. Yet this process, essential to building and…

Every year, from the first days of fall, the landscape is transformed. Forests turn shades of gold, orange and red before the leaves gradually drop to the ground.…

When it comes to feeding, humpback whales are nothing if not resourceful. Their most common technique is to dive at high speed with their mouths wide open, gulping…
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