Fun facts about Svalbard

The Svalbard archipelago, situated between the mainland on Norway and the North Pole, is a very fascinating place. In many ways. There are more polar bears than people, and four months a year, you experience 24 hours daylight.

The Svalbard Treaty from 1920 recognized Norwegian sovereignty in 1925, but there are more than 40 nationalities living there, including larger Russian communities.

The nature and wildlife is stunning, and no matter what season you visit, there are many nice experiences.

Here are some fun facts about Svalbard:

1. Nobody is allowed to be born here. Pregnant women are send to the mainland to give birth.
2. On the other hand, nobody is allowed to die here either. If you are seriously ill, or simply getting old, you have to move back to the mainland.
3. People do not wear shoes inside, including at restaurants. This rule was made after having problems with workers dragging in dust from the coal mines.
4. There are more polar bears in Svalbard than people.
5. Due to the risk of meeting polar bears, nobody are allowed to walk around outside the settlement of Longyearbyen without being able to scare them away. It is also advised to bring firearms. You can therefore see people wandering around with riffles. But, when they go inside for example the grocery shop or a restaurant, they have to put them in designated lockers.
6. From around 19 April to around 26 August you will experience the Midnight Sun, meaning that the sun will never set below the horizon in that period.
7. From around 26 October to around 14 February, on the other hand, they have polar nights, meaning that the sun will never rise above the horizon, leaving it to be pitch dark all day and night. But, the good thing is that you will have much more chance to see the Northern Lights (Aurora Borealis), as it can be visible any time of day.
8. For beer lovers, Svalbard is home to the northernmost brewery in the world, Svalbard Bryggeri.
9. And the northernmost bar, post office, university, grocery shop, museum, ATM and Lenin statue, to name a few.
10. The Svalbard Global Seed Vault, located in an abandoned coal mine, contains seeds from all over the world in order to preserve them. The countries can get back seeds to regrow after for example crises.
11. You are not allowed to pick flowers.
12. There are only four Icelandic horses in Svalbard. One of them is 33 years and retired.
13. Cats are not allowed. There is however a cat in the Russian settlement Barentsburg, but it is registered as an Arctic fox…
14. The hotel in Barentsburg offer free parking. The problem is that there are no roads connecting Barentsburg with other settlements.
15. The Russians apparently have a tradition to consume alcoholic drinks containing the same level of alcohol content as the latitude they are at. The former Russian settlement Pyramiden, is situated at 79°…

Have you been to Svalbard, and know some other fun facts?