A Weekend in the Arctic

Arrive in Tromsø and head to your accommodation - see our list of top stays in Tromsø below.

There's a reliable and frequent airport express bus which takes you to Tromsø in 15 mins.

As downtown Tromsø is small, you can easily spend 30 mins - 1 hour walking around and seeing the town after setting your bags down.

On your first night, head straight out on a northern lights tour to maximise your opportunity to see the aurora.

🌌 Greenlander Tromso

Small, intimate group tour in a 4x4 meaning you can access more remote/ off road areas. The tour starts around 6pm and goes on as long as the group/ guides wish. You'll be picked up and dropped off at your downtown hotel. Friendly, knowledgable guides who take phenomenal photos (see pictures).

Note: as tours tend to start at 6pm, you'll need to catch an earlier flight on your day of arrival to make it in time.

Hopefully you were lucky enough to see the aurora last night! If not, there's still ample opportunity so don't worry.

On your first morning in Tromsø, head out for coffee (see our list of top coffee shops below). Afterwards, start at the Polaria and work through the below attractions before ending at the Cable Car. This can all be done by foot. Total walking time from Polaria to the Cable Car is 50 mins. The longest walking stretch is from the Polar Museum to the Arctic Cathedral across a bridge, and takes 20 mins. You can also catch the 26 and 28 buses if you prefer.

You'll see the sites in the following order:

🌟 Polaria - Aquarium

🌟 Wander down Storgata (the main street in Tromsø)

🏛️ Polar Museum

❄️⛪️ Arctic Cathedral

🚠 Cable Car & viewpoint

On your second evening, head out for more aurora viewing.

In Tromsø, you can pair activities with aurora viewing if you choose to do them after dark. This is a great way to combine two activities.

Here are some options for things to do on your second night:

🦌🛷 Reindeer Sledding & Sami Culture Experience with Aurora

🚤 Boat Cruise with Aurora

🏍️ Snow Mobile Tour with Aurora

Whilst it can be cool to pair the activities above with aurora chasing, they are primarily focused on the activity itself, and you may just be lucky enough to witness the aurora overhead.

Seeing the Northern Lights is usually called 'aurora chasing' because it does require chasing clear skies, dark skies away from light pollution, and aurora intensity. If clouds roll in over your night cruise for example, its unlikely the boat will detour from its route. Whereas a dedicated northern lights chasing tour will detour, increasing your chances of seeing the aurora.

Greenlander Tours once continued our tour into the early hours of the morning and drove across the Finnish border to ensure we got a glimpse of the Northern Lights. So our option would be to head back out with Greenlander on night 2.

If you did manage to see the aurora on night 1, then why not check out some of Tromsø's restaurants and bars from our list below.

Options for Day 3:

🥾 Hike up to Prestvannet Lake - For added adventure, rent cross-country skis or snow shoes from a shop downtown before heading up to the lake, and venture across the frozen lake (winter months only).

🐺🛷 Husky Sledding - Small group or private tours ensure the experience is more intimate and prioritises animal wellbeing over profits.

⛷️ Nordic Skiing

🐋 Whale Watching

If you're flying home today (Friday - Sunday trips), then you won't have time for another aurora chasing tour.

If you can stay another night then consider a different type of Northern Lights experience this evening:

🌌 Northern Lights Photography tour

🧺 Take a picnic and hot drinks to Prestvannet Lake or Telegrafbukta and scout for the aurora yourself.

Remember to monitor the weather and aurora intensity at Polar Forecast - the higher the KP index the stronger the aurora.

Always take your litter away with you and leave the outdoors as you found it.

Depending on your flight time on your final day, you may have a chance to catch any activities you may have missed or simply enjoy some food & drinks in downtown Tromsø.