Packing in a Carry On: Winter in the Arctic Circle - Tromsø, Norway

February 2024

Packing in a Carry On: Winter in the Arctic Circle – Tromsø, Norway

When I discovered Tromso earlier this year, I immediately felt a pull to this destination. Known as the Gateway to the Arctic, Tromso is located in the northern part of Norway and situated 350 km north of the Arctic Circle. This winter wonderland features numerous activities to enjoy the arctic but it is most known for the high concentration of Northern Lights sightings. Due to the magnetic pull of the earth, Tromso is located where the northern magnetic pole ends, which means all that solar flare activity ends up dumping in and around Tromso so the probability of Aurora activity is higher than other destinations in the world. And Tromso is very accessible which has made it a top winter tourist destination – and luckily, Tromso is well equipped to serve that purpose.

Winter packing is almost easier than the summer because you know one thing for sure – it will be cold! Often times, you wear your jacket a large majority of the time so no one really can “see” what you are wearing (or in my case, re-wearing). Your top layer really is unchanged and layers underneath are changed out. While layering clothing certainly has advantages for packing less, the clothing is larger and heavier but as long as you have enough clothing to circulate as your base layer, clothing is the easier part of packing.

It was time for us to buy new snow jacket and snow pants anyway so we took this opportunity to update our gear.
Make sure you can commit to one pair of shoes could be a bigger problem! I love these boots by Xero Mika boots as they are be comfortable, warm, and stylish.
Fleece lined everything is definitely the way to go – this fleece body suit and fleece lined leggings are wonderful purchases to keep you warm. For men, you can go with a set like this that Kevin found essential for warmth.
I threw in a bunch of hand warmers since I knew we would be outdoors for extended periods of time. They take up so little packing space and once they are used, they go in the trash so it frees up some wiggle room in the backpack.