February 2024
The Gateway to the Arctic Circle in 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.
Day 0
Getting to Tromso was more accessible than I expected. For us, it was an overnight direct flight to Oslo then a two hour flight to Tromso. Our flight into Tromso gave us a glimpse of the harbor city and the surrounding mountains – this place was an epic winter wonderland. The airport is located just fifteen minutes away from the downtown area. There are many ways you can get from the airport to downtown – taxi, public bus, airport shuttle bus – and we selected the airport shuttle bus. It routinely runs from the airport to various stops downtown and was an easy way to get transported. After a long trip, we went directly to Airbnb, the first of two on this trip. The walk included an incline into the neighborhood that had a precarious sheet of ice. The location is walkable to everywhere we needed to go and while the room is tiny, it was a great affordable option for one night. After freshening up, we get all dressed up for the arctic winter and ready to explore Tromso.
The downtown is full of shops, restaurants, and activity with the harbor constantly full of fishing boats and an occasional cruise ship. The snow piled up in unused spots and a sheet of ice covered most of the roads and the sidewalks. While I did not fall, it was at least a daily occurance of slipping and recovering balance. Many people purchase crampons or show spikes that fit over the shoe to give better grips while walking, which are not that expensive. We learned that people falling is an unfortunate common occurrence that sends people to the hospital with broken bones and other injuries – so caution is needed when walking around.
Food was a high priority so we headed to Riso Kaffebar for Kevin’s caffeine fix and our lunch. We loved everything about this cafe and could easily spend hours hanging out here. Kevin ordered coffee and a plate full of breakfast goodies including eggs, toast, potatoes, ham, and I got the sandwich with goat cheese, honey, and pickled vegetables. Everything was very tasty and this is such a great spot in Tromso.
With a few hours free, we decided to simply wander around and see the town, starting with the harbor. The view in the distance is magical – giant mountains town in the distance along the waterway. Seagulls circled in hopes of getting a snack from the returning fisherman. Herds of people gathered at various locations excitedly awaiting their excursion pickups as just as many groups disembarked from buses returning from a tour. Across the harbor is the town of Tromsdalen where the iconic Arctic Cathedral and Fjellheisen cable car is located – a great viewing point of Tromso, the surrounding areas, and on occasion, the Northern Lights. We bopped in and out of a few shops and took inventory on the various restaurants, cafes, and bars as my Google Map came to life. This town really is the perfect spot to base yourself to exploring the Arctic.
The Polar Museum is located along the north side of the harbor and we opted to take a walk through the exhibit that features how the first inhabitants of Tromso and the surrounding areas survived.
I had a sneaky suspicion that our evening tour, which included dinner, would have us eating quite late into the evening so we stopped at Smortorget for soup. This is another cozy cafe that we could have spent hours in but we had our first activity of the trip just ahead. We winterized ourselves and made our way to our meeting spot.
Our evening was set to visit the Sami Reindeer Camp which we booked with Tromso Arctic Reindeer. This experience takes guests to a camp to learn about reindeer and the Sami culture, along with a feeding and sledding experience. And since we were traveling further away from the light pollution of Tromso, I kept my fingers crossed for a chance to see the Northern Lights as well (spoiler: it worked!).
Read about our evening meeting the Reindeer and learning about Sami culture here!
We were certainly exhausted upon our 10:30PM return to Tromso. Thankfully the walk back to the Airbnb was only ten minutes and upon our arrival, our host was baking cookies which was delightful. We had no issues falling asleep tonight.
DAY 1
Our first full day in Tromso and we had a full day outside the city ahead – excursions are the name of the game when visiting the Arctic Circle. Due to a change in overnight accommodations, we had to check out of our one night Airbnb stay and that meant the bags were coming with us. We had the option of using a locker located at the cruise port but I figured we would have room in the van on our excursion for our backpacks.
But first, we need a full meal before adventuring – I did not want just a pastry with just a long day ahead. We walked to Koseverden & Koselig Cafe and it was definitely the right decision. Here we ordered some of the best food on the trip. I ordered Croissant with lettuce, tomato, avocado, homemade salmon, poached egg, cream, parmesan and sesame seeds – absolutely delicious. And Kevin ordered Norwegian waffles with brown cheese, fresh berries and whipped cream. Do not sleep on the brown cheese! Also called gudbrandsdalen, brown cheese is not cheese at all but actually whey made from goat and cow’s milk that has a sweet caramel flavor but looks just like a slice of cheese. It is so good and I wish we had it every meal of the trip. Definitely make Koseverden & Koselig Cafe a stop on your trip from breakfast.
Kevin was in a two coffee mood this morning so we stopped in Tollefsen just down the street where Kevin enjoyed a coffee and small baked item to finish off the morning. This cafe is really well rated so make sure to get one of your hot beverage fixes here when in Tromso.
We walked around the harbor to our meeting spot for the first excursion of the day – Arctic Nature Tour with Northern Horizons to explore the surrounding area and hopefully a few wildlife sightings.
Read about our time exploring the scenic landscape of northern Norway here!
Our return to Tromso was at 3PM and our second excursion had a pick up time of 5PM. Since the lunch on the tour was considerably light and I expected dinner on the evening excursion to be particularly late, I wanted us to get another meal in. We walked to Bardus Bistro, a very popular Norwegian dining spot, but the kitchen was closed until 4PM which was not great for our timing. It was an awkward time for a meal so we regrouped inside the library across the way and ended up down the street at Mathallen.
This wine bar has such a fun aesthetic – the kitchen is in the garage and they kept the garage door on and open. There are steel industrial carts that hold the extensive wine collection and simple seating for guests. This menu was off the charts for lunch so I was very excited. We each indulged in a glass of wine and I ordered the Crispy Chicken Salad with romanesco salad, bacon, croutons, and parmesan dressing and Kevin ordered the “Klippfisk” Sandwich with toasted focaccia, olives, bell peppers, capers, onions, ruccula and dill sauce.
My salad was off the charts – the toppings with the salad were plentiful and this crispy chicken was so delicious, perfectly battered and fried. They also used a chicken thigh so it was super flavorful. I could have had this salad every day of the trip if I could, it was that good. And Kevin loved his dish as well. Despite the name sandwich on the menu, it was served in more of an open faced style. The sauce really brought the dish together – it was bright and salty to complement the ingredients, and reminded him of an upscaled tartar sauce. I am sure the menu for dinner is just as good. I highly recommend Mathallen!
As the sun went down, it was time for our overnight adventure to Camp Tamok which would include snowmobiling, dog sledding, ice domes, and staying overnight in an aurora chalet. The coach bus picked up a bus full of people and it seemed like no one else opted to stay over. While overnight accommodations are very limited, it appeared to be quite full when I booked. Hope we made a good call! Another evening away from the city that gave us an opportunity to see the Northern Lights – we did book the Aurora chalet afterall. The forecast was pretty terrible for cloud coverage but maybe the weather could change in our favor. At this point, any Northern Lights sightings would be an added bonus to our sighting the night before.
Read about our stay at Camp Tamok here!
Back in Tromso, we were dropped off just before 4PM and we had a tight turn around with a lengthy to-do list. We had to check into the Airbnb, we really wanted to shower, and then we wanted to eat before our evening excursion that started at 530PM. So we dashed to check into the Airbnb which was about the same distance from our first Airbnb just a few blocks south. If this Airbnb is open for your trip, I would definitely snag it. This one was wonderful and spacious so we were already off to a good start. We quickly showered which felt like a great accomplishment since of the three things on the list, that was the one most likely to get cut. We re-bundled for another long night ahead. Finally, we made our way back to the harbor and stopped at a food truck – Bubba’s Bar and Food for fish and chips. The perfect way to prepare ourselves for what I knew would be a late night dinner. And with that, we checked everything off the to-do list head of the 530PM tour.
It was time for the featured excursion of the trip – chasing the Northern Lights with Northern Horizon. The weather forecast was pretty bleak with dense cloud coverage throughout the area but we went in cautiously optimistic. There was also a full moon which meant the sky would be much brighter than the desired pitch black. At this point, any Northern Lights sightings would be an added bonus to our sighting the night before.
Read about our amazing evening chasing the Northern Lights here!
After an exhilarating night and dancing Aurora displays, we heavily debated our ability to participate on tomorrow morning’s 8AM excursion, but we were certainly going to try.
Day 4
The alarm went off four hours later at 730AM. We both looked at each other and decided that an hour or two more of sleep would not do much so we jumped out of bed and quickly prepared for our last excursions of the trip.
Today’s excursion required some physical activity so we needed to get some breakfast in before we boarded that bus. The only issue was that it was Sunday and Norway is practically closed on Sundays. Those that are open have limited hours and open much later in the day. Our only option was 7/11 and after such positive experiences in Japan with 7/11, we were hopeful that Norway 7/11 leaned more in that direction than the ones in the States. We each got a pastry and I have to say they exceeded our low expectations in a positive way so if you are in a pinch like we were, head over to 7/11.
We cross country skied for the first time in Engelberg last year when there was no snow. We selected this activity in lieu of downhill skiing which we could not do. We simply watched a Youtube video and rented the gear before trying to figure it out for ourselves. We did have a fun time doing it and I knew if we had the opportunity to cross country ski again, I wanted to. And I have to say, this experience blew our first out of the water and made our little night of sleep completely worth it.
Read about our cross country skiing adventure here!
We arrived back in Tromso at 12:30PM and thankfully, the cross country skiing gave us a burst of energy to avoid napping – these were our last hours in Tromso and we had lots to explore. We showered and left for our first stop – lunch at Bardus Bistro. Our second attempt on the trip was also unsuccessful as they are closed Sundays. So instead we went to the very popular beerhall, Ølhallen. This is the oldest pub in Tromso dating back to 1928 and currently features 72 taps from beer brewed all over NOrway. Kevin ordered a five beer taster and my goodness, sticker shock here on alcohol is kind of crazy. I can imagine this place gets super rowdy, just not on a Sunday. There was a pretty decent group around when we left at 3PM to continue on.
Our next mission was to find pastries for the next morning as our flight was at 6AM. We stopped at four places and all were sold out of baked goods, even the 7/11 was bare. Many places we would have tried were not open as well so it definitely drove the market value of baked goods up on a Sunday. Kevin grabbed a coffee at Kaffebonna before we stopped into several shops in the main area of downtown. Even the church in the square was closed, which in retrospect is a bit puzzling for a church to have their doors locked on a Sunday. One thing we did not get to experience was the midnight concerts that are performed here so if you are able, we heard good things about that.
We were starving by this point and the 6PM reservations we had seemed too far away – so we went to Art Cafe Bistro to see if they would be able to take us now at around 4PM. And luckily, they were able to seat us immediately. We were thrilled and ready for a feast.
Read the full dining review for Art Cafe Bistro here!
After a fantastic meal and a great end to our time in Tromso, we headed back to the Airbnb to pack up and get ready for our early morning flight back home.
We had such a fantastic trip to Tromso, the gateway to the Arctic Circle, and the ultimate winter wonderland destination. I only discovered this spot recently and was so happy to be able to turn around a trip with all the planning in just a few weeks – a trip to Tromso plans itself. It is accessible and very tourist friendly and while there are lots of things to do in the winter time, it is just beautiful with as much activity in the summer months when the sun does not set. This adventure was truly magical and I am still in disbelief that we saw the Northern Lights. I hope if you make a trip to Tromso, you are as fortunate as we were and have the best time in the Arctic.