To say that we were excited about our trip to Tromsø is an understatement. We had never travelled so far north – over the Arctic Circle – never seen the Northern Lights, and never even visited Norway. Put these three firsts together and you can imagine of how we had felt about our Nordic adventure.
Coming from Copenhagen we might have had the chance to take a direct flight, but for personal reasons we needed to travel in the morning, and that time of the day our only option was a connection in Oslo. Unless you’re coming from a neighbouring Scandinavian country, this is probably the most common way you’ll approach the Northern Lights capital of the world.
We came here in December, during some of the darkest days of the year. As Tromsø is over the Arctic Circle, this is a place where, at this time of year, the sun never actually rises. Was it a good idea coming in the middle of winter? We had no other option. Due to my personal activities, we either took this opportunity, or could only come during the summer. Needless to say, as there is no sunrise in winter, there’s no sunset during the warmer months of the year. And no sunset means no darkness and no Northern Lights.
And in hindsight, absolutely yes. It was indeed a very good idea to visit Tromsø during winter, particularly in December. But more on this later.
Flying from Oslo to Tromsø
Flying from Oslo to Tromsø was already quite an experience. As we headed north, the curvature of the Earth started to hide the sun behind us fast. The orange lights of the last rays of the sun at 1:30 PM and the almost complete darkness an hour later really astonished us, even though we came from Copenhagen, where this time of year the sun already sets before 4 PM.
The flight itself took a little less than 2 hours, which is also amazing in itself. You can literally cross the whole EU from East to West in this time span, yet now we were flying only inside Norway. There is a saying that from the southernmost point of Norway, it is the same distance to get to Rome as to the northern tip of the country. And that’s actually not simply a saying but the plain truth.
In fact Nordkapp, often referred to as the northernmost point of mainland Norway, is 1680 km or 1044 mi from Lindesnes, in the south of the country. And from the south, Rome, Italy is 1850 km or 1150 mi, just a tad more.
And it’s true that Tromsø isn’t as far north as Nordkapp, but almost. Already over the Arctic Circle, we travelled to one of the northernmost places not only in Norway, but Europe and the whole world.
Visiting Tromsø in December
A wonder in itself this time of the year, Tromsø is a true marvel, a magical place. “A true miracle” was the expression that I’d been whispering over and over during our stay.
What else could it be than a miracle, when your plane lands at 2:30 in the afternoon, amid pitch black skies, while hundreds of thousands of tiny golden dots glow and shine below you. A city of around 70,000 people where it feels like almost every house and apartment is lit up with Christmas light decoration in order to feel good in the dark days of winter rather than being depressed.
Experiencing darkness from 2 PM until 10 AM was as gratifying and marvellous an experience in itself as seeing those thousands of houses lit up by simple but sparkling Christmas lights.
The weather was cold, but what do you expect this far north in winter? According to locals, this long weekend was even more chilly than what you usually experience here. Thankfully, even with minimums as low as -14°C (7°F), it wasn’t at all unbearable considering that we’d taken the right clothing with us.
Extreme cold meant clear skies – or vice versa actually, because obviously the clear skies were the reason for the extreme cold – but hey, we’re not making a physics book here but a travel report. The point is, the sky was shiny clear during two out of our three nights, and as a consequence, we had no problem seeing Her Majesty, the Northern Lights.
Between the Lights, strolling below the Christmas lights of the old town, eating reindeer hot dogs at the Christmas market, and submerging in the cold winter fjord after a soothing sauna session, I can clearly say that December might actually be the best month to visit Tromsø.
What We Did During Our Stay in Tromsø?
We spent a total of three days here-not enough to breathe in all the wonders, but I think the perfect time span to see everything there is in this miraculous town and the neighbourhood. So if you plan a visit about that long, I suggest you also try the following things. I hope I’ll have time to write more about each of these adventures.
First of all, we rented a car, and I recommend you do the same. Although public transit is extremely good as Tromsø is a European city, if you want to wander beyond the center and maybe chase the Northern Lights on your own, the freedom a car gives you is indispensable.
Second, we never opted for an organized Northern Lights tour. We didn’t even need one. The car, the information that’s available online-and what I also share with you here-was plenty enough to see the magic in the sky.
Places Where We Did See the Northern Lights In and Around Tromsø
Fjellheisen. This is the mountain that’s right above the city, and where you can take the cable car to. I suggest you definitely try this when you’re in Tromsø. We were lucky to see the lights here on our very first evening. But even if the sky is cloudy, the cable car and the mountain gives you a complete and amazing panorama to the whole town; and the cafe at the top is extremely cozy.
Telegrafbukta. This place is actually inside Tromsø, on the island itself. Most tour guides suggest this place as one of the best viewpoints for the Northern Lights from within the city, and we weren’t disappointed. I’d say we had our best view of the Lights here. Good news is that you can also come here by taking a local bus.
Tromsø City Center. This one is funny, but we even saw the Northern Lights from inside the very center of Tromsø. It wasn’t that spectacular because of the city lights, but if the circumstances are adequate, Tromsø is one of the best places on the earth to see the lights.
Between Skittenelv and Oldervik, where the road turns into the mainland. This was by far the most magical experience, as we were literally in the middle of nowhere, with mountains all around and no sea, and the Northern Lights were surrounding us in 3D, 360 degrees, sneaking out from every valley, stretching above every mountaintop.
Ersfjordbotn. This is also a popular spot, recommended by many. We came here by car, it was a 30 minute drive from the city. We could see tiny bits of the Northern Lights here, but out of all the places that I mentioned here by far this one was the least satisfactory. This obviously doesn’t mean that you can’t be lucky around here.
In short, you need three things in order to see the Northern Lights. Adequate solar activity, clear sky and darkness. If the Sun is active enough, if there is no or minimal cloud coverage, and you can see the stars, you'll probably find a place in or around Tromsø where the Northern Lights will shine.
Other Tromsø Activities in Three Days
Beyond chasing the Lights, we had a lot of fun in this magical city.
Nordic sauna. We warmed our body in a hot nordic sauna literally over the sea, and submerged into the almost icy water. A magical experience in itself, refreshing body and mind.
Stroll along the city center. Tromsø has a nice city center with lights everywhere during the long winter dark hours. It was a true delight to walk around here. We tried many cafés, checked out a lot of local shops and also wandered along the port and the seaside.
The northernmost McDonald’s and Burger King. Yes, this might not be fun for everybody, and I wouldn’t say they were even close to being our best culinary experience in Tromsø. But nomen est omen; a food travel blogger must at least visit these places.
Supermarkets. If we’re talking about food and travel, we also checked out several supermarkets in and around Tromsø and tried lots of foods that are typical for this region: reindeer sausage, fish pudding with mustard sauce, Norwegian Christmas herring, or even whale sausage. I think this way we had much more of an understanding of the local food culture that we could have had at any of the internationalized restaurants in the city.
Tromsø Christmas market. As I said we were lucky enough to visit Tromsø in December, so as an addition to all these fun activities we could visit the Christmas market and also have some fantastic local food there.
Most of our activity around Tromsø was of course defined by chasing the Northern Lights. One place that’s worth mentioning though is the Sami Reindeer farm that we visited north of town near Tønsvik. The funny thing is that we actually didn’t visit this place formally, just stopped in the parking spot and checked out the reindeer from outside the fence.
Conclusion
Even just a month before this trip, we wouldn’t even have thoght of visiting Tromsø. Life brought this miraculous town up to us, and we took the opportunity.
In the end, this three-day trip to Tromsø turned out to be one of the best – if not the best – travel experiences of our life. I hadn’t been a huge fan before, but after this jaunt I can definitely say that everyone should see the Northern Lights at least once in their lifetime. And where better to do it than in one of the most magical places on earth, Tromsø?
