The second stop of our beautiful week in Norway saw us board a plane from Oslo and fly two hours northward, crossing - for the very first time in my life - the Arctic Circle. We landed in Tromsø, along with my aunt, uncle and cousin who we met up with in Oslo as they traveled up from London, for a four-day adventure seeing as much as we could up north.
Tromsø is a well-known northern Norwegian destination, offering the chance to see the midnight sun in summer where darkness never comes as the sun never sets, and, in winter, one of the world's most magical phenomenons: the aurora borealis or the northern lights.
We got so lucky with our time in the Arctic - along with our weekend spent in Sommarøy - and saw and experienced everything we wanted to (including eating our weight in kanelboller). Here's my guide to everything we did during our four days in Tromsø.
HOW TO GET TO Tromsø
Flights land at Tromsø Airport from across Norway, and a few across Europe as well. We flew in from Oslo with Norwegian, after having spent the weekend in the Norwegian capital to kick off our trip.
We had a rental car arranged for our weekend getaway to Sommarøy, but for Tromsø, we chose to take a short taxi ride into the city and then, as the city itself is very small, we walked everywhere. The two tours we booked both left from the Harbour, just minutes from our apartment rental.
Where to Stay in Tromsø
There are a range of hotels available in Tromsø as it's quite a well-known tourist destination and base for further explorations across northern Norway.
My aunt and uncle booked an apartment rental for the week so that we could have more space and our own kitchen for the five of us. The apartment probably had the greatest view from the balcony on the entire island of Tromsø and we could see out across the fjords and across to Tromsdalen where the Arctic Cathedral and Tromsø cable car and observation deck can be found.
It was an exceptional view and we were glued to the balcony for much of our stay, watching the sunrises, sunsets and golden hours and even catching a few glimpses of the northern lights! (Though, the aurora was much better out in Sommarøy).
We felt the apartment itself was very sparsely furnished and decorated, but the view was completely worth it and the furniture was comfortable and the apartment was spacious.
Best Kanelboller in Tromsø
With our daily diet of two kanelboller (cinnamon rolls) from our time in Oslo, we were determined to continue this trend in Tromsø and made sure to track down the best kanelboller in the city. Here are our tried and tested top two favourites:
Vervet Bakeri
Kaffebønna
On our last day, Vervet had supersized kanelboller
8 Best Things to Do in Tromsø
Tromsø is an excellent destination year-round in northern Norway, with beautiful opportunities in nature whether in the heat of summer with hiking and midnight sun, or in the cold of winter with exceptional animal sightings and the chance to see the northern lights. Here's everything we did in Tromsø:
1. Take in the views over the gorgeous fjords from the harbour
The sun finally came out over the mountain after 10am
2. Walk around the idyllic town centre
Tromsø city seen from the bridge
The old cathedral of Tromsø
3. Try and spot the northern lights
From our apartment
4. Cross the Tromsøbrua for epic fjord and city views
5. Visit the iconic Arctic Cathedral
6. Hike up the Sheraptrappa or take the cable car to the Tromsø Utkikkspunkt
7. Go on a cruise through the Tromø Fjords (and spot orca if you're lucky!)
Check out my detailed guide to the best fjord cruise and who we booked with!
Eagles!
And then we could go no further as we were blocked by early winter sea ice
8. Hang out with Sami Reindeer
We didn't particularly like the tour we did, but Get Your Guide or the local information centre in Tromsø have loads of tours on offer! I suggest something in the day time so you can see the reindeer amidst the gorgeous surroundings.
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Hi! I’m Jana, a Dutch-German-British-Canadian with a dream of seeing every country in the world. I am a storyteller, photographer and adventurer passionate about documenting and sharing my travels.
