Why Visit Tromsø, Norway

Tromsø (pronounced Trom-suh) is a little island in northwest Norway, within the Arctic Circle. This is considered one of the best places in the world to see the Northern Lights. We picked it particularly because of this as well as its tourist readiness: that is, there was a direct flight from Oslo; there were a lot of great hotels, restaurants, shops; and Tromso also has a number of other interesting sites and activities to do while you wait for the night (and hopefully Aurora Borealis) to arrive.

If you're wondering where is Tromso, Norway on a map, well here it is. Tromso is located very far north in Norway, hence why it is often very cold. Take notice of the Arctic Circle in this map of Norway. Being within the Arctic Circle boundary greatly increases your chances of seeing the Aurora Borealis, so here we are!

What is there to do in Tromso, Norway?

Tromso is a cute little town that sort of looks like every ski town I've ever been to. There are plenty of good restaurants and endless souvenir shops. It's a nice downtown to walk through, and you could spend all your time just in town and not regret it. Though, it is substantially harder to see the northern lights with the city light pollution than it is if you venture slightly out of town.

Tromso is located on an island, as are many parts of northern Scandinavia (especially Norway which has over 62,000 miles of coastline), and there is a large bridge connecting it to the 'mainland' and slightly more civilization. Here are the views from our hotel.

Top Tourist Attractions in Tromso

If you look at a map of Tromso, you will see it is a very walkable town with restaurants, shops, and museums all within a square mile. You'll need a nice winter jacket and snow boots, but it is walkable.

The town green has a Cathedral, and right next door is the Northern Norwegian Art Museum. One more block down is the Troll Museum, and one more block from there is the port. You're really never too far from the water in Tromso, and there were gorgeous views in all directions.

I especially enjoyed the unique architecture of Tromso's library and the aquarium, called the Polaria, which is the world's most northerly aquarium!

Tromso was a nice (if not chilly) place to walk around, enjoy the water and massive fjords in the distance, and have as a home base for our Arctic adventures. It is the home base for many, many Arctic adventures, and there are countless adventure companies to prove it. You can visit Tromso to see the northern lights (which you can do on a bus tour, a dinner cruise, or presumably other means), feed some reindeer (which I highly recommend!), visit some fjords, go on a dog sled adventure, go snowshoeing or snowmobiling, go cross country skiing, fishing, or so many more things. No matter what outdoor adventure you are looking for, I definitely recommend Tromso as a great place to do it.