Norway in winter: Lofoten, Alta and Tromsø – Christmas and New Year in the polar night

Norway in winter means the polar night, the northern lights and roads covered in snow – and that is exactly how we spent Christmas and New Year.

From 20 December 2024 to 6 January 2025 we were in northern Norway – over Christmas and New Year, in the middle of the polar night. The route: first the Lofoten islands, then over Christmas further north to Alta, where we spent New Year’s Eve, and finally a few days in Tromsø. Eighteen days in which the sun didn’t rise a single time – and still one of the most beautiful trips we have ever made.

What the polar night really means

North of the Arctic Circle, the sun doesn’t rise above the horizon from the end of November to mid-January. Still, it isn’t pitch dark all day: around midday there are two or three hours of blue, almost violet twilight, often with a pink edge in the sky. This light is exactly why photographers come in December. For planning, that means: schedule your drives during the light hours, roughly between 10 am and 2 pm, and plan the rest of the day for the northern lights, the sauna and good food.

Lofoten: red cabins, mountains rising straight out of the sea

The Lofoten are a chain of islands linked by bridges and tunnels along the E10. The best-known photo spots are in the south: Reine and Hamnøy with the red rorbuer, the old fishermen’s cabins on stilts, and the steep mountains behind them. In winter it’s quiet there and many restaurants have limited opening hours – supermarkets (Coop, Kiwi, Rema 1000) are the most reliable place to go. If you want to rent a rorbu, book via Airbnb or Booking; in December there’s a choice, from February (northern lights plus daylight) it gets tight.

Planning this trip?Norway in winter: Lofoten, Alta, Tromsø

• Day by day from our 18 days of polar night – with our own photos
• Map, QR codes to Google Maps, budget planner with checked prices
• Entry via official links only – plus travelling with a dog

€9.90 PDF · English + German in one purchase · instant downloadBuy now – €9.90 →Look inside the PDF ›

Northern lights: what matters

• Clear skies beat activity. A high Kp value is useless if there are clouds. Every evening we first checked the cloud map (yr.no) and drove to where it was clearing.
• Get away from the town lights. Ten minutes out of town is usually enough.
• Patience and warm clothes. The northern lights come in waves, often between 9 pm and 1 am. Minus 10 degrees feels like minus 20 after an hour of standing still.
• Photos: a phone in night mode on a solid surface, or a camera on a tripod with a 5–15 second exposure.

Alta: New Year’s Eve in the far north

Alta lies on the fjord of the same name in Finnmark and is known as the “City of the Northern Lights”. It is known for the modern Northern Lights Cathedral with its spiral titanium façade and, in winter, the ice hotel at Sorrisniva. New Year’s Eve there isn’t a big-city firework display, but a few rockets over the fjord – and if you’re lucky, the northern lights as well.

Tromsø: the city at the end

After weeks in small villages, Tromsø almost feels like a big city: cafés, a brewery, museums. Worth it are the Fjellheisen cable car up to Storsteinen with a view over the city, the Arctic Cathedral on the other side of the bridge, and Polaria. Northern lights tours leave the city every evening; with your own car you can do the same yourself and save a lot of money.

Driving in winter

In winter, rental cars have studded tyres or good winter tyres – ask and have it confirmed. The roads are cleared, but are often a solid layer of snow. On mountain stretches of the E6, storms mean convoy driving behind the snowplough or closures; check vegvesen.no (road status) before every longer stage. Petrol stations are far apart: never drive below half a tank. Tolls are charged automatically by number plate, and the rental company bills them afterwards. More on this in our post Rental car or motorbike.

Money and internet

Norway is practically cashless – we didn’t withdraw anything during the whole trip and paid for everything in kroner with our Wise card (always pay in NOK on the terminal, never let it convert to euros). Why that matters is explained in Money abroad. Mobile coverage along the main roads is surprisingly good, but there are dead spots in fjords and behind mountains. If you work on the road, you’re on the safe side with Starlink in the car.

What’s expensive – and what isn’t

Norway is expensive, especially restaurants and alcohol (wine and spirits only at the state-run Vinmonopolet). It gets cheaper with accommodation that has a kitchen and shopping at the supermarket. Diesel and tolls add up on long distances – better to keep the route compact than to move on every day.

Would we go again?

Yes – but next time at the end of February or in March: then there are northern lights and daylight for the Lofoten. You have to experience the polar night once, it is magical. By the way, our next winter destination is Iceland.

Photo credits

The photos in this post are not ours but freely licensed (Wikimedia Commons / Openverse): northern lights over Tromsø – Gunnar Hildonen, CC BY-SA 2.0; Reine in the Lofoten with red fishermen’s cabins – Jakub Fryš, CC BY-SA 4.0; green northern lights in the night sky – Georg Botz, CC BY-SA 3.0; Reine in the Lofoten in winter – Keihuli, CC BY-SA 3.0. Our own photos from this trip will follow.

Our photos

Norway in winter: our verdict

Our verdict on Norway in winter: allow enough time for the drives, because the weather and the light determine the day. Warm clothes in layers are also worth it, because you often wait outside for a long time for the northern lights. All the highlights of the islands are in Things to do in Lofoten; background on the country can be found on Wikipedia.

Take this trip with youNorway in winter: Lofoten, Alta, Tromsø

What we learned on the road, condensed into one PDF – so you can plan less and enjoy more.

• Day by day from our 18 days of polar night – with our own photos
• Map, QR codes to Google Maps, budget planner with checked prices
• Entry via official links only – plus travelling with a dog

€9.90 PDF · English + German in one purchase · instant downloadBuy now – €9.90 →Look inside the PDF ›