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Tromsø

Norway · Europe · northern hemisphere

Northern LightsLakes & CoastlineWildlife

Tromsø is at its best for northern lights in February to March and September to October. Good but not prime in January and November. Crowds peak in December and bottom out in May.

JFMAMJJASOND
Northern Lights
66
95
91
19
13
10
13
14
84
96
68
42
Lakes & Coastline
12
12
17
42
64
84
96
90
70
12
12
12
Wildlife
90
42
15
15
15
67
67
15
15
15
90
90
Crowds

Swipe the table sideways for the rest of the year.

primegoodpossibleoff-seasoncrowds, on this place’s own scale

The short version

A real city inside the aurora zone, which means flights, restaurants and a way to chase clear sky inland when the coast clouds over — and it does. March and April combine dark nights with the equinox activity peak and better weather than midwinter

When not to come

Mid-April to late August for aurora — the sky never goes properly dark, and the midnight sun from late May to late July sits inside that. Visit Norway gives the season as late August to late March. Those months are excellent for everything else here.

Busiest

Late December through March, and the week of the Tromsø International Film Festival

With children

Aurora chases run late and cold, often past midnight in a minibus. Many operators set a minimum age around six, and the whale trips in winter are long and rough.

Where to stay

Staying in the city and booking a chase that drives inland beats staying at a remote aurora lodge — coastal cloud is the limiting factor here, and mobility is what beats it.

What can go wrong

Polar winter

Polar night runs late November to mid-January — the aurora season and the darkest weeks are the same weeks.Jan · Feb · Nov · Dec

Kept out of the score on purpose. Averaging a rare catastrophe into a monthly number would tell you something false; the warning is the honest form.

Dates that matter

  • Orca and humpback season in the fjords (Nov–Jan) — following the herring, and never guaranteed
  • Polar night (late Nov–mid Jan) — the sun does not rise at all
  • Midnight sun (late May–late Jul)

Crowds, month by month

67442520402432224659100

0 is this destination’s own quietest month and 100 its busiest. The scale never compares one destination to another. Source: Wikipedia — Tromsø

See everything else at its best in Oct

Organised trips

Multi-day trips to Tromsø

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