Top 10 winter activities in 4 days in Tromso, Norway

4. Daytime sailing in the Fjords

One of my favourite daytime activities in Tromso, Norway is to go sailing on the Fjords. You get very different views compared to night time sailing, so it’s worth doing both if you enjoy sailing.

Like the night time sailing, you get given warm suits so it’s not too cold. And you can sit outside if you want, to enjoy the views and take photos. You can also help with the sailing too. But there’s also the warm inside area, which is perfect to warm up before going back outside to take photos again.

The sailing trip also offered the opportunity to go fishing – and many people quickly caught some really impressively big cod! These fresh fish were then used to make a delicious fish soup for lunch.

The sailing was around 5 hours long, and was a really great way to see the fjord scenery from the comfort of a boat, where you could sit and watch the views and then head inside when it got too cold.

5. Visit Tromso’s museums

If you want a break from Tromso’s adventurous outdoor activities in the snow, there are things to do in the city as well. It’s a pretty, small city that is lovely to walk around. And Tromso has several museums which are worth visiting.

Polar Museum

My favourite museum in Tromso was the Polar Museum. As a child I was always fascinated by polar exploration, so I loved this museum. They give you a booklet to read with loads of information – so you can easily spend an hour or two in the museum.

The first parts of the museum are mostly about hunting. It was a bit sad to learn about how the Arctic animals had been hunted, but it was also interesting to think about how hard life must have been for the people living and working in the Arctic conditions – hundreds of years ago, before technology and with limited warm clothing. It must have been a really hard life.

The later sections of the museum are about polar exploration, which I found fascinating. There’s details about Roald Amundsen and Nansen, with photos from their expeditions and replica models of the boats they used. It’s just amazing to learn about what they achieved and how brave they must have been.

Troll Museum

The Troll Museum is another museum in Tromso that is worth visiting. It’s a fun, unique museum – I’ve never been to a Troll Museum before! It’s not big, so only took me about 30 minutes to look around, but it was good fun. It gives details about some of the myths and legends in Norway about trolls. There are fun pictures and models as well – it’s a very visual, interactive museum.

6. Chase the Northern Lights (crossing the border to Finland!)

One of the top attractions in Tromso is the chance to see the Northern Lights. As it’s in the Arctic Circle, with long dark nights in the winter, Tromso has a good chance of being able to see the Northern Lights. However, it’s never guaranteed. To see Northern Lights, you need to be lucky to have clear night skies and also good solar activity. So it’s always a gamble.

I took a minibus tour to try to see the Northern Lights. We left from central Tromso. It was cloudy and snowing in Tromso, so the guides decided to drive inland towards Finland. The guides look at detailed weather forecasts, so they know the best places to go with a chance to see the Northern Lights. We drove for 2-3 hours, crossing the border into Finland. And then the guides found an area to the side of the road that we could park.

The guides dug out an area in the snow for us to sit with a warm fire while we waiting for the skies to clear and the Northern Lights to show themselves. The snow was really deep, so it was fun to jump into the deep snow!

It was lovely to sit next to the fire and hear stories from the guides and the group. We also drank hot chocolate next to the fire, and toasted marshmallows on the fire.

Northern Lights

After over an hour of waiting, we were rewarded with a gap in the clouds and some clear skies. However, at first there still wasn’t any sign of the Northern Lights. After a bit longer waiting, the guides’ professional camera starting to pick up some green light in the sky.

I have to be honest – the display of Northern Lights on this night didn’t look great to the naked eye. The professional camera was able to pick up some ok photos with a very long exposure. But to the naked eye, we couldn’t see too much and no colour. I’d read before that the Northern Lights often look better on a camera rather than naked eye, so I was prepared for this. But it was still a bit disappointing to not be able to see a great display of the Northern Lights with the naked eye. I guess I was just unlucky that there was a lot of cloud cover and low solar activity. So I definitely want to go back to Tromso to try to see a better display of Northern Lights! But it was still a nice evening sitting around the firepit in Finland.

7. Husky Sledding

The last of my adventurous winter activities in Tromso is Husky Sledding. This was a really fun activity – but it was hard work. It definitely wasn’t as relaxing as the reindeer sledding!

Again, the companies offer pick up in Tromso, so you get taken by coach or minibus for a 20 minute drive to get to the Husky Sledding area. Here, you get a short introduction to Husky Sledding, and get given a warm suit and gloves to keep warm. Then it’s time to meet the dogs!

The dogs are super excited at first. I love dogs, so it was lovely to see them all so excited when they’re harnessed up to the sleds. They just want to get going! But if you’re nervous of dogs, you could find this a bit overwhelming – the dogs are loud, barking and howling, and lunging on their harnesses. But they’re just excited!

There’s two people per sled. One is the driver who stands on the back of the sled. And one is the passenger who sits on the front of the sled. And then a group of sleds follow the leader, and you’re off!

I enjoyed sitting on the sled as passenger. It was so lovely to take photos of the dogs and also the views all around. We went through areas with trees, and also more open areas with amazing views to the fjords. It was lovely.

Every so often, the group of sleds would stop so the passenger/driver could swap. I then had a go at driving. And it was sort of fun, but also sort of terrifying to be completely in control! You just have a brake – which is a piece of metal that digs into the snow. And you steer by (attempting) to lean to the side. It was fun driving when things were going well, but it was also a bit scary!

After the sledding, there was time to meet the huskies and gives them all a big fuss. I enjoyed this part – the dogs were so friendly and lovely. It was a fun activity.

8. Eat fresh seafood on Tromso’s waterfront

Back in central Tromso, you can spend your final evening enjoying the city and its restaurants. There are some really nice restaurants in Tromso, and fish and seafood is a speciality in Tromso. I’d recommend a restaurant called Kaia. It’s right on the waterfront in Tromso, so you get lovely views from the big windows to the harbour. And the food is lovely – the Arctic fish and chips was delicious. And well deserved after such an active few days!

9. Visit Tromso’s Ice Bar

Tromso’s Ice Bar is a great way to end your final night in Tromso. It feels fitting to visit an Ice Bar after several days of icy, snowy adventures! The Ice Bar entrance fee includes a welcome drink and also a warm cape to help you keep warm.

Inside, the Ice Bar is stunning. There are amazing ice sculptures all around. It’s a great place to take some fun photos as well as enjoy a drink. It’s a great way to end your time in Tromso.

10. Enjoy mountain views on your flight home.

The last of my top 10 winter activities in 4 days in Tromso, Norway is to enjoy your flight home. Make sure you get a window seat on the plane, so you can enjoy the mountain views. As soon as you take off from Tromso, you’re rewarded with some beautiful mountain views all around the plane. You can also look down to the city of Tromso and the bridge, and really appreciate how it’s tucked into the snowy mountains. I loved just watching the mountain views from the window and I reflected on an amazing 4 days in Norway.

Hope you enjoy the top 10 winter activities in 4 days in Tromso, Norway! A lot of these tours can be booked through Pukka Travel, but there are lots of companies offering tours.

Remember to also check out my guide to what to wear and pack for winter in Tromso. If you’re travelling to Tromso as a Solo Female Traveller, check out my guide for Solo Female Travel in Tromso. For more mountain adventures in Europe, check out my guides to Iceland and Austria.