Travel from Tromsø to Finland, Sweden, Lofoten and Svalbard

Tromsø offers good options for onward travel, whether you are heading north, south or to our neighbour countries Sweden and Finland.

Travel north

Travel north from Tromsø by bus, plane or along the coast on a voyage with the one of the coastal routes Havila Voyages or Hurtigruten, and experience North Cape and the rest of Northern Norway. 

Alta

You can travel from Tromsø to Alta by bus. There is one daily departure from Tromsø with a travel time of 6,5 hours. There is no direct bus from Tromsø to North Cape, but an alternative is to stay in Alta overnight, and then travel to North Cape the following day. The same applies with bus routes from Tromsø to Kautokeino, Karasjok and Kirkenes. You must travel via Alta, stay overnight there, and then continue the following day. There are usually 1-2 daily departures, except Saturday, from Alta to Kautokeino (2,5 hours), 1-2 departures, except Saturday, to Karasjok (5 hours), and one departure on Monday, Wednesday and Friday to Kirkenes (11 hours).

Find more information about bus routes here. 

Another alternative from 1st December to 31st March is to take The Arctic Route to Alta via Finland. This route goes via Kilpisjärvi, Hetta and Kautokeino. Click here for more information.

North Cape

The northbound coastal voyages by Hurtigruten and Havila Voyages, depart Tromsø daily on a 17 hour sailing to Honningsvåg. From Honningsvåg, there are 1-3 daily buses to the North Cape. Search for bus routes here. It is possible to buy an excursion to the North Cape organized by Hurtigruten or Havila Voyages, or you can contact Visit Nordkapp for recommendations and bookings.

Another option is to fly from Tromsø to Honningsvåg via Hammerfest. There are usually 1-3 daily buses running between Honningsvåg and the North Cape. For more information about flights, please visit Widerøe. 

Svalbard

The only way to get from Tromsø to Svalbard is by plane. Please note that Svalbard is outside of the Schengen area, and identity control is performed for all guests travelling to Svalbard. There are daily flights from Tromsø to Longyearbyen throughout the year. In peak season March - August, the number of flights increases to several flights a day. Please see more information on flights at Avinor. Due to Svalbard being outside the Schengen area, identity control is performed for all guests travelling to and from Svalbard. All guests with a foreign citizenship have to bring their passports. Read more about the rules and regulations for passport and visa here.

 

Travel south

If you wish to travel southwards from Tromsø, you can either go by bus, plane or onboard a coastal sailing route. 

Senja

There are several ways to travel from Tromsø to Senja, and the journey can vary depending on the mode of transport and route choice. The options include express boat to Finnsnes or Lysnes, by bus, by ferry and car, and even by bicycle. In this article you will find information on how to travel between Tromsø and Senja. 

Narvik

There are direct bus connections from Tromsø to Narvik every day. Travel time is 4,5 hours. From Narvik you can take the bus onwards to Bodø and Lofoten, among other destinations. Bus information from Tromsø to Narvik can be found here. You can also go to Narvik by the Arctic Route bus.

Another alternative from 1st December to 31st March is to take The Arctic Route to Narvik. This route goes via the northernmost animal park Polar Park. Click here for more information about the Arctic Route.

Lofoten

You can go from Tromsø to the Lofoten Islands by bus, plane or go onboard a coastal sailing with Havila Voyages or Hurtigruten. The bus runs on weekdays and weekends  from Tromsø via Bjerkvik to Svolvær. Another possibility is to take an early morning express boat from Tromsø to Harstad on week days (3 hours). There is normally a connecting bus to the Lofoten Islands. Search for bus timetables here.

The coastal route departs daily with Havila Voyages and Hurtigruten. The voyage between Tromsø and the Lofoten Islands includes some of the best scenery on the entire coastal voyage.

There are also daily flights from Tromsø to Svolvær via Bodø or Stokmarknes. For more information, please visit Widerøe.

Trondheim, Bergen and Oslo

The most efficient way of travelling from Tromsø to Trondheim, Bergen and Oslo is by plane. There are several departures to all destinations daily. Visit Avinor for more information about flights and direct routes.

There is one daily bus connection from Tromsø to Fauske. You can continue south from here by train to Trondheim, Oslo, Bergen and other destinations. From Fauske you can take the nighttrain to Trondheim (9 hours), onwards to Oslo (about 17 hours from Fauske), and to Bergen via Oslo (about 24 hours from Fauske. For more information on trains, please read here.

 

Travel to Sweden

You can travel from Tromsø to Sweden by plane, bus, or a combination of bus and train. The bus runs from Tromsø to Narvik, onwards to Björkliden, Abisko and Kiruna in Sweden. The buses are run by Länstrafiken Norrbotten (route 91) and you can find more information and timetables here. Another option is to take a bus from Tromsø to Narvik, and then go onwards with the train connected to Boden, Luleå, Haparanda and Stockholm. For more information on timetables, please search here. 

During the period from 1st December to 31st March it is possible to travel by The Arctic Route from Tromsø to Sweden. For more information, visit www.thearcticroute.com. 

Visit Avinor for more information about flights.

 

Travel to Finland

From June to September and from 1st December to 31st March there are daily buses going from Tromsø to Finland (Kilpisjärvi 3,5 hours, Rovaniemi 10 hours, and Oulu 14 hours). At other times of the year, no bus service is available between Tromsø and Finland. More information on buses between Tromsø and Finland can be found here and on www.thearcticroute.com.

Another alternative is to take a bus to Narvik and travel by train to Haparanda. Take a bus from Haparanda to Rovaniemi, Kemi or Oulu. For more information about this, visit www.thearcticroute.com or search for bus timetables here.

There are direct flights with weekly departures to Helsinki and soon to Rovanemi from Tromsø. Visit Finnair for further information about flights.