Norway | Tips and activities for the Lofoten

The Lofoten is an archipelago in the north of Norway. It is one of the most beautiful archipelagos in the world National Geographic and it belongs to the absolute highlights of Norway. Lofoten is known for the midnight sun, the northern Lights and the idyllic fishing villages. You must have visited the 'Norwegian Maldives' once in your life. It is an untouched wilderness, where you feel like you are on another planet. The Lofoten consists of wild nature, beautiful beaches and deep fjords. Read more about our week in Lofoten and our tips here!

The weather in Lofoten

The higher in Norway, the colder it gets. If you are a little familiar with the climate in Norway, you will not be too bad in Lofoten. At least less cold than you would expect. Due to the warm Gulf Stream, the average temperature is -1 °C. In the summer the temperature rises to an average of 12°C. So you don't have to go there for hot summers and to bake in the sun, but it's fine to go out!

When is the best time to visit Lofoten?

It just depends on what you want to do and see! In the summer there is the midnight sun and in the winter the northern lights. The midnight sun is there between mid-May and the end of July, giving the island a magical glow. The sun does not set then and this is the best time for (nightly) excursions. You can spot the northern lights in Lofoten from October to April and that is of course also a great experience!

The Lofoten is therefore the best place in all of Norway to see the midnight sun and the northern lights due to its northern location. Here we have been able to admire the northern lights no less than 3 times within 1 week!

How do I get to Lofoten?

By boat

We have completed our journey Scandinavia with Interrail ticket done. That is a subscription to the train, where you very Europe can travel with. This meant that we did everything by public transport. There is no train track in Lofoten, so we are in Bodø (Location here) stopped.

This is an ideal place to reach Lofoten, because you can take a boat from Bodø to the archipelago. The ferry from Bodø to Lofoten takes about 3,5 hours. We have the ferry Bodø-Moskenes caught. You will then arrive approximately at the beginning of the island group (location here). We stayed in the small fishing village Å (Location here). We were then (very sweetly) picked up by the owners of the Airbnb we had booked.

View the Airbnb we have booked in Å here : Roy Finstad Å-veien 8.8392 Sorvagen Norway – Houses for Rent in Å, Nordland, Norway – Airbnb

By car

It seems that you can also drive to the archipelago by car. By car is the main island AustvÃgøy (Location here) can be reached from the north in approximately 6 hours from, for example Tromsø (Location here). There is a new road connecting Lofoten to the Norwegian mainland through a number of tunnels and bridges.

By bus

Buses run to Lofoten from Narvik (Location here), Bodø (Location here) On Harstad (Location here). The Lofoten Express bus follows the E10 to the fishing village called Å. The route also includes the famous places in Lofoten, namely Svolvaer en Leknes. The timetable of the buses to Lofoten can be found on this website.

Public transport in Lofoten

When we arrived in Lofoten, we had to do everything by bus. There is no train track, so we couldn't use our interrail pass for a while. We had read a lot on the internet about buses that run little and do not leave in bad weather. This was not too bad on the Lofoten itself. The buses arrived on time and were very comfortable! Buses run all over Lofoten, so you can basically reach everything.

The disadvantage of traveling with public transport in Lofoten is that there are very few buses per day. So you really have to plan ahead. Just back and forth to the center by bus, as we do The Netherlands getting used to it is not possible. So you are quite limited in what you do and don't do.

To give an example: we were going to do a hike and after this hike we had to wait another 2,5 hours for the bus to drive back. Now that is not very bad if you can drink a cup of coffee somewhere or go into the center. But this is almost nowhere to be found in Lofoten, it is very quiet. You should not count on catering and shopping centers. People really come for nature. It was a beautiful hike, but unfortunately we waited a long time in the cold. You have to give something for it.

What makes Lofoten special?

The ruggedness of nature and the feeling that you are on another planet. Everything, absolutely everything, is different from what we are used to. Just driving on the roads is a unique experience in itself. The winding roads over and along the water, with the rugged rocks around it, the wild sea. There is water and untouched nature everywhere. The archipelago feels like a large national park.

The Lofoten has super white sand beaches, where the icy air of the Arctic sea flows in your body. There are countless possibilities for walking tours. Special animals live there: reindeer, sea eagles, puffins and whales. I had researched a lot about the Lofoten in advance, but only when I got there did I feel how special it is there. I would recommend the Lofoten to everyone!

Also read: The 15 Most Beautiful National Parks in Europe | Unprecedented beauty

Hike Kvalvika

On day 2 we have the famous hike to Kvalvika (Location here) done. We have from Å (which is also a beautiful, picturesque village by the way) caught the bus to the nearest stop at the starting point of the hike. Unfortunately, the starting point of the hike was still a half hour walk from the bus stop. We didn't let that stop us, because Kvalvik Beach should be beautiful.

The bus driver had a chat with us and liked it so much that we were going to do the Kvalvika hike, that he surprised us positively. He dropped us off at the starting point, rather than the bus stop that was on his route. This saved us half an hour of walking. People are often so friendly and helpful in Norway and in Lofoten!

The Kvalvika hike takes about an hour and is therefore not very difficult. The view is breathtaking! You arrive at a white sandy beach on the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by rugged rocks. You must do this hike when you are in Lofoten. After the hike we had to wait 2,5 hours for the bus. Again… a car is highly recommended in Lofoten.

Fishing village Reine

As mentioned before, we started in the fishing village Å. It is an old fishing village with about 250 inhabitants in the municipality Moskenes, province Nordland.

13 minutes drive from Å Queen (Location here). This is one of the pearls of Lofoten, where you can admire the way of life on the archipelago. You see red houses on stilts above the water everywhere. These are the fishermen's houses in which people still live. They are still quite self-sufficient, because they catch their own fish, dry it on high racks and then sell it. It feels like you went back in time with a time machine. In the picturesque fishing village you can go kayaking and the Reindeer walk. This is one of the most popular hikes in Lofoten, it is a staircase that gives an unparalleled view of Reine an hour later.

Unfortunately we were not able to do the Reinebringen ourselves. The bus does stop in Reine, but only returned a day later. We couldn't find a place to sleep in Reine, so we just drove through. This way we could catch glimpses of the village and we saw picturesque pictures. For this reason I would recommend everyone to go to Lofoten by car instead of bus, so that you can really enjoy everything, because it is beautiful!

Hamnoy

Hamnoy (Location here) is, together with Reine, the most photographed village in Lofoten. The charming and picturesque villages provide picturesque pictures. Artists have been coming here for decades to draw inspiration from the rocky surroundings. Just like Reine, Hamnøy has many fishermen's houses and you are almost on the sea in the village. The storm is pounding against the strong wooden houses here. High mountains surround the village and the untouched nature is beautiful.

Svolvaer

Svolvaer (Location here) is the largest and most important city in Lofoten. We liked that there was some life here again, such as a number of cafes and supermarkets. It is located between the mountains and the sea and has 5000 inhabitants. There are much nicer places in Lofoten, but this was just as nice because there was a bit more to do. You can spot sea eagles here and there are various excursions to book.

Nusfjord

Nusfjord (Location here) is one of the oldest and untouched fishing villages in Lofoten. It is often seen as the most beautiful. No people live there anymore, but you can do several beautiful hiking trails. Nusfjord was designated by UNESCO in 1975 as a pilot project to preserve traditional Norwegian architecture

Platforms

Op Platforms (Location here) you can book a very special excursion. Namely a whale safari! You have the chance to see whales, orcas, porpoises and bald eagles during the excursion. The guides know exactly where to go to spot these marine animals and the success rate is almost 100%. If it doesn't work, you often get your money back or the option to go on another day.

Now I have a whale-watching tour of my own Tromso (outside the Lofoten) so I didn't go again in Andanes. I would certainly recommend such a tour in the Norwegian landscape and I can't imagine that it can be disappointing in the beautiful surroundings of the Lofoten!

Closing comments

Book now! I hope I was able to help you by providing some information about the archipelago. The Lofoten is beautiful in winter because of the snow and icy glow, but special in summer because of the warm rays of the midnight sun. You have to be prepared when you travel by public transport, but you can easily cruise the Lofoten by car. However and whenever you go there, it is magically beautiful. You will not get bored in such an environment!