Tromso

Above the Arctic Circle, at 69ºN, midway between the Lofoten Islands and the North Cape is Tromsø. The city is actually an island connected by two bridges.

The Prostneset dock (Hurtigruten) is right in the city center. The Breivika dock for the larger cruise ships, is 4 km north of town and has no facilities at all. Shuttle buses (19.95 Euro) run regularly between the Breivika harbor and the city center when cruise ship arrives. Bus 42 runs (about every 30 minutes) also between the Breivika harbor and the city center. A day pass for Tromso is about 11 Euro.

The Port of Tromsø is making major investments in the city center with new and improved piers and facilities including a new cruise terminal. As a result of these investments, cruise ships will be able to call in the heart of the city and the passengers and crew will be in the middle of all activities. The piers are completed, as are the building facilities in the port's new terminal building.

Printable map to take along.

If your ship docks at Breivika, as most large ones do, the famous Botanical Gardens are just across the main road from the pier. Just follow the painted "steps".

At this ancient whaling capital and base for expeditions to the North Pole, you'll enjoy Tromsoes appealing frontier atmosphere

Tromsø's most visited attractions include Polaria, The Arctic Cathedral, The Cable Car, The Tromsø Museum, the Polar Museum and the Botanic Garden.

The Polaria museum is dedicated to these and all things arctic. The building is shaped like an iceberg and inside you can experience a snowstorm, and the world's most northern aquarium filled with marine life from the arctic seas

A cable car to Mt. Storsteinen, 420 meters above sea level, offers a panoramic site with restaurant and outdoor café. The view is recognized in presentations of Norway and simply must be experienced! The ride takes four minutes, and the cable car has a capacity of 27 passengers. The restaurant has seating capacity for 150 people.

Directions from Breivika: First walk to the road and use the walkway under the road to get on the side where the bus-stop is. Use the city bus 42 to get to the city center (about a 10 minute ride), Get of at Stortorget (it is the first stop after you drive through 2 sets of traffic lights), walk across the road (towards the ocean) and turn right, after 20 meters you are where you will catch citybus number 26. Take the bus to "Fjellheisen" (every 30 minutes), and you are right by the cable cars.

When you have been to the top of the cable cars, jump back on route 26 (it runs in a loop, so it is headed back to the city center from where you got off it). To catch route 42 back to the ship you walk about 200 meters further south from where you got off at Stortorget, and catch it northbound from Urmaker Jørgensen (it will be driving in the opposite direction from when you got off it) and get off at Breivika. Buses are plentiful and very reliable. An all-day bus pass is NOK 60 and a roundtrip ticket for the cable car) is NOK 120. Of course you can also get a taxi from the harbor to the cable car, it will be a little bit faster, but also…

Lyngen is a municipality in the Region of Troms in Northern Norway. The municipality is characterized by the towering mountains that rise 1833 meters right up from the Arctic Ocean. Geographically, the municipality is a peninsula. There are some 3200 inhabitants in Lyngen.

One of Norway's leading regions for handmade arts and crafts, Tromsø is a treasure trove of shops, particularly along the main pedestrian street Storgata, selling regional and international products. Pick up art from the city's many galleries or craft shops (such as glass-blowing and candle-making studios) or score such Arctic delicacies as reindeer sausages.

The Norwegian currency is the Norwegian crown (norske krone), abbreviated kr. A 1/100th krone is called øre. 1.00 EUR = about 8 NOK

ATMs in Norway are called Minibank.

Nearly all stores accept major credit cards such as Mastercard and Visa (Bring your passport/driver's license, as you are required to identify yourself when using a credit card).

Norwegian is the official language of Norway. The language is very close and mutually intelligible with the two other Scandinavian languages, English widely spoken.

Free Wifi is available, among others, at the Burger King in the center of the Storgata.

Opening hours in Norway are better than they used to be, but many smaller stores still close early on Saturday (1 PM or 3 PM is typical) and nearly everything is closed on Sundays. You'll often see opening hours written as "9-21 (9-18)" on doors, meaning 9 AM to 9 PM weekdays, 9 AM to 6 PM Saturday.