Tromso | Northern Lights Pioneers | Photos Included

We had the cards stacked against us on the night of our northern lights tour with lots of cloud cover and also it being the night of the full moon but we still managed to see some beautiful northern lights thanks to our guide Lucia and our driver Harald being so diligent and constantly keeping us moving. We ended up having two really great light shows and two other light shows that were very pretty but not as vibrant. We would have missed out on at least 2 of those light activities if our guides had not been as patient and determined as they were to keep hunting the Aurora down and we were super greatfull for that. In the meantime while we were waiting for more activity, they kept us warm with a nice fire and delicious hot chocolate and cookies. The bus we took was very comfortable and warm and it was nice having a smaller group to do this activity with. I have heard that on a lot of these tours there are large groups that go out together or that many busses all end up at the same locations so it gets very crowded, but that was not the case with our tour. We were the only ones around and driving down the beautiful coastline of Tromso. I did hear that the night before they had driven all the way to Finland to see the lights, so this company will literally go the extra mile to get you to see them.

The guide was a local and very professional. The price of the activity was better than other companies and he sent the photos within a few hours. I did the same activity the following day with another company and it was much more expensive, the guides were not local although they had advertised it and they still haven’t sent us the photos (6 days later!) . I highly recommend them for your northern lights chase.

So pleased we spent a bit more to go on this tour. Very comfortable minibus with a very professional driver, August. The aurora guide Mattia was excellent, constantly monitoring the sky and making the decision to keep going onto Finland. There in the tundra we stepped out of the bus just as the aurora started. Visibly moving to the naked eye they looked beautiful and, of course, even better with smartphone and DSLR that are not as limited as human vision. Having lit a fire in a portable firepit and dispensed the obligatory hot chocolate, Mattia regaled us with the science and mythology of the Northern Lights. All round great experience but there is luck involved it's worth remembering. Whole trip was 7 hours and would do it again in a heartbeat.

Our guide Jan was absolutely fantastic. He had jokes delivered dryer than the norwegian air and was extremely knowledgeable about the history of the northern lights and of course most importantly about finding the lights for us. The ONLY reason I am not putting 5 stars is because we were very unlucky with the clouds and could not see as much. As such, I don’t want to put 5 stars in case the review comes across as artificial. I will however, see this is a fantastic reason to come back and do the tour again.

We had a great time with Mattia (guide) and August (driver). In fact, we went out with them on two different nights--Jan. 18 and 21, 2026. I have a background in science and Mattia studied physics so I was especially impressed by his explanations of the science, how he read the various models and used his own intuitive sense to find the aurora. He also told fun stories from mythology. Mattia was very clear about the chances for seeing the lights (it's never guaranteed, even with great data from the models). But I think he must have a sixth sense about them. After some pretty solid shows on the second night, he suggested we wait just 5 minutes more because it seemed like the magnetosphere was getting ready to discharge again. And we were rewarded with an incredible undulating curtain of green that spanned the sky 180 degrees from one side to the other. It was so amazing that I just watched without trying to record it. Not your typical northern lights trip, but WOW!

Oh my goodness, we had the most amazing experience!!!! We didn’t have super high hopes because it was somewhat cloudy, but our guide Oscar did a great job reading the weather and took us south where there was less cloud cover. We got the snow of a lifetime and we ended up getting to see one of the biggest solar storms in 20 years. We stopped at 3 different locations and the lights were just unbelievable!! Oscar also took amazing photos of the lights and as many as you wanted as a group. We will cherish them forever!!

This tour was excellent. My friend and I had a not so great tour with a different company the day before. Our guide Shoja went above and beyond. He was honest about our chances to see the lights and brought us to 2 excellent locations. He was super knowledgable. You could tell he not only did this for his job, but he also sought the lights for his own joy and pleasure. I really liked all the history he shared, and his own personal anecdotes were amazing. 10/10 would recommend. P.s. I forgot my phone on the van after the tour and it was a seamless experience to retrieve it !

When Arctic Breeze could not bring the tourist to see the Northern lights , they just blame it on the weather and does not offer the tourist another chance to see it at a discounted rate. Arctic Breeze said that they would make the scheduled trip, for all weather conditions and suggested that tourist should book and pay for 2 days to have better chance of viewing the Northern lights but no refund or so if viewing is not realised . Later , I found out that many other companies in Tromso that offer discounted rate for subsequent viewing will make more effort to make the first northern light viewing a success as they will not want to proceed with a second viewing if possible Hence Tourist could looking at booking with companies that offer discounted rate when the first viewing is not possible .

As seasoned travellers - AVOID THIS TOUR AND COMPANY (you've been warned). Rent a car and drive outside Tromso, you'll have a better experience! If I could give MINUS 100 stars, I would. We sat in a very cramped minibus for 6+ hours - (the first half not even stopping for the toilet or to stretch our legs). To add, Mattio and August, our driver and tour guide were lovely. No Northern lights, no anything really. It was £200 claustrophobic bus ride. Awful, awful, experience overall. A waste of a significant amount of money. NOTE: I reached out to the company to express my concerns. I can confirm they DID NOT respond. This speaks volumes of their lack of customer centricity. They are money grabbers.

(*****) Couldn’t recommend this Arctic Breeze northern lights tour or its guide Mattia more highly. Persistence was his key and the magical final hour of this tour showcased nature’s fireworks in all their glory and gave us photographs we will cherish forever. Mattia’s mix of storytelling around the fire with cookies and hot chocolate also proved a fascinating mix of folklore and science.

Weather not on our side, I would only book this type of tour on the day and check if weather is good. Wear spikes, especially if you are older. Not easy getting to some viewing spots by foot. Dress appropriately. Maybe go up the mountain by cable car and try your luck there first. The Northern Lights were visible the night before our tour.

Smooth ride in a Mercedes mini bus which left on time. Our guide drove us to only two different lookout points, both within an hour of Tromso, over almost six hours. At the first site - the better of the two - our guide gave us a few pointers on how to take a better pics with our phones and then took some photos which were distributed to our group. Overall, we spent far too much time shivering in the van at each of the sites. I wouldn’t recommend it.

So fortunate to have had Brynjar as our guide! When we started out, he told us there was only one night over the last 3 months that he had a group that did not get to see the lights, so we felt like we had good odds with him. He’s incredibly experienced and was able to find the lights for us in three different locations over 4.5 hours just miles outside of Tromso. Not only that, he knew how to tell if the lights were going to likely come back (so we should stay in the same place) or if they were fading and we should look elsewhere. This type of knowledge is something obtained only over years and years of experience. There were two women on our tour who had been out the previous two nights in Tromso with different companies (they saw the lights on all of them), and they said this tour was the best of the three. Highly recommend Arctic Breeze, and especially Brynjar!

If you have to chase the Northern Lights, choose this company. The first night we were with Oscar but unfortunately the weather conditions were not on our side. Oscar was very kind and attentive the whole way. He offered us to come back the next day with a 50% discount. The second night I was with Mattia and August. We drove to Finland and there the show was incredible! Thank you guys for making my childhood dream come true. I will come back in October and I will definitely choose you again! Thank you again for being so kind and doing everything so that we could see the Northern Lights despite the weather not being on our side! Thank you thank you thank you!

Mattia, our guide, and August, our driver, went out of their way to find us northern lights even though our chances of seeing them were very small (it was a cloudy, grey day). We ended up driving 60kms into Finland and finally there they were! The tour was 2 hours longer than normal because of Mattia's dedication! Afterwards we got hot chocolate and chocolate chip cookies and an explanation from Mattia about the northern lights etc. I therefore recommend Arctic Breeze wholeheartedly!

PROPER AURORA CHASERS, NO BS! Our guide binjar or whatever makes all the other companies look like rookies, guy knows what he’s talking about and knows how to find the lights on a cloudy day, I was told by another guide with another company the day before that the probability of the lights was “not very good for the next night” but Binjar came in clutch and found us the best spot to see really strong lights that can be clearly seen with the naked eye on this “not so good night”. If you’re not booking with this company, you’re making a big mistake.

The guide was very engaging other than there was nothing else. Booked two Lights tours with them and still did not see anything. One of our friends booked with another tour company and they saw lights on the same day. Will not recommend!

This was an amazing experience! Mattia was the perfect guide, he knew everything about the northern lights and the best spots to catch them, but he was also very careful and responsive to our needs, and he made us feel as comfortable as possible. It must be said the northern lights are unpredictable, so even if the sky conditions are good, the sight of the northern lights cannot be taken for granted and the guide can’t help it, but we were actually very lucky because we were able to see the northern lights from 7 pm to 12.30 am. We went to different spots to see the northern lights and we were able to catch them in each spot. Moreover, we were a small group so it was very easy to move around and take pictures. Also, the guide only chose remote spots without any other groups or people, to full enjoy the moment with no distraction. Great guide, great company and great night! Definitely one of the best experiences we made in Tromso!

This was an excellent tour. We were lucky with the weather and saw the northern lights multiple times. While this is never a guarantee, what I appreciated was how much great information our guide, Mattia, provided along the way. He taught us how to spot the aurora when it first appears and explained everything from the science behind the phenomenon to its name, coined by Galileo. He was very clear about where we were going, how long the tour would be, and what was happening at each stop. Our driver August was very careful and made us feel safe as we drove along winding, sometimes narrow and snowy roads. I went on another tour the same week where the driver was also the guide, only he hardly communicated with the group at all, and his driving was frightening— not pleasant at all. The Arctic Breeze tour was 1000% better and if I return to Tromso, this is the only one I would go on.

Excellent service from Arctic Breeze. Small group tour to see the northern lights. Kjell Petter led the group and August was the driver. Both gentlemen provided excellent service. The bus (a Mercedes) was modern, clean and comfortable. We saw the northern lights three times that night, and Petter was very eager to share with the group his adventures. We also had hot chocolate and cookies by a fire. All in all a fun night and an electric find.

We went to visit the northern lights with arctic Brees on 24th September in Tromso Norvège. It was a magnificent spectacle. Finally we were able to experience this incredible natural phenomenon thanks to an experienced guide. He did everything possible so that we could see it. We enjoyed this spectacle for 50 minutes with cookies and hot chocolate that the guide served us. We really appreciate his kindness. At the end of the activity he even dropped us off at the campsite where our camper vans were. We are waiting for him to send us our portraits that he took. I am sure that we will receive beautiful photos. Nos address mail pour recevoir les photos: stantaxi@free.fr mary.saputhanthri@gmail.fr Date de l'expérience: 24 septembre 2024

We had a great northern light show today, the trip was great!! Thank you, Oscar, best guide ever! We would do that again !!

Out guide, Oskar, was a low key presence, but was utterly committed to coming through for us. We drove and drove in a van, looking, looking, stopping to consult with a couple of other guides from the company, to compare info, and it was very late. We had been served our cocoa and cookies, and it looked like it wasn't going to happen for us. On the return trip, our guide stopped the van, quietly announced "We have activity," and there were the lights! We stayed through their whole show, as they shifted and spun and streaked. Everyone was thrilled. Oskar dropped us off at our hotels, and then, the next day, he emailed us- FOR FREE- photos that he had taken of us. (Most tours charge for access.) We also did the big bus tour and saw the lights then, but it was a different experience, and I preferred this one.

Although we didn’t see much of the lights, we appreciated the hot chocolate and cookies and driving the distance to Finland. Our guide was very nice but especially since we didn’t see the lights, some information about the Aurora would’ve been a nice addition.

Despite inclement weather, we were very lucky to tour with Arctic Breeze as they went ahead with the tour when many others cancelled. Our local experienced guides chased the lights and we were fortunate enough to stop in several spots to view the lights. These guys are great at what they do, would highly recommend.

Even though the chances were against us, they drove a long way and found a small opening, so we managed to see it for a few seconds. This would not happen without their effort. Thanks guys!

Viewing the Aurora Borealis/Northern lights was an amazing experience, out of this world! We were so lucky to get a long, wonderful show, dancing lights and all at our very first stop not too far from Tromsø city. We still drove ahead for more sightings, though the subsequent one didn't have the dancing lights like the first. Brynjar, the guide was wonderful! He is friendly, kind, very passionate, and knowledgeable with good photography skills and will help you get the right settings on your phone or camera to capture the northern lights. He is very patient and will do his best to ensure you have the best of experiences. He spotted a moose by the roadside and stopped for us to see it. He connected very well with the people on the tour. The bus (like a mini-van, so quite cosy, not a big 50-60 seater tour bus) was very comfy, with adequate leg space and charging points. The guide offered thermal suits and had more winter gear should you need one. He also had very nice hot cocoa/chocolate drinks (oh..this was lovely in the freezing weather) and cookies for everyone. He took individual/couple or group of friends' portraits for those on the tour, with the Aurora behind us. He then shared a link with all the portraits and aurora photos the following day... which was great for those of us who couldn't get very good photos on our phones. I would highly recommend the Aurora tour with Arctic Breeze AS, made my first night in Tromsø! Thank you!

Great guide and a successful "hunt" for the Northern Lights on 10/24 with Brynjar. This is a one-man show with the guide being a very knowledgeable aurora hunter, a professional photographer and just a great guy. He took great care to find the best spots to show us the aurora and we were extremely lucky to witness an exceptional nature show. Brynjar will take portraits and aurora pics and share those by link after the trip. The photos were fantastic! So no need to stress out if your phone or camera doesn't quite capture the beauty. We didn't have to drive far that day so there was time for a camp fire on the beach. Warm overalls and hot cocoa and cookies were provided. Just a great experience, even our 11 yo had fun. Definitely recommended for teens and up.

We started the journey with bad conditions and we were convinced after two hours of search not to see anything in that evening. Brynjar headed for Finland Kilpishärvi in the end where we finally met clear sky and the Aurora Borealis. Happy and satisfied we all arrived at 2.00 AM. Many thanks to Brynjar for his knowledge, divisiveness and his network of fellow hunters. To be booked with closed eyes.

This was a bucket list item for us. It was without doubt a great experience! The Boralies was being challenging, but our guide was determined to find a clearing in the sky for us! It was worth every minute even in the freezing cold! Git great pictures and his portraits were awesome! He has a great camera!! Built a small fire and had hot chocolate and cookies! He was informative, kind and funny! He really wants you to experience the lights even if he has to drive a far way! Would take this one again!! Fantastic! Thank you so much for the experience!!!

MUST DO IN TROMSO!!! Despite the adverse weather conditions in Tromso, the guide was able to bring us to an unforgettable spot and experience a beautiful Aurora. He didn’t mind driving more then 3 hours to reach Finland to make it possible, and also brought us to Sweden: so in one single night, we saw the Aurora and walked (other then in Norway) in Finland and Sweden. He was also careful to find a wind-less spot to make us enjoy the night more. He also provided great hot chocolate and cookies and warm technical clothing for everyone was also available. He lent us Camera-tripods, and also took beautiful portraits of us in front of the Aurora with his own equipment. The Van was extremely modern and comfortable. It was a real Aurora-seek and he was involved as much as we were in trying to spot the Aurora! 😍 We 100% recommend!!!! While other companies cancelled their tours for the night, he didn’t give up and gifted us unforgettable and timeless memories.

Fantastic trip with Brynjar on the 10th February 2022 It was snowing heavily in Tromso, and we thought we wouldn't have any luck seeing the lights. But after an hour's drive through blizzards, stopping for a while & consulting the weather radar he found a valley where the sky cleared, and we got a spectacular display. A lot of fun, very skilled guide, and we felt super-privileged to get such a good show. Absolutely recommended!

Great experience with a great guide. Managed to see the Lights in fulltime fore on a very snowy and cloudy day because of the knowledge of the guide. Nice bonfire with cookies and hot chocolate.

Our booked tour was cancelled with another company on Wednesday night and again on Thursday which was our last night in Tromso. After seeing some trips leaving for Northern Light tours, we made a very last minute booking with Arctic Breeze 30 minutes before departure and we are so glad that we did! From the very start, our guide was passionate about us seeing the lights and chased them all over the country. We eventually ended up in Finland and the display we saw was truly amazing. The memories will stay with us forever. Thank you so much.

The experience was absolutely incredible!!! The team of Arctic Breeze was very well organized! Besides that fact that the night had the best conditions for Northern Lights, the transportation was really nice, the spots that they chose, the hot chocolate, the cookies, the fire next to the sea, the photos by the team, everything!! l have experience Aurora Chases previous times with other offices, but Arctic Breeze gives a better experience! Thank you!

Our tour guide was friendly and professional. He picked us up promptly from the arranged meeting place, found a good location to view the lights and dropped us off at our AirBNB after the tour finished. The vehicle was comfortable and hot chocolate was provided once we started viewing the lights. We were lucky to get clear skies and a spectacular display.

We had the best Guide, Brynjar, and thanks to him, we were able to see the dance of the Auroras. I recommend it 100%

I would like to review your activities, but unfortunately you transferred us to another company just 5 minutes before the tour begins without asking our opinion about it. So, I could thank you for offering a nice evening and tour with Tromsø Friluftsenter company, but what you did was not polite!!! Please take care of your customers and respect that they paid A LOT OF MONEY for a tour with YOUR company, based on previous reviews and recommendations...if you need further details please contact.

We were so lucky to witness aurora borealis for the first try. To have a well experienced tour guide made it happened for us. Brynjar know very well about aurora borealis. He was right when he told us that it is most likely seen between 9pm -11pm. Perfect time, perfect weather… Aurora borealis started to show up. It was an amazing and unforgettable experience💚. By the way, Brynjar’s hot chocolate, cookies and bonfire helped us to keep warm and relaxed✅

Great experience. Make sure you have the clouds clear :) the tour guide is great ! He took many pictures. Patiently we watched the aurora dancing for like more than 2 hrs 😍

The tour guides were extremely patient and very motivated to find the northern lights on a night that was not the most ideal when the weather drastically changed. Drove the group all the way to Finland due to Norway’s low visibility that night. 7 hours of chasing, hot chocolate in hand, and received professional pictures via email next day. Very good experience

Booked the Northern Lights tour in February 2020. Was told to be at the meeting point ready to leave at 7pm, there were lots of people waiting but there were no representatives from Arctic Breeze in sight until the departure time. Once they turned up the check in process was chaotic, it seemed they had overbooked (?) which took some time to resolve so we left extremely late. The fact that it's a "small" group is a little irrelevant as two minibus loads travel together so there's actually quite a few of you. We paid extra for the panoramic bus, which was a waste of money since it was covered in snow (I fully appreciate that they can't control the weather, but it would have been good if an attempt had been made to clear the snow off the sunroof and windows at the start at least). We drove to a spot that wasn't quite the wilderness I had imagined - outside some houses overlooking an industrial estate. We didn't have the advertised campfire, but hot chocolate and a cheap maryland supermarket cookie was provided. We also got thermal suits which I did appreciate in the cold. I was expecting there to be some aspect of "tour" about the trip, but our driver didn't speak to us at all - we were given no commentary as to where we were going and why, or told anything about the lights. For the price and greater flexibility, in hindsight I would have preferred to hire a car and learn more about the lights from the internet. Really wanted to like this tour, but unfortunately it was a bit of a let down.

Very friendly and experienced team! Very comfortable mini bus with lots of space and usb power sockets. Oscar was our driver and he was very good. Also the hot chocolate and biscuits were delicious! We did a trip with them on Saturday night which sadly did not have any northern lights activity (despite having very clear skies), so we decided to book again for the Sunday night in hopes of having better luck.. again unfortunately no show of lights.. so while we are disappointed that after two tours we still didn’t see the northern lights we know that this was not the fault of the team, and they were up front with us at the start of the second tour and said that the chance of seeing them was not great as the weather was a lot cloudier. I’ve only rated this 4* and not 5* because I have noticed that quite a few other companies offer discounts on an additional tour if the northern lights are not seen the first time, however artic breeze does not offer this so we paid full price again for the second tour.

Very good trip, very good guide. Very good. Not reasonable to insist on a longer review in order to conclude the session (worst thing about this is the design of the review interface).

My husband and I booked a tour as part of a large group experience, I think there were around 18+ people. It was excellent though! The tour guides made sure everyone got multiple photos, we were lucky enough the weather cooperated and mother nature let us see the lights easily. I did not hear the tour guides offer anyone tripods (not a big deal at all) but I was easily able to get one by asking so do the same if you need one!! It was a really wonderful experience, I would highly recommend it to anyone.

Had an awesome experience seeing the northern lights.We drove our way towards Finland(2.5hrs approx) and found a nice quiet place which was amazing. Bryan and Oscar took as many pics as we wanted under the stary night. 10/10 experience.

In order to get a clear sky we drove all the way to Finnland (2.5 hrs). We had a wonderful performance of the Northern Lights, even our guide was impressed. Despite -20° we watched for 1.5 hours, we were supplied with thermal suits, boots and gloves if needed, and tripods. Hot chocolate and cookies were served before departure back to Tromso. The vans were top notch, as well as everything supplied. Due to the long distance the excursion lasted over 7 hours, but it was worth it. Our driver, Oskar, was a very confifdent and safe driver.

We had a fab night, Which included an impromptu camp fire, hot chocolate and cookies. We all thought the sky was too cloudy with no chance of a light show. I wanted to add our appreciation to you (Brinjar and Oscar) for your hard work and perseverance to find a gap where we could view the spectacular show of the northern lights. To see them in a picture is one thing, but to see them with the naked eye is so fantastic. Even though it was on the side of a mountain in a blizzard and at 01:30 am 😀 Your knowledge and experience came through, especially when going back through the images and where we thought there was nothing the lights were seen, amazing. Keep up the good work. Stuart Westbury UK 21-02-20

Tough weather conditions, it was very cloudy, but Brynjar and Oscar drove us to the best spots to catch norther lights. We didn’t see them for very long time, and on the way back home we tried one last shot where there was a good condition for half hour and the aurora came! Very good team, kind and well prepared, with a lot of experience. They provided us with hot drinks, fire and thermal suits if needed