Minibus chase, big bus or camp?
Every tour in Tromsø promises the Northern Lights, but they go about it in four very different ways. Some drive wherever the sky is clear, some always go to the same place, and one never leaves the water. Which one is right depends on your time, your budget and how much cold you like.
The four types at a glance
| Type | On our page | Best at | Weak at |
|---|---|---|---|
| Small-group minibus chase | Our pick, Arctic Glow, Arctic Breeze | Finding clear sky, time with the guide, photos | Late return, no toilet, higher price |
| Big bus chase | Jeshua Tours | Price, toilet on board, languages | Large group, less flexible route |
| Fixed camp | Reindeer camp dinner | Fixed times, dinner, culture, children | Cannot move away from clouds |
| Boat | Electric boat cruise | Warmth, short, accessible | Stays on the coast |
The small-group chase
This is what most people mean by an aurora chase. A guide and a driver, or a guide who drives, take 15 to 19 guests in a minibus. Before leaving they study the cloud maps, live cameras and aurora data, and they keep checking all evening. If the clouds close in, they move. Snow Travels, our pick at ~$168, caps the group at 15 and sets no distance limit on its long option. The family-run Arctic Glow tour at ~$146 and the Arctic Breeze minibus at ~$138 work the same way.
A chase does not mean six hours on the road. Most of the night you stand at one or two spots, by a fire, in a thermal suit, waiting for the sky. The driving happens when the guide decides there is a better place. On a clear night you may stop twenty minutes from town; on a cloudy one you may end up at the Finnish border. What a border chase is like is in its own guide.
The big bus
The big bus from Jeshua Tours at ~$99 is a chase too, but with a coach. It cannot turn down every narrow road, and with many more guests there is less time with the guide. In return it is the cheapest, it has a toilet on board, and it offers an audio guide in eight extra languages, which is why families with grandparents and groups who do not speak English like it. With several nights in town and a small budget, its free rejoin policy makes it the smart choice. What each of the six costs is in our price guide.
The chase we would book
The small-group chase from Snow Travels, from ~$168, with up to 15 guests, thermal suits, bonfire and portraits.
The fixed camp
The reindeer camp dinner at ~$203 does not chase. A bus takes you half an hour out of town to a camp run by Sami reindeer herders, you feed the herd, warm up in a lavvu tent, eat a three-course dinner in a turf hut and step outside to watch the sky. If the sky is clear over the camp, you may see the lights; if not, you will not. What you get in return is certainty: a fixed start at 5:40 pm, a fixed return at 10:30 pm, food, culture, and a warm place to sit. For cruise guests sailing the same night and for families, that certainty is worth a lot. More about the camp.
The boat
The electric boat cruise at ~$134 heads into the fjords around Tromsø, picking the direction with the best forecast. You stay warm inside and go out on deck when the lights appear. It is short, quiet and wheelchair accessible. It is also limited to the water, which means it cannot reach the drier inland valleys on a cloudy night. Boat or bus is compared in its own guide.
Which one we would choose
- One free evening, best odds: a small-group chase, ideally our pick.
- Ship sails the same night: the reindeer camp, or the boat if its time fits.
- Several nights, tight budget: the big bus, and rejoin if the first night fails.
- Young children or limited mobility: the camp or the boat. More for families.
- Hate the cold: the boat, with heated lounges.