The Gateway to Artic, Tromso is a small town with a population of 75k, located 350 kms above the Artic circle. The view of the snow covered mountain tops from the flight when approaching to land at Tromso airport was exciting. The airport was small and got very crowded as 2-3 flights landed, reminding me of the old HAL airport in Bengaluru. Tromso lies in the Aurora belt and hence a popular destination for Northern Lights. I was told the artic weather is very fickle and highly unpredictable…..can change by the hour. This makes chasing Northern Lights all the more elusive and hence I had decided to stay in Tromso for 5 days.
Take a round trip on the local bus
The town itself was not very clean, there was fair bit of construction happening throwing up dust here and there, which was bit of a surprise to me. I had a different image of artic towns! It is quite easy to go around the town by bus-I took a round trip on couple of routes. Best to buy a day pass as it works to be very economical provided you take 3 or more trips.
Tromso town from Storsteinen 
Tromso town 
Tromso Bridge with Artic Cathedral at one end
What to see
The attractions in the town include the unique Artic Catherdral, the cable car to mountain ledge Storsteinen which is 421 metres high and provides a fantastic view of the tromso town, the Telegrafbukta beach though the water is very cold and strolling around the harbour area and Storgata. It is also worhtwhile to spend 45 minutes to an hour inside the magic ice bar which has wonderful sculptures made of ice, where the temperature is below freezing point and where even beverages are served in ice glasses.
There is nothing much to do in the town itself but the main reason why tourists flock to Tromso is the Northern Lights. Sure, there are other activities, including treks, Fjord cruises, Reindeer sledding, driving to nearby islands and so on. Given that there is no guarantee of seeing Northern Lights, it is best to plan for other activities as well.
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