More than 200 miles north of the Arctic Circle, where the North Atlantic Current keeps things warmer than you'd image, lies Kvaløya. Dominated by 3,300-foot-high mountains, the island is Norway's fifth largest.
Behind that huge island and tucked between two straits lies the modest-sized island of Tromsøya. Inhabited back in the Ice Age, today it is home to the small city of Tromsø. In other words, when you visit alluring Tromsø you're nestled inside a geographic matryoshka doll up here in Northern Norway.
In mid-May, the midnight sun will begin its reign up here in Troms County. Couple that with the ever-more popular winter northern lights and Tromsø has become ever-more famous of late as a launching point for these natural phenomena. Apart from being a great place to witness the sun and the lights, the fine little city is a worthy discovery in itself.
Known in the late-19th century as the "Paris of the North” for its relative sophistication compared to the rest of rugged North Norway, Tromsø was thankfully spared much of the destruction that the Nazis inflicted on Norwegian cities and towns. Regrettably, in the 1960s a great many of its historic wooden houses succumbed to a massive old town fire, but thankfully the core of them still remains along and around Storgata and Verftsgata streets.
As with any city tour anywhere, the best place to start a Tromsø discovery is the city brewery. With its "beer brewed under the Northern Lights,” Mack Ølbryggeri could claim to be the world’s northernmost brewery, until recently, that is, when one opened on the Arctic Ocean island of Svalbard.
While the main operations are now outside of town, Mack was for long the ultimate company town. The short film shown on a brewery tour depicts nothing less than the economic and social history—all the ups and downs—of Tromsø since the brewery was founded in 1877 by Norwegians of German origin.
After a tour, visitors retire to the Ølhallen, meaning beer hall, a local institution where beer has flowed since the 1920s and where today flights can be sampled from some of the house's 72 taps.
On the other end of the town highlight spectrum is a tiny institution, a mere kiosk called Raketten for its vague shape as a rocket. The kiosk was built in 1911 as a newsstand, and thankfully survived the 60s fire. Today, it is where you will sample what undoubtedly is your first ever reindeer hotdog. In winter, you can join hardy locals to sit on pelts in its small outdoor area and warm up on mulled wines.
You may have to be directed to find another of Tromsø's small landmarks. In a small greenspace down by the harbor, a statue honors explorer Roald Amundsen whose ill-fated 1928 rescue mission of another explorer set out from Tromsø. In an old customs house, the Polar Museum tells Amundsen's and many other tales of Arctic expeditions.
It may surprise first-time Norway visitors that the country is an Art Nouveau hothouse. The red brick 1915 Tromsø Savings Bank next to the cathedral is as fine a work as you’d find in Vienna.
The Verdensteatret Cinema, the World Theater Cinema, is a 1916 Art Nouveau structure on Storgata Street whose vintage lighted Kino ("cinema") sign still hangs out front. In addition to hosting a film festival, today it’s a cafe and bar where a dj spins music from its vast vinyl collection (the building's cool architectural history is here).
Another of Tromsø’s original early-20th century cinema halls is today the popular bistro Bardus which serves seasonal local fare amid a bookish decor. Its popular bar is your place to order that Arctic seaweed cocktail you've always wanted to try.
Facing Bardus just across the street, a 1960s cinema was gutted a few years ago to become a public library. Having retained the movie house's original soaring arched roof, the library today makes for a stunningly modern and graceful structure.
Across from the old wooden cathedral in the heart of town, Emmas Drømmekjøkken, or Emma’s Dream Kitchen, is a Tromsø culinary institution. Upstairs, a small formal dining room is in contrast to the casual street-level room known as Emmas Under, both known for their French-inflected menu with an emphasis on Norway's signature skrei (Atlantic cod), whale steaks and smoked reindeer.
With just the opposite vibe of Emmas, the brand-new Full Steam restaurant occupies one of the city’s cavernous old wharf warehouses that date from the late-19th/early-20th century. The entire back of the building, whose original name was the Bangsund building, is essentially a museum, filled as it is with vintage tools of the trade in the cod and stockfish industry upon which much of the Norwegian economy was once built—from fishing boats to cod liver oil production (no surprise perhaps, as the proprietor comes from the fishing center of Lofoten). First timers to Tromsø must sample both the delicacies of fried cod tongue and cod caviar.
Tromsø’s recent boom in popularity has brought a slew of new tourist shops, especially along and around Storgata which is essentially Main Street. This being Norway means that in all those shops you’ll find quality fare from delicatessen goods to wool sweaters, jewelry and art and glass work.
Tromsø is linked to the mainland by the early-1960s Tromsø Bridge, where in the city's Tromsdalen section a quirky church stands on a hillock like a giant white Toblerone bar. Built a few years after the bridge, the Tromsdalen Church, or Arctic Cathedral as it's dubbed, overlooks the city as one of its most easily recognized landmarks.
Just behind the church begins the Fjellheisen cable car that zooms up to the 1,400-foot-high Storsteinen mountain plateau for panoramic views of the city. A café up there has a small menu that includes reindeer soup and reindeer burgers to enjoy after you've hiked around the plateau for a spell.
Whether you're up there on Storsteinen to soak in the midnight sun with the mountain peaks of Kvaløya island shining in the distance, or standing on packed snow while the northern lights dance above, you'll be reminded in the grand scheme of things of just how tiny this tucked away slice of Norway is.
Lodging: Shaped like the prow of a ship, the handsome Scandic Ishavshotel (Ishav is the Norwegian word for Arctic Sea ) features the popular open-kitchen Roast restaurant. Facing the harbor, its rooms have stunning views of the mountains across the water. During northern lights season, all you have to do is look out your room and there they are swirling above as if you could reach up and grab them.
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