Dear Fodors,

I need your help for an upcoming trip to Tromso in Mar'25. Me and my wife have planned a 5 nights trip in Norway - 3 nights Oslo and 2 nights Tromso, the main attraction is to see the Northern Lights in Tromso. I have booked a rental car from the Tromso airport and am very keen to chase the Northern Lights on our own, rather than depending on the tour. So I wanted to check if that is possible, and if yes, how can I check the best areas to drive down. Is there an app that I can refer to identify the best spots?

Also, basis the road conditions, what are the things that I should be aware of. Lastly, is flight the only option to travel from Oslo to Tromso?
Would really appreciate your help in this regard.

https://www.visitnorway.com/places-t...tromso/winter/

you are aware that Northern Lights are among the most volatile things there are? you will need an absurd amount of luck to make this one work out.

_no-one_ can predict when, where and how 'much' there will be (_IF_ at all!). this _plus_ you need the weather permitting - which can be anything. there is just no guarantee whatsoever. the absolutely only realistic way to enhance your chances is to spend as much time up North as you can spare. I went for twelve nights this spring and we had NL on two occasions only, with one of them being pretty faint - despite near perfect conditions ('good year', clear skies, good forecasts).

now I realise staying for longer might not be doable for various reasons, but maybe you can shift your nights so you spend less time in the South? while Oslo is pleasant, personally I'd skip it completely and head straight up (and yes, flight will be the only reasonable option for you: train+bus will take the best of two days _per direction_ plus being more expensive). with just two nights I'd wonder whether to bother at all.

unless there is a snowstorm, you can expect the road conditions to be excellent. the area around Tromsř is just beautiful, you would have no problem spending your time!

drop a line in case you need further ideas.

Thanks for the info. I have booked the flight my Oslo to Tromso and now I have 2 nights in Oslo and 2 nights in Tromso. Based on your feedback, I think I'll plan to be out exploring for NL in Tromso in my rented vehicle as much as I can. Based on your experience, would 10pm-5am be the best time to explore NL? Also, would highly appreciate any other recommendations for 1-2 best things in Tromso. We surely plan to visit Sommaroy on one of the days during the day,

you really are pressing your luck - I wish you all the best!

for forecasts, we used the site of the Norwegian Meteorological Institute: www.yr.no (they have an app, too)
when you enter a city, you'll get displayed the usual weather forecast, e.g. like this: https://www.yr.no/en/forecast/daily-...B8/Troms%C3%B8

now you can switch to > 'other conditions' and scroll down a bit until you get to 'Aurora', where you are shown both the estimated(!) intensity of the aurora for the next 48hours + cloud cover, e.g. right now you can expect some activity, alas since the sky is covered it's all moot. (and the other way round: a full moon can spoil, too.)

there are some other apps around as well, but this one worked best for us. as a rule of thumb, index should be at least at 5.

as regards chasing - we didn't do it because we were travelling with kids, yet bear in mind: your options are limited. I'd say you can average maybe 60-70kph at best, so even short distance relocations will cost a lot of time, and the lights move a lot faster than you. I'd look for dark places, i.e. almost anywhere except Tromsř, so maybe someplace on Kvalřya.

Hi,

do you have driving experience during winter time? Roads in these areas are small, snow (and maybe ice) on the roads are common. I would definitely advice to not drive for your own to hunt northern lights. Join a guided tour instead. The guides know where to park a car, you don't. Even during day light it is very difficult to find a parking space in winter. If it is dark, nearly impossible. And yes, if you would try to drive from Oslo to Tromsř this would take you minimum four days. Don't ever underestimate distances (during winter time) in Scandinavia. If you have bad luck then the Saltfjellet (polar circle) is closed because of snow and you have to wait hours to pass.

I have been more than 10 times in Tromsř for the last decade and only have seen northern lights once.

Cheers, Markus

Thanks Marcus. No we are taking a flight from Oslo to Tromso, and renting a car in Tromso to chase the Northern lights. We are staying for 2 nights, and will have to try our luck on both the nights, hence taking the organized on both is turning out to be very expensive which we cannot afford. Hence, we thought of taking the rented car. I have driven a car in snow in the US, but snow was settled on the road and drive was easy. I am not sure about Tromso, how the road and snow condition would be in March. It'll be great if you can help.

We have made note of some of the best locations for the Northern lights in Tromso and even taken note of few weather apps, hopefully they would help. But we would request you to help us with your experience please.

I have absolutely no experience driving in Norway at any time of year but here is my advice anyway: Take the advice you have already been given.

The temperature varied from -7.7° to 7.6°
The wettest day measured 11.7mm on 17 Mar.
Strongest gust was 18.3m/s on 17 Mar.
The snow depth measured 103.0 cm on 18 Mar.

Above is the information from the http://www.yr.no/en/statistics/graph...3%B8?q=2024-03 for March 2024.

You'll never find a good location for spotting northern lights in any settlement, never. Because of buildings and artificial lights. You have to leave the city border. I recommend the „Storsteinen“ hill. You can drive per bus from the town centre to the base station. Then take the „www.fjellheisen.no/engelsk/fjellheisen-home“.

This is the view from the Storsteinen to the city:
http://www.markus-drueck.de/norge/20...s/P1140366.JPG

If you are lucky then you'll see this:
http://www.markus-drueck.de/norge/20...s/P1140379.JPG

Cheers, Markus