Arctic Experience in Tromsø and Lofoten Islands

Traveler Reviews

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  Kylie

  March 30th, 2025
  Don't waste your money, this tour was not worth it. We spent most of the time driving in a bus without stopping to...
  Don't waste your money, this tour was not worth it. We spent most of the time driving in a bus without stopping to see sites or do activities. We would arrive in each town so late in the afternoon/evening that nothing was open and we couldn't spend time in the town itself. The optional extras were average, to say the least. The Polar Park wasn't worth the time we spent there. My advice is to stay in Tromso and do day trips to all the optional activities you want to do. The Sami reindeer was interesting and is worth doing, but this can also be done as a day trip from Tromso. We were not given clear information each day as to where we would stop for meals and so some people didn't get lunch each day or had to make do with items from a petrol station which was unsatisfactory. Meal and rest stops should be planned appropriately. Overall very disappointing.Show more
  Traveled in March 2025
  

  Reply from: V.O.S – Vision of Scandinavia

  Dear Kylie, Thank you for taking the time to share your feedback. First and foremost, I sincerely apologise that your experience on the tour did not meet your expectations. As you mentioned, the tour is designed to be fast-paced, as it covers long distances between Tromsø and Harstad, with daily travel. However, we truly appreciate your input and will certainly consider your suggestions when planning future tours. In particular, we will work on providing clearer information regarding the daily schedule and ensuring appropriate meal stops are included. It’s important to note that your group encountered additional challenges due to the extreme Arctic weather during your trip, which significantly impacted travel times and disrupted the schedule. Again, I regret that your experience was not as enjoyable as it should have been, ultimately I wished for you to have a greater experience. Best Regards, Kitty V.O.S

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  Levani

  March 25th, 2025
  I highly recommend avoiding the Arctic Experience tour organized by V.O.S – Vision of Scandinavia. It was an...
  I highly recommend avoiding the Arctic Experience tour organized by V.O.S – Vision of Scandinavia. It was an absolutely horrible experience, and all 15 people on the tour agreed it was the worst we’ve ever been on. The majority of the time was spent on the bus, with barely any stops to take photos or enjoy the scenery. The first day we only stopped at the Zoo. When we voiced our complaints, the driver would stop in completely inappropriate places—literally at crossroads—so we were right in the middle of the road. Our guide demonstrated poor planning as well. Knowing the roads would close at night for snow cleanup, they still brought us to an incredibly boring bakery for a 40-minute break, which caused us to be delayed. As a result, we were stuck on the road for about an hour while waiting for it to be cleared. We didn’t arrive at the hotel until after 11 PM. Several activities listed in the itinerary never happened. For instance, the Northern Lights hunt was canceled due to the weather. While this is understandable, the tour organizers made no effort to replace it with an alternative activity—even though we had paid for it. The final day was a disaster. We were forced to carry our luggage and walk to the harbor in snow to catch the ferry and then walk back from the harbor to our hotel in Tromsø. This was challenging for participants with large suitcases. To make matters worse, the hour-long walking tour of Tromsø that was scheduled for the last day didn’t happen, despite the fact that the weather was suitable. Overall, this tour was poorly organized, filled with disappointing experiences, and lacked any consideration for the comfort or satisfaction of its participants. I cannot recommend this tour to anyone. Save your time and money for a better experience elsewhere. You will do better if you just go to Tromso and stay there for 4-5 days and book all these activities on your own!Show more
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  Traveled in February 2025
  

  Reply from: V.O.S – Vision of Scandinavia

  Dear Levani, Firstly, I want to express my apologies that your experience on this trip did not meet expectations. I fully understand that the journey was lengthy, traveling at a fast pace with one-night stops at each destination from Tromsø to Harstad. The intent is to cover a large distance in a short period while offering stops to explore local activities and attractions to break up the travel time. Unfortunately, your group encountered extreme weather conditions, which are common in this region. These conditions evidently disrupted the schedule and led to challenges, particularly on your final day visiting the Lofoten Islands. The cancellations of the Northern Lights tour and walking tour in Tromsø were due to a ‘dangerous weather’ warning. Given that it was the final day, we had limited time to arrange alternative safe activities. I truly regret that this had such an impact on your trip. In response to many of your concerns regarding food and bus stops, we are committed to making improvements and providing clearer guidelines for our guides to follow on future tours. Overall, it’s unfortunate that your experience was less than ideal, and I sincerely regret that this trip didn’t meet your expectations. Thank you for sharing your thoughts, which will be invaluable for us to enhance the experience for future guests. Best Regards, Kitty V.O.S

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  XiaoYing

  March 25th, 2025
  We were not happy with the tour. Day 1: On the day of the tour orientation, our names weren’t even on the list....
  We were not happy with the tour. Day 1: On the day of the tour orientation, our names weren’t even on the list. In fact, a lot of people’s names weren’t on the list. The tour guide had to keep adding names to his list. On booking, we were never asked for confirmation on whether the room was gonna be a double or a twin, so on arrival, we had to ask the hotel staff to kindly change the room from a double to a twin room. This issue was mentioned to the tour guide at the meeting and we requested for him to ensure all the hotels for days 2-6 was a twin. We weren’t the only people that made this complaint to the guide on the very first day. Unfortunately, we were given a double room again on the last evening and it took many complaints for the hotel to make the change for us. During this period, we attempted to contact the tour guide, but he was not reachable and we contacted the tour company which said we asked for a double room when we made the booking. Not true! There was no mention nor options provided to select the room type at the time of the booking. The tour company simply assumed it was all a double room for two people bookings. On the tour documents, it mentioned double / twin rooms but there were no follow ups, no option to choose room type and no confirmation, nothing from the tour operator so beware if you are travelling with two people when you want to book a twin room. Day 2: Three hours drive to Polar park and stayed for one and a half hours for the visit. Then another couple of hours drive to the hotel. You spend most of the time on the bus with only 1-2 hours of activity booked for the day. Day 3: Similar to Day 2, 3 hours drive for 1 hour at a Sami reindeer farm. Then drive to hotel and nothing else planned for the evening. Only day 3 had dinner included which was a buffet. Other days, you have to fend for yourself. Day 4: Long drive to Lofoten Islands, with a couple of short photo stops in between. This was a terribly long day and due to the extreme weather, we were meant to arrive at the hotel before 8pm for the Northern light hunting. We didn’t get to the hotel until 11pm and northern light hunt was cancelled due to weather. Originally we were meant to be able to eat dinner at around 7:30 to 8pm. In the end, everyone had to buy something at the gas station / convenience stores around 8-9pm. In the event of when activities were cancelled, there were nothing else offered as a replacement. My only compliment was to the drivers for trying to drive in the very harsh weather for such a long day. Day 5: Left the hotel at 6:30am to board the boat back to Tromso. We arrived around 10am and as per the itinerary there was meant to be another 1 hour Panoramic walk around 10:30am. There was no walk. There was no explanation either as to why this part of the itinerary was missing. Be prepared, once you get to the hotel, you were on your own and should plan for how you want to spend the rest of the day. Your tour guide leaves once you get to the hotel. Other complaints: - travel documents - you will receive a very simple itinerary for each day which only states the time of when activity starts and one line stating what the activity is about. Eg 13:00 - visit polar park. For most of the events, they won’t even tell you the duration of the event. There will be no description of what you are doing or anything about the places you are visiting. So don’t expect much from the travel documents, if you need details, you will have to come back to the descriptions on the website. - Poor hotel choices (mainly all the Scandic Hotels) For 2 nights, the hotel twin rooms were tiny. There is barely any room to walk nor open both your luggages. In one of the hotel rooms, ventilation sound was very loud. You could hear this sound the entire night so it was very difficult to sleep. One hotel had poor hot water system where it randomly switched between cold and hot water. - Poor hotel service (Scandic Grand Tromso ) - At the last hotel, we were once again given a double room. We requested to move to a twin room, the hotel staff lied and told us all twin rooms were already booked out when there are were still plenty available for booking on Booking.com. When confronted, they were unwilling to change the room type and simply told us it’s not their fault. When we requested for two extra blankets (in an attempt to use as temporary mattresses since they refused to move us to a twin room), they also refused and would only provide one. Either way, if your tour operator booked the wrong room type to begin with, good luck as you are on your own in trying to rectify this issue. - optional activities: likewise there are no details about the optional activities and be very cautious about the activities you are booking. Request for details before you book so you are not mislead. E.g aurora husky visit is not a husky ride. It’s a visit to just play with the dogs. If the Husky activity is booked for the evening, then it’s likely this is not going to be a Husky ride. The northern light cruise is a three hour cruise where you spend 1 hour cruising out and 1 hour back. The remaining hour you are indoors on land learning about how fisherman preserves fish. No comment on the snowmobile as this activity was cancelled due to bad weather. Conclusion: Ask for a lot of details before booking any optional activities so you know what you are getting into. If you book this tour, be prepared to be on the bus for the majority of the trip and only 1 activity (1 - 2 hours max) per day. Make sure you have lots of snacks with you for the long bus ride as you might not get the time to even stop and buy lunch and/or dinner. If you are traveling with a friend, make sure you ask the tour operator to confirm whether it’s a double or a twin room and ask them to provide the confirmation in writing so they cannot shift the blame to you. In the event tour operator booked the wrong room, you will need to negotiate with the hotel staff yourself because the tour operator will not rectify the issue for you. If you are ok with all of the above, this is the tour for you. Olivia & GraceShow more
  Traveled in March 2025
  

  Reply from: V.O.S – Vision of Scandinavia

  Dear Olivia and Grace, I’m truly sorry to hear about your frustrations with the trip, and I appreciate the opportunity to clarify a few points. As we discussed, the booking on Tour Radar clearly listed the room booked as a double. If a twin room was preferred, it should have been requested via the platform’s chat function prior to departure, and we would have gladly arranged it for you. The first mention of a twin room came on Day 1 of the tour to our Tour Leader who did his best by immediately contacting all the hotels to accommodate for your last minute request. Unfortunately, given the timing, we couldn’t guarantee a change. I also made further attempts to help when I was notified on the final day, but I do apologise that the hotel was not more flexible in making this change. Regarding the itinerary, this tour is designed as a fast-paced journey through the Norwegian Arctic, with daily travel from Tromsø to Harstad. We included stops for activities like the Polar Park and Sami farm to break up the journey whilst offering a glimpse into local life. As the weather in this region is unpredictable sometimes delays can be inevitable but of course I understand this was frustrating. Dinner was never part of the program, but we were lucky enough to provide a dinner on Day 3 as a bonus for your group. As for the cancellation of activities like the Tromsø walking tour and snowmobile ride, these were canceled due to extreme weather conditions deemed ‘dangerous’ by local authorities to ensure everyone’s safety. We provide travel documents to simply outline the itinerary, but will take your advice and ensure more detailed information is included for future tours. As for hotel accommodations, Scandic Hotels is one of Scandinavia’s leading providers, but we will certainly note your concerns regarding the quality. Lastly, when booking through Tour Radar, it’s important to communicate any questions or requests beforehand, as the platform allows for direct communication between clients and operators. Unfortunately, no requests or questions were asked at the time of your booking nor when the travel documents were provided. Had I known of any of your issues earlier, I would have been happy to address them before departure to ensure a better experience. Ultimately, I wanted for you to have a positive time on your tour. Overall, I wish you had a better experience in Arctic Norway. I do appreciate you voicing all these concerns and I will take all your feedback into account for future tours. Best Regards, Kitty V.O.S

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  philippe

  March 22nd, 2025
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  Right from the first evening's briefing, things weren't looking too good. The guide's list of participants was not...
  Right from the first evening's briefing, things weren't looking too good. The guide's list of participants was not up to date. We'll have to manage as best we can to eat, which is a bit surprising given the weakness of the planned program. Day 2: an hour and a half of activity for four to five hours of driving. No time to visit Narvik in the evening. Day 3: one hour on a Sami farm (of very average interest) for four to five hours' driving. The only dinner scheduled for that evening was imposed at 5:30 p.m., which prevented us from visiting Slovaer during the day. Day 4: a long bus journey to visit the Lofoten Islands, the only full and interesting day, but we had to extend the journey because of the snowy weather and arrived late at the hotel in Harstad at around 11pm. Not much opportunity to eat that day, and no way to visit Harstad either, as we left the hotel the next morning at 6.30am without breakfast. No Northern Lights on the program due to the weather. Understandable, but it's one less thing. Day 5: Arrival in Tromso by boat at 10.30 a.m., then nothing else planned for the day. A bit short for an organized trip. Two positive points: the quality of the hotels and the professionalism of the bus drivers, who had bad weather to drive in. We won't be advertising because we're disappointed with your service. Sincerely Evelyne and PhilippeShow more
  Traveled in March 2025
  

  Reply from: V.O.S – Vision of Scandinavia

  Dear Evelyne and Philippe, Thank you for sharing your feedback. I’m sorry to hear that your experience didn’t go as planned, and I’d like to take a moment to address some of the points you raised. Firstly I apologise for the miscommunication in the first briefing but I was happy to hear that the problem was resolved quickly Regarding the itinerary, the tour is designed to be fast-paced, covering long distances from Tromsø to Harstad in a short period of time. Unfortunately, your group was unlucky to face extreme weather conditions during your time in the Arctic, which slowed our travel times as we needed to drive safely. Furthermore, finally causing the large delay on Day 4 after returning to Harstad from the Lofoten Islands. Dinner was never included in the program, the dinner provided to you on Day 3 was a bonus for your group. Finally, the last day in Tromsø was scheduled for a tour with your tour leader which was cancelled due to ‘dangerous’ weather. The rest of the day was always intend for clients to participate in optional activities or enjoy the city at their own leisure. I’m sorry to hear your experience in Arctic Norway wasn’t as expected, I will make note of all you feedback in order to improve future operations of this tour. Best Regards, Kitty V.O.S

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  Clelia

  February 11th, 2025
  The places are amazing and the tour guide was excellent
  Traveled in January 2025
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  Yong

  January 31st, 2025
  There was a long of long distances travelling. Even though there was only one activity a day, we still felt tired...
  There was a long of long distances travelling. Even though there was only one activity a day, we still felt tired due to the long bus journeys. The last hotel room was an attic sized room which was extremely small. The saving grace was the superb tour leader, Stefano. He was very responsible and took good care of the elderly group members. We were also blessed to have caught the elusive Northern Lights, thanks to Stefano's constant lookout for the lights' occurrence on the apps.Show more
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  Traveled in January 2025
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  Janet

  April 7th, 2024
  Tour more than met our expectations. Our tour guide, Stefano, was good and very helpful when I sustained an injury.
  Traveled in March 2024
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  Constance

  March 18th, 2024
  I would have like to receive a detailed itinerary with approximate arrival times in each new location when I booked...
  I would have like to receive a detailed itinerary with approximate arrival times in each new location when I booked the trip so I could have planned excursions I would have liked to to do.Show more
  Traveled in March 2024
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  Kimberley

  March 16th, 2024
  This trip was amazing. The accommodation was excellent. We saw the Northan Lights in Tromso up near the lake. We...
  This trip was amazing. The accommodation was excellent. We saw the Northan Lights in Tromso up near the lake. We stayed a couple of extra nights in Tromso as it was so beautiful. It snowed most days. Our highlight was the Atlantic Husky Sledding. What an experience and would defiantly recommend it to anyone.Show more
  Traveled in March 2024