Where to cross country ski in Tromsø?

Ideas, directions, buses

If you have never tried XC-skiing before you may want to consider joining Tromsø Ourdoor's Guided cross-country ski trip - beginner ski course. After the trip, you should be able to practice your newly acquired skills on your own and explore more of Tromsø's trails by yourself!

If you prefer to go and ski on your own remember that skiing on prepared trails is easier than going in the deep fresh snow. On skisporet.no you will find a map of the trails, together with current information about all cross-country ski trails - also when they were last time groomed (in hours and days). Most of our trails are lit at night with street lights.

It is relatively easy to go around and find trails, and at Tromsø Outdoor we are always ready to help you to plan your trip when you pick up the skis.

‍For an easy trip, we recommend you take bus 40 to the top of Tromsøya Island, bus 42 to Kvaløya or bus 26 to Tromsdalen Valley and follow the XC-ski trails. There are great trails here for both beginners as well as more experienced skiers. You can also get there by car. There is good parking at Charlottenlund. 

For a longer trip, a great option is to ski from Snarbyeidet back to Tromsø.

The trail has a total distance of 35 km and it normally takes 1 to 3 days to ski it in winter. The trails are prepared in the spring when there is more daylight time. It`s a relatively safe route, and there are four DNT cabins along the route. You can also ski just parts of the trail. There is a bus from Tromsø to Oldervik that stops in Snarbyeidet. You can find the schedule at tromskortet.no.

You can also take a bus to Straumbsukta on the southern part of Kvaløya and ski back towards the town as far as you can – the whole trail is approximately 60 km long.

For multi-day long, challenging expeditions you need to go more inland. These regions can be quite remote and sometimes unmarked, requiring good navigation skills. 

Kilpisjarvi – Dividalen route is worth considering, together with:

• Galggojavri (Skibotndalen - border region with Finland)
• The three countries' border point (where Sweden, Norway and Finland come together)

The Norwegian trekking association (DNT) has locked cabins which are well worth a visit. You can find more information here. 

• Goldahytta
• Gappohytta
• Rostahytta
• Øvre Rostajavri
• Dærtahytta
• Dividalhytta
• Voumahytta
• Gaskashytta
• Innset

Some trips in detail:

Tromsøya (Easy, moderate and challenging parts)

The illuminated ski trail stretches from the north to the south end of the island. We advise beginners to start in Charlottenlund and ski to Prestvannet. Its our favourite route, especially when you can see Northern Lights and their reflection on the lake. It is also possible to ski from one end of the island to the other.

Buses: Prestvannet Bus 28: Fr Langes Gate F2 – Prestvannet. You can see the track from the bus stop. From there you can also take the bus back to the city.

There are also buses 20, 21, 24, 26, and 34 leaving from University (UiT) back to the city. You can walk from the track over the campus and down to the bus stop UiT.

Tromsdalen (Troms-valley) (Moderate)

The ski track is an 8-shaped circuit through the valley and you can choose different laps.

Take a break at the Tromsø Lavvo, situated in an idyllic forest (2km on the north side of the river). The Lavvo is open for everybody and has seats, a fireplace and a toilet.

Bus 20 and 24: Havnegata H1 – Båtnhavna. Follow the path along the river (not over Rød-bridge) to Tromsø Camping, past the TUIL and to the parking lot. From there you can access the skiing track.

Ski trip along the coastline of Kvaløya with a wonderful view of Tromsøya and Høkøya (Challenging)

Bus 40: Fr Langes Gate F1 – Kvaløysletta Terminal (first bus stop after the bridge). Follow the main road eastward and take the first road to the left, called Slettabakken. Follow the narrow road up the hill until you get to the skiing track.

Bus 42: Sjøgata S3 – Kvaløysletta Terminal (first bus stop after the bridge). See bus 40.

Round trip (2h): follow the ski track eastward until the track takes a U-turn and goes down to a parking lot. From there walk down to the main road Eidvegen, turn west and get bus 42 from Storelv Snuplass back to the city centre.

You can also take a bus to Straumbsukta on the southern part of Kvaløya and ski back towards the town as far as you can – the whole trail is about 60 km long.

You can find bus schedules on tromskortet.no

The lights on the ski tracks are turned off at midnight on Tromsøya,  Kvaløya and in Tromsdalen at 11:30 pm.

Have a great trip! Remember to tag us @tromsooutdoor on Facebook and Instagram