Overnight Aurora Camp and Dog Sledding – Tromsø Wilderness Center

Going to an aurora camp to experience the magic of the northern lights and getting to drive a dog sled is truly a once-in-a-lifetime experience and something that we highly recommend if you are visiting Tromsø, Norway.

Our experience included an overnight stay with the Tromsø Wilderness Center. They offer an Overnight Aurora Camp with Dog Sledding, and the accommodation choices are to stay in either a private hut or group lavvu.

The company was able to pick us up from our hotel and our journey began with a scenic drive to the camp, which was located in the heart of the Arctic wilderness. Here, we were welcomed by our guide and the friendly huskies, who would end up being our companions for the night.

After we were shown to our lavvu, our guide took us to get insulated snowsuits and snow boots. From here we had access to play with the huskies for the rest of the night. After about 2 hours of visiting the dogs, the guides brought us over for dinner, where we had fish soup with bread and chocolate cake.  The food was unique and perfect for the cold weather to keep warm. During our dinner, we were interrupted by the staff informing us that the aurora borealis was out, which prompted everyone to stop eating and run out to experience the magic of the northern lights!

Following dinner, we were left free for the rest of the night with full access to the whole compound. They set up campfires outside for us, surrounded by seats with reindeer skins to stay warm. They also provided us with smores, cookies, and hot chocolate throughout the night to keep us refreshed. The guides stayed around to explain to us how the northern lights are formed and old Viking tales with conspiracies about the lights. The whole night was truly magical and made for a once-in-a-lifetime experience.

After staying outside by the fire and admiring the Norwegian night sky, we retreated to the lavvu for the night. Our lavvu was fitted with a wood stove, which we kept stoked throughout the night to keep warm. They set up our sleeping arrangements starting with reindeer skins layered throughout the floor. Next, they set up blankets with our sleeping bags and pillows on top. This setup ended up being very warm and made for a great night of sleep. We set an alarm to wake up during the middle of the night to see if we could see the northern lights. Unfortunately, it was cloudy that night and we were not able to see much.

The next morning we woke up and had breakfast before going dog sledding. They had an arrangement of foods including cinnamon pancakes, cereal, and eggs, as well as coffee, tea, and juice. With our stomachs full we went back to our lavvu, put on our snowsuits, and met our dog sled guide for lessons on how to drive the sled. After a brief lesson, we were paired with our sled team and took off to explore the arctic wilderness. Driving the sled was an experience like no other and the views along the ride were some of the most intense landscapes we have ever seen.

Following the sled ride, we had a quick lunch before we had to depart back to our hotel in Tromsø. This lunch consisted of reindeer soup, bread, and chocolate cake. The soup was very nice and was very similar to vegetable soup. We got to say goodbye to the dogs one last time following our lunch and then grabbed our luggage to leave.

This overnight aurora camp experience was truly one of the most incredible experiences we have ever had. The company took care of us from the second we got there and made sure that we did not leave without having the best experience possible. We do not have enough good stuff to say about our experience and highly recommend going to an Overnight Aurora Camp with Dog Sledding.