This guide is built from our own winters in the Arctic and from the live Legendary Adventure tour pages in Tromsø — prices, pickup times and what is included come straight from the operator, never invented.

What 17–23 November Looks Like in Tromsø

Mid to late November sits between two Tromsø seasons. The first autumn visitors have gone home, and the Christmas and New Year rush has not started. For a northern lights trip that is a real advantage: tours are less likely to be full, hotels are easier to find, and you can choose your night instead of taking whatever is left.

The days are short and getting shorter, because the polar night is close. That means darkness arrives early in the afternoon, so the 18:30 pickup of the Northern Lights Tour5% off · HUNGRYTRAVELFAMILY5 sits well inside the dark evening. You do not have to wait until midnight for the sky to be dark enough; the whole evening is available to the guides.

The week also contains a Tuesday start and a Monday finish. Those are ordinary travel days, and we would not build the trip around them. What matters is how many evenings you have in town, which is the question the next section answers.

The Booking Rule We Give Friends: Never Stake Everything on One Night

The northern lights depend on solar activity and, much more often, on cloud. Nobody can promise either, and the operator does not promise a sighting. What you can control is the number of attempts. Two or three evenings give you far better odds of a clear sky than one.

With the Northern Lights Tour5% off · HUNGRYTRAVELFAMILY5 the guides choose the route from the latest weather forecast, heading inland or along the coast, so the tour is built to find holes in the cloud. A flexible route improves the chances, but it cannot remove the risk. If your trip is only three nights long, book on night two and keep night one and night three free. If something goes wrong on night two, you still have a second try.

If you arrive on a long-haul flight, night two also helps for a very practical reason: you will be awake for the whole evening, instead of fading in the van after a day of travel.

A Three-Night, Four-Night and Five-Night Plan

The pattern is simple: put the main tour in the middle of the stay, keep one evening empty, and fill the days with something that does not tire you out for the night. The fjord tour (NOK 2,100, 5–6 hours, pickup 10:00, lunch included) and the snowshoe hike (NOK 1,500, 4 hours, pickup 10:00) both finish in the afternoon, so you still have time to rest before an 18:30 pickup.

What Is Included on the Chase

The Northern Lights Tour5% off · HUNGRYTRAVELFAMILY5 includes a local expert guide, transport in a premium Mercedes-Benz vehicle, a winter suit, and a warm meal, snacks and hot drinks. The group is 2–8 guests, and larger groups are handled on request. The tour page describes a route prepared from the latest weather forecast and stories from the region, including Sámi folklore and traditions linked to the northern lights.

The winter suit matters more than most people expect. You will spend time standing still outside at night, and standing still is colder than walking. Having the suit supplied means you can pack lighter and still stay warm, though warm boots, a hat and gloves are still your job.

Duration is given as 5 to 8 hours. That is a wide range, and it is wide for a reason: the guides drive to where the sky is clear, and the return time depends on the route. Do not book a 06:00 flight for the following morning.

Shared or Private Chase for This Week?

Most couples and solo travellers are happy on the shared tour. It costs NOK 2,300 per person for ages 7+ and keeps the group small. The private version changes three things: the whole vehicle is yours, the pickup place is chosen at checkout, and there is no age restriction. It costs NOK 15,000 per group, for up to 8 guests.

The maths is easy. With seven people the private tour costs NOK 2,143 each; with eight, NOK 1,875 each. Below six, you pay a premium for privacy. For families with a child under seven, the Private Northern Lights Tour5% off · HUNGRYTRAVELFAMILY5 is the only way to do the chase. We cover the full comparison in our guide to private versus shared tours, but for this week the rule is: private for groups of six or more and for young children, shared for everyone else.

If You Only Have One Evening

Sometimes a trip really is one night: a work stop, a cruise day, a long layover. In that case we still recommend the chase over a walk around town, because the tour leaves the city lights behind. Book early in the day, accept that cloud is a risk, and try to give yourself a morning of nothing afterwards.

If you can add a second evening, add it. The extra cost is far smaller than the cost of the flights and hotel that got you here.

How the Evening Runs, Start to Finish

You meet outside Clarion Hotel The Edge at 18:30 and look for a black Mercedes. The guides greet the group, the winter suits come out, and the vehicle heads off along a route chosen that afternoon from the weather forecast. Some evenings that means inland; other evenings it means along the coast. You will not know until you are on the road, and that is part of why the tour is called a chase.

Along the way the guides talk about the region, including Sámi folklore and the traditions linked to the northern lights, and you stop where the sky looks promising. A warm meal, snacks and hot drinks are part of the tour, so there is no need to eat a big dinner first, although a light snack before pickup is sensible. Between stops you sit in a warm vehicle, which makes a five-to-eight-hour evening far easier than it sounds.

Because the return time depends on where the clear sky is, treat the following morning as a slow one. A late breakfast and a short walk along the harbour make a gentle day after a long night.

What to Pack for a Mid-November Night

• Warm boots with room for two pairs of socks; the winter suit does not include them for the northern lights tour.
• Hat, buff and gloves, plus a thin liner glove so you can use a phone.
• A charged phone and a power bank; cold drains batteries quickly.
• Wool or synthetic layers under the suit, never cotton.
• A small thermos or your own snack if you are fussy; the tour includes a warm meal and hot drinks.

How to Book with the Hungrytravelfamily Discount

Booking takes about five minutes. Open the Northern Lights Tour5% off · HUNGRYTRAVELFAMILY5 page, pick your date in the live calendar, choose the number of guests, and enter HUNGRYTRAVELFAMILY5 in the promo-code field at the FareHarbor checkout for 5% off. The code works when you book online on Legendary Adventure’s own booking page; check that the discount line appears before you enter your card details.

For a private group, the same steps apply on the Private Northern Lights Tour5% off · HUNGRYTRAVELFAMILY5 page. For a morning on snowshoes, use the Arctic Snowshoe Hike5% off · HUNGRYTRAVELFAMILY5 page and the same code.

If you are still choosing between tours, our overview of what to do in Tromsø lays out every tour we would book, with prices. And one honest line: we are Legendary Adventure’s partner and may earn a commission when you book with our code; it never changes your price.

FAQ

Our Honest Final Word

The week of 17–23 November is a good one for a first northern lights trip: dark evenings, space on the calendar and no festive prices on the hotel. Book the chase for the middle of your stay, keep an evening free, and give yourself a morning afterwards.

When you are ready: Northern Lights Tour5% off · HUNGRYTRAVELFAMILY5 for the shared chase, Private Northern Lights Tour5% off · HUNGRYTRAVELFAMILY5 for your own vehicle, and HUNGRYTRAVELFAMILY5 at checkout for 5% off.

5% off · code HUNGRYTRAVELFAMILY5

Our northern lights picks for mid-November

Tap a tour to see live dates and prices. Enter HUNGRYTRAVELFAMILY5 in the promo-code field at checkout for 5% off.

Small group · 5-8 HoursNorthern Lights TourFrom NOK 2 300 per personBook with 5% off →Private · 5-8 HoursPrivate Northern Lights TourFrom NOK 15 000 per group (private)Book with 5% off →Small group · 4 HoursAurora Snowshoe HikeFrom NOK 1 500 per personBook with 5% off →Small group · 5-6 HoursSommarøy & Kvaløya Scenic Fjord TourFrom NOK 2 100 per personBook with 5% off →

Code HUNGRYTRAVELFAMILY5 works on every Legendary Adventure tour booked online. We are Legendary Adventure’s partner and may earn a small commission — it never changes your price.