Arctic Sweden and Norway by Rail: Kiruna, Abisko, Narvik and the Lofoten

1. Jour 1 : Arrive in Stockholm

   Stockholm Arlanda Airport to your hotel in central Stockholm

   • En train
   • Welcome dinner
   • Nuit : Stockholm
   Détail du jour 1

   Fly into Stockholm Arlanda (ARN), about 40 km north of the city. We meet you in arrivals and take the Arlanda Express train or a van into the centre, about 20 to 40 minutes, to a hotel close to Stockholm Central, where the night train leaves tomorrow. Plan to land by about 3 pm to make the evening briefing; earlier is better, as the afternoon is free. Stockholm is built across fourteen islands where Lake Malaren meets the Baltic, and an easy first walk from the hotel takes you over the bridges to Gamla Stan, the old town, and its narrow lanes around Stortorget. In the early evening your See Sight Tours guide meets the group to go through the week: what goes in the bag for the train, what the weather does in the Arctic, and how the rail days are paced. Then we walk to a welcome dinner of Swedish dishes at a local restaurant.

   Compris

   • Meet and transfer from Stockholm Arlanda Airport (ARN)
   • Welcome briefing with your guide
   • Welcome dinner

   Temps libre : Free until the early evening briefing

   

2. Jour 2 : Gamla Stan, the Vasa and the night train north

   Stockholm, then the overnight train towards Kiruna

   • En traversier
   • Petit-déjeuner
   • Nuit : Night train to Kiruna
   Détail du jour 2

   A morning walk with your guide through Gamla Stan: the Royal Palace, Stortorget and its painted merchant houses, the cathedral, Storkyrkan, and the narrow lane of Marten Trotzigs grand. A short ferry or tram ride takes us to Djurgarden for the Vasa Museum, where a 17th-century warship that sank on its maiden voyage in 1628 stands almost complete after more than three centuries on the harbour floor. The afternoon is free, so leave your bags at the hotel and walk Sodermalm, swim off a city jetty in warm weather, or sit over a long fika. In the early evening we board the night train at Stockholm Central. Each pair has a 2-berth compartment with bedding, and the dining car is open for a relaxed dinner on your own account. Through the light night the train runs north through Uppland, along the Gulf of Bothnia and on into Norrbotten.

   Compris

   • Guided walk through Gamla Stan
   • The Vasa Museum
   • Overnight train from Stockholm, in a 2-berth sleeper compartment

   Temps libre : Afternoon free in Stockholm before the train

   Activité : Pack a small overnight bag for the train; your main bag goes on the rack in the compartment.

   

3. Jour 3 : Across the Arctic Circle to Kiruna and the Icehotel

   Night train to Kiruna, then Jukkasjarvi and back

   • Environ 45 min de route
   • Petit-déjeuner et repas du midi
   • Nuit : Kiruna
   Détail du jour 3

   Wake to pine forest, bogs and rivers as the train climbs inland past Boden and crosses the Arctic Circle before Gallivare. The train does not stop there, so your guide tells you when we pass the marker; breakfast is on board. We reach Kiruna, Sweden's northernmost town, in the late morning, take the van to the hotel, a short drive from the station, and sit down to lunch. Kiruna exists because of its iron ore, and the mine has made the town move: much of the old centre is being rebuilt about 3 km east, and you see the new square and town hall on the way. In the afternoon a short drive takes us to Jukkasjarvi on the Torne River, home of the Icehotel. Its art hall is kept frozen all year, so in summer you walk through suites and an ice bar carved by artists from river ice, in thick capes at about minus five degrees. Beside it stands Jukkasjarvi's old wooden church by the river. Back in Kiruna the evening is yours, in light that does not fade in June.

   Compris

   • Breakfast on the train
   • Sit-down lunch in Kiruna
   • The Icehotel art hall and ice bar at Jukkasjarvi
   • Jukkasjarvi's old wooden church by the Torne River

   Temps libre : Evening free in Kiruna

   Activité : The Icehotel art hall is kept at about minus five degrees; warm capes are lent at the door.

4. Jour 4 : A Sami host, then the train to Abisko

   Kiruna to a Sami camp near Kiruna, then the Malmbanan to Abisko

   • Environ 30 min de route
   • Petit-déjeuner et repas du midi
   • Nuit : Abisko
   Détail du jour 4

   This morning we drive a short way out of town to spend time with a Sami host family. Sapmi, the Sami homeland, spans the north of Sweden, Norway, Finland and Russia, and reindeer herding is still a living trade here. In summer the herds are often up on the fells, so the visit is about the people and the way of life: a lavvu tent, how the reindeer year runs, the language, duodji crafts and joik, and a lunch cooked over the fire, often suovas, smoked reindeer. Back in Kiruna we see the church, one of Sweden's largest wooden buildings, moved east to the new centre in 2025. Then we take the iron ore line northwest, about 1 hour 15 minutes on a train timed to the timetable we confirm for your date, along the shore of Tornetrask to Abisko. Our base is a short walk from the Abisko station and the park. After checking in, an easy walk follows the Abiskojokk river into its canyon, cut deep into the bedrock.

   Compris

   • Visit and lunch with a Sami host near Kiruna
   • Kiruna Church
   • Train from Kiruna to Abisko along Tornetrask
   • The Abisko canyon walk with your guide

   Temps libre : Evening free in Abisko

   Activité : The canyon walk is about 3 km on paths and boardwalk. On rail days you carry your bag onto the train; your guide helps at each station.

   

5. Jour 5 : The Kungsleden and the Aurora Sky Station

   Abisko National Park, on foot, then up Nuolja by chairlift

   • Petit-déjeuner, repas du midi et repas du soir
   • Nuit : Abisko
   Détail du jour 5

   Abisko sits in a rain shadow, so it is often drier and clearer than the mountains around it, and the national park, founded in 1909, is one of Sweden's oldest. After breakfast we set off on the Kungsleden, the King's Trail, which starts here and runs about 440 km south through Lapland. The first stage follows the Abiskojokk through birch forest, with the river in rapids beside the path and the mountains of Lapporten, the Lapland gate, in view ahead. We walk about 5 to 6 km out, eat a packed snack by the water, then turn back for a late sit-down lunch in Abisko. The afternoon is free to rest. In the evening we have dinner together, then ride the chairlift up Nuolja to the Aurora Sky Station, about 900 m up, where in June and early July the sun stays above the horizon at midnight over Tornetrask.

   Compris

   • Guided walk on the first stage of the Kungsleden
   • Sit-down lunch in Abisko
   • Dinner in Abisko
   • Chairlift to the Aurora Sky Station on Nuolja

   Option plus facile : Walk the first 2 to 3 km along the river and back, about 5 km in all, and rejoin the group at lunch.

   Option plus active : Continue with your guide to a turnaround point about 8 to 10 km out on the trail, 16 to 20 km round trip, with a packed lunch by the river in place of the sit-down lunch, back by late afternoon.

   Temps libre : Afternoon free

   Activité : About 10 to 12 km (16 to 20 km on the active option) on gravel path and boardwalk with little climbing. The Sky Station lift is an open chairlift of about 20 minutes each way; bring warm layers and gloves. On evenings when the summer sessions do not run, we ride the lift in daytime.

6. Jour 6 : The Ofoten line to Narvik

   Abisko to Riksgransen and over the border, then down to Narvik by train

   • En train
   • Petit-déjeuner
   • Nuit : Narvik
   Détail du jour 6

   A slow morning: walk the shore of Tornetrask, visit the national park's nature centre, or sleep in. Late in the morning or around midday, on a train timed to the timetable we confirm for your date, we board for about 1 hour 40 minutes of the most dramatic rail on the trip. The line climbs past Bjorkliden and Riksgransen, where snow often lies into summer, crosses into Norway at the watershed and then drops about 500 m to the sea at Narvik, clinging to the mountainside above the Rombaksfjord, with tunnels, snow sheds and waterfalls between the views. The Ofoten line was opened in 1902 to carry Kiruna's ore to an ice-free harbour, and ore trains still use it. In Narvik we check in a short walk from the station, find lunch on our own account at a cafe nearby, then visit the war museum, which tells the story of the battles for the port in 1940. Late in the afternoon the Narvikfjellet cable car takes us above the town for the view across the Ofotfjord, subject to the season's operating days; we confirm at booking.

   Compris

   • Train on the Ofoten line from Abisko to Narvik
   • The war museum in Narvik
   • The Narvikfjellet cable car, subject to the season's operating days; we confirm at booking

   Temps libre : Morning free in Abisko; evening free in Narvik

   Activité : Sit on the left of the train, facing forward, for the fjord views.

   

7. Jour 7 : Narvik to the Lofoten Islands

   Narvik over the Tjeldsund bridge and the Lofast road to Svolvaer, then on to Leknes

   • Environ 4.5 h de route
   • Petit-déjeuner et repas du midi
   • Nuit : Leknes
   Détail du jour 7

   From here our own minibus and driver take over. This is the one day over our 4-hour driving guideline, about 300 km and 4 hours 15 minutes at the wheel, because there is no rail into the Lofoten and the ferry routes are slower; we break it into three parts. The driver loads the bags and we leave Narvik at about 8:30 am after breakfast along the Ofotfjord, stop for coffee at the Tjeldsund bridge, then take the Lofast road, opened in 2007, through tunnels and over bridges that tie the islands to the mainland. In Svolvaer, the Lofoten's main town, we sit down to a seafood lunch by the harbour with the peak of Svolvaergeita, the Goat, above. The afternoon road runs past fjords, white beaches and cod-drying racks to central Vestvagoy, where we stay three nights near Leknes. You unpack once, and the evening is free.

   Compris

   • Scenic drive on the E10 and the Lofast road with your guide
   • Coffee stop at the Tjeldsund bridge
   • Sit-down lunch in Svolvaer

   Temps libre : Evening free

   Activité : The longest drive of the trip, broken by a coffee stop and lunch.

8. Jour 8 : Reine, Hamnoy and the end of the road at A

   Leknes to Hamnoy, Reine and A, then Nusfjord on the way back

   • Environ 2.5 h de route
   • Petit-déjeuner et repas du midi
   • Nuit : Leknes
   Détail du jour 8

   We leave early, because the road west to Reine is narrow and fills with coaches and campervans by mid-morning. The first stop is Hamnoy, where red rorbuer fishing cabins stand on stilts below sheer granite peaks, then Reine across its bridges, in what many call the most photographed view in Norway. We go on to A, the village at the end of the E10, where you can walk among the stockfish racks and the old fishing station buildings and look out to the open sea. Lunch is a sit-down meal in Reine, with fish caught in these waters. If the weather is clear and the trail is open, anyone who wants can climb Reinebringen with your guide, about 448 m up steep stone steps, while the others stay in Reine. On the way back we stop at Nusfjord, where the entry fee is included,, one of the best preserved fishing villages in Norway, and are back near Leknes by late afternoon for a free evening, perhaps a walk on the beach at Haukland if the weather is kind.

   Compris

   • Hamnoy and Reine early with your guide
   • A, the village at the end of the E10
   • Sit-down lunch in Reine
   • Nusfjord fishing village, entry fee included

   Activités en option

   • Reinebringen climb with your guide, weather and trail permitting, no fee

   Option plus facile : Stay at the viewpoints and the harbour in Reine and A; the walking is short and mostly flat.

   Option plus active : Climb Reinebringen with your guide, about 448 m by a long stone staircase, for the view over Reine, if the trail is open.

   Temps libre : Evening free

   Activité : Up to about 8 km on foot with the Reinebringen climb; about 3 km without it.

9. Jour 9 : The Trollfjord by boat and Henningsvaer

   Leknes to Svolvaer for the Trollfjord boat, then Henningsvaer

   • Environ 2.5 h de route
   • Petit-déjeuner, repas du midi et repas du soir
   • Nuit : Leknes
   Détail du jour 9

   Today is the boat day. We leave at about 8 am, timed to the first sailing we confirm for your date, and drive back to Svolvaer into the Raftsundet strait and the Trollfjord, a narrow arm of the sea about 2 km long with steep mountain walls on both sides. Sea eagles often hunt along the cliffs, and the skipper slows the boat when they are near. Back on land we drive out along the skerries to Henningsvaer, a fishing village spread across small islands joined by bridges, with its football pitch on the rocks at the edge of the sea. Lunch is in the village, and the afternoon is free to wander the harbour, galleries and cafes. In the early evening we return to Leknes for a farewell dinner together, to toast the trains, the fells and the islands. In June the sun circles low over the sea all night.

   Compris

   • Boat trip from Svolvaer into the Raftsundet and the Trollfjord
   • Henningsvaer with your guide
   • Sit-down lunch in Henningsvaer
   • Farewell dinner

   Temps libre : Afternoon free in Henningsvaer

   Activité : The boat runs in most summer weather; if it is cancelled, your guide moves it to day 8 or plans a sheltered fjord route.

10. Jour 10 : Fly home from the Lofoten

    Leknes to Leknes Airport, or to Harstad/Narvik Evenes

    • Environ 15 min de route
    • Petit-déjeuner
    Détail du jour 10

    A last breakfast with the mountains outside the window, and the morning is yours. Walk to the shore, find a bakery for a cinnamon bun, or sit out with a coffee while the group says goodbye. Leknes Airport (LKN) is a few minutes from town, with short flights to Bodo and connections to Oslo and onward home, and we take you there in time for your flight. If you are flying from Harstad/Narvik Evenes (EVE), we drive you there instead, about 280 km and 4 hours or more back along the E10, over our 4-hour driving guideline, so we leave after an early breakfast and stop for coffee on the way; book a flight leaving after about 2 pm. If you want to stay on, we can add nights in the Lofoten or arrange a Hurtigruten coastal voyage north or south; ask when you book. Your guide sees you to the airport and checks your flight before saying goodbye.

    Compris

    • Transfer to Leknes Airport (LKN), or to Harstad/Narvik Evenes (EVE)

    Temps libre : Morning free

    Activité : From Leknes, any flight after about 10 am works. From Evenes, about 280 km and 4 hours or more by road, book a flight after about 2 pm.

Faune et météo : In June and early July the sun does not set in Kiruna, Abisko or the Lofoten, and Abisko's mosquitoes are at their peak. August is warmer and calmer, with long evenings. September brings autumn colour on the fells, cooler days and the first chance of an aurora at Abisko on clear nights. Weather in the Lofoten changes fast in any month, and a boat trip can move to another day.

• Stockholm1 nuit
• Night train to Kiruna1 nuit
• Kiruna1 nuit
• Abisko2 nuits
• Narvik1 nuit
• Leknes3 nuits