Fishing trips in Lofoten

5 min read Updated October 2026 Compare all tours

Cod shaped Lofoten. Every year from February to April, spawning cod known as skrei come into the Vestfjord, and the fishery that follows them reaches back as far as history and oral tradition go. In 1896 about 32,000 fishermen took part; since the 1990s it has been between 2,000 and 4,000. Svolvær grew out of this fishery, and Kabelvåg, nine minutes down the road, is the oldest fishing village in Lofoten. King Øystein had rorbuer, the cabins where visiting fishermen stayed during the season, built there in the 12th century.

The fishery got its first modern law, the Lofoten Act, in 1857. It allowed free fishing on the open sea and gave each type of gear its own fishing field. A recent peak year was 2014, with a catch of 69,200 tonnes. When you leave Svolvær harbour today, you sail out into the same Vestfjord waters.

As a visitor you can join a boat in either place in any season. The catch changes through the year. Cod, saithe and haddock are the regular fish, reviewers caught mackerel in September, and skrei come in from February.

The big boats from Svolvær

Go2Lofoten runs a four-hour trip from town. You meet at the office at Sjømannsgata 5, get a short introduction in English or Norwegian and head out to fish for cod, saithe and haddock. The crew fillets your fish and packs it for you, and on the way back the guests feed the seabirds. Rain gear, life vests and fishing gear are provided, along with coffee, biscuits and a non-alcoholic hot toddy.

Reviewers like the amount of fish and the chance to cook it later, and one autumn group saw sea eagles near their nesting sites. The complaints come up again and again: 20 to 30 people on board, a guide who is hard to hear over the engine, and seasickness on days with waves. Guests who asked for a refund because of the weather or seasickness did not get one.

XXLofoten runs a three-hour trip on the fishing boat MS Symra. There are ten fishing stations, each shared by two guests, and the catch is filleted on board for you to take away. Depending on the season you may land skrei, mackerel, saithe or haddock. Boots can be rented on site, and food is not included, so bring your own. Pets stay ashore, though assistance dogs are welcome. Reviewers mention days with little fish, about an hour of actual fishing on one summer trip, and a full deck.

Small boats and a skipper

For a quieter day, the trips with a personal touch from Svolvær take at most five guests when the boat is shared and six for a family booking. The skipper chooses the fishing ground by weather and fish: the Austnesfjord, Hola, Skrova or the waters off Henningsvær, and on some days the Trollfjord. Fishing suits and gear are provided, but you bring your own snacks and drinks. The tour excludes non-swimmers and people prone to seasickness. Recent reviews mention a small boat that felt rough in heavy seas and weather cancellations that reached guests late.

Hooked on Lofoten leaves from Kabelvåg for four hours to changing fishing grounds. A warm flotation suit, bait and tackle are provided, and you keep what you catch. The tour page gives two different maximum group sizes, so check the group size on the booking page; at least two guests are needed for it to run.

Shore fishing and crab pots

Hooked on Lofoten also runs a five-hour shore trip on the coast, by a river or at a lake in Vågan. Fishing licences are included, and the day ends with a meal cooked over an open fire. You need your own car to get to the start, and the tour is offered in English, Danish and German.

The crab trip from Nyvågar in Kabelvåg spends two hours on a speedboat pulling crab pots, in a flotation suit. Afterwards you sit down at Restaurant Nyvågar from 18:00 to fresh crab with bread, sauce and salad; drinks are extra. Our food and drink page has more on local seafood.

Skrei, stockfish and the drying racks

Tørrfisk, or stockfish, is mostly dried cod. It hangs on racks of birch poles, called hjell, and is ready after two to four months in the open air, depending on the weather. Norwegian regulations protect the name Tørrfisk fra Lofoten as a geographical designation.

To understand the fishery before or after a trip, the SKREI centre of Museum Nord at Storvågen near Kabelvåg tells the story of the skrei and the Lofoten fishery. The ticket also covers the Lofoten Aquarium, Galleri Espolin and the Lofoten Museum. It is open daily, from 10:00 to 18:00 between May and August and from 11:00 to 16:00 from September to April. Details and tickets are on the Museum Nord website. The best time to visit page shows how the fishing season fits with the light and weather.

Taking fish home

Norway limits how much fish visitors may take out of the country. According to the Directorate of Fisheries, only tourists aged 12 or over who fish through a registered fishing camp may export fish, up to 15 kg twice per calendar year. From 1 January 2027 the limit drops to 10 kg. Freshwater species such as salmon and trout are not covered by this rule. For most day trippers, the filleted catch is something to cook where you are staying in Svolvær or further west.