Hiking and snowshoeing in Lofoten

6 min read Updated October 2026 Compare all tours

From a distance Lofoten looks like a single wall of mountains in the sea, known in Norwegian as Lofotveggen. Visit Lofoten calls Reinebringen above Reine, at 484 metres, one of the most popular hiking trails in Norway, counts Kvalvika and Ryten among the most visited hikes on the islands and lists Mannen near Haukland among the most iconic peaks.

The guided tours split by season. In winter they use snowshoes, microspikes and poles. Without snow they are hikes on foot, and Svolværgeita near Svolvær is a climb.

Snowshoe walks around Svolvær and Gimsøya

The XXLofoten tour is the easy start. You collect snowshoes and poles at the office in Svolvær, take a minibus to a trailhead near town (one reviewer timed the ride at seven minutes) and walk for about three hours with a hot drink on the way. Thermal boots are not included, and the minimum age is 16. When the snow is thin in early and late winter, the tour becomes a hike without snowshoes, and reviewers from November 2025 and March 2026 only heard about it on site.

Polar-folk meets at Gimsøystraumen for a four-hour uphill version. The summit is only attempted when conditions allow. Snowshoes, poles and spikes are provided, but snacks and drinks are not, so pack them yourself. A half-day snowshoe tour near Eggum on Vestvågøy follows animal tracks and tells the history of the place; it takes children from 8 and includes hot drinks and a snack. You make your own way to the meeting point.

Reviewers of the XXLofoten walk near Svolvær mention two guides, a hot drink at a viewpoint and, on one January day, moose seen from a distance.

Ryten and the winter hikes in the west

Ryten, 543 metres high, rises above Kvalvika in the far west, and both lie inside Lofotodden national park, which was created in 2018. Guide to Lofoten runs a seven-hour snowshoe ascent from October to the end of April: about three hours up, two hours down and lunch on folding camping chairs on the slope. The tour includes pickup from your accommodation, snowshoes, microspikes, poles, a hot meal, snacks and spare gloves, hats and goggles. Groups have at most seven people per guide, and the minimum age is 12. From the top you look far down to the long sandy beach of Kvalvika.

The operator cancels with a full refund if the weather is unsafe, and recommends travel insurance for flights or ferries that do not run. The same company offers an easy four-hour winter hike near Reine with pickup between Å and Ramberg. It lends snowshoes, microspikes, hats, gloves, gaiters, goggles and even down jackets, serves tea and snacks, and asks you to bring your own lunch.

Saga Adventures Lofoten runs a three-hour winter hike or snowshoe tour in the west and tells you the meeting place the day before. Trad Adventures leads a flat three-hour snowshoe loop near Å, without food.

Guided hikes on foot

Lofoten Insight meets at Svinøya Rorbuer in Svolvær for a four-hour guided hike whose route depends on the group and the weather, with trail snacks and photography tips. From Gimsøystraumen, Polar-folk climbs to 550 metres in four hours for walkers from age 12, with poles but no food.

The Haugheia hike from Leknes is the gentlest. It starts with two kilometres through the village, climbs a short, steep gravel path and crosses heather to 151 metres, where the guide hands out the traditional Norwegian hiking snack Kvikk Lunsj with coffee or hot chocolate. It is guided in English and German. At the other end of the scale, the Steinetinden ridge tour from Stamsund climbs steeply to an exposed ridge, without actual climbing, for at most eight people aged 16 and over. Bring a packed lunch and water.

Climbing Svolværgeita

Svolværgeita, the Svolvær goat, is a rock tower on the south-west side of Fløyfjellet, the 569-metre mountain near Svolvær. Its two horns, Storehorn and Lillehorn, stand about one and a half metres apart, and the first known ascent was on 1 August 1910. Reaching the top means climbing, not walking.

Trad Adventures meets at the car park for the Sherpa stairs, Djevelporten, Svolværgeita and Fløya. With a licensed local guide you walk up the Sherpa stairs, approach the tower and climb two rope lengths before the guide takes you down again. The tour lasts five hours for at most four people per guide, and all climbing gear is provided. Activity insurance, food and transport are not included.

Daylight, rules and safety

Winter days are short. On 1 December the sun in Svolvær rises at 10:46 and sets at 12:55, and from 7 December to 5 January it does not rise at all, though there are several hours of twilight around noon. In summer the opposite applies: from 26 May to 18 July 2027 the sun stays above the horizon all night. The polar night and midnight sun page explains both.

Norway's right of access lets you walk and camp in the open countryside. According to the Norwegian Environment Agency, you may pitch a tent at least 150 metres from the nearest inhabited house or cabin and stay up to two nights in one place, longer high in the mountains or far from houses. Fires in or near forest and other open land are banned from 15 April to 15 September unless they clearly cannot spread. Lofotodden national park covers 99 square kilometres of land and sea in Flakstad and Moskenes. Visit Lofoten says camping is allowed at Kvalvika and on Ryten but recommends proper campsites, and drones are banned in the park. In summer 2026 the park board rebuilt the paths to Kvalvika and Ryten to keep walkers on one line, and on Reinebringen Visit Lofoten asks you to follow the stairs. Before a hike, the mountain code of the Norwegian Trekking Association (DNT) and the Red Cross applies: plan the route and tell someone where you are going, check the weather and avalanche forecasts, and turn back in time. The full rules are on the Norwegian Environment Agency page on the right of access (in Norwegian). For boots, layers and spikes, see what to wear, and for the trails around Reine the Reine and Hamnøy page.