Finding Friluftsliv: 5 Days on Norway's Lofoten Islands

There are few places on Earth that embody friluftsliv – the Norwegian love of open-air living – quite like the Lofoten Islands. Strung across the Arctic Circle, this jagged chain of peaks, fjords, and fishing villages offers not only breathtaking scenery, but the freedom to immerse yourself in nature without a clock. In early summer, the sun simply doesn’t set.

For busy travellers, this endless daylight isn’t just a novelty – it’s a logistical miracle. No mad dash to beat sunset. No scheduling hikes before dusk. If you want to climb a mountain at 10pm, go right ahead. Lofoten gives you the most precious travel resource of all: time.

This guide to 5 Days on Lofoten Islands is tailored for independent travellers who want to experience friluftsliv at its purest. You’ll hike, paddle, and wander – not to tick boxes, but to simply be in the landscape. Here, even stillness feels like movement.

NB: This itinerary assumes a basic – but no more – level of fitness and broadly good weather.  While any of the hikes listed here would be atmospheric in the rain, the steps up Reinebringen will likely be treacherous and both Offersøykamen and Hoven get boggy easily! You should also treat Norwegian hiking ratings with a pinch of salt - their 'Easy' is our 'Moderate' (at least!)

Day 1: Arrival by Sea – Bodo to Leknes via Ferry

The Lofoten adventure begins in Bodo, a compact coastal city that's less a destination than a springboard. Your first task: hire a car (essential – Lofoten’s beauty is in its scattered nature and public transport is infrequent) and catch the ferry to Moskenes.   We arrived at 6pm the previous day, giving us an evening and morning in Bodo before the 3pm ferry.

Getting To Lofoten

This ferry wins regular plaudits for its sensational views - a 3.5 hour voyage across the open sea with snow-topped peaks rising on the horizon like something Tolkien dreamed up. Ideally, book tickets in advance via Torghatten Nord. 

50% of tickets are held back for drive-ups but you’ll need to arrive two hours early in high season – it fills up quickly.  At the time of year we visited (late May), the only sensible option was 15.15 ferry, arriving at Moskenes at 18.30. There are basic facilites on board. Foot passengers can also use this service albeit plan your onward journey in advance. Bodo also offers a foot-passenger only service to Svolvaer, the biggest town (it’s a relative term) on Lofoten.  

More details on ferry, options, timetables and prices can be found here.

If you’ve time before departure, visit the Norwegian Aviation Museum (10.00-18.00, 175NOK) near Bodo airport. It’s a well-curated space of Cold War jets and early Arctic mail planes – a nod to Norway’s role in polar exploration and NATO espionage alike. It's divided into civilian and military history and is surprising sizeable and informative.

On arrival at Moskenes, drive east through impossibly scenic roads to Leknes (approx. 1hr 20min), your base for the trip.

As you round the fjords and climb gentle ridges, your first glimpses of Lofoten’s famous rorbuer come into view – bright red fishermen’s cabins perched over the water on stilts.

Traditionally painted with a mixture of cod liver oil and ochre pigment (red was the cheapest to produce), they were simple, functional housing for seasonal fishing crews and have now become icons of the region.

Get out at any of the pull-ins that take your fancy and snap away – the temptation will be overwhelming.

We stayed at this Airbnb – a 5 minute drive outside Leknes. modern, beautifully furnished guesthouse with panoramic views of the surrounding hills and a patio for late-evening meals under the midnight sun. It’s comfortable, private, and well-placed for every corner of Lofoten with a fantastic host.

Why stay in Leknes?

Leknes sits almost dead-centre in the Lofoten chain, making it ideal for day trips in every direction – no journey described below took more than one hour.

It’s not a tourist town in its own right but has all you’ll need supermarket, petrol station, decent bakeries. Enjoy a quiet local dinner (Try Huset Kafé or Lofoten Food Studio if open) before a well-earned rest – tomorrow, you climb mountains.

Day 2: Twin Peaks and a Thousand Views

Waking up in Lofoten under a bright morning sky feels like winning a cosmic lottery. With the sun lazily circling overhead, there’s no pressure to cram everything into daylight hours – so you can enjoy your morning coffee slowly, before heading off to your first summit.   Pack your snacks and hiking poles and head out.

Start with Offersøykammen, a relatively short but rewarding hike just 10 minutes’ drive from Leknes. Park in the gravel lot just off E10 (marked “Skreda Parking” on Google Maps). The trailhead isn’t signposted but again, Google Maps, is accurate.  You’ll see a path ahead of you. 

It’s a steady 50-60 minute climb through birch scrub and a final scent up a rocky outcrop. It’s not technically challenging, but you’ll want proper footwear – the path is steep and can be slick after rain.

At the top, you’ll see the landscape fall away before you and be rewarded with your first Lofoten money shot - a panoramic view over Leknes, the aquamarine waters of Haukland Beach, and dramatic coastal cliffs that fall away into the Norwegian Sea. If it stuns you into silence, you’ve done as well as me.    When the wind drops, you’ll not find a better spot on Earth for a picnic.

After descending, we had a leisurely afternoon, detouring past two brief but worthwhile stops: Buknes Church, a red-painted timber church, dating from 1905 in the ‘dragon’ style (it makes sense when you see it) with arched windows that looks like it belongs in a folk tale, and Uttakleiv Beach, a boulder-strewn stretch of coastline known for its moody beauty and arctic surfers. Take a short stroll and admire the oddly heart-shaped rock formation near the shore.

Back at your Airbnb, have an early dinner – we bought ingredients at the local supermarket – and rest.

Then: lace up for the grand event.

Reinebringen is Lofoten’s signature hike – and with good reason. From Leknes, it’s about a 1hr drive to the trailhead in Reine.  Park at the free lot just after the tunnel into town (it’s marginally closer to the trailhead than parking in Reine itself). Walk back towards Reine and the trailhead is right above the road tunnel (you'll see the steps!)

The trail here is markedly different to the morning.  Following concerns about erosion, the local government hired a group Nepali sherpas to install steep stone steps to the summit.  All 1,978 of them. 

The climb is approximately 450m but is unrelenting and definitely one for vertigo-sufferers to think carefully about.  

At a leisurely (puffing!) pace, we reached the summit after a 75 minute hike up.  In what passes for golden hour, the view from the top is staggering: a bird’s-eye view over the iconic Reinefjord, with its scattered islets, linked by a web of bridges and mirror-still water framed by jagged cliffs.

And because this is Lofoten in summer, we did it all at 10.30pm in golden light, without a headlamp in sight.  We’d earnt the lie-in!

Day 3: Henningsvær’s Charm, Sea Eagles, and Sunset from a Summit

Suffice to say we’d slept well after double hiking day previously and were in a rhythm which included greeting a sun that was still casually hanging out where we left it at midnight.

Today, our route went East, taking the backroad (the FV815 – a well paved but quieter version of E10) through coastal roads framed by dramatic ridges a quieter alternative to the main E10 road.  Our destination was the fishing village of Henningsvær.

Built on a series of islets connected by narrow bridges, Henningsvær is both postcard-pretty and strikingly real. It’s still a working fishing village, but with enough artists, climbers, and creative types to keep things interesting. It’s a lovely place just to stroll - across the wooden piers, past rorbuer cabins and traditional fish drying racks, of which more later.   

The town’s football pitch, perched improbably on the edge of a rocky outcrop, has achieved Instagram stardom – albeit you’re never going to get quite that good a view from ground level.

Visit the KaviarFactory, an unexpectedly world-class contemporary art gallery in an old caviar production facility, and browse local shops selling Arctic wool and – slightly pricy but ever so cosy - hand-knit jumpers.

Stop for lunch at Klatrekaféen, where climbers and locals mingle over moose stew, reindeer burgers, and strong coffee. If you have time and energy, walk up to the small lighthouse at the end of the harbour for sweeping views back toward the mountains.

From here, drive 25 minutes to Svolvær, the largest town in Lofoten, where you’ll find shops (very good place to stock up on souvenirs – some are open to 22.00), galleries, and the starting point for your RIB (Rigid Inflatable Boat) safari to Trollfjord.  Several companies have outposts in the

main square by the harbour but booking in advance saves the hassle.

This isn’t a pleasure cruise – you’ll don thermal suits, life jackets and what look live oven gloves.  Even on a mild spring day where it feels like overkill, you’ll be almighty glad once you get moving aboard a high-powered vessel that skims across the sea at speed. The 2-hour tour takes you deep into the narrow Trollfjord, with sheer cliffs towering on both sides, waterfalls plunging into the fjord, and a haunting sense of isolation…well until you see the Hurtigruten ferry alongside you making a three-point turn!

Best of all are the white-tailed sea eagles, one of Europe’s largest birds of prey which you’re very likely to spot (the guides know all the nesting sites). These magnificent raptors often swoop within metres of the boat, plucking fish from the surface with astonishing grace.  Their eyesight and wingspan alone is breathtaking.

Dinner in Svolvær offers plenty of options, but we chose the ‘does what it says on the tin’ Restaurant Svolvaer just off the main square.  The Lofoten take on fish & chips was a delight – lightly battered cod caught less than a mile away with chips well seasoned with paprika and locally-produced sea salt.  For a dinner to linger over,  Børsen Spiseri is highly recommended. Housed in a converted warehouse with candlelit tables and a menu that favours local seafood, elk and Arctic char.

We were feeling sluggish at this point and, with good weather again, decided on another evening stroll.  Hoven, on Gimsøy island, was a 30-minute drive north. Park at the Lofoten Links Golf Course – incidentally a candidate for most scenic golf course on Earth – and pick up the initially boggy but well-marked trail climbs to the summit.  

A couple of steep parts in the final third of the hike but a relatively easy 45-minute ascent. The 360° view from the top takes in rolling farmland, beach-dotted coastline, and the craggy heart of Lofoten.  The lowered – but not setting – sun casts a golden light across the whole landscape. 

From Hoven, it’s a leisurely 40-minute drive back to the Air BnB.

Day 4: Nusfjord and Sea Kayaking

Today’s activities are watery from start to finish.  After a leisurely breakfast, we headed southwest to Nusfjord (40 minutes) a beautifully preserved fishing village that feels like it’s been frozen in time.  Located in a small natural harbour, the village is one of the oldest of its kind in Norway, with buildings dating back to the 19th century.

Pay the 100NOK entry fee (free after 5pm, albeit most of the buildings had shut) and explore the wooden boardwalks connect ochre-painted cabins, and you can visit the well-curated old saltery, fish oil refinery, and boathouse.  It’s peaceful, not at all twee, and almost unnervingly picturesque, even by Lofoten standards.  Both the general store and the Hansines Bakery are well worth a visit for coffee, cinnamon buns and nostalgia. 

Things get a bit more active after a 30 minute drive along the E10 to  continue a half-hour south to the tiny jetty at Andopen Bay for an afternoon with Lofoten Arctic Adventures (Andopsveien 39).  They run a range of guided kayaking tours in the sheltered fjords nearby.  We were wary about the temperature of the water (a balmy 8C) but the gear provided is second to none – drysuits, splash skirts (one of the greatest outdoor investions of all time) and waterproof gloves before setting out with a guide into the cold, glassy water.

The silence is one of the first things you'll notice – just the sound of seabirds, dripping paddles, and the occasional echo off granite walls. 

Despite occasionally choppy waters, the kayaks are equipped with rudders making change of direction a cinch compared to other kayak tours I’ve done.

As you glide through narrow inlets and beneath overhanging cliffs, you'll pass vast wooden racks hung with tørrfisk – stockfish that has been air-dried in the Arctic wind for centuries. The tradition of tørrfisk is central to Lofoten’s economy and identity, dating back centuries when cod from these waters was exported all over Europe.  The heads are dried separate from the bodies – like a grisly medieval execution scene – and fetch similarly high prices in exports to Asia and Africa. You'll also be introduced to the various edible seaweeds along the coast, including the highly prized truffle seaweed (pictured).

Assuming you stayed dry - pn the way back to Leknes, make a stop in Ballstad, one of the oldest continuously inhabited fishing villages in the archipelago. Its sheltered harbour has been used since the Iron Age, and even today, the town supports an active fleet. While some traditional rorbuer now house artists and travellers, Ballstad retains a working-class edge.

Walk along the docks where rusting anchors and rope coils speak to generations of seafaring.  Skreda Restaurant is near Ballstad, which combines locally sourced ingredients with elegant plating – think Arctic char with smoked butter or lamb shoulder slow-cooked with juniper berries. Or, if you're feeling rustic, try Restaurant Himmel og Havn on the harbourfront for hearty cod dishes and harbour views.   It’s an easy 15 minute drive back to the Leknes.

Day 5: Vikings, Glassblowing and the Long Road Back

Our final morning saw the first rain of our visit. 

After coffee and waffles with our Air BnB host (told you he was great!), we headed to the Lofotr Viking Museum (open daily 10:00–17:00 in summer).  This isn’t your typical museum – it’s an immersive archaeological site built around the remains of a Viking chieftain’s farmstead. We didn't book in advance.

The centrepiece is a full-size reconstruction of a longhouse over 80 metres long, the largest ever found in Scandinavia.  Inside, costumed guides demonstrate woodworking, weaving, and blacksmithing, while firelight flickers on wooden beams.  If you’re lucky, you might catch a Viking ship rowing demonstration on the adjacent lake (15 minute walk) where a replica longship normally lies at anchor.  Try some axe throwing on the return walk to see if you’ve got the necessary touch to pass for a Viking.

From the museum, begin your slow journey back west. Vikten Beach is a short diversion off the E-10 with a dramatic, wind-lashed stretch of coastline where black volcanic rock meets the Arctic surf. Behind the dunes sits Glasshytta Vikten, a working glass studio where you can watch molten sand transformed into elegant, sea-coloured bowls and sculptures.  It’s an art form that draws on the surrounding landscape – waves, sky, and granite – in both colour and form.

Finally, stop off at Ramberg for lunch. The café at Ramberg Gjestegård is a reliable choice for simple, hearty dishes and coffee with a sea view.  There’s also a decent souvenir store for any last minute purchases.  

After lunch, take time to stroll along Ramberg Beach, a wide crescent of fine white sand framed by jagged peaks. It’s unusually tropical-looking for the Arctic Circle – and even if you’re not brave enough for a swim, it’s a soul-stirring place to say your quiet goodbyes.

Return to Moskenes via E10, about 30-40 minutes from Ramberg.  It’s a good drive for reflection – through tunnels and between peaks, past the same fjords and ridgelines that now feel familiar.  And to begin plotting a return visit.

Final Thoughts: Lofoten Lingers

Even after you leave, Lofoten lingers in the mind like a dream just below the surface. It’s not just the landscapes – though they are extraordinary – but the way time itself feels different here. With the sun circling overhead in early summer, the days unfold without urgency. You climb mountains at 10pm, paddle clear fjords in golden light, and sit on empty beaches that feel like the edge of the world.  I left feeling I had encountered friluftsliv in its ideal form: breathing clean air, feeling the earth underfoot, and moving with the rhythms of sea and sky.

For independent travellers with limited time, Lofoten is a rare gift. Every hour feels full, whether you’re climbing mountains at night or strolling beaches before breakfast. The sights are stunning, yes, but it’s the stillness, the space, and the clarity of the air that stay with you.  We came for the views, but left with something deeper: a sense of connection, and the desire to return.