Lofoten, located in Norrland County, Norway, is an archipelago in northern Norway. The entire archipelago is located within the Arctic Circle, with a harsh, picturesque, and sparsely populated climate, and is mainly populated by Vikings.
The archipelago was formed by glacial action and is separated from mainland Norway by the Vestfjorden fjord. From a distance, the archipelago looks like a chain that seems to be connected, so the locals call it the "Lofoten Wall".
The climate of the Lofoten Islands is more pleasant than that of other regions at the same latitude as Alaska and Greenland, due to the influence of the North Atlantic warm current.
The Lofoten Islands have a typical coastal climate with warm winters and cool summers. January and February are colder, with an average temperature of minus 1°C. July and August are warmer, with an average temperature of 12°C.
May and June receive little rainfall, with an average of 40 mm. October is very wet. In late autumn and early winter, there are windy days.
If you particularly want to see the midnight sun or this travel between August 20 and 30, if you want to avoid the summer peak crowds, you can travel between July 1 and 10. In the archipelago, if hiking is your goal, then traveling before mid-June is not very suitable as many of the inland mountains still hold a lot of snow.
If you want to see the Northern Lights, although there are still good hiking opportunities, then September is a good month. If you want to photograph the Northern Lights with snow-capped mountains, then anytime between mid-January and late March is fine.
Having said that, the lively summer months must be a relatively suitable time to visit Lofoten for the first time. More specifically, July or August would be a good time for your trip, with plenty of good weather days and all the tourist-related businesses in full operation: kayaking, biking, fishing, etc.
Hiking in the mountains or walking along the beach at midnight watching the sun hover over the sea, or sitting by a campfire under a blue sky at 2 am.
The endless "day" of summer can also be a bit surreal and you quickly forget about time and days; time becomes secondary. The only thing you won't be doing is sleeping.
Lofoten has many different activities to choose from. Cycling and horseback riding are popular choices for many people in the summer. In the winter you can ski and see the Northern Lights. The biggest attraction here is the Lofotr Viking Museum near the center of Vestvgy.
The locals offer many different activities to visitors throughout the year, depending on the season. You can go hiking, skiing, diving, rafting, or fishing. Local tour operators offer sea trips, show trips, fishing trips and many more different tours.
Located in the Light Belt-Aurora Ellipse, which surrounds the geomagnetic poles, the Lofoten Islands are one of the best aurora viewing sites in the world, from September to April each year, after the long polar days are over. The aurora borealis is a feast for the eyes in the Lofoten Islands.
