72 Hours in the Lofoten Islands: The Overview
The Lofoten Islands are one of those places that look almost fake in photos, and then you get there and realize the pictures didn't do it justice. Dramatic peaks rise straight out of the sea, fishing villages look frozen in time, and the coastal road rivals any drive we've ever done.
When we decided we wanted to go to Norway, it was non-negotiable to include the archipelago. The trek up to Lofoten was at the end of the trip, and we barely had 72 hours in the Arctic Circle, so we decided to prioritize a scenic route down the E10 highway and squeeze in as much as possible.
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Day 1: Arrival and Svolvær
We flew into Harstad/Narvik Airport (EVE) instead of one of the smaller regional airports. It is one of the bigger airports in the region, which meant more flight options, cheaper fares, and a much easier time picking up our rental car during peak season. One of the driving factors for us was rental car avialability; because of some last minute plan changes we felt flying into EVE and making the drive to Svolvær was our best option. The flight times were also more favorable in and out to Oslo Airport Gardermoen (OSL).
Travel Tip: Since we took the first flight out on Norwegian, the night before we stayed near the airport at the Radisson RED Oslo Airport. The hotel has a direct covered walkway to the terminal and was also only a 20-minute train ride into downtown Oslo.
From the airport, you hop directly onto E10 and begin your journey to Svolvær. It’s a scenic ~3 hour drive (166km/130mi). Often called the ‘liveliest’ town in the archipelago it makes it the perfect ‘home base’ for those wanting to only rent one hotel. We opted to stay at the Thon Hotel Svolvær (Avisgata 1, 8300 Svolvær, Norway) wandering the harbor, and had a lovely dinner by the water at Bacalao Bar.
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Day 2: Starting at the end; Å, Reine, and Nusfjord. Our first full day was all about working our way down to the end of the road, literally. We had decided with limited time we would drive to the furthest point each day and work our way back to our hotel. We drove approximately 2.5 hours (132km/82mi) to started in Å, where the E10 highway physically ends. There is a bunch of little things to do in the area but we opted for a hike around Å i lofoten point trail. We did pop into the village to see the beautiful fishermen's cabins (rorbuer) and snag a few photos before making our way to Reine (9.3km/6mi away). Reine is often considered home to ‘the postcard shot of Lofoten’ due to all the iconic rorbuer perched right over the water. If you were only take one photo in all of Norway, it's probably going to be here. We stopped in at Bringen to grab some coffee, hot chocolate, and pastries before treking to the viewpoint on Reineveien. While the weather prevented us from doing some of the hiking trails, it surly didn’t ruin the view. The last stop of the day was to Nusfjord, one of Norway's oldest and best preserved fishing villages. Walking the docks there, it's easy to imagine what Lofoten looked like a century ago.
Day 2: Henningsvær, Eggum, and Gimsøystraumen Bridge. This was the big day. We started in Henningsvær, home to what might be the most photographed football pitch on Earth, a full-size soccer field wedged onto a rock in the middle of the ocean. It's a short detour off the main road and completely worth it. From there we drove out to Eggum, where WWII bunker ruins sit on a wild, windswept black sand beach that felt like the edge of the world. It was one of the quietest stops on the whole trip, and a nice break from the more touristy spots. On the way back we crossed Gimsøystraumen Bridge, the second longest bridge in the archipelago, and pulled over for photos more than once. Don't rush this day; between the driving and the stops, it eats up more time than you'd think.
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Day 4: Flying back to Oslo
When it came time to fly back to Oslo, we were super overwhelmed. We could of spent weeks just in the Lofoten’s; three days just wasn't enough. Bust since we had to pick between going and not going at all, we wanted to make sure we saw as much of the spots that make Lofoten actually feel like Lofoten, this route works.