frogss29

After 8 days in/around Tromso, we feel we know this area pretty well
We did the bus/ferry trip. NOK 750 each. It was beautiful but by the end of the ferry back, I was tired.
We did the Tromso/Harsdat return trip. I think that was around the same price. It was good too. Not alot to do in Harsdat though, but we walked around and had a good time.
Yesterday, we hired a car. BEST thing we could do.
We had a wonderful day, drove towards Sommaroy , caught a ferry, had lunch at a wonderful place . Car cost NOK 700 including all insurance etc etc. Easiest drive we have ever done since there is next to no traffic and roads are amazing!
We even saw reindeers up close and got great photos.
I am glad we did the other trips but driving ourselves was the BEST thing we did.
Second best thing would be the Tromso Cable Car. It opens at 10am and closes at 1am.

SanDiego1K

What company did you use for your car rental?

We have 1 day and a bit more in Tromso. Would you suggest that we drive instead of taking the bus/ferry option? Did you take the car on the ferry? Do you remember where you ate?

frogss29

We used Hertz. If you are on a cruise, the Hertz 'shop' is right under the bridge. On the water. Just walk along the water walkway.
In my opinion, I would get the car. It was easy and we saw a lot more than being on the ferry/bus.
And, yes, we took the car on the ferry.
We got the ferry from Brensholmen at midday. You just line up and drive on. Cost NOK 280.
We had lunch at Hamn i Senja. It was wonderful!!!!!!
So,we left Tromso around 10am. Drove to Sommaroy, looked/walked around, then drove to Brensholmen (about 10 minutes from Sommaroy). Got the ferry, drove to the little seaside village where we had lunch.
Drove down to finnsnes (stopping along the way) and then took E6 back to Tromso.
Got home around 9pm.
SO weird having no dark!!!

forgot to add.....pack a picnic lunch/snack/drinks. Restaurants are few and far between!!!! The place we went to was the ONLY one we found in our 10 hour trip.

SanDiego1K

Thank you. That's great help.

Do you think Hamn i Senja closes between meals, or does it have meal service throughout the afternoon?

frogss29

Glad I can help you - I have learnt so much from you over time, so glad I can return the favour!
The 'restaurant' caters to a sort of hotel with upmarket apartments over the water. We didn't get there until after 2pm.
I think, in summer, it is open all the time.
You can get a beer, or a coffee, or a meal. Not a HUGE amount to chose from. My husband had salmon with lots of fresh vegetables with a sauce over the top. I had a fish stew. Both good and very filling!
Both around NOK 250 each.
Bottle of wine, around the same price.
Coffee......NOK 45 which I thought a lot!

Just be aware that the ferry leaves at midday. If you miss that, the next one leaves at 5pm.

ksu

According to their homepage (in Norwegian) they are open June-August (it is unclear whether they are open after 19.08.13). Hot food is served between 13.00 and 21.30. Open until midnight, except Sunday (23.00). Reservations are apparently not necessary except for groups

They have English pages as well, but the English pages do not have the detailed information about opening hours.

Also: remember that Norwegians do not necessarily follow the continental dining hours. The one daily cooked meal most Norwegians eat is dinner between 16.00 and 18.00. Thus out-of-season opening hours for dinner at Hamn is 13.00 - 18.00.

I haven't been there myself, but a colleague was there for a group meeting last September, and liked it very much.

And to frogss29: The town you visited is called Harstad, not Harsdat. Norwegian place names are difficult even for the New York Times. Sharkey recently misnamed the Norwegian city Kristiansand. He called it Kristiansen, which is a surname, not a place name.

SanDiego1K

Thank you, ksu, that's very helpful.

SanDiego1K

I've roughed out the driving itinerary using google maps. We arrive in Tromso too late to make the noon ferry. Fortunately, on summer Sundays, there is a 4pm ferry (and 6pm). Can anyone spot any miscalculations?

1. Leave Tromso around 2pm

2. Drive to Sommaroy, look around

3. Drive to Brensholmen (about 10 minutes from Sommaroy). [No more than 1 ½ hours from Tromso]

4. Ferry from Brensholmen. You just line up and drive on. Cost NOK 280. Ferry leaves at noon and 4pm (Sunday)

5. drive to the little seaside village of Hamm for lunch. [2 hours on from ferry]
Have meal at Hamn i Senja.

6. Drive down to Finnsnes [45 minutes from restaurant]

7. then took E6 back to Tromso. [2 hours from Fiennes]

Got home 11pm after 4pm ferry, drive, and meal

356 km, 6 hours 26 mins

SanDiego1K

frogss29, that was a great drive, even on a dreary drizzly day.

The restaurant - oh, my, that was good food and a good find. After we had driven for two hours thru tiny hamlets with almost no places to eat, it was amazing to arrive at this sophisticated place. Their dining room was full, and 65 of 66 rooms were booked for the night. A bus pulled up filled with people staying there. Given the skinny roads we had driven to get there, clearly it did not come the same route. Their menu description of the property claimed this to be on a list of top 25 places to visit in Norway. I wouldn't doubt it. It was lovely.

The ferry crossing was about 45 minutes. There were 4 cars left behind on our crossing. We arrived quite early for the 4pm crossing, and there were a number of campers in front of us. I think some of them were left from the noon crossing. All of them got on our ship.

Just before you enter Hamn, there is the Senja Troll Park. It's odd! I liken the experience to driving along an American highway and seeing a paper mache dinosaur.

Thank you for posting this outing.

frogss29

So glad you enjoyed it! I must admit, it was a highlight for us, too

OhioExile

I am likely to be in Tromso for about 24 hours next month - arriving and departing in the early afternoon, so resurrecting this thread made sense.

The drive laid out seems like a good place to start - does anyone have any updates or new information that would be helpful? My SO is vegan, so that does make finding good and accommodating restaurants as part of the gameplan.

Palal

I did ~24 hrs in Tromsų last August without renting a car. Found enough hiking to keep me busy in the surrounding region. Bus to and from the airport, walking and hiking the rest of the way. There are a couple of interesting museums in town.