We'll be in Tromso for a touch over a day this summer. We'll have 24 hours of sun while there. I was surprised to find almost all the information about Tromso in this forum being for winter travel. What the best way to see the local scenery? Is it by boat or by car? If by boat, are there half day or less cruises? Perhaps even an evening cruise given the 24 hours of sun? if by car, where should we drive?

Are attractions open into the evening in the summer? Are there outdoor cafes? What are likely temps?

Any and all information would be gratefully accepted.

If only there for 24 hours i would reccomend going by foot. The arp is on a medium sized island. The same as where the city centre is. You can check out the worlds northernmost brewery.

See the ice cathedral and take the cablecar. All is within walking distance. There is pplenty of food and cafe options. Some might be outdoors. And if there during the weekdend nightlife will be good!

This is good advice.

What about seeing the coastal scenery? Are there any half day or less boat trips?

Not sure if it will work out with schedules and such, but you could consider hopping onto one of the ferries or express boats catering to commuters out of Troms� for a few stops. See http://www.visittromso.no/en/Article...s-and-ferries/

Just remember that summers in Troms� can be cool, even cold. An ground frost is possible any time of year. Here is the weather data for last year http://www.yr.no/place/Norway/Troms/...tatistics.html

I got caught out in Trondheim in late June a few years ago. It fell to below freezing and I had to buy some warm clothes - it cost a fortune...

Not taking Hurtigruten even for a day into or out of Tromso?

For a variety of boat trips, this may help :

http://www.visittromso.no/en/Activities/Boat-trips/

Thank you. Evening Cruise in the Island District sounded perfect til I did the currency calculation. 1850 Krone is $318 x 2. Welcome to Norwegian prices!

In general Norwegian prices are awful and make many an "expensive" destination look a cheap bargain in comparison. But then there are those unusual pricing arrangements that foster a market in smuggling diapers out of Norway and into some of the poorest parts of Eastern Europe.

I am just glad that most of my Norwegian stays are with relatives or at hotels where I have landed a bargain using points or special codes and that breakfast and even some evening meals may be included in the hotel rates. The most ridiculously overpriced pizza I have ever had has been at a Norwegian airport -- I don't even want to go back to recall the exact amount I wasted on that.

Hurtigruten has some last minute relatively short trips that are reasonably priced in comparison to what you noted above, but this isn't the kind of trip on which an infrequent visitor to the area wants to gamble with last minute deals that may or may not come available and doesn't sound like it would necessarily be meeting your interests in just the Tromso area.

My family and I spent two nights/one day in Tromso last August (maybe 19 hours of sun). We had a rental car and made good use of it, seeing during our one day (1) the University Museum, (2) Polaria (decided not to pay for the admission), (3) crossed the street to the Mack Brewery (didn't bother with the guided tour, visited the gift shop and had a beer in the pub), (4) the cable car, had lunch with a view at the top, (4) the Arctic Cathedral, closed when we visited, (5) the Botanical Gardens, a change of pace, (6) the Polar Museum, probably the highlight, then parked the car at the hotel and wandered the two or three main streets, and found a nice place for dinner in town.

Reminded me of Alaska, if that helps; cool, but sunny and pleasant. The locals pronounce it <troomsuh>. We drove in and flew out, so I have nothing about the boats.

One odd thing not widely advertised: there are underground roads across the city, including a tunnel to the mainland.

Norway is definitely a land of tunnels like no other.

I do not really get the facsination with the tunnels.. Its not thaat special

There are a lot of tunnels because the great terrain sort of demands them for meeting the surface transport needs of the population in a way that is not the case anywhere else ...... even as the population density in Norway is so very low.

Norway has a lot of road tunnels for its size, the longest road tunnel and a substantial chunk of the twenty longest road tunnels in the world. Some might say that the fascination with the tunnels is not with the tunnels themselves but in what the tunnels signify for and about a place and its people.

LSE gave me a link to this tour, actually a combination of public busses and boats, that combines land and sea. It sounds ideal for our interests:

http://old.tromskortet.no/LinkClick....language=nb-NO

We are in Tromso right now!!! Did that tour.......LONG day. Beautiful scenery though. The town where you get the ferry back to Tromso is quiet. NOTHING to do/nothing to see. We made the mistake of getting the early bus from Tromso that gave us two hours in that town.
Today, we are getting the 'fast boat' to Harsdat (three hour boat trip there and three hours back). Will let you know which trip is best