The Best Time for Whale Watching in Tromsø
When to go whale watching from Tromsø: the season from late October to January, the safest weeks for orcas and humpbacks, polar night, and late January (Oct 2026).
The whale season off Tromsø runs from about the start of November to the end of January, and the safest weeks are mid-November to mid-January, when the orcas and humpbacks are feeding on herring in the fjords near Skjervøy and Kvænangen. Late October can be good and late January is a gamble. The tour we would book for those weeks is Arctic Resorts’ catamaran from Tromsø harbour, rated 4.7 from 3,762 reviews and from $192 a person in current promotion (usually $226) (checked October 2026), with a second tour free if you see no whales.
Why the season is so short
The whales come for the herring. Visit Tromsø writes that orcas and humpbacks have gathered to feed on herring in the Kvænangen area since 2017, and that the herring can move from one area to another from year to year, with the whales following it. Visit Tromsø gives the season as usually from the beginning of November to the end of January, and says the timing changes each year. Before the herring arrives and after it leaves, the boats have little to find.
Week by week
| When | What to expect | Daylight |
|---|---|---|
| Late October | The first tours run: Arctic Resorts' catamaran from 23 October 2026, Helgøy Skyssbåt from 20 October on a smaller boat. Guests who sailed between 24 and 28 October 2026 wrote of orcas and humpbacks. | Several hours of low sun |
| November | The start of Visit Tromsø’s season. A good month if you want daylight on the way north. | Shorter each week; polar night from 27 November |
| December | The heart of the season. Arctic Resorts' catamaran adds a 09:00 departure from 1 December. | Polar night: a few hours of blue twilight around midday |
| First half of January | Still in season: a guest on a Skjervøy RIB in mid-January 2026 still saw plenty of whales. | Polar night until 15 January |
| Last week of January | The risky end. Guests on the catamaran in the last week of January 2026 wrote that the guides warned the orcas had usually left, and some trips saw porpoises only. | The sun returns |
| February to March | After the season Visit Tromsø gives; Arctic Resorts' catamaran departures end on 31 January 2027. In early February 2026 Brim Explorer offered fjord cruises with a partial refund instead of its whale trips, because the season was over. | Lengthening days |
On a phone, swipe the table sideways.
Season and polar night dates from Visit Tromsø; departure dates from the GetYourGuide listings and guests’ accounts from the newest 350 reviews of Arctic Resorts’ catamaran safari, both read on 29 October 2026.
The safest weeks
If your dates are free, aim for mid-November to mid-January. Those weeks are inside the season on every account, Visit Tromsø’s and the operators’ alike. Within them, November gives you more light on the boat, and December and early January give you the polar night: the trip north starts in the dark, the whale area has a few hours of blue light around noon, and most of the return is in the dark again. Some guests saw the northern lights on the way back to the harbour, which no tour can promise.
Check November to January dates →
Late October and late January
Both ends of the season can work, and both can fail. The late-October trips in 2026 found whales, but in another year the herring may come later. Late January is the bigger risk: the reviews from the last week of January 2026 describe guides managing expectations before departure, rough seas, and days with no orcas. If late January is your only chance, book the earliest day of your stay, so that a second-chance tour (see what if there are no whales?) still fits in.
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Which whales, and when
Orcas and humpbacks are the two the tours are built around, and both follow the herring. The listings also name fin whales, and some add minke whales and sperm whales, which are seen less often. White-tailed eagles and harbour porpoises are common extras on the way. No listing gives month-by-month odds for one species over another, so we do not either; what the reviews show is that orcas are the first to be missed at the end of January.
Daylight and the polar night
From 27 November to 15 January the sun stays below the horizon in Tromsø (Visit Tromsø). This changes the trip more than the whales: you sail north in darkness, the light in the whale area is blue and soft, and photos need a steady hand. If you want sunlit fjords on the way, choose November. What to wear for whale watching covers the cold and the camera, and catamaran or RIB compares the two kinds of trip.
Season, herring, Kvænangen and polar night from Visit Tromsø. Departure dates, species named and second-chance offers from the GetYourGuide listings, read in US dollars on 29 October 2026; guests’ accounts from the newest 350 reviews of Arctic Resorts’ catamaran safari, written January to October 2026.
Book a Day in the Whale Weeks
Arctic Resorts' catamaran safari sails from the harbour behind Nerstranda at 08:30 from 23 October 2026 to 31 January 2027, with a 09:00 departure added from 1 December. About 2.5 hours in the whale area near Skjervøy, and a second tour free if no whales are seen. Free cancellation up to 24 hours before (October 2026).
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