Jeremy

Jeremy founded Living the Dream in 2008 to chronicle his long-term trip around Asia. Since then he has been on two long-term trips, visited 69 countries, and is just getting started. He is now on a Lifestyle Design quest to build businesses to pursue a life of travel.

5 Packing List Items for Winter in the Arctic Circle

There are cold climate vacations, and then there is vacationing in the Arctic Circle in the dead of winter cold.

To put it bluntly, if you’re heading to the Arctic Circle and are planning on outdoor experiences (be it dogsledding, chasing the aurora borealis, or something else outdoors), you’ll want to plan on some extra items in your packing list. 

So in this one, we wanted to discuss winter items that you really should consider adding to your packing list (or upgrading to a better quality item) if you are heading up to the Arctic Circle in the colder months!

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Where to Stay in Tromso – In City Center or On The Hill?

If you’re heading to Tromso in the winter to try and see the aurora borealis, you’re going to the right spot. This city is a great gateway to get out on an aurora chase with decent odds of seeing the aurora (in town, not so much, however).

But, as with all travel destinations, you may be wondering where the best play to stay in Tromso is. Should you stay in the city center, on the hillside overlooking Tromso, or on the opposite side of the hill looking away from the city for less light pollution?

Well, there are pros and cons to each, and we have to admit, staying closer to the city center may end up being a great choice all around. In this one, we thought we’d share a few key points to keep in mind about the different areas you may consider for your stay.

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Everything to Know About Gorilla Trekking in Uganda

For the longest time, Angie had mountain gorilla trekking in Uganda on her bucket list, and in early 2019 we finally made that dream a reality with our trip to Bwindi Impenetrable National Park.

When visiting, we really weren’t sure what to expect.

We heard the hike could be easy, moderately challenging, or terrible. We heard the roads are okay and awful. And we have heard mixed feelings on the experience overall as well in terms of whether or not it is worth the $800 per person fee for non-residents to spend an hour with the gorillas (2026 prices).

Not being deterred, we did it anyway and had a fabulous time. To help share some of the information we learned about the experience, this guide was born!

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Van vs Bus – Which Tromso Aurora Borealis Tour is Best?

If you are heading up to Tromso, Norway, in the Arctic Circle to try and see the northern lights, we highly encourage you to take a tour that is designed to chase the aurora.

The word “chase” is key here because, while the aurora oval will likely be above you at night while in the Arctic Circle, a chase is often required because you also need clear skies to see the aurora at all!

Tromso, unfortunately, has a highly variable microclimate that often includes fast-moving clouds, frequent snow, wind, and yes, even rain at times in the winter months (sadly). So when we say you need to go on a Tromso aurora borealis tour to chase the northern lights, it is actually more appropriate to say that you’re going on a tour to chase clear skies.

To put it bluntly- you’re likely not going to get much clear sky staying in one spot, especially inside the city limits (which has very low odds of seeing the lights on any given night), and a chase tour is designed to get you to the clearest skies nearby in order to increase your odds of seeing the aurora borealis significantly.

Now, if you are on board with hitting the road to go see the northern lights, the next item you have to consider is simply this- will you book a bus tour or a van tour? While both of these have the same end game of getting you to a place with clear skies, there are pros and cons to each.

After trying both during our visit to Tromso for the northern lights, we thought we’d break down the differences in this one!

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