Getting around Narvik

The town centre, the harbour and the slopes of Narvikfjellet are close together, and many tours collect you in town. Beyond that, the railway and the E10 lead east to Sweden.

Empty snow-packed coastal road with red marker poles along the sea and snowy hills under a deep blue sky — Red marker poles show the edge of the road when snow covers it. Photo: Francesco Ungaro / Unsplash

5 min read Updated October 2026

Narvik is a small town on the Ofotfjord, with about 14,000 people in the town itself. The ski slopes start at the upper edge of town, the war museum is in the centre, and reviewers put the walk from the railway station to the museum at about ten minutes. For trips further out, most visitors rely on tours with pickup, the railway to the Swedish border or a rental car.

Tours that collect you

Many tours solve the transport question for you. The private aurora drive with a second-night offer collects guests at hotels in Narvik and Harstad, and the fjord day with a reindeer farm also starts with a hotel pickup. The minibus aurora hunt picks up in central Narvik and, by arrangement, at the cruise port. Several Arctic Moments tours, among them the evening aurora trip and the fjord road trip, start at Dronningensgate 51 in the centre; the road trip can also pick you up elsewhere in town.

Some tours leave the transport to you. Husky Isogaisa is about half an hour's drive north of Narvik, and neither of its sledding tours includes a transfer. Reviewers who came without a car mention a long and costly taxi ride. The first-time snowmobile ride starts at a campsite in Bardu, in Troms, and also comes without transport. Our pages on huskies and Sámi culture and fjords and road trips list which tours include pickup.

The railway east

The Ofoten Line runs from Narvik up the mountainside above the Rombakfjord to the Swedish border at Bjørnfjell and continues as the Malmbanan to Kiruna and Luleå. Most of its traffic is ore trains, but SJ runs passenger trains between Narvik and Kiruna every day of the year. Tickets have to be bought online in advance; the station and the train do not sell them.

The Arctic Train is the tourist version: a return trip from Narvik station to Bjørnfjell and back. It is run by The Arctic Train AS, which sells tickets on arctictrain.com, and the Norwegian rail directorate counts two tourist train journeys a day on the line, which makes one return trip. Details are on the Ofoten Line page.

Buses

From Sweden, Kiruna Buss line 950 serves Abisko, Björkliden, Riksgränsen and Narvik and has to be booked. A second bus, Länstrafiken route 91, runs only between Kiruna and Riksgränsen, from June to September and from February to April. Within Norway, regional buses leave from the terminal at the Malmporten shopping centre: route 100 to Tromsø and Bodø, route 200 to Harstad and Evenes and route 300 to Svolvær in Lofoten. City buses start from the terminal outside the town hall, and tickets for both are sold in the Reis app or on board by card. The airport bus FB82 to Evenes takes about an hour. For a taxi, Visit Narvik names Narvik Taxi, on 07550.

Harstad, Bardu and beyond

Some tours collect guests in Harstad as well as in Narvik, and Evenes airport lies between the two, about 45 km from Harstad. Since December 2018 the E6 has run over Hålogaland Bridge, which shortened the road by 18 km and saves 15 to 20 minutes towards Vesterålen, Lofoten and Tromsø. Bardu, in Troms, is the starting point of the first-time snowmobile ride, and its description suggests combining it with a visit to Polar Park. Norway's Best puts the park about an hour from Narvik.

Hurtigruten is another way to move on: its North Cape Line calls at Narvik on the southbound voyage to Oslo.

Driving in winter

A car gives you the most freedom for the fjords and the border, and several rental companies in Narvik hand over cars at Evenes airport. In Nordland, Troms and Finnmark tyres must have at least 3 mm of tread from 16 October to 30 April, and on snow or ice the car needs winter tyres or chains. Roads can close in winter, and Statens vegvesen announces closures, so check conditions before you drive the E10 towards Sweden or the E6 over Hålogaland Bridge. The road information line is 175 from a Norwegian phone and +47 815 48 991 from abroad. Many Norwegian roads have tolls that are collected without stopping, so ask the rental company how they bill them.

In the polar night the roads are dark for most of the day; the polar night page shows how little daylight there is in December.

Questions travellers ask

Do I need a car in Narvik?

Not for the town and most tours. Several aurora and fjord tours collect you in central Narvik or at your hotel, and the war museum and the station are in town. A car helps for husky sledding at Isogaisa, which has no transfer.

How do I get to the husky farm at Isogaisa?

You need your own transport. The farm is about half an hour north of Narvik, and the tours do not include a transfer. Reviewers who came without a car mention a costly taxi ride.

Can I take the train from Narvik to Kiruna?

Yes. SJ runs trains between Narvik and Kiruna every day of the year. Buy tickets online before you travel, because they are not sold at the station or on board.

Is it safe to drive around Narvik in winter?

Roads in the region can close in winter, and the road authority Statens vegvesen announces closures. From 16 October to 30 April tyres must have at least 3 mm of tread, and on snow or ice you need winter tyres or chains. Check conditions on 175, or on +47 815 48 991 from a foreign phone, before longer drives.

Can I take a bus to Tromsø or Lofoten?

Yes. Regional bus 100 runs between Narvik and Tromsø and bus 300 between Narvik and Svolvær in Lofoten, with timetables on reisnordland.no. In winter the Arctic Route bus also runs daily between Tromsø and Narvik from 1 December to 31 March.

Where these facts come from

Dates, opening hours and rules change. We checked these pages in October 2026; the official source has the final word.