Lofoten with roof tents – guide with practical advice and inspiration
Discovering the Lofoten islands with roof tents is amazing. Outstanding nature, plenty of beautiful campsites, and scenic roads that take your breath away wherever you look. Before you set off with your roof tent to Lofoten, it's good to be aware of a few things. You'll get that with the help of this guide, plus lots of inspiration from our own trip!
Curious about which roof tents are featured in this report? The green one is our roof tent Åreskutan three-person and the orange one is an Åreskutan two-person.
Lofoten is a group of islands in Northern Norway that are world-famous for dramatic landscapes, picturesque fishing villages, and outstanding opportunities for outdoor activities such as hiking, fishing, paddling, climbing, and skiing.
Getting to Lofoten often involves a long journey, but once you are there it is extremely accessible with short distances.
If you don't have the opportunity to hike, you can get (almost) equally wonderful nature experiences by driving around the islands.
Lofoten is repeatedly named one of the world's most beautiful destinations in travel magazines and on social media. This naturally means you won't be alone, especially if you travel during holiday seasons.
When is the best time to visit Lofoten?
The best time to visit Lofoten depends on your interests and what you want to experience during your trip. Each season has advantages and disadvantages. But one thing is certain, if you don't want crowds, avoid the weeks between mid-June and mid-August.
Summer is the most popular season to visit Lofoten due to warmer weather, holiday times, and the midnight sun.
High season means more tourists and higher prices for accommodation and activities. Popular attractions can become crowded and campsites may be full.
We (Elisabeth, founder of Roof Tenters, Björn Falkevik, photographer, and Emma Almroth, sustainability advisor) traveled with roof tents to Lofoten the week before Midsummer 2023. The roof tents we brought were an Åreskutan 2.0 two-person and a three-person; practical with a pickup where you can fit two :).
Although there were some people, the feeling was that we just managed to be there before the biggest crowd arrived. For example, we had not pre-booked any campsites but had no problem finding a spot.
If you visit Lofoten in winter, you can instead enjoy the calm, northern lights, and fantastic off-piste skiing. My dream is still to go back in autumn when the leaves change color. The downside of autumn is shorter days and more rain than in summer.
Don't forget to bring this in your packing when roof tenting in Lofoten
Rain gear. We were lucky to have good weather throughout our trip but the fact is it rains a lot in Lofoten and the weather changes quickly.
Warm clothes. If you're lucky you won't need them, but you probably will.
Extra blanket, base layer, and hat: at night the temperature can drop significantly, make sure to bring base layers and a hat to sleep in. And an extra blanket if you have a thin duvet/sleeping bag in your roof tent.
Food. Buy what you want to bring in terms of breakfast, dinners, and snacks before you cross the Norwegian border. Bring a grill/camping stove and cook your own food. Overall, restaurant food in Norway is both expensive and not particularly tasty. However, there are many good restaurants in Lofoten and of course you should treat yourself, but maybe not every day unless your budget is unlimited.
Our dinner favorite: Buy a good Norwegian goat cheese, boil some tortellini and sprinkle with parsley. Or if you fish – bring your rod and catch dinner directly from the sea.
Alcohol. Even more expensive than food! If you want to enjoy a beer at sunset by your roof tent without going broke at Vinmonopolet, we strongly recommend a visit to Systembolaget before crossing the border.
Getting to Lofoten with roof tents
You can get to Lofoten either by ferry from Bodø or by land through Sweden to Kiruna and onwards to Narvik.
It is also possible to take the ferry from Skutvik (to Svolvær) or Bognes (to Lødingen). Check the timetables for the last two as some trips only run during summer.
For us living in central Sweden (in Åre) it took just over 12 hours to drive to Bodø, if you live further south you should count on two days up and two days down.
If you choose to drive all the way to Lofoten, you go up to Kiruna and past beautiful Abisko, Torneträsk, and Riksgränsen. But be aware that these are basically the only highlights on that route.
We chose to enter Norway directly from Åre and up to Bodø to take the ferry. Advantage: more beautiful road (the photo below was taken near Bodø). Disadvantages: Norway's low speed limits.
If you take the ferry from Bodø you will arrive at Moskenes at the southern tip of Lofoten, if you take the road you will first reach the northern parts.
Generally, people tend to think it is most beautiful the further south you go – but honestly, we want to emphasize that it is beautiful EVERYWHERE.
Do you have to book the ferry to Lofoten?
It varies depending on which ferry line you choose and the time of year you plan your trip. If you travel during high season, it can be a good idea to book well in advance as they tend to fill up quickly.
But! Our friend who runs the hostel Furu in Lofoten told us that the ferries always keep 40% of the spots unbooked, so one option is to be there well in advance (a few hours) before the ferry departure, then there is a good chance you will get on.
When we crossed from Bodø we chose to take the night ferry (had not pre-booked). A big advantage of that was that we arrived in Lofoten early in the morning and had a whole day ahead of us.
There are several ferry lines going to and from Lofoten and ferries connecting the islands within Lofoten.
Camping rules in Lofoten
Norway, like Sweden, has the right to roam and it is okay to camp with a regular tent and wild camp with a car as long as there is no camping ban and you keep at least 150 meters from the nearest residence.
The areas where camping is not allowed are relatively few, here you can see a map with various restrictions marked. Good to know before your visit to Lofoten!
Always respect the rules, take care of your trash, and always leave the place as it was (or even better) than before you arrived.
This is how the Lofoten tourist organization summarizes it:
Our roof tent spots in Lofoten
When you go to Lofoten with roof tents, it is good to be aware that it will most likely be difficult to find roof tent spots where you are completely alone. But of course, it is possible!
And if nothing else, there are plenty of nice campsites and parking bays along the roads.
Whether you plan to stay at a campsite or find a parking bay/stopover, it is good not to be too late. During high season, it can get full.
At the campsites we stayed at, cars with roof tents were counted as “campervans” which in price range was between a regular tent and a motorhome. We paid 300-400 SEK/night.
Our favorite campsite during the trip was Lofoten Beach Camping. It is close to both Kvalvika Beach, Ryten, and Reinebringen which we strongly recommend you visit/hike to.
The campsite, as the name suggests, focuses on surfing and holds regular surf lessons. It is located right next to a long sandy beach with beautiful mountains in the background.
We got a spot very close to the beach where there was also a fire pit. The campsite also has nice newly built facilities and a restaurant with good beer and a large outdoor area.
Of course, we brought our portable sauna tent and took the opportunity to carry it down to the beach for a magical sauna experience!
One of our best roof tent spots we found at Unstad Beach. Here there are stopover spots near the service house but also 3-4 right next to the shoreline. When we arrived it felt a bit like we had landed in paradise.
The steps unfolded right where the beach began, it was sunny and windless, behind us was Unstad's beautiful valley with meadows full of buttercups, surrounded by beautiful mountains.
There was also a fire pit at our spot, so luxurious. The downside – no toilets (unless you want to walk to the service house about a kilometer away).
Before you get to Unstad beach there are also a couple of incredibly nice wild camping opportunities. One is a small parking bay high up with an incredible view (photo below).
If you continue the road a little further you come to another spot where you have a view over Unstad Beach and the valley. There were several campervans parked there when we went up to check so we took the parking bay!
Our best experiences in Lofoten
We roof tented for five days in Lofoten, which was a bit short. We strongly recommend that you who want to go there and roof tent have at least that, preferably more. There is simply so much to see and do, we wish we had more time.
And since it takes a long time to get there by car (for us living in Åre one day up and one day down) you want to have time when you are actually there.
During these days we managed three hikes: Reinebringen (photo above), Kvalvika beach-Ryten, and Festvågtind. Hiking in Lofoten is STEEP but you rarely need to walk very far to reach breathtaking views.
Reinebringen is for example just over a kilometer hike but demanding as there are many elevation meters. However, the hike now consists mostly of stable stairs up (built by Sherpas from Nepal!) so in a way it is easier.
Festvågtind was just as steep but without stairs! Instead more of a scramble, loose stones, and gravel. For the one in our group who is afraid of heights, this was a real challenge.
Halfway up we were rewarded with a beautiful mountain lake where we of course took a swim. At the top, the view was (of course) incredible, the visibility was clear and we could see miles and miles of Lofoten's mountain peaks plus the little cute village Henningsvær far below us.
The hike to Kvalvika was the easiest, not steep and not very long. We made lunch on the beach and then chose to continue up Ryten, one of the peaks next to the beach. Quite a climb but not as steep as the two previous ones.
Continued incredible views and when we reached the top we were completely alone (this was around 6 in the evening).
We visited the cute villages Reine, Henningsvær, and Svolvær as well as the Lofotr Viking Museum. The latter is a must-visit for anyone even slightly interested in history.
Here they have built a replica of a large chieftain's house (the largest found in Norway) which was built on that exact spot around the year 500. There is also a museum with finds from the archaeological excavation. Incredibly exciting!
We also want to recommend the restaurant/club Traevarefabriken in Henningsvær. They host concerts, music clubs, and more.
We went there to listen to a surf band that was supposed to play – but unfortunately it was canceled when we arrived. But just the venue and the good pizzas made it well worth a visit anyway.
On the last day we went on a whale safari in Andenes and saw both sperm whales and orcas, so IMPRESSIVE, a memory for life. Before the boat trip, we also had a guided tour of the museum in the main building.
Andenes is located north of Lofoten, it took us about three hours to drive there. Here there are both significantly fewer people and mountains than in Lofoten.
Map with roof tent spots, hikes, and activities in Lofoten
Are you tempted to roof tent at some of the places we found? Or maybe you want to do one of the hikes we did.
Here you will find a map with all our spots marked (plus some we got tips about but didn't have time to visit ourselves). Enjoy!
