tromso lapland

I agree with the other reviewer that the location of the "Sami tent" left much to be desired, being right next to the main road. We did feel that the tour was a bit formulaic and lacked authenticity. The guide could have been a bit friendlier and informative at the start as we were a bit confused as to what we were doing. The sleds were uncomfortable and a blanket or cushion would have made a world of difference. Once back at the tent, the meal of watery soup was a little disappointing considering the money we had paid for the tour. The guide's explanation of the Sami way of life and reindeer herding was quite interesting, but we were left with the feeling that the tour was not very good value for money compared to the Northern Lights Hunt and Cross Country Skiing tours we had been on.

Overall it was a nice trip, the staff was helpful, and the reindeer sledge was fun, but I really expected it to be more in the nature. The first tent they took us to was just next to the airport and that didn't really help the atmosphere in my opinion. The reindeer soup was really good though. We were really unlucky with the weather, it was very windy, so sometimes we didn't hear what the guides were saying, plus it was super cloudy, so we didn't see any northern lights. I think the groups should be a bit smaller, because when they took us to the reindeer sledging, we were separated into 2 smaller groups, because we wouldn't all fit in the sledge. So we had to wait for the first group to do the sledging, which might be fun when you can see the northern lights but not when it's super windy and you can't see anything. But I of course know that no one can do anything about the weather, still I think they could at least bring some tea with them. It was a nice trip, but not all the great considering the prise.

The sami who run this do a good job to give you a feeling of what the sami culture is a bit about. The language the speak to each other is completely different. The evening reindeer sledding tour is not so special especially when there is no Northern Light. The sleds are tight to each other with a rope and the reindeer do the pulling. You make a short tour and feel a bit pitty for the animals. But the sami make money with this and the cultural part is good. In a tent, near a warm fire, they tell you about some of their traditions (like how they marry) and serve Bidus (reindeer soup) and sing a joik (sami somg) The provided boots were not warmer than our own, so you might keep your own warm boots.

I can highly recommend Tromsoe Lapland. Only sami people are working here. I think it is the only tour operator in Tromsoe, which is run by Sami people themselves. I booked the daytime raindeer slide. It was a really fantastic experience with lovely people.

We had a great team Reindeer Sledding and learning out the Sami culture. Well organised, lovely food and very scenic drive

This was great a trip with reindeer sleds, followed by reindeer feeding, lasso lessons, and then a traditional Sami meal with lots of education about Sami, all provided by Sami people.Really very lovely guides, insisting we wrap up warm, and nothing too much for them a all. Fab.

I went Reindeer Sledding one morning with my husband and 11 year old daughter. We all enjoyed it very much! While I understand some of the comments about this being a bit touristy, we still had an amazing time. We were there on a cold but sunny morning, and the scenery was just breathtaking. The Sami guides were very nice and organized, and we did learn a bit about their lifestyle. It was certainly one of the highlights of our trip!

Super trip, reindeer ride was great fun. Rest of family liked the reindeer stew Sami culture in a tent too.

The sledding itself is nice & quiet though it is a very short drive. Best part of the trip is the overnight stay in the Sami tent! Really recommend this- beautiful view & scenery & beautiful people. We talked a lot about Sami culture around the fire and also in the morning with the traditional coffee cooked in the pot on the fire... Overall a very nice experience. Thank you!!

I did the sami experience and was a bit disappointed. While the guides were friendly and it was lovely to have a reindeer sled ride, it was sonething set up just for the tourists and was not a terribly genuine sami experience. The main tent was just off the highway nit far from the airport and felt as though you did not go far. The area for the ride was a short walk from the main road. I also found though i did the tour on the sami national day and was told it should be special. There was nothing special about it. It was barely mentioned purely because i insisted they should and they did not seem to have much knowledge of the events for the national day to at least assist you in participation. I used the tourist information office in town to get useful information.

I did the reindeer sledding, meal, and overnight camping in a laavu. The start of our trip seemed a bit disorganized, to tell you the truth, but as the experience unfolded, it was really worth it. We initially stopped at a large laavu to change into thermal suits, etc. We were then driven to the area where the reindeer sledding was going to occur, and hiked up a snowy hill to get to the actual location. The reindeer are not fully domesticated, thus any expectation of getting "cozy" with them should be dispensed (which was fine with me). Our guides were a group of 4 young Saami gentlemen, and though they weren't effusive, they were friendly and engaging. The reindeer sledding was a lot of fun. It took some time to get the reindeer and the sleds set up and they had to be adjusted at a couple of points while we were en route. After, we were able to feed the reindeer -- and of course, for food, they came right up to us and ate from our gloved hands.After finishing this phase of the activity, we walked down the same snowy hill and were taken to a laavu-shaped, very cozy wooden structure, where we ate reindeer stew, bread, and learned more about the Saami. I appreciated that our guides had a sense of pride in their heritage and wanted to share that with the group. I think that the meal is normally served in a laavu near the reindeer sledding, but that structure had been blown apart by a prior storm (and I think it's now been repaired).After the meal, everyone else returned to Tromso, but I had signed up for the overnight laavu stay. The company had previously mentioned that I could stay alone ("with the reindeer"), but that night, a storm was moving in and they felt it might be unsafe to leave me -- thus, one of the staff members (Tor) stayed with me. It was a really great experience. Let me say that it was NOT a cushy experience. To relieve myself, I had to use an outhouse that was some distance from the sleeping laavu, and to get to the outhouse, I had to trudge through snow that was up to my mid-thighs. When I got there, I found that it was stocked with toilet paper and hand sanitizer, both of which were frozen and unusable (luckily, I had similar supplies in one of my pockets).The laavu itself was small -- two wooden platforms (close to the ground) on each side, covered with a couple pieces of reindeer hide. In the center of the structure, there was a wood stove that made the space quite cozy and warm. Lighting was provided by a kerosene lamp and two candles. There were two mummy-style winter sleeping bags on each "bed" (Tor and I each used one of the sleeping bags to create head pillows). I have to say that I'm not that young, and the sleeping surface was very hard. I tucked some additional clothing from my knapsack under key areas like hip bones, and was able to make myself reasonably comfortable. Tor also informed me that he doesn't feed the fire during the night, and once the fire went out, the laavu would get quite cold. We were indeed hit by a storm, and for most of the night, the canvas (it was not made of the traditional reindeer hide) of the laavu was battered by high winds, sleet, and hail. That definitely disrupted my sleep, but certainly made for an interesting experience. The entryway of the laavu was also filled with slush seeping in from the outside.Tor got up at a certain point as morning approached and got the fire going again, so by the time I awoke, things were toasty (and I have to say that between the layers I was wearing and the winter sleeping bag, I never felt cold during the course of the night). We had a lovely breakfast of bread, cold cuts, cheese, chocolate, and a selection of coffee, tea, and hot chocolate. I had time to snap some daytime pictures before we went down the hill (by snowmobile) and back to town.Overall, this was a worthwhile and rather unique experience.

The reindeer sledding over the crisp frozen snow was the highlight of a very calm and enjoyable evening. The reindeer stew eaten by a roaring log fire in a laavo (Sami tent)was very tasty and our Sami guide led an interesting discussion outlining Sami culture and history. Excellent value.

We were given a warm friendly welcome by the Sami gentleman guide. Nice modern mini bus, we drove 10 min to a teepee to be given warm clothing to change into, there was an open log fire that was nice and warm, the guide spoke perfect English, chatted to us about the day, answered our questions and was with us all the time.We then drove 30 min to the reindeer, two Sami guides, cousins, instructed the small group of us about reindeer, life living and working with them, moving around the far north, we had a sleigh ride, the snow was deep, but no problem for the reindeer, that is how they live in the wild.We fed them and spent time with them.We returned to the teepee, had a hot broth, I enjoyed it but not for vegetarians!!We sat around the fire and the Sami guides told us about their life and traditions in the high arctic, for over an hour, as long as you wanted, we asked lots of questions, they showed us wonderful clothing, artwork and artefacts they still use.Great stories about marriage and courtships.Only go with Sami guides, do not miss this.

Nice views all over the fjords and skies.Love the sleddog rides and you can spot wales. The only minus is the temperature

Loved every minute of this. The view from the top of the hill where the reindeer sledding is, was fantastic. The Sledding was really good fun plus the clothing and boots provided were excellent. Well worth it!