Sommaroy

Sommaroy sits at the outer edge of Kvaloya where the land breaks up into small islands, and it has the combination that makes northern Norway photograph strangely: white shell-sand beaches, water that goes pale turquoise over the light bottom, and a working fishing harbour with red and white houses, all at 69 degrees north. A bridge connects it to Hillesoy, whose beaches face the open sea with the mountains of Senja across the water. The village gained international attention in 2019 over a campaign to abolish clock time during the midnight sun, which turned out to be a tourism promotion. In winter it is a standard aurora destination for tours from Tromso.

History

The original settlement was on neighbouring Hillesøya, where successive churches stood from the Middle Ages until the late 1800s, when the church was moved to Brensholmen on Kvaløya. The main centre of the village moved to Store Sommarøya around 1900 (Wikipedia, Sommarøy).

Highlights

• The white beaches - shell sand and turquoise shallows at Arctic latitude.
• The fishing harbour - a working village of red and white houses.
• The Senja view - mountains across the strait from Hillesoy.
• The midnight sun - continuous daylight from late May to late July.

When to go

June to August for the midnight sun and the beaches at their brightest; September to March for the aurora. The colour of the water needs sunshine, which is not guaranteed on this coast in any month.

Good to know

The water is around eight to ten degrees at best. Accommodation and eating options are limited and expensive. The village is small and can be walked in half an hour, and it fills with tour buses on clear winter nights.

Nearby

Brensholmen and the Senja ferry are close; Tromso lies an hour east across Kvaloya.

Key facts