Travelling to/from Tromsø
The nearest train stations are Narvik in Norway (~230 km away) and Rovaniemi in Finland (~600 km away). Trains to Narvik (including the night train from Stockholm) can be booked through SJ, and to Rovaniemi through VR. Onward travel by bus to Tromsø can be booked via Svipper and Matkahuolto, respectively.
Tromsø is also served by the coastal ferry, Hurtigruten, which begins its route in Bergen. Travelling from Bergen-Tromsø will take ~4 days.
image: SJ Norge
For those wishing to fly, Tromsø is well-connected internationally, served by many direct routes from across Europe. Check the Avinor website for further details on flight operators.
map: flightconnections.com
Visa and health information
For information on applying for a visitor visa please check the Norwegian government website UDI. For health information please check Foreigners in Norway – Helsenorge.
Accommodation
The BioPolFor workshop booked accommodation for the confirmed conference attendees at Tromsø Lodge & Camping. All attendees (including lecturers) of the conference will stay in shared cabins, with breakfast and diner included.
Traveling with public transport between the workshop (busstop: Gjennomgangsbygget) and the Tromsø Lodge & Camping (busstop: Båthavna) can be done both ways with bus 24. Bus 20 that also departs from Båthavna is also a good option to reach the workshop on-site, however you have to get out at busstop Templarheimen and walk 5 minutes. When taking bus 20, you could also decide to get off at Skippergata and continue your journey with bus 34 to UiT/Planetariet. It is advised to optimally make use of the flexible bus options with the help of the Svipper app.
Information on buying tickets and deals for the regular Svipper busses in Tromsø are described in the next section.
Transport from/to Tromsø airport
Tromsø airport is located on the island of Tromsøya, only a few kilometres away from the conference venue and the city centre.
The airport express coach (flybussen) runs between the airport, UiT, and Tromsø city centre, with a return ticket costing 200 NOK. It takes approximately 10-15 minutes to the city centre. Check the Bussring website for more info about prices and timetables.
Possibly more convenient are the city bus routes 24, 40 and 42 that run between the airport and Tromsø city centre as well. Tickets can be purchased from ticket machines at the airport bus stop, or in the Svipper app at a lower cost than the flybussen option. Note: tickets cannot be bought onboard city buses.
Journey times are slightly longer at ~20 minutes,
A single ticket costs NOK 50 during rush hours. Outside rush hour (weekdays 09:00-14:00 and 17:00-01:00) the cost is reduced to NOK 30. A 24-hour bus pass costs NOK 140, while a 7-day bus pass costs NOK 327.
There is also a taxi rank outside the airport terminal and several taxi ranks in downtown Tromsø. The taxi fare from the airport to the city centre during the daytime on weekdays is approximately 280 NOK. A higher fare applies on weekends and in the evening/at night. Taxis can also be pre-booked using the app Taxifix, or by ringing Tromsø Taxi (+47 03011) or Din Taxi (+47 02045).
Venue
The venue for the conference is part of the facilities of the Geosciences Department at UiT. The entire program will be held at this venue.
Rooms within the venue can be easily located with the help of Mazemap
Finding your way on foot to and from the different bus stops is illustrated below:
Bus stop 24 and 34 is <5 minutes walking, for bus stop 20, this is ~7 minutes.
Weather
While the snow in the city will have melted away by June, temperatures could still feel spring-like. The time of the year is also a relatively dry month, though being on the Norwegian coast means rain showers are likely.
Forecasts and further climate information can be found via Yr.
Local BioPolFor Organizer: Inés Barrenechea Angeles, UiT The Arctic University of Norway (ines.a.angeles@uit.no)
BioPolFor support: Joost van Genuchten, UiT The Arctic University of Norway (joost.m.genuchten@uit.no)