Norway, Senja Island – Arctic Winter Landscapes & Aurora | Wild Photography Holidays - Photography & Adventure Travel

Norway, Senja Island – Arctic Winter Landscapes & Aurora

Highlights include…

• Dramatic Arctic landscapes
• Tungeneset & “The Devil’s Jaw”
• Segla mountain viewpoint
• Aurora in superb locations
• Scenic shipwreck on remote shore
• Colourful and abandoned houses
• Bergsbotn panoramic viewpoint
• Fjords and fishing villages
• Mefjordvær village 5 nights
• Ferry to & from Senja
• Tromsø “The Paris of the North”
• Delicious local food
• Single occupancy included in price

Introduction

Wild Photography Holidays are excited to introduce this magical eight-day winter-landscape holiday based on the Island of Senja high above Norway’s Arctic Circle. The high latitude gives us an extended blue hour when we can experience the enchanting spell between sunset and true darkness which can stretch to three hours at this time of year. The light in general can be good all day. The night skies are free of light pollution and are one of the best places on Earth to capture the Northern Lights. Senja Island boasts a remarkable array of snow-clad jagged peaks, traditional fishing villages, glass-like fjords, white sand beaches and turquoise seas far away from the crowds.
Our Senja hotel in the small village of Mefjordvær is comfortable, beautifully located overlooking the fjord and central to all our locations. On Days one and seven we will stay in the lovely vibrant city of Tromsø known as “The Paris of the North”. The city is well served by a wide selection of airlines including direct flights from Manchester, Luton and Gatwick. This winter landscape photographic holiday is suitable for all levels of photographer from beginner through to experienced amateur and professional. The landscape in Senja is also suited to photographers who use an up to date mobile phone (iPhone or Android). This is a very fine opportunity to experience the very best that Arctic Norway can offer those who love photographing and experiencing winter landscapes.

The Learning Experience

Photographically participants will be able to learn/practice/refine…

Low light: exploring techniques for photographing the night sky, including the Aurora.
Bracketing multiple exposures: capturing multiple exposures for high dynamic range (HDR) scenes, ensuring no details are lost in highlights or shadows.
Post-processing: considering various editing styles and techniques.
Long exposures: learning how to create dramatic and interesting photographs using long exposure techniques.
Creative composition: exploring how we can compose creative and striking winter landscapes.

Tutors & Guides

The 2026 departure will be led by Andy Teasdale and Jethro Kiernan.

Daily Itinerary

Day 1: Arrive Tromsø

Arrive and check in to our well located city hotel. Taxis are available at the airport and take around 15 mins to our hotel. Tromsø is a lovely city to explore and participants may wish to arrive a day early or to stay on for an extra days exploration. Please ask when booking if you wish us to book any extra nights. We will meet as a group on the first night at around 19:00 for a first meeting as a group for introductions, a tour briefing followed by dinner in the city.
Tromsø city hotel (D)

Day 2: To Senja

After breakfast we will drive for an hour to the ferry point at Brensholmen. The thirty five minute sailing to Botnhamn on Senja cuts out a drive of around four hours. Once on the island we are right in the midst of all the areas that we are likely to visit during our 6 day stay. From the moment we arrive on Senja we will take the opportunity to start exploring photographically. We will be based in the small fishing village of Mefjordvær.
Senja hotel (B,L,D)

Days 2–7: Exploring Senja Locations

Our itinerary will wholly be based on the weather, the light and other prevailing conditions. Our guides will be constantly checking and making informed decisions on the days most appropriate photographic locations to visit including the aurora. The winter landscapes to be found on Senja are world class. The list below will give you a good idea of the places we are likely to visit but in no particular order.

Tungeneset & “The Devil’s Jaw”

This is perhaps one of the most well known locations on Senja. Tungeneset’s jagged teeth and snowy mountains form an impressive ridge that juts out into the sea giving us a remarkable backdrop for an array of different locations that include snow clad rocks, still reflective pools, isolated beaches and the wild Norwegian sea, a great opportunity for some long exposures. Tungeneset is especially interesting at sunset when the low sun shines directly onto the spiky ridge of the ‘jaws’ giving rise to interesting cloud formations. This is also a dramatic location for the aurora.

Segla

Segla is perhaps the most well known mountain in North Senja. We will see the Segla ridge from our hotel and indeed we may well photograph the aurora over this ridge. This iconic viewpoint is not easily accessible and indeed many photographic tours will not be able to offer an opportunity for participants to visit the classic viewpoint. Conditions permitting we will offer an afternoon snowshoe outing to catch the sunset on Segla and the surrounding mountains during our stay. The snowy walk is uphill (580 m ascent). This should take around 2 hours up and around one hour back down again. If the weather/snow is good and the wind not too strong we would probably spend around 45 minutes to one hour at the view point. Participants who feel that they would not be able to manage this ascent will be taken to alternative locations by our second guide.

Aurora Locations

We have many aurora locations depending on the prevailing conditions. These include seascapes close to our hotel including over the Segla/Hesten Ridge, Tungeneset from two different locations and from the Bergsbotn Viewpoint.

Fjordgård Village

Located at the start of the Segla trail Fjordgård is a pretty fishing village set amidst spectacular fjord and mountain scenery. Particularly striking is the Keipen ridge which seemingly rises directly from the fjord like a steep sided island. There are some interesting old houses here and fishing boats are always coming and going.

Mefjordvær Hill Viewpoint

Close to our hotel is a small hill that takes around 20 minutes to ascend for 360 deg panoramic views. over the whole area.

Bøvær

Here we find a remarkable white sand beach, turquoise sea and Marram Grass dunes reminiscent of Harris in the Scottish Hebrides. A couple of attractive abandoned fishing huts are especially interesting to photograph and the drive alongside the fjord has a lovely feel of times gone by.

Bergsbotn Viewpoint

Here we will find a 44-meter long man-made platform and viewpoint located on the northwestern edge of the Senja island. It is surrounded by the Bergsbotn mountain range, the Bergsfjord, and surrounding mountains. The panoramic view from Bergsbotn viewpoint at sunrise is especially lovely.

Abandoned Houses

There are many interesting and photographically rich abandoned houses on the island. Some of these buildings are very often in incredibly wild locations and others pop up right in the middle of various fishing villages. Often of weathered wooden construction with fading paintwork and lots of rust, they are fascinating photographic subjects.

Day 7: Senja and Tromsø

Today we will spend the whole day visiting photographic locations on Senja before taking the early evening ferry from Botnhamn to Brensholmen. Last time we did this journey we were treated to a wonderful aurora display. We will arrive back in Tromsø in time to check in to our hotel before going out for our final meal together in the city of Tromsø.
Tromsø city hotel (B,L,D)

Day 8: Homeward Flights

Breakfast is included and the hotel reception will be able to help participants to organise a taxi to Tromsø airport for homeward flights.
(B)

What’s Included

• 2 nights city hotel Tromsø
• 5 nights single base hotel Mefjordvær
• No extra charge for single occupancy room
• All meals in Mefjordvær & Tromsø
• Ferry to/from Senja
• Snowshoe hire for Segla

What’s not Included

• International flights
• Travel insurance
• Soft drinks, alcoholic drinks
• Snacks in between meals
• Transfers Tromsø Airport to/from city hotel
• Anything not mentioned as included

Accommodation and Food

Our accommodation in Tromsø will be at a good standard central city hotel close to all the interesting places. You will have private rooms with attached bathrooms. We will have breakfast at the hotel on the 2nd and final day. We will have dinner together at a Tromsø city hotel on the first and final evening of the tour.
On the island of Senja we stay in the village of Mefjordvær. The hotel is scenically located overlooking the fjord and mountains, you will have private rooms with attached bathrooms. There will be no extra charge for single occupancy. The hotel’s spacious and traditional central restaurant and bar is where we take breakfast & dinner. The hotel will prepare packed lunches each day so we can have photographic flexibility. We may call at local cafes for hot drinks/cakes although this will be at your own expense. If you bring a small thermos flask you will be able to fill this with the beverage of your choice to take out with you. Hot drinks such as tea and coffee are freely available in the restaurant area. The food is locally sourced and a good standard, often fish but also meat with vegan and vegetarian options. There is a comfortable spacious house adjacent to the hotel where the guides are accommodated, we meet here for image reviews, tutorials and presentations. Please let us know when you book of any special dietary requirements.

A full information PDF is currently being worked on and will be available shortly.