Responsible whale watching in Tromsø
Every winter a fleet of tour boats heads for the same herring shoals, and the whales are there to eat, not to perform. Good operators slow down well before they arrive and leave the animals room to move. Guests can help more than they think, starting with the tour they book.
Why the rules matter in winter
The orcas and humpbacks come to the northern fjords for one reason, the herring that winter there. Orcas in Norway hunt by herding the fish into tight balls near the surface and stunning them with their tails, which takes skilled teamwork. Many of the humpbacks feed here before a long migration south. A boat that charges in can break up a hunt or push a whale into a dive it did not plan.
One boat on its own rarely does harm. The pressure comes from numbers. In December and January the day boats from Tromsø share the feeding grounds near Skjervøy with the smaller boats that start there, all within the same few hours of twilight. Which species you may see and how they feed is covered in its own guide.
What the guidelines ask of a boat
Two sets of rules come up in the listings. Visit Tromsø publishes whale-watching guidelines for local operators, and Rødne also cites the cetacean guidelines of AECO, the Association of Arctic Expedition Cruise Operators. In broad terms they ask a crew to do the following.
- Slow down well before reaching the whales and avoid sudden changes of speed or course.
- Approach from the side or from behind, never head-on.
- Never block a whale's path or box an animal in between boats.
- Back off when the animals change their behavior, for example by diving early or turning away.
- Share the area with other boats so that one group of whales is not surrounded, and limit the time each boat stays.
We do not quote distances in meters here. Ask your crew which guidelines they sail by and how close they go. A good crew is glad to explain, and the answer tells you a lot about the day ahead.
Rødne and our pick, the Helgøy Skyssbåt catamaran at ~$217, are both Eco-Lighthouse certified, a Norwegian environmental scheme for businesses. Rødne also does not allow drones on board.
Engine noise and the electric option
Sound carries far underwater, and whales use it to find each other along with their food. Brim Explorer's hybrid-electric boat at ~$196 sails out on its regular engines and switches to a silent electric motor near the whales. That is a clear plus for the animals, and guests notice the quiet too. The trade-off is size, since Brim carries over 100 guests per boat.
None of the other listings mentions electric propulsion. A RIB is small and low but runs a powerful outboard, so its effect depends on how the driver handles it near the animals. RIB or big boat compares the boat types on comfort and price.
Group size and crowding
| Tour | From | Guests | What the listing says |
|---|---|---|---|
| Our pick, Helgøy Skyssbåt | ~$217 | Max 90 on 147 seats | Eco-Lighthouse certified |
| Brim hybrid-electric | ~$196 | Over 100 | Silent electric motor near the whales |
| Rødne catamaran | ~$196 | Not stated | Visit Tromsø plus AECO guidelines; Eco-Lighthouse; no drones |
| Polar Adventures | ~$235 | Max 50 | First boat at the whales, stays 2–2.5 h |
| Skua Nature | ~$383 | Max 12 | Nature guide who is an ethologist |
| Magic Skjervoy RIB | ~$353 | Max 12 per RIB | Nothing specific |
A small group is pleasant for you, but for the whales the number of hulls nearby counts more than the number of people on each. Ten RIBs around one pod can be worse than a single large catamaran sitting quietly at a distance. Polar Adventures at ~$235 says it is the first boat at the whales and stays two to two and a half hours. If that matters to you, ask how they share the area when other boats arrive.
Small boats have their own advantage. On Skua Nature at ~$383, a group of 12 travels with a nature guide who is an ethologist, someone trained to read animal behavior. A guide like that tends to notice when a whale is tiring of company, and to say so. On any boat, the crew that explains what the whales are doing is usually the crew that respects it.
A crew that names its rules
Rødne's high-speed catamaran from ~$196 follows the Visit Tromsø and AECO guidelines, gives a whale presentation on the way out and keeps drones off the boat.
The orca snorkeling debate
In recent winters some operators in northern Norway have offered snorkeling trips among feeding orcas. Supporters describe it as a rare encounter that builds care for the animals. Critics include scientists who study the whales. They worry about disturbing the hunts, and also about the safety of swimmers in cold, dark water close to large predators. The rules around it have been discussed in Norway and may change.
None of the tours on this site offers snorkeling. If you are thinking about it elsewhere, ask how the operator limits time in the water and how many groups enter at once. Our view is cautious. Watching from a boat that keeps its distance is the gentler choice.
What you can do from the deck
- Book an operator that names its guidelines, then ask about them on board.
- Do not ask the captain to go closer. Whales sometimes approach a quiet boat on their own.
- Keep voices down when the engines go quiet, which also helps everyone hear the blows.
- Leave the drone in the hotel. Rødne bans them, and flying one over whales is a bad idea on any boat.
- Bring a longer lens instead of wishing for proximity. Our photography guide covers lenses and deck manners.
- Take your trash home. Nothing goes over the side.
- Accept a slow day. A crew that keeps its distance when the whales are skittish is doing its job. If you see no whales, most tours give you a second try.
The whales have moved before, following the fish. Why the boats now sail to Skjervøy explains where they have gone and why.