The tours all sound alike online. The real difference is one question: how much of your visit do you want to spend on a sled?
The short answer
Choose a sledding tour if you want the classic first visit and know the ride is short: a bookable slot of 10 or 25–30 minutes on the flagship tour, up to 30 minutes on the Tromsø Lapland evening tour, snow permitting. Choose a feeding tour if the animals are the point: you spend the most unhurried time with the herd, join the Sami programme and have lunch, and you pay less. The camp, the free-roaming herd and the Sami hosts are much the same on both, and in the evening the same split applies, with dinner and a chance of northern lights.
Pick a day, or the first and last day you are in Tromsø. We check the booking calendar of each reindeer tour shown here and list the ones with places left, day and evening departures alike.
Sled ride: Sled ride or feeding, your choice
No sled ride
No sled ride
No sled ride
No sled ride
Sled ride: 10 or 25–30 min, chosen at booking
Sled ride: 15–20 min, per the operator
Sled ride: Up to 30 min, snow permitting
No sled ride
No sled ride
No sled ride
Sled ride: Short ride, length not stated
Every reindeer tour from Tromsø takes you to a Sami camp, puts you close to a free-roaming herd, and is hosted by people from the culture that has herded reindeer here for centuries. That part is the same on every tour, and it is what reviewers praise most: the herd wandering freely around the camp, the fire in the lavvu, hearing about Sami life first-hand.
What varies is the sled. Some tours have no ride at all, some a short bookable slot of 10 or 25–30 minutes, one runs up to 30 minutes, and the evening tours add dinner and a chance of northern lights. The gap between the cheapest and the priciest camp visit near town is wide enough to matter, so it pays to know which one you actually want before you start comparing tours.
Each tour below is the clearest choice for one wish. All tours on this page follow further down.
You choose a 10 or a 25–30 minute ride when you book. After the ride you feed the herd of around 300 reindeer and eat a warm lunch in a lavvu while the guide tells stories and sings joik.
No sled ride. The day is built around the herd and the Sami hosts: you feed the reindeer by hand, eat a meal cooked over the fire and listen to stories and joik by the campfire.
Feeding and a sled ride after dark, then a three-course dinner with bidos in a candlelit gamme. The listing names vegetarian, vegan, gluten-free and dairy-free options. The northern lights are a chance, not a promise.
No meal is included. You choose sled ride or feeding when you book, then listen to Sami hosts for about 30 minutes in a lavvu. A photographer takes pictures of you with the reindeer.
Every option side by side, with the same facts for each. Open a card for the full tour details.
The cheapest and shortest way in: choose sled ride or feeding at booking, plus about 30 minutes of Sami storytelling. Camp is about an hour’s drive from town.
The cheapest and shortest way into a reindeer camp from Tromsø: a 3.5-hour visit to the Reindeer Experience Tromsø camp, around an hour’s drive from the centre. You choose at booking between a sled ride and feeding the herd, and every visit includes about 30 minutes of Sami storytelling around the fire. The trade-off is a shorter programme without lunch or dinner.
Samuel Arnesens gate 5, Tromsø. The camp is around an hour’s drive from the centre.
Content taken from the operator's product page on the booking platform.
Feed the free-roaming herd, join the Sami cultural programme, have lunch at camp. No sled ride, so no queueing for one. 4.5 h incl. transfer.
The feeding-focused daytime visit at the Tromsø Lapland camp, 4.5 hours including transfer: you feed the free-roaming herd, join the Sami cultural programme and have lunch at camp. There is no sled ride on this tour, which makes it one of the calmer ways to spend time close to the animals.
Radisson Blu Hotel, Sjøgata 7, Tromsø. Transfer to the camp included.
Content taken from the operator's product page on the booking platform.
The 4-hour daytime camp visit centred on the cultural programme, with feeding and lunch. No sled ride on this tour.
A 4-hour daytime visit to the Tromsø Arctic Reindeer camp built around the cultural side: feeding the herd, a Sami cultural programme and lunch at camp. There is no sled ride on this tour; feeding is the animal contact. If the ride matters to you, pick a sledding tour instead.
Content taken from the operator's product page on the booking platform.
A Sami family hosts the visit: feeding the herd, a try with the lasso, snacks and coffee by the fire in a warm hut. No sled ride, children from 6, about 30 minutes by bus.
A Sami family welcomes the group at its reindeer farm in Lavangsdalen, about 30 minutes from Tromsø by bus. You feed the herd and, if time allows, try throwing a lasso over an antler the way herders do. In a warm hut the hosts serve snacks with coffee or tea and talk about Sami history and culture. Handmade Sami crafts are for sale on site. Groups are small, and the listing states plainly that there is no sled ride.
Magic Ice Bar, Kaigata 4, Tromsø. About 30 minutes by bus to Lavangsdalen.
Content taken from the operator's product page on the booking platform.
The autumn version of the daytime visit, before the snow season: feeding, Sami stories and a warm meal in the lavvu. About 45 minutes by bus each way from the Radisson Blu.
The autumn version of the Tromsø Lapland day visit, run before the snow season. After a safety briefing you spend about an hour and a half with the herd, eat a warm meal in the lavvu and get another half hour at camp. The meal is bidos, the traditional reindeer stew, or a vegetarian and gluten-free alternative. Without snow the ground can be muddy: October reviewers mention rain and mud and advise sturdy shoes.
Radisson Blu Hotel, Sjøgata 7, Tromsø. Pickup and return from this meeting point only.
Content taken from the operator's product page on the booking platform.
The flagship: sled ride (bookable as a 10- or 25–30-minute slot) plus feeding a herd of around 300, guided by Sami hosts. The most-reviewed reindeer tour from Tromsø.
The most-booked reindeer experience from Tromsø: a 4-hour visit to the Tromsø Arctic Reindeer camp that combines a reindeer sled ride with feeding the herd of around 300 free-roaming animals, guided by Sami hosts. It is the most-reviewed reindeer product in this category and the reference point the others are measured against.
The sled ride is booked as a slot of either 10 or 25–30 minutes. It is short by design, one part of a multi-hour camp visit. Pick your ride length deliberately when you book; most reviews that mention disappointment are about expecting a long ride.
Bus Terminal Tromsø (Prostneset). Transfer to the camp included.
Content taken from the operator's product page on the booking platform.
Sled ride and a three-course bidos dinner at camp after dark, with auroras possible overhead on clear nights in season.
The evening version of the sledding visit at Tromsø Arctic Reindeer: sled ride and a three-course dinner around bidos, the traditional Sami reindeer stew, timed so that the northern lights can appear over the camp on clear nights within the season. The lights are weather luck, not a promise: no operator can guarantee a sighting, and this site won't either.
Content taken from the operator's product page on the booking platform.
The evening tour with the longest ride: up to 30 minutes, snow permitting (partial refund if the ride cannot run). Note the 100 kg rider weight limit.
Tromsø Lapland's evening tour: a sled ride of up to 30 minutes (depending on snow conditions), plus dinner at camp and the chance of northern lights overhead. If the ride cannot run for lack of snow, the operator refunds that part of the tour. As with every aurora tour, the lights depend on solar activity and clear skies, not on the ticket you buy.
Content taken from the operator's product page on the booking platform.
The evening without a sled: feed the herd, share a Sami dinner and join a guided northern lights watch at camp. It is the cheapest of the evening tours.
The evening tour without a sled ride: you feed the herd at the Tromsø Lapland Sami camp, share a Sami dinner, and join a guided northern lights watch from the camp. It is the feeding-and-dinner counterpart to the two sledding evening tours, and the cheapest way into an evening at a reindeer camp. As with every aurora tour, sightings depend on solar activity and clear skies, and no operator can guarantee one.
Content taken from the operator's product page on the booking platform.
The Tromsø Arctic Reindeer evening without a sled: feeding the herd, a three-course dinner around bidos in the gamme, stories about herding life and a joik. Back in town around 22:30.
The evening at Tromsø Arctic Reindeer without a sled ride. After 30 to 35 minutes on the bus you feed the herd and walk through the camp, warm up with hot drinks by the fire in a candle-lit lavvu, and step outside to watch for northern lights. Dinner is served in the gamme: smoked salmon salad, bidos with Sami bread, and chocolate cake with blueberries. Stories about herding life and a joik close the evening. The listing gives the season as 1 November to early April.
Bus Terminal Tromsø (Prostneset), pickup at 17:40. Back in the centre around 22:30.
Content taken from the operator's product page on the booking platform.
The autumn evening: feeding the herd as daylight fades, bidos in the lavvu and snowsuits on loan. The staff switch off the camp lights if an aurora shows, which is a chance, not a promise.
The autumn evening at the Tromsø Lapland camp, before the polar night begins. You arrive as daylight turns to dark, feed the herd and eat bidos in the lavvu while the hosts talk about Sami life. Overshoes and snowsuits are lent out, and the staff switch off the camp lights if an aurora appears. Sightings are possible on clear nights, not guaranteed.
Radisson Blu Hotel, Sjøgata 7, Tromsø. Pickup and return from this meeting point only.
Content taken from the operator's product page on the booking platform.
The 7-hour trip to the Tamok valley, with about 1.5 h by bus each way and a short sled ride. Only 5–6 reindeer live at this camp.
The full-day option away from Tromsø: a 7-hour trip to Camp Tamok in the Tamok valley. Destination Tromsø operates the trip. That means about 1.5 hours by bus each way and roughly 4 hours at the mountain camp. The sled ride is short, and this camp keeps only five or six reindeer. It is a mountain-camp day with reindeer as one part of it, not a large-herd visit like the camps closer to town. Book it for the valley scenery and the full-day format, not for herd size.
Content taken from the operator's product page on the booking platform.
| Feeding only | Sledding (day) | Evening + dinner | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sled ride | None, and that is the point | Short by design: a bookable slot of 10 or 25–30 min on the flagship tour | Your choice: the sledding evenings include a ride (up to 30 min, snow permitting), the feeding evening skips the sled for feeding + dinner |
| Time with the herd | The most, since feeding is the programme | Feeding included around the ride | Feeding in the dark, by camp light |
| Food | Lunch at camp (on the Sami-culture tours) | Varies by tour (see the product page) | Dinner at camp, traditional and simple |
| Northern lights | No (daytime tour) | No (daytime tour) | Possible on clear nights, not guaranteed |
| Where it sits on price | At the lower end; leaving out the ride is the main saving | From the short budget visit up to the 4-hour flagship tour | At the top end, dinner included. The feeding evening costs less than the sledding evenings |
| Best for | Animal time, photos, families on a budget | First-timers who want the classic experience | Aurora hopefuls, one-evening-does-it-all travellers |
Price ranges are rough; the tour cards above and the table below carry the current rate. Ride lengths vary by tour; the exact figure is on each product page. One tour is missing from this table: the full-day Camp Tamok trip, which is its own format and the most expensive tour in our comparison: 7 hours, 3 of them on the bus, and a camp that keeps only 5–6 reindeer.
The most common critical review across all sledding tours says some version of the same thing: the ride felt like “a pony ride”. On the flagship tour the ride is a slot you book at 10 or 25–30 minutes; even the longest ride in this comparison (up to 30 minutes on the Tromsø Lapland evening tour) depends on snow conditions. The ride is one chapter of a multi-hour camp visit, not the main event. If ride length matters to you, book the 25–30-minute slot or the up-to-30-minute evening tour, and confirm the details on the product page.
Two more themes come up in the 3-star reviews. The first is value for families: most tours have no meaningful family discount, so the per-person price simply multiplies and a family of four pays four times over for one afternoon. The feeding-only tours and the 3.5-hour budget visit soften that considerably. The second is the food. Camp meals are traditional and warming, not restaurant cooking; reviewers who expected a dinner-show evening were disappointed, and those who expected a campfire meal in a lavvu were happy.
The same reviews rate the Sami hosts, the free-roaming herd and the campfire storytelling as the highlight, and those are the parts every variant shares.
Feeding-only suits you if the animals are the point. You get the most unhurried time with the herd, the cultural programme and lunch, at the lower end of the price range, and you skip the one part of the day that draws the most criticism.
A sledding tour suits a first reindeer visit where you want the classic version. Go in knowing the ride is short and it will not disappoint: the flagship sledding + feeding tour holds its rating (currently 4.7★ from 6,868 reviews) because most visitors know what they booked.
An evening tour makes sense if you are chasing the northern lights anyway. Dinner and an aurora chance in one outing is efficient, and since September 2026 the evening splits the same way as the daytime: the sledding evenings include a ride, and the cheapest evening skips the sled in favour of feeding, a Sami dinner and a guided northern lights watch. Treat the lights as a bonus, not a promise. On a cloudy night you still had an evening at a Sami camp with dinner; if that alone would not feel worth it, book a daytime tour and a separate aurora chase instead.
If the budget is tight, the 3.5-hour entry tour lets you choose either the sled ride or the feeding when you book.
Sorted by review count, most-reviewed first. Tap a column header to re-sort.
| Photo | Tour | What's in it | Rating ↕ | Price ↕ | Book |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
|
Sledding + feeding with Sami guide | Sled ride (10- or 25–30-min slot), feeding, Sami-guided visit · 4 h | ★ 4.7 (6,868) | €181 per person | Book now |
|
|
Camp + Sami culture, lunch | Feeding, cultural programme, lunch (no sledding) · 4 h | ★ 4.7 (3,816) | €162 per person | Book now |
|
|
Sledding or feeding, 3.5-h budget entry | Sled ride OR feeding (your choice), 30 min Sami storytelling · 3.5 h | ★ 4.8 (2,943) | €100 per person | Book now |
|
|
Evening: sledding + dinner + aurora | Sled ride, 3-course bidos dinner, northern lights chance · 4.5 h | ★ 4.6 (2,809) | €201 per person | Book now |
|
|
Feeding + Sami culture, lunch | Feeding, cultural programme, lunch (no sledding) · 4.5 h | ★ 4.7 (2,400) | €163 per person | Book now |
|
|
Evening: feeding + Sami dinner + aurora | Feeding, Sami dinner, guided northern lights watch (no sledding) · 4.5 h | ★ 4.5 (1,559) | €163 per person | Book now |
|
|
Evening: sledding + aurora + dinner | Sled ride (up to 30 min), dinner, northern lights chance · 4.5 h | ★ 4.5 (1,018) | €211 per person | Book now |
|
|
Evening: feeding + 3-course dinner + aurora | Feeding, 3-course bidos dinner, joik, northern lights chance (no sledding) · 4.5 h | ★ 4.7 (942) | €187 per person | Book now |
|
|
Sami family farm, Lavangsdalen | Feeding, lasso try, snacks in a warm hut (no sledding) · 3.5 h | ★ 4.9 (261) | €191 per person | Book now |
|
|
Camp Tamok day trip | Full-day valley trip, short sled ride, small camp herd · 7 h incl. bus | ★ 4.7 (130) | €199 per person | Book now |
|
|
Autumn: feeding + Sami culture, lunch | Feeding, Sami stories, warm meal (no sledding, autumn) · 4.5 h | ★ 4.7 (95) | €146 per person | Book now |
|
|
Autumn evening: feeding + dinner + aurora | Feeding, bidos dinner, northern lights chance (no sledding, autumn) · 4.5 h | ★ 4.5 (40) | €146 per person | Book now |
Reindeer tour prices load live from GetYourGuide with taxes and booking fees included, so a camp visit costs at checkout what this table shows. “What’s in it” summarises the product title. The full inclusions are on the product page.
Feeding tours skip the sled ride entirely: you feed the free-roaming herd, join the Sami programme and have lunch at camp (dinner on the evening tour). Sledding tours add a reindeer-pulled sled ride of roughly 10 to 30 minutes on top of the camp visit. The camp, the herd and the Sami hosts are broadly the same on both.
Between about 10 and 30 minutes depending on the tour: on the flagship Tromsø Arctic Reindeer tour the ride is a slot you book at 10 or 25–30 minutes, and the Tromsø Lapland evening tour runs up to 30 minutes, snow permitting. No tour is built around hours of sledding; the ride is one part of a multi-hour camp visit. Check the stated ride length on the product page before booking.
If your goal is time close to the animals, feeding-only is arguably the better tour: you spend the ride time with the herd instead of in a queue for the sled track. Visitors who regret their choice are usually the ones who booked sledding expecting a long ride, not the ones who skipped it.
The 3.5-hour visit from Reindeer Experience Tromsø is the lowest-priced way in, and you choose between sled ride and feeding when you book. The 4-to-4.5-hour daytime tours cost more, the evening tours with dinner and northern lights chance sit above those (the feeding-only evening is the cheapest of them), and the full-day Camp Tamok trip is the most expensive. The current price of every tour is in the comparison table on this page and on each product page.
No operator can promise a sighting. The camps sit outside the city lights and the season overlaps aurora season, so on clear nights the chance is real. Book the evening tour for the camp evening and dinner, and treat an aurora as the bonus it is.
Reindeer herding is the traditional livelihood of the Sami, and the camps near Tromsø are Sami-run. The herds are free-roaming (around 300 animals at the largest camp), and sled rides are short with animals worked in rotation. If welfare details matter to you, ask the operator directly before booking; they answer these questions routinely. Our animal-welfare page collects what we know.
Both tour types welcome families, and children generally respond most to feeding the animals, which every variant includes. On price, feeding-only and the budget tour keep a family booking manageable. Check each product page for child rates and any age notes before booking.
The table lists every reindeer tour from Tromsø.
See the comparison