Fun and Easy Dog Sledding Adventure review
My verdict: if you are booking one husky day in Tromsø and you have not got a reason to book something else, book this one. Fifty minutes on a bus to Breivikeidet, thermal gear and a briefing, then you stand on the runners yourself through forest and open ground with the Lyngen Alps across the water, and you are back in town with an afternoon left. It is the most-reviewed husky product sold out of Tromsø, at 4.9 from 2,079 ratings. What it is not is a long run, a wilderness expedition, or a tour a six-year-old can join.
What the day actually contains
You meet at the main entrance hall of Tromsø Havn Prostneset and the bus takes about fifty minutes to the camp at Breivikeidet. That is a hundred minutes of the four and a half hours gone before anyone touches a dog, and it is the single biggest thing people misjudge.
At the camp you get a thermal suit, boots, mittens and a hat, then a safety briefing and basic instruction. Two of you share a sled: one stands on the runners and drives, the other sits in the basket, and you swap at the halfway point. The trail runs through forest and across open fields. Afterwards there are hot drinks and cake in a Sámi lávvu, and a meal is part of the ticket.
Breivikeidet is the middle option on the map. It is far enough inland to be a different proposition from a camp on Kvaløya and nowhere near as cold or as snow-certain as Tamokdalen, which sits at −10 to −20 °C and is the most snow-secure ground near Tromsø. In a January with 41 cm of snow lying in town this does not matter. In a mild late March, when snow near the coast melts and refreezes into ice, it can. I have written the geography out in full under husky camps near Tromsø.
Who it suits, and who it does not
It suits a couple or a pair of friends who want to drive rather than be driven, anyone with a half-day hole in a Tromsø itinerary, and families with children aged seven and up who can sit still in a basket while somebody else steers. It does not suit anyone under seven, pregnant travellers, wheelchair users, people with mobility impairments or anyone with an animal allergy — those are hard exclusions on the booking, not suggestions. Pets cannot come.
It also does not suit the person who has read the words “dog sledding adventure” and pictured an afternoon of it. The time on the runners across Tromsø products is 30 to 90 minutes. If what you want is the largest possible share of the day spent actually driving, the answer is a different tour — see the self-drive tours compared.
What works
- Self-driven, not a passenger ride, with a real instruction session first
- Lowest age gate of the sledding tours here at seven years old
- Back in Tromsø with the afternoon still usable
- The deepest pool of traveller ratings of any husky tour sold here
- Thermal suit, boots, mittens and hat all issued at the camp
Worth knowing
- A hundred minutes of the day is a bus seat
- You drive roughly half the run — the other half you are sitting in the basket
- Breivikeidet is less snow-secure than the inland valleys in a mild winter
- Medium difficulty, and basic fitness is genuinely expected
- Under-7s, pregnancy, mobility impairments and animal allergies all exclude you
What the ticket covers
- Round-trip bus from Prostneset
- English-speaking guide
- Thermal suit, boots, mittens and hat
- Safety briefing and basic instruction
- Self-drive sledding, shared and swapped
- Hot drinks and cake in a Sámi lávvu
- A meal
Not suitable for
- Children under 7
- Pregnant travellers
- People with mobility impairments
- Wheelchair users
- Anyone with an animal allergy
- Pets of your own
Wear wool against your skin and bring your own gloves. The suit and mittens issued at the camp are warm, but they go over what you arrive in, and a cotton t-shirt under all that will hold your sweat and chill you on the drive back. The full layer system is on what to wear.
What travellers actually say
“The sled ride through the forest was idyllic. The dogs were very affectionate.”
“Excellent fun. The dogs were great, beautiful route.”
“Breathtaking scenery, lots of fun sledding, helpful guides and friendly dogs.”
The pattern across two thousand of these is unremarkable in the best way: the route, the guides and the dogs, over and over, with very little in the way of complaint. That is what a 4.9 from a sample this size looks like, and it is the main reason I point people here first.
If this one is not right for you
Too much bus, and you want the shortest possible day? The self-drive with lunch is out and back in four hours. Travelling with a child under seven? Neither of those will take them, and the kennel visit will.
Closest to townHusky Sled Self-Drive with Traditional Lunch
Full day inlandDog Sledding Adventure in Tamokdalen
No sleddingPuppy Training at the Husky Kennel with Lunch
Frequently asked questions
Do you drive the husky sled yourself on this tour?
Yes. After a safety briefing and basic instruction you stand on the runners and drive, with a partner riding in the basket, and you swap at the halfway point. So you are the musher for roughly half the run — the mechanics of that arrangement are set out under self-drive versus guided.
How much of the 4.5 hours is actually sledding?
Not much of it. Fifty minutes out and fifty minutes back is bus, and the rest is gearing up, the briefing, the dog yard, the run itself and hot drinks in the lávvu. Across Tromsø products the time on the runners is 30 to 90 minutes — the arithmetic is on how long a husky tour takes.
What is the minimum age for this tour?
Seven. Under-7s cannot join, and pregnant travellers, wheelchair users, people with mobility impairments and anyone with an animal allergy are also excluded. If that rules out someone in your group, read dog sledding with children before you book anything.