Here are a lot of good travel tips for how to get to Lofoten and Lillevik by plane, ferries, cars, etc. And some local rental car companies you may not know about.

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Travel to Lofoten by plane

Flying is definitely the fastest way to get to Lofoten. There are four “local” airports:

  • Svolvær airport (small propeller airplanes only, requires a stopover)
  • Leknes airport (small propeller airplanes only, requires a stopover)
  • Evenes airport ( domestic and a little international, requires a bus or car ride)
  • Bodø airport (international, requires a short flight to Svolvær or Leknes airports, or a ferry)

Fastest: Fly to Svolvær airport (or Leknes airport) via Bodø international airport

Fly to Svolvær with SAS or Widerøe, with a short stopover in Bodø. Rent a car (see below) at Svolvær airport, drive 45 minutes to Lillevik.

You can also fly to Leknes airport instead of Svolvær, the total time will be about the same.

Also fast: Fly to Evenes airport from Frankfurt (from May 2024)

In May 2024 Eurowings (connected to Lufthansa) will start direct flights from Frankfurt to Evenes. From Evenes it’s a 3 hour scenic drive to Lillevik.

Cheapest: Fly to Evenes airport, then drive

Fly to Evenes (Harstad/Narvik) airport with SAS or Norwegian, rent a car (see below), drive 3 hours to Lillevik. Or take the airport bus, Flybussen, to Svolvær – which also takes about 3 hours.

This can be almost as fast as flying to Svolvær. The drive is scenic.

Getting around in Lofoten: Get a car

We strongly recommend having a car in Lofoten, unless you are travelling by bicycle or motorcycle. Public transport is extremely limited, and you risk wasting a lot of time waiting.

All drives in Lofoten are scenic, so it can be smart to have some extra time to stop along the way when you see something interesting.

Local Lofoten rental car companies

There are several local rental car companies, plus the more common larger ones. The local companies may be easiest to reach by phone.

There is also some useful “getting around” information at 68North. Also: Google search for “rental car lofoten”.

See Location for maps and driving distances to popular sights in Lofoten. You can also use Google Maps and the “Direction” functionality:

Alternative travel methods

EnTur is often the easiest way to find travels that combine different transportation methods (plane, ferry, bus, etc).

Torghatten Nord runs all(?) the ferries and express boats in the area.

Reis Nordland is the official travel planner, but it’s only available in Norwegian.

Travel by plane to Bodø, then a ferry to Lofoten

Travel by car, from anywhere

Drive to Bodø (ca. 17 hours from Oslo), then take one of the ferries. (Pssst: Although some people think Tromsø is near Lofoten, it’s still a 6.5 hour drive)

If you’re driving to Lofoten from the south: The Coastal Road (RV17) is really nice, and highly recommended. You drive on small roads near the ocean, and get to see a lot of beautiful nature and small towns. There are a lot of ferries, so it will take much longer than the more boring E6 highway – but it’s worth it. From the website:

Kystriksveien (The Coastal Road) stretching from Steinkjer to Bodø – a total of 650 km. This is a scenic road and most of the stretch is a National Scenic Route. You can expect breathtaking views and you will cross the Arctic Circle along the way. There are thousands of islands along this coastline and you should take the time to visit a few of them.

Don’t confuse the coastal route with the Atlantic Ocean Highway, which is only 8 km long, starts around 1000 km south of Lofoten, and is – to be honest – over rated.