Welcome to Alta, a city located above the Arctic Circle. Here you can experience our Arctic lifestyle and join a winter adventure between powdery snow and the open sea under the northern lights.
Alta is located at the intersection of the sea and a plateau. This geographic area has, since the Stone Age, been a meeting place for several indigenous people groups. They have built their common history and future to master the rugged arctic environment.
A world of unreal contrasts. Next to nothing, close to everything. This is arctic living.
Cold and long winters provide good opportunities to build an igloo hotel every single winter. The Sorrisniva Ice Hotel is built on the banks of the famed Alta River. Everything here is made of ice, including the rooms, beds, and even the glasses at the bar.
Alta residents are out and about, not waiting for the sun to come back, despite the city experiencing two months of Polar Nights.
Light, powdered snow is practically guaranteed all winter, and conditions for dog sledding, skiing, snowmobiling and fat biking are excellent. Both short and lengthy trips offer the ideal chance to see the landscape blanketed in snow, the vivid colors of the Arctic daylight, and the northern lights at night.
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Experienced northern lights hunters go either to the Arctic coast or to the vast and open, fabled Finnmark Plateau in the south, thus increasing the chances of seeing the northern lights.
IIn Sami, the northern lights are called “guovssahas” which means “the light you can hear“. Old folk beliefs indicate that the northern lights both crackle and pop.