Skjervøy RIB tour review
My verdict: the best-rated tour on this site and the hardest day on it. 4.8 from 1,281 reviews at the time of writing, twelve hours door to door, with four hours on a bus each way and about three hours in a 34-foot open RIB in the fjord system the orcas are actually wintering in. The bus leaves at 05:00 sharp. That is not a figure of speech.
The day, hour by hour
You stand outside the Scandic Ishavshotell on Fredrik Langes gate in the dark from 04:45. The bus goes at 05:00 and it does not wait. Four hours north-east over a mountain road to Skjervøy, with Wi-Fi and toilets on board, arriving for the only usable light of the day. About three hours at sea. Then four hours back, in the dark again. Four hours on a bus is four hours on a bus, and no amount of Wi-Fi changes that. The road itself is worth understanding before you commit to it twice in one day.
The reason anybody does this is in the middle section. Since about 2017 the wintering herring have been in the fjords around Skjervøy and Kvænangen, and the orcas went with them. A boat that starts there is not looking for whales, it is going to where they have been all week. That shift is the whole reason this site exists.
An open boat, in an Arctic winter
Thirty-four feet, no roof, no cabin, nowhere to go. That is the trade you are making and you should make it with your eyes open. The operator provides a thermal suit, boots, mittens, goggles and a life vest, and those are proper pieces of kit rather than tokens, but a suit stops wind and spray; it does not manufacture warmth. Layers underneath are on you. Here is what actually goes under one.
What you get back for the cold is height, or rather the lack of it. You sit a metre off the surface instead of looking down from a deck three storeys up. When a group of orcas is carousel feeding — herding herring into a ball, stunning them with tail-slaps under the surface — you are at eye level with it. Nobody who has seen that from a RIB describes it the way people describe it from a big boat.
What people who took it say
- “The most magical day.” Tabitha, United Kingdom
- “Highly recommended to take the seasickness tablets first.” YingHsuan, Taiwan
- “We saw humpbacks and orcas.” Fiona, Greece
Mitchell from the UK wrote about a knowledgeable, passionate guide, which is the note that recurs. And take YingHsuan’s advice literally: tablets are not in the inclusions on this tour and an open RIB in a swell is the least forgiving boat on this site. Take them before you board, not when you start to regret breakfast.
The drawbacks, and there are several
Twelve hours for three on the water is a ratio nobody would accept on land. The limits are the strictest here: minimum age fourteen, minimum height 140 cm, not suitable for pregnant travellers or anyone with back problems — a RIB slamming across chop puts real force through your spine, and that exclusion is not precautionary boilerplate. Camera gear is carried at your own risk, on an open boat, in salt spray. No drones.
And the 4.8 needs the same scepticism I apply to every other number on this site. It is partly earned and partly self-selection: the people who book a 04:45 open-boat day have already decided it is worth it. How I read these scores is set out on the hub.
What works
- The highest rating on this site, 4.8 from 1,281 reviews
- It starts in the fjords the orcas are actually wintering in
- Low to the water, which changes what a sighting feels like entirely
- Thermal suit, boots, mittens, goggles and a life vest are all provided
- A hot drink and a sandwich are included
- Bus with Wi-Fi and toilets, and transfers are part of the booking
Worth knowing
- Twelve hours for roughly three on the water
- An open boat with no shelter at all in an Arctic winter
- Minimum age 14 and minimum height 140 cm
- Not suitable for pregnant travellers or anyone with back problems
- Seasickness tablets are not included, and this is the boat that needs them most
- Camera gear is at your own risk, and no drones are permitted
Usually included
- Transfers, and a bus with Wi-Fi and toilets
- A skipper
- Thermal suit, boots, mittens, goggles and life vest
- A hot drink and a sandwich
Not included
- Seasickness tablets
- Any shelter on the boat, because there is none
- Suitability for under-14s, anyone under 140 cm, pregnant travellers or anyone with back problems
Take the seat over the rear axle on the bus and sleep on the way out. You will be awake for eight hours of darkness either side of the only light you came for, and the bus is the only place in the day where sleeping is an option.
Who should book it, and who should not
Book it if you have done cold-water boats before and know what you are signing up for. Book it if you are a photographer, because eye level with the water in blue twilight is the reason the pictures from this coast look the way they do — see shooting in that light. Book it if you would rather have three excellent hours than nine adequate ones.
Do not book it with children, because fourteen is the floor. Do not book it if you are pregnant or your back is unreliable. Do not book it as your only day in Tromsø if a blank would ruin the trip, because there is no consolation warmth on a RIB. If Skjervøy is what you want but an open boat is not, the heated boat does the same journey under a roof.
The alternatives
Small RIB groupsFrom Tromsø: Whale Watching in Magic Skjervøy
Warm all dayTromsø: Orca and Whale Watching Heated Boat Trip
Most bookedTromsø: Whale Watching Tour by Hybrid-Electric Boat
Frequently asked questions
What time does the Skjervøy RIB tour leave Tromsø?
Boarding is outside the Scandic Ishavshotell, Fredrik Langes gate 2, from 04:45, and the bus leaves at 05:00 sharp. It is four hours to Skjervøy, about three hours at sea and four hours back, for a twelve-hour day. Getting to Skjervøy explains the road.
Can children go on the Skjervøy RIB tour?
Not under fourteen, and everyone must be at least 140 cm tall. It is also unsuitable for pregnant travellers and for anyone with back problems. For families, the all-inclusive safari out of Tromsø takes children from four. See going with children.
Is an open RIB too cold in midwinter?
It is cold, and pretending otherwise would be dishonest. You are given a thermal suit, boots, mittens, goggles and a life vest, and you still need proper layers underneath, because a suit blocks wind and spray rather than making heat. What to wear has the layering that works.