Where to stay - and see the Northern Lights - on the Lofoten Islands

When I started dreaming and planning my trip to Norway I had two obsessive thoughts: the Northern Lights and the Rorbuer.

You know that beam of green - sometimes blue - light, visible in the sky in some specific months only, under some atmospheric and solar conditions only, in a specific part of the world only ... in short, only if you're lucky?

And you know those red fishermen's houses, built on the borderline between mainland and water, with the grass growing on the roofs?

There!

I had these two obsessive thoughts and I made a bargain in finding a place that allowed me to live both the experiences: sleeping in a Rorbu on the Lofoten Islands and enjoying the Northern Lights! 😍

I chose to stay at Eliassen Rorbuer, a holiday resort made up of 35 cottages, set in the spectacular Reine Fjord.

But hold on, let me tell you everything from the beginning!

Once landed at Evenes airport, we picked up the car from the rental and we headed to Hamnøy: 4 hours drive.
At some point, it started to get dark and I got notification from the Aurora Forecast app: that night there were high chances to see the Northern Lights,! OMG!!! 😅 The speed limit on that street was 60 km/h, for goodness sake! 😅At that time I hated that road, I only wanted to arrive as soon as possible! The estimated time of the "storm" was at 9 pm and we were almost there! Thankfully we arrived at the resort at 8.45 pm.

I got a welcome text with the number of the cottage and info about where to find the keys, so there was no need to go to the reception. Stepping inside our Rorbu we've been immediately surrounded by the cottage warmth, due both to the hot radiators and to the warm colours of the wood. Everything, but everything, was made out of wood! Walls, chairs and tables, the mezzanine, beds, floors, roof, kitchen! Too cute!
Not to mention the beautiful sea view we had, straight in front of the fjord!

A few minutes to look around and we ran outside, with camera and tripod. AAAAAAHHHHHH they were there, already!!!!!! I felt so silly, what did I expect, a louder intro with the Metro Goldwyn Mayer roaring lion? 😅 I start shouting: "Oh my goooooooooood here they aaaaaare!! Help,heelp! The lights!!" Basically I was panicking because there were few street lights around the cottages, and I had read anywhere that you should avoid light pollution when photographing the Northern Lights 😄 I started running around like a headless chicken looking for a dark spot, the cottages lights were everywhere! might have seemed a crazy lady: I ran by dragging that long tripod, I stopped, I went back and yelled, "Let's go over here! No, the other way! I hate this street lamp!" Aaaahhhh where should we goooo! "
Eventually, Massimo pushed me into a quite dark alley, we were alone. I placed the tripod and started shooting. I was afraid to make crappy photos, I didn't know how long the Northern Lights would have lasted, my heart was beating crazy and then suddenly they moved, changed position in the sky and I had to run after them!

Suddenly I heard a scream from a far point: "yohoooooooooooo !!" I realised that there was somebody enjoying the same show, we followed the shout going close to the sea. Actually, there were 3-4 people with tripod and cameras pointing to the fjord. There was a pitch dark, we couldn't see where to put our feet! (Note to self: next time bring a torch!) Each photographer was snapping with a super wide angle lens and of course, we all needed a wide free space in front of the camera, so we started to fight against each other to get the best spot 😂 Everything lasted for about an hour, then the Northern Lights slowly disappeared leaving a green veil over the sky.

You may have guessed that my first date with them has not been so romantic. It was more like a mix of panic, strong emotion and lots of laughs!

After all, everything that I fall in love with, in some way or another, makes me laugh too! So I can definitely say that the Northern Lights seduced me with unforgettable funny moments!

The next day we woke up and the weather was bad. Wind and rain made the sea stormy, the waves crashed on the rocks at the foot of the cottage reaching sometimes the windows! We took the opportunity to spend all day resting on the sofa, sipping hot tea, and cuddling under blankets 😊The stormy weather atmosphere was really romantic 😍

That night we obviously did not see the Northern Lights, the sky was completely covered by clouds. The next day the rain stopped and the sky slowly began to lighten up. I've been able to shoot some photos to the Rorbuer resort overlooking the Reinefjord, I chatted with the Asian neighbours and, unfortunately, we had to leave: another milestone on the Lofoten Islands was waiting for us!

Sleeping in a romantic Rorbuer, overlooking the sea a stunning fjord, could I ask for more? Oh right, I forgot the 100-point bonus: the Northern Lights! ❤

I just wanna warmly thank Eliassen Rorbuer for hosting me in this fantastic facility, can't wait to come back!

And you guys, go to their website, book a cottage and start dreaming! 😍