Whale safari rules in Norway

What did the 2025/26 whale safari survey find?

Typically 9 to 14 boats around the same whale group and 23 at the peak, against a voluntary limit of 3. Most boats got far closer than the guidelines advise.

Brim Explorer logged whale safari traffic from 23 October 2025 to 15 January 2026, across the area from west of Skjervøy to Spildra, with 96 observations in total. The results, published in the Visit Tromsø press release, read like a list of things the guidelines ask boats not to do.

Apart from established operators, almost no boats turned off their engines or held still. Several went faster than 20 knots in the whale area. Boats putting snorkellers in the water worked inside feeding groups. The whales reacted: they changed direction, dived deeper and for longer, and stopped feeding and socialising (Skipsrevyen).

What did the industry ask for in March 2026?

A licence scheme with competence requirements, a speed limit where whales are, a ban on snorkelling close to whales, and a pilot in Tromsø and Skjervøy, all before the 2026/27 season.

Brim Explorer, Visit Tromsø-Region, Best Arctic, Norwegian Travel and Rødne sent the request together. Their idea is that operators would need a licence, the behaviour rules would be based on the existing Visit Tromsø guidelines, and a breach would cost the licence. They point to licensing schemes already used in Canada, Brazil, New Zealand, South Africa and the Canary Islands.

The group also describes who is causing the trouble: seasonal foreign operators, unmarked small boats and RIBs with no link to an industry body. A pilot in Tromsø and Skjervøy could become the base for a wider national framework for nature tourism.

Is Norway changing the law on whale safaris?

Not yet. The fisheries minister and the Directorate of Fisheries have both talked about change, but no new rule is in force as of 18 October 2026.

The headlines tell the story. NRK ran "Tourists react to whale safari in Troms: the industry wants regulation", then "Whale tourism in Troms: the fisheries minister wants to change the law". As the new season began, the headline was "New whale season in Troms without long-awaited rules".

The latest step came on 16 October 2026. In an NTB story carried by Aftenposten, the Directorate of Fisheries said whale safaris in Nord-Troms and Vest-Finnmark disturb and stress the whales while they hunt herring, and raise the risk of collisions with fishing boats. Fisheries Director Frank Bakke-Jensen pointed to Iceland's driving rules for whale watching as a model, and said the initiative should come from the tourism industry. No timeline was given.

What is confirmed: the minister wants a change, the directorate sees a problem, and the season has started under the old rules. Nothing more. We will update this post when a proposal is published.

What rules apply to whale safaris in Norway right now?

The 2019 whale safari regulation is the only binding rule. It bans safaris that disturb whales and keeps boats and swimmers away from fishing vessels, but sets no whale distance or speed limit.

The regulation on whale safaris dates from 5 December 2019 and came into force on 9 December 2019. It was written after Fisheries Directorate and Coast Guard inspectors reported dangerous situations near herring boats, including divers close to a running fish pump. Its focus is the fishing fleet. The distances it sets are from fishing vessels and their gear, and breaking them can bring fines or criminal penalties under the Marine Resources Act.

The rules about whales themselves sit in the Visit Tromsø guidelines, drawn up in 2017 with researchers. They are sensible and widely ignored, because nothing happens to a boat that breaks them.

How do you choose a responsible whale safari operator?

Look for a quiet engine near the whales, a capped group size, guides who follow the Visit Tromsø guidelines and no snorkelling on the trip.

You cannot control the other 13 boats in the fjord. You can pick a boat that behaves well itself. Our checklist:

• A quiet approach. Brim Explorer's hybrid-electric catamaran switches to its silent electric engine near the whales, and Brim ran the survey that put the issue on the agenda.
• A capped group. The Skjervøy heated boat and the 12-seat RIB take 12 guests each, Njord Adventures caps at 36 and Polar Adventures at 50.
• Guides who keep their distance. Ask the operator if it follows the Visit Tromsø guidelines and how long it stays with one group. A guest on the 12-seat RIB wrote "We never “hunted” the whales, and the animals were always respected."
• No in-water add-ons. None of the tours on this site include snorkelling.
• A fair no-whale policy. A boat with a free second trip has less reason to chase. MS Alba gives a Whale Pass, the Arctic Resorts catamaran a second chance this season.

Big or small is a trade-off rather than a moral choice. One large catamaran with 100 guests is one boat in the count; ten small RIBs are ten. Our RIB or big boat guide weighs the two.

A classic Norwegian catamaran sold as a responsible whale cruise, with a wildlife guide and a Whale Pass for free rebooking within two years.

★ 4.7 · 8 hours

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Is snorkelling with orcas banned in Norway?

No. It is legal, but the 2019 regulation bans swimming near fishing boats, Visit Tromsø discourages it, and the industry wants it banned close to whales.

The survey saw snorkel boats working inside feeding groups, which is why a snorkel ban is one of the three demands. Visit Tromsø lists the risks: feeding whales that may not notice swimmers, humpbacks lunging up through the bait ball, water around 4 to 6C, poor visibility and boat traffic. Our guide to swimming with orcas in Norway covers the rest.

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