⛰️ Guides and active tours: how to monetise your love of nature
If you ‘live on the trails’ and want to turn it into income, here's where to start. We'll break down the most popular formats (hiking/kayaking/skiing/photography), guide responsibilities, first aid and avalanche awareness, where language is critical and where English is sufficient, and how the season affects employment.
🚶 Work formats — hiking, kayaking, ski touring, photo tours: requirements and responsibilities
Popular tracks: summer hiking on the ‘west coast’, sea kayaking tours, winter — snow trails and photo hunting for the northern lights in the ‘Arctic capital’. For mountaineering and glacier tasks, IFMGA/NORTIND guides are valued; for the sea — Norges Padleforbund (activity leader/veiled Hav) or British Canoeing Sea Kayak Leader. These branches are directly related to group leadership, risk assessment and navigation. In protected areas, ‘organised/commercial’ activities are often permitted upon application to the park administration — for example, in Lofotodden.
🩺 Requirements and safety — certificates and first aid
Outdoor basics: up-to-date first aid (12–16 hours), regular refresher courses and outdoor practice. The Norwegian Red Cross offers first aid programmes and materials; WFA/WFR courses are available from international providers with sessions ‘here’. For winter — avalanche awareness and daily bulletins from Varsom (warnings are published daily from 1 December to 31 May), plus an understanding of the European avalanche danger scale (1–5). For sea tours — rescue/self-rescue training, briefing on hypothermia and communication.
🗣️ Language and clients — EN/NO, working with groups and expectations
English is widely spoken in the tourism industry: the country is in the top 3 of the EF EPI 2024, which maintains a high level of English comprehension among local guests and colleagues. However, on purely local routes and in safety briefings, customers may expect Norwegian — check the language of the tour in advance. The season for hunting the northern lights in Tromsø is from late August to early April, and most operators conduct briefings in EN; job descriptions often specify the desired languages. The tone of the briefing is clear, without romanticising the risks: route, weather, cut-off for equipment and ‘go/no-go’.
🗺️ Route card (brief for group)
- ✅ Goal/format: “Circular hike 10 km / +600 m, 5–6 h; alternative in case of wind — shorter version”
- ✅ Weather/windows: forecast, gusts, water/snow temperature; go/no-go criteria
- ✅ Equipment/permits: footwear, layers, water/food; for kayak — spray deck/life jacket; for winter — avalanche kit
- ✅ Risks & rules: trails, crossings, tidal zone/cornices, protected area/drones, toilet code
- ✅ Communication: frequencies/channels, plan “B”, regroup point if split
🛡️ Guide insurance: what to clarify with the organizer
- ✅ Whose liability covers the tour (operator’s or your own)?
- ✅ Is registration in the Reisegarantifondet required (if selling packages)?
- ✅ Client coverage (medical/evacuation) and your liability limits
- ✅ Cancellation terms for “storms/avalanches” and who declares no-go
✅ Mini checklist (quick route)
- Choose a track: hiking/kayaking/skiing → upgrade your relevant qualifications (NPF Veileder Hav / BC Sea Kayak Leader; avalanches/Varsom; WFA/WFR).
- Put together a ‘safety folder’: certificates with dates, briefing checklists, evacuation plan.
- Check the rules of the location: in national parks, organised/commercial activities are often available upon request (example — Lofotodden).
- If you transport clients by car for a fee, check the licence requirements (Drozje/Turvogn).
- In Spitsbergen, keep an eye on the new guide approval rules (introduced on 6 June 2025).
The path to becoming a guide is clear: decide on the format, cover safety (first aid/avalanches/water), understand the local rules and build your season around the ‘long’ windows — summer on the fjords, winter on the aurora. Next — build your portfolio of tours, get recommendations and grow through training/instruction.
❓ FAQ
Two quick tracks:
- Join an operator (summer: fjords/Lofoten; winter: ‘Arctic capital’). In your application, indicate your current certifications (first aid, kayaking/avalanches) and experience working with groups.
- Freelance under the operator's brand — you lead tours according to their procedures, with customer insurance provided by the company. If you sell packages yourself (not just ‘guide services’ but ‘tour + transfer/accommodation’), study the Reisegarantifondet requirements for membership under the Package Travel Act. This is not legal advice — check the wording of roles/packages before you start.
At a minimum, you need up-to-date first aid (preferably outdoor training), evacuation and communication skills. In winter, you need avalanche courses and daily work with Varsom bulletins. At sea, you need NPF/British Canoeing certification and rescue experience. In protected areas, check the park rules (organised/commercial activities may require an application/permit).
In ‘showcase’ destinations (fjords, aurora borealis), English is often sufficient; the EF EPI score is very high. Norwegian is useful for local groups, coordination with services/landowners and year-round work. On Spitsbergen, a mandatory guide approval scheme will be introduced on 6 June 2025 (the first such scheme ‘here’); please prepare in advance for the launch of the requirements.
Peaks are May–September (fjords/kayaking) and late August–early April (northern lights/ski tours). During peak season, schedule 5–6 consecutive working days and reserve a few days for bad weather. In the off-season, it is easier to find photo tours/corporate events or training (WFA/WFR/NPF levels). In Tromsø, operators set the ‘aurora season’ dates directly — plan your holidays and side jobs around these windows.
