Lofoten

Before the Water

• Check the exact approved site, tide, swell, wind and exit before every dive, guided snorkel or apnea session. No independent current-swept entry in Nappstraumen or Moskstraumen. 2026 NMA advisory.
• Match certification, recent practice, buoyancy skills, drysuit experience and cold tolerance. A certified Open Water diver may still be unqualified for winter drysuit diving.
• For freediving, use a competent dedicated buddy, one-up/one-down observation and practiced blackout rescue. Never hyperventilate or dive alone.
• Confirm surface support, rescue plan, VHF or communication, actual emergency oxygen availability, coastal evacuation route and first aid training with the individual provider. A compressor-gas listing does not confirm or deny emergency oxygen.
• Use adequate thermal insulation and control heavy gear; watch for hypothermia and cold shock. In winter cold water may be around 2°C to 6°C per operator guidance.

After Scuba

• Respect personal computer limits and avoid omitted decompression obligations. Follow DAN flying-after-diving guidance and allow a conservative interval before flights; activity length alone does not determine risk.
• If symptoms of possible decompression illness appear, stop diving, activate Norway's ambulance number 113, provide oxygen if trained and equipment is available, and follow emergency clinician direction. DAN medicine. Do not self-direct to an assumed chamber.
• For any marine casualty, alert local emergency and coastal rescue early. Multiple vessel and weather delays can make a planned shore return unrealistic.

Nordland Hospital Lofoten in Gravdal is the locally verified hospital at Sykehusbakken 23, 8372 Gravdal. The hospital's published Lofoten switchboard is +47 75 59 63 00. Norway's medical emergency number is 113 and urgent non-life-threatening out-of-hours care is 116117 through legevakt. For sea rescue, establish communications and use 120 (maritime emergency service) where appropriate, with 112 for police and 110 for fire. Dive-specific advice may be available through DAN Europe after activating emergency medical services. The researched sources do not verify a locally operating hyperbaric chamber, its acceptance protocol, air evacuation time or a guaranteed receiving facility; obtain these directly from the provider and emergency system before diving. Travel insurance should cover cold-water scuba and medevac, with explicit freediving and optional fishing coverage as required.

Protect the Kelp, Fishery and Working Shoreline

Lofoten is a working fishing landscape, not an unoccupied nature park. Do not dislodge kelp, collect wildlife, anchor on vulnerable substrate, approach fishing lines, enter working boat lanes or feed animals. Leave seals space to choose distance, avoid nesting birds and keep dry-land paths tidy. Visit Lofoten wildlife; regional code of conduct.

Permissions Are Local and Activity-specific

Lofotodden National Park has protected-land rules and sensitive habitat; do not extrapolate them as a universal underwater entry fee. Check the applicable protected-area notices and owner or harbor rules before entry or drone use. Recreational hunting and spearfishing require a separate review of national fisheries regulations and local restrictions. A commercial spearfishing listing is not by itself a legal authorization for a visitor. Do not claim a specific bathing beach has tested safe water quality without contemporaneous local monitoring.