In the Middle Ages Northern Norway was known as Hålogaland from Trøndelag until somewhere around Lofoten or Tromsø. The land further north was the land of the Sami people, called Finnmark in Norway (the Sami people were called "Finn" by the old Norse people) and Lapland in Sweden/Finland. Finnmark means the land of finns or the borderland of Finns. The Finnish, Kven and Sami languages belong to the Uralic language family, completely unrelated to Scandinavian languages (modern Norwegian, Danish and Swedish). Borders were not fixed in the open range of the north and the definition of "Finnmark" was very flexible and variable. In one Viking saga Finnmark was described as "enormous" completely surrounded by the endless ocean west and north, covering the entire land north of Trøndelag, Halsingland and Karelia (that is most of northern Norway, Sweden and Finland as well as Russia's Kola Peninsula) – this largely corresponds to Sápmi, the traditional area of the Sami people. The southernmost Sami language was spoken in the border region east of Trondheim. It is not clear how much of the north was ruled by Scandinavian kings or if the northernmost areas were largely land without state. Norwegian settlement in Finnmark began around 1300 and coastal villages came under Norwegain/Danish rule. The interior was open range without fixed borders between states until around 1800. The very northern regions of Norway, Sweden, Finland and Russia was largely a common area. The border with Russia was fixed in 1826 and Kirkenes became part of Norway. Kautokeino and Karasjok became part of Norway (itself under Danish rule at that time) when the border with Sweden (still including Finland half a century) was set in 1760.

Erik Valkendorf (died in 1522) was archbishop of Nidaros (Trondheim) and viceroy of Norway. He was the first authority figure to sail the entire coast from Trondheim to eastern Finnmark. He was deeply fascinated by the grand landscape, the long distances and the way of life in the barren nature. Valkendorf described his experiences in a letter to Pope Leo X. Valkendorf described the nomadic nature of fishermen in Finnmark area. He also described the production of stockfish in the dry cool air and how locals could store stockfish for many years.

In 1432 the merchant ship of captain Pietro Querini was ravaged on the west coast of Røst. Querini and a handful of his men in lifeboats were transported by wind and sea currents to Lofoten. They survived there with the help of locals. He subsequently returned to Venice, where he wrote a report of his travels including how locals could catch enormous amounts of cod that was turned into stockfish. He is credited with popularizing stockfish in the Veneto region. Querini made an accurate description of the way life at these outskirts of Europe. This is one of the few eyewitness accounts by outsiders from the Middle Ages. Querini described life on the island of Røst as "first sphere of paradise" because of inhabitants' hospitality and natural way of life. While an outskirt, the far north was connected to international trade via Bergen and the local priest was a German Dominican friar.

Northern Sami spoken in Finnmark and Troms is the most common of the Sami languages. Lulesami is spoken largely along the Lule river, Southern Sami is spoken further south in Nordland and Trøndelag. Between these are the areas of the Pite and Lule Sami with few speakers. Even Lule Sami is spoken only by a few thousand people.

For more information on driving, see the Driving in Norway article.

E6 is the main route to Northern Norway when driving from the southern parts of the country (Oslo, Trondheim). Oslo is about 800 km from the southernmost part of Northern Norway. The rest of E6 through Northern Norway is about 1,600 km. The distance from Trondheim to Mo i Rana is about 450 km, to Narvik 920 km and to Tromsø about 1,160 km.

When going from southern Norway to Finnmark, driving through Sweden and Finland may save time and kilometres. E45 has connections via Finland to western Finnmark, deviating from it at Arvidsjaur one can drive to Haparanda and by E75 in Finland towards eastern Finnmark.

The main connections from abroad are E8 (through Finland to Tromsø), which joins E6 at Skibotn, E75 (via Finland to Vardø), which joins E6 in Tana, and E105 (via Russia to Kirkenes) to the end of E6.

Norway has one overland border crossing with Russia 15 km from Kirkenes. This is a Schengen border so passport and visa are needed. The border with Russia can only be crossed in vehicles, not on foot (as of 2015).

If you arrive during winter, be aware that winter tires are necessary and required by law. Do not try to drive without, even if you don't expect snow or ice. Some roads may be closed in wintertime, after first heavy snow. See Driving in Norway and Winter driving.

From Southern Norway:

There is no bus connection between Northern and Southern Norway, except for a few local routes in the border area.

From Sweden:

• Skellefteå–Bodø (a.k.a. Silverexpressen). Operated by Skelleftebuss Skellefteå–Jäckvik and Nordlandsbuss Jäckvik–Bodø. See nbuss.no
• Kiruna–Narvik. Operated by Ofotens Bilruter^{[dead link]}.
• via Haparanda, then using the coach network of Finnish Lapland, see below.

Timetables, 177nordland

From Finland:

Eskelisen Lapin Linjat operates buses to Tromsø, Alta, Nordkapp/Lakselv, Vadsø and Kirkenes from Rovaniemi/Oulu. Summer only. At Utsjoki walking over the border (to Roavvegieddi in Tana), or taking a taxi ride, should be feasible, as at Karigasniemi – at most other places there would be a very long taxi ride to get to Norwegian bus routes.

Trains to Northern Norway depart from Trondheim. There is usually two trains per day, one leaves in the morning and the other leaves in the late evening. The train stops at Mosjøen, Mo i Rana and Fauske (and other smaller places) before it reaches its end destination Bodø just above the Arctic Circle. The journey to Bodø takes about 9 hours and 30 minutes. Prices may vary, lowest possible price as of January 2008 is 199 kr (one way, limited number of seats, look/ask for "minipris"). Trains are operated by NSB.

Narvik is part of the Swedish rail network with connections to south Norway and mainland Europe. Trains are operated by SJ and go from Stockholm. Finland has a wider gauge and is not directly connected to the Swedish network, transfer needed.

There is no railway in the two northernmost counties, Troms and Finnmark.

The Hurtigruten (Coastal Express) sails along the coast of Norway, from Bergen in the south to Kirkenes close to the Russian border. It calls at 25 ports in Northern Norway and 9 ports in Southern Norway. Each port is visited twice a day, once by the southbound boat, and once by the northbound boat.

The distances are long, and air planes are important to get around for longer distances in Northern Norway. Flights inside Northern Norway generally start at one of the regional hubs: Bodø, Tromsø or Kirkenes. Bardufoss and Alta airports take larger aircraft and Alta is the busiest in Finnmark. There are at least a dozen small airports. Most flights serving them are operated by Widerøe and are usually fairly expensive. Smaller airports have short runways and are served by small propeller aircraft such as Dash 8.

By train

Train can be used as far north as Fauske and Bodø, and from Sweden to Narvik.

Hurtigruten follows the entire coast and calls at all major ports, except Mosjøen, Mo i Rana, Narvik and Alta (which are all situated in the innermost parts of long fjords which would be too far to detour). There are also local express boats. An express boat connects Tromsø and Harstad in less than three hours.

For more information on driving, see the Driving in Norway article.

Travel by own car or rental car is the most practical, as there are road connection to virtually every small village, and buses are not frequent outside cities. Note that the distances are very long, and driving takes time. Also do fill the tank in time. Driving in winter is not for beginners - there is little or no daylight, and weather is often rough on the coast and on the mountain passes, while in the interior often bitterly cold. During winter roads are usually covered in ice, snow or slush.

The distance from Mo i Rana to Tromsø is 680 km, needing around 10 hours plus stops. From Narvik to Alta it is 510 km, needing around 7 hours plus stops. The entire road E6 through Northern Norway is some 1700 km, or more than 24 hours non-stop drive at 60 km/h average. The E6 has one ferry crossing.

Without a car, travel by scheduled bus routes is the most economical. They have sparse schedules. Important bus connections are the routes from Bodø/Fauske (end of railway) to Narvik and Harstad, from Narvik to Tromsø and Tromsø to Alta (there are many other routes). Search at en-tur.no.