King crab safaris are one of Hammerfest's most popular activities: a small boat heads out into the fjord, pot traps are hauled from the sea floor, and the enormous red king crabs — legs spanning up to 1.5 metres — are pulled from the water and cooked on the boat. You eat them on deck, tearing into the legs with your hands while the harbour and the Arctic hills sit around you.
The crabs are extraordinarily good. The cold, deep water of the Barents Sea produces sweet, dense claw meat that needs nothing but a crack of the shell and some butter. Tours run year-round and last about three hours; the experience is roughly the same in summer (midnight sun) or winter (polar night), though winter adds a drama of its own. Book in advance during peak summer months.