Arctic Circle Raceway
Arctic Circle Raceway at a glance
- Location
- Mo i Rana, Nordland
- Type
- road course
- Length
- 3.753 km (2.332 mi)
- Turns
- 12
- Surface
- asphalt
- Elevation change
- 102 ft
- Opened
- 1995
- Owner
- ACR AS (Rana- and Bodø-based company, since 2021)
- Address
- Arctic Circle Raceway
Track map and layout
Arctic Circle Raceway is a modern, flowing 3.753 km, 12-turn circuit built on undulating former quarry land 25 km north of Mo i Rana, and around 30 km south of the Arctic Circle itself, making it the northernmost racetrack in the world. The layout sits at about 200 m above sea level with roughly 31 m of elevation change and an 8.6% maximum gradient, using a longest straight of 493 m and a track width of 11-13 m to create a fast, undulating lap through Nordland's wilderness terrain. The circuit's high-latitude location gives it a unique summer feature: full daylight around the clock thanks to the midnight sun, allowing genuine 24-hour racing in natural light.
Configurations
| Layout | Length | Used for |
|---|---|---|
| Full circuit | 3.75 km | 3.753 km, 12-turn permanent layout opened in 1995 |
Events and race weekends
Arctic Circle Raceway has hosted Norwegian and Swedish national touring car racing, including Swedish Touring Car Championship rounds in 1999-2001 and 2004 and Norwegian Touring Car Championship events, taking advantage of its remote but accessible far-north location. Since 2021 it has been home to the Arctic Circle Midnight Cup, a race weekend built around the circuit's round-the-clock summer daylight, alongside a busy calendar of drifting cups, go-kart racing and driver training days.
| Event | Series | When | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Arctic Circle Midnight Cup | endurance / club racing | June-July | run in continuous midnight-sun daylight since 2021 |
Getting there and parking
The circuit is about 25 km north of Mo i Rana, a regional town in Nordland, northern Norway, and roughly 30 km south of the Arctic Circle line. Mo i Rana has its own small airport with connections to Bodø and Trondheim, and the town sits on Norway's main north-south rail line (the Nordlandsbanen), making both flying and train travel realistic ways to reach this remote circuit before driving or taking a taxi the final stretch.
- Mo i Rana Airport, Røssvoll (MQN) · about 35 min drive
- Bodø Airport (BOO) · about 150 min drive
Parking
On-site parking is available for event and track-day visitors.
Mo i Rana railway station, on the Nordlandsbanen line from Trondheim, is a scenic alternative to flying for visitors without a rental car booked in advance.
Hotels and camping near Arctic Circle Raceway
Mo i Rana, about 25 km from the circuit, is the only nearby town with a meaningful choice of hotels and should be the base for any visit; options thin out quickly further from town given the circuit's remote Arctic Circle-adjacent location.
Where to look
Mo i Rana town centre for the area's main hotel and guesthouse selection.
Track days, driving experiences and lap records
Arctic Circle Raceway's main day-to-day activity today is track days, driver training, go-kart racing and drifting cups rather than top-level championship racing. Sessions and event bookings are handled by the circuit's operator, ACR AS, which has run the venue since taking over the Norwegian Motorsport Association's shareholding in 2021.
Who runs days here
- Arctic Circle Raceway (ACR AS)both
Spectator guide
As a remote, mid-sized permanent circuit, Arctic Circle Raceway offers open trackside viewing across its undulating layout rather than large-scale grandstands, with the elevation changes giving spectators sweeping views of several corners from single vantage points.
Seating
Viewing is mostly from trackside banking and vantage points along the circuit's elevation changes; formal grandstand capacity is limited.
Best places to watch
Higher ground overlooking the circuit's elevation changes gives the best sightlines across multiple corners at once.
Weather
- June-July (midnight sun): 24-hour daylight, mild sub-Arctic summer temperatures typically 12-18°C
History of Arctic Circle Raceway
Built on former quarry land
Arctic Circle Raceway broke ground in 1990 and opened on 12 August 1995, built on undulating former quarry terrain around 25 km north of Mo i Rana in Norway's Nordland county, roughly 30 km south of the Arctic Circle line. The roughly US$10 million project created a modern, flowing 3.753 km, 12-turn permanent road course that immediately stood out for one thing above all: its location makes it the northernmost racetrack in the world.
A stage for national touring car racing
Despite its remoteness, Arctic Circle Raceway became a regular stop for major Scandinavian touring car racing in its early years, hosting rounds of the Swedish Touring Car Championship between 1999 and 2001 and again in 2004, alongside Norwegian Touring Car Championship events. The circuit's flowing, elevation-rich layout and its short but intense midsummer season, with races run in continuous daylight thanks to the midnight sun, gave it a distinctive identity among European circuits.
New ownership and a midnight-sun identity
In July 2021, the Norwegian Motorsport Association sold its 49 percent shareholding in the circuit to ACR AS, a Rana- and Bodø-based company, which has run the venue since. That same year saw the launch of the Arctic Circle Midnight Cup, an endurance-style event built specifically around the circuit's round-the-clock summer daylight. Today Arctic Circle Raceway's calendar is centred on track days, driver training, go-kart racing and popular drifting cups, with the Midnight Cup as its signature annual draw for visiting competitors and fans willing to make the trip to the far north.
Frequently asked questions
Is Arctic Circle Raceway really the northernmost racetrack in the world?+
Yes. Located about 30 km south of the Arctic Circle near Mo i Rana, Norway, it holds that distinction among permanent racing circuits.
How long is Arctic Circle Raceway?+
The permanent circuit is 3.753 km (2.332 miles) long with 12 turns and about 31 metres of elevation change.
Can you race at Arctic Circle Raceway at night?+
In effect, yes, at least in midsummer: the circuit's high-latitude location gives it 24-hour daylight from the midnight sun in June and July, enabling events like the Arctic Circle Midnight Cup to run around the clock.
Is Arctic Circle Raceway still active?+
Yes. It operates under ACR AS, which took over the venue's Norwegian Motorsport Association shareholding in 2021, running track days, driver training, drifting cups and the annual Midnight Cup.
How do you get to Arctic Circle Raceway?+
The circuit is about 25 km north of Mo i Rana, which has its own small airport (Røssvoll) and a station on the Nordlandsbanen railway; most visitors then drive or taxi the final stretch.
Other tracks nearby
- Drivecenter Arena (Skellefteå Drive Center) · 323 km · road course
- Botniaring · 555 km · road course
- Kemora Circuit · 559 km · road course
- Vålerbanen · 649 km · road course
- Hedemora TT Circuit · 685 km · historic circuit (defunct)
- Tierp Arena · 692 km · drag strip
Facts checked against 3 sources including the official circuit website. Last reviewed 2026-09-11.