The Lofoten Islands have witnessed a rise in cruise tourism in recent years, driven primarily by an increasing number of medium-sized cruise ships and expedition vessels. The destination comprises three established cruise harbors in Leknes, Svolvær, and Reine, in addition to other harbors that have been welcoming smaller expedition vessels. To contribute to the ongoing discussions about sustainable cruise tourism on the Lofoten Islands, we look into the practices associated with cruise-related activities, offering a detailed and nuanced understanding of how cruising is executed, including its opportunities and challenges.We have identified specific practices associated with cruise tourism (i.e., ship handling, planning and preparation, tourist hosting, and governance) and have analyzed how these practices are executed, coordinated, and adapted by different stakeholders (e.g., harbor authorities, tour operators, guides, attractions, restaurants, and local communities).Moreover, the report sheds light on the influence of factors such as weather conditions, seasonality, power dynamics, environmental impacts, and carrying capacity on the development of local cruise tourism.Our findings suggest that to improve sustainability of cruise tourism there is a need to leveragelocal enforceability, collaborate with cruise operators, establish realistic requirements to cruise operators, adjust to local norms and guidelines, and address concerns of local carryingcapacity. Additionally, the report puts forth tools and measures for the governance of cruise tourism, including economic incentives, tourist taxes, environmental regulations, local networks, and information dissemination. In conclusion, we underscore the need forstakeholders to take into account the complexity of interconnected practices, and advocate for the establishment of novel local approaches to balance between development and sustainability interests when developing the local tourism industry on the Lofoten Islands.