Some of the main villages in the municipality include Kåfjord, Komagfjord, Kvenvik, Langfjordbotn, Leirbotn, Rafsbotn, Talvik, and Tverrelvdalen.

The town of Alta and most of the municipality is located just below the 70th latitude and is closer to the North Pole than it is to much of Central Europe and the British Isles.

The town is the northernmost settlement of urban significance in the European Economic Area, with municipalities north of Alta being sparsely populated.

In spite of its high latitude the local climate is seldom severely cold thanks to Gulf Stream moderation in the prevailing wind, and lower altitudes of the municipality are covered with boreal forests.

Due to Norway curving above its Nordic neighbours, Alta is located further east than almost all of Sweden and much of southern Finland.

The spear head has a tincture of argent which means it is commonly colored white, but if it is made out of metal, then silver is used.

In the aftermath of the Sami Kautokeino rebellion of 1852, rebel leaders Mons Aslaksen Somby and Aslak Jacobsen Hætta were decapitated at Elvebakken in what is now the town of Alta on 14 October 1854.

During World War II, the German battleship Tirpitz used the Kåfjorden, an arm of Altafjorden, as a harbour, and was damaged here by attacking Allied warplanes.

The large Altafjorden has several notable bays and fjord arms that branch off from it including Langfjorden, Jiepmaluokta, Kåfjorden, and Lille Kufjorden.

Alta has a sheltered boreal climate (Köppen Dfc, Trewartha Eolo) with long and dark winters, but still much less cold than expected for latitude 70 North.

The mean annual temperature is 2 °C (35.6 °F) and the Alta valley does not have permafrost but is dominated by closed-canopy forest of birch and pine.

[40] The frequent clear skies are the reason why Alta early was chosen as an excellent location for studying the aurora borealis.

The "midnight sun" is above the horizon from 18 May to 27 July, lasting a bit longer than the polar night from 26 November to 16 January.

Main activities in Alta include trading, small industry, education, and public service.

Alta also has clubs for handball, track and field, alpine skiing, ice skating, taekwondo, and judo.

The bicycle race Finnmark Offroad, with 700- and 300-kilometer long courses, starts and ends in Alta (as of 2014[update]).