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Click here for more information Got it! View Holidays. If we could answer this question we would be rich beyond the dreams of men! The best we can do is to provide a rough guide based on certain timescales. January to March These are probably the three most popular months for Aurora hunting because they bring long dark nights and plenty of snow to play in during the daylight hours while you wait for darkness to fall.
View Holidays Next: April to August. Credit: Northern Norway. April to August To see the Northern Lights you need dark skies and from early-April until late-August, the Aurora may be blazing across the Arctic firmament but it is visible only to scientific equipment, as the skies are just too light for the human eye to see the show.
View Holidays Next: September and October. Credit: Markku Inkila. September and October These are the months we would recommend to anybody who prefers to avoid the extreme cold of an Arctic winter.
View Holidays Next: November and December. November and December November is very much a time of change in the Arctic and heralds the arrival of the first major snows of the winter. Learn more about the Northern Lights. Head to the new North Pole Igloos Hotel , a pop-up glamping concept in the northernmost place on earth.
Travelers stay in heated glass-enclosed igloos with a glass ceiling roof and glass walls that allow guests to view the northern lights from bed. The tour company Hidden Iceland has launched new family-friendly private trips.
You can also watch the northern lights from a cozy teepee at Aurora Village , an Aboriginal-owned experience that also offers custom-made, heated outdoor seats that swivel degrees to catch every angle of the aurora borealis. For luxury in the wilderness, take a bush plane to Blachford Lake Lodge , a fly-in eco-lodge with viewing from a hot tub under the stars and more.
One of the most unique ways to view the northern lights? In the air. With Canada's Aurora you can see the northern lights at eye level. Another way to take northern lights viewing to new heights: aboard the Aurora Experience. Launched in February, , this private-chartered jet takes guests eye-level with the northern lights. They can also learn more about the aurora borealis from guest speakers during the flight.
In northern Sweden, the Treehotel is made up of six modern tree houses perched in the pines. The 7th Room has panoramic windows that make it perfect for spotting the northern lights. Destinations known for northern lights are often expensive. Think again.
At the 7 Fells Hostel in Finland, the owner Tinja—a retired backpacker—is serious when it comes to spotting the lights. She will personally wake you up or send you an SMS when the aurora spectacle is high. Home The Northern Lights. The Northern Lights The northern lights are also known as the aurora borealis, meaning light of dawn.
What are the Northern Lights? When is the best time of year to see the northern lights? Spring and autumn generally provide more stable weather conditions and milder temperatures plus there is greater aurora activity around the equinoxes. November through to February offer the darkest skies and longer evenings for maximum sky-gazing. The strongest lights tend to appear between 9pm and 2am , though the best sightings often occur between 11pm and midnight.
Why is aurora activity stronger around the equinoxes? View holidays ». Where is the best place to see the northern lights? Blog: Photographing the northern lights Read our 5-step guide to capturing the northern lights on camera Read blog ».
Auroral Activity and Forecasts Aurora forecasts are given for a 3-day period and are constantly updated. The Aurora Sky Station in Abisko, Sweden captures images every 5 minutes from their webcam Follow us on Facebook and Twitter for alerts when strong aurora are predicted. The science behind the aurora The sun is essentially a huge ball of self-luminous plasma which rotates every 27 days or so and surrounding the sun is a million-degree-hot atmosphere called corona.
Frequently asked questions about the northern lights Why are the northern lights different colours? The most frequent colour seen is green , caused by oxygen typically around km high Red is more rare and harder to see, also caused by oxygen and higher altitudes between km.
The purple and blue colours are caused by ionised nitrogen and occur at much lower altitudes. If all the colours mix together they appear as white or if the lights are very dim. Loved the article. Any chance you can tell me which farms you stayed on?
Looking to do that next March with a few friends total of 6. Thanks in advance for the assistance. Very well written summary. I agree with you that people should focus on the destination rather on Aurora. Kind regards, Martin. The best place ever!!! On top of the frozen Great Slave lake in Yellowknife Canada!!! In February you can see them almost every night.
The photos were all gorgeous and the lights and stars look so stunning. Thank you for sharing this with us. I heard Fairbanks, Alaska is a good way to go. If not then I will head to sweden or norway. Thank you :! Super helpful tips! This article helps a lot to get prepared for a northern lights adventure.
Amazing content! So realistic. I like the idea of should go for the destination not only for the aurora. Thanks for this article. Born in southern Finland and got to see northern lights in southern Finland!
Warm summer night, thankfully it was dark enough. Am asking because you mentioned it is approaching quite some years ago. Also wondering why you did not choose Alta… it is right up tgere in the north and has little habitation around, implying quicker access to darkness. Why Tromso, not Alta? Yes, we are in the solar minimum period. We were visiting Svalbard and you need to fly from Tromso to reach Svalbard. Tromso, though. Sunrise and sunset are the same time and even in practically uninhabited places like Abisko in Sweden, there is still light pollution.
Thanks for very helpful advice. I saw the Lights two nights ago near Tromso, while at sea, and the Bridge said they were the best he had seen. But though they were in a great arc across the sky, they were a dull cloudy colour and I was mightily disappointed, and thought is that it, and thought you maybe needed a fancy camera. So your advice that they are sometimes that colour and to persist is really good news.
Will follow your blog. Cameras can capture the light spectrum far better than our eye, so Northern Lights will never appear in the sky to your naked eye as they do in photographs or even video. Gray-ish in color is quite common and even gray-green. But sometimes there are explosions of color that are brighter. You just have to keep watching! I really appreciate your prompt and very helpful reply. I did see the Lights again the next night in the harbour of Alta, Norway and did see some green.
Alta has had a great few nights of the Lights. Other travellers on this cruise have told me they saw great colours, green and red on a different trip some time back.
So will both get a good camera, but not too expensive, and also keep looking with the naked eye on other trips! Oh how I love the northern lights! I always thought I would miss out, lol…. My wife and I are planning to be in Norway in last week of October this year and we would like to head to Tromso to glimpse of the Northern lights. This is an amazing blog to read. Thanks for the share. The northern lights are just beautiful to watch. I wish I could make it to Norway one day. Thanks for the share, Cheers!!
Any chance any of you have seen the Northern Lights in Alaska? We are planning to attend the world champion ice sculpting championship this year while chasing the northern lights. Any recommendations or tips would be appreciated. Fairbanks is a good place to attempt to see the Northern Lights. All the exact same tips apply for Aurora hunting in Alaska. Best of luck! Very informative article. We had the most fabulous holiday, we saw Aurora Borealis, learnt dog sledding, snow shoeing, snow-machining.
The train trip from Anchorage to Fairbanks was breathtakingly beautiful — we saw many moose and caribou and Bettles Lodge was absolutely loved. Since we wanted to combine the northern lights viewing with activities, we ended up booking a package. Part of the package was the Alaska Railroad Tour from Anchorage and we enjoyed it very much.
Everything worked out very smooth and I am looking forward to return in a couple of years to Alaska. This information would be really helpful.
I lived in Iceland for several years in the late 80s and early 90s. I saw the lights many times, and was entranced by the languid, sometimes almost imperceptible flowing movement of them; but virtually every video i find online has the movement sped up unrealistically.
I will be in Vancouver B. Where would be the best place to hopefully view the northern lights? Only a rare occasion of a very strong Aurora display is it ever seen that far south. Hello jeniffer! I am a newbie at NL hunting. So we book our tickets to copenhagen and oslo on early April. Then after 10 days we would like to hunt for NL. Can you please recommend us the best place to find NL — as a NL expert?
Because we only have time for one place. Would it be Sweden or Iceland? One of the most informative articles regarding Northern Lights I have read. In your article u said to pick destination as oppose to seeing NL. I have chosen Tromso, Norway. I want to plan for Sept. I will be traveling solo. Are there any travel tours you recommend? Thank you so much for your valuable tips on NL and photography. The Norwegians are very friendly.
Do you know where information about solar activity is published on the web? Also, the year cycle, is that recorded anywhere on line? Any suggestions for the best place to go? We were hoping to see them somewhere in the next year. I appreciate the information in your article because most places offering trips to see the lights make it sound like its a sure thing.
Realistic expectations are a much better way to ensure enjoyment overall. Solar maximum is predicted for , but even then it might happen later as even NASA who predicted solar max to occur in was incorrect as it occurred in You could also see the northern lights in the summer time!
But very cool that you were able to spot them at the end of July! I was talking to someone about their trip to Finland in where they saw the northern lights. Has anyone heard of this or can confirm or deny this? If it is true is it just in Finland or other countries as well? Why is there never any mention of Murmansk in the English speaking media when it comes to Northern Lights? Other places in the Murmansk area like Teriberka are absolutely stunning and even the city itself has a certain bleak, exotic appeal.
It does however have a surprisingly well established arctic tourism industry Northern lights, reindeer sleigh, husky sleigh, Saami village visit that is well known it seems to East Asians but Europeans mostly forget about it. English is of course limited but not non existent if you do your research before hand and people were friendly if you do know a bit of Russian. Hi Geoffrey! Thanks for mentioning Murmansk! It sounds like a really interesting destination and we have enjoyed our previous visits to Russia.
But it also sounds like one of those great off-the-beaten-path places to check out. Could you please recommend some places from where there is high chances to see northern lights.
Would be capturing Photos as well. Staying on North side of Iceland is recommeded or we can see aurora lights from Reykjavik or Vik as well? Your email address will not be published. Notify me of follow-up comments by email.
Notify me of new posts by email. This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed. The Northern Lights streak across the sky in Abisko, Sweden. Northern Lights arc over Lake Myvatn. The Northern Lights could be visible anytime during dark hours from September to April.
Northern Lights over a Sami lavvu in Abisko, Sweden. Weather in the Arctic can change very quickly. The Northern Lights could appear for minutes or hours. Sami structures make for an interesting foreground under the Northern Lights in Abisko, Sweden.
The Northern Lights appear in a spectrum of colors, most commonly green. The Northern Lights can be faint enough not to be seen to the naked eye. The moonlight helped illuminate us to take a Northern Lights selfie. Northern Lights and shooting stars in the Westfjords, Iceland. A massive display swirls around the sky over the Westfjords.
Infographic by Inntravel. Share Tweet Buffer Pin Flipboard. Comments Great post, eventhought title of it it should ".. Hi Marie, The thing about Iceland weather is that is changes very quickly.
Thanks, Gina! The horses posed so nicely for us to get that shot. We will most definitely do that! We love meeting up with fellow wanderlusters. LOVE the photos and the advice. What camera settings did you use to get the star-y sky? Hi Rachelle, Most of these Northern Lights photos were a second exposure. We will just have to come back again! Thanks for sharing our post Ronnie!
We hope you are The Travelbunny! They are truly a spectacular sight to see. What to expect. WOW, amazing pictures! And great tips! Hope to see the Northern Lights one day! Thanks, Yvonne! The Northern Lights really are a sight to see.
Hope you get to see them soon! Great tips. There quite pretty, it would be amazing to see them one day! Great post as always; those pictures are absolutely incredible. Excellent tips Jennifer! We have shared them on our Facebook page, too. I hope you do too, Will! Seeing the Northern Lights is spectacular. Wow, 4 hours Marilyn? Lucky you! They are mesmerizing to watch dance in the sky! Such great tips! I was in Iceland, but missed the NL.
Definitely want to go back for them. Thanks, Andi! Love your pictures! That's awesome, John! Hopefully they'll be putting on a show for you this winter. In Kirkenes, do the king crab safari! Great post! Thanks, Jay! How awesome that must have been to grow up under the Northern Lights! Thanks for your advise G. We would like to travel in January…wich place do you recommend? Wow, that sounds amazing!
Stop by our Facebook page and share some photos! Thanks, Lance! Also check out our tips for photographing the Northern Lights! You should be quite lucky. We have friends that have seen them 17 of 20 days already this month. Can we share the link to your photos with our readers?
Be sure to check out the weather forecast. Be sure to have the right clothing. Wear layers and well insulated boots. Hi Jenna, Northern Lights are only colored to the naked eye when they are very strong and bright, otherwise they usually look like light green or whitish wisps moving through the sky.
Do you have a trip planned, Chris? Thanks for all the great information! I am finalizing my planning for ten days in Iceland in February Hi Kim, Your trip to Iceland sounds wonderful. Love your amazing northern lights photos and the wonderful tips.! Just came back from my Iceland and Norway northern lights chasing trips! Sharon Ang from Singapore.
Hi Shirlyn, I would recommend March over December simply because the typically snow falls in December. Regards, Nidhi. Hi Nidhi, It will be quite cold, especially for someone not used to the weather. Hi, Nice images, i am planning for ICELAND in Dec for 8 days, i have request to make, as i m also a amateur photographer, planning to make lots of Timelapse of Aurora, waterfalls, lakes, etc, varied landscape, can you plz help me out in making a itinerary , and which places to go and the days needed…need your recommendation, which is better a self drive tour or a escorted tour , as i have heard, it snows heavily, roads blockage, and becomes difficult for driving,.
Hey Jennifer, thanks for the reply, this 8 days itinerary looks fabulous, yeah you said it right, a guided bus tour is not the way to go to travel Iceland, as my motive is to make time lapses and Photography, i have one more query before i go ahead with the final bookings, which month is better overall in terms of driving to all those places mentioned in the itinerary and the weather conditions, October or November or early December.
Thanks for your time! All the best, Dan the Aurora Man? One day. Definitely do let us know how the trip goes, Sara! Happy hunting! Hi Jennifer!! Thank you for your time, Sara. You will love Iceland, Joan! Happy hunting and let us know if you see the Northern Lights!
Very Pleased. Next stop, I need to learn to photograph it!! Good luck with seeing them!! Hi Jennifer, Your blog is so informative and real, your pictures are stunning. Hi Hannah, Glad to hear you enjoyed it!
Hi Alberto, I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but it is extremely unlikely that you will see the Northern Lights in August. Hey guys! Your post is great!! I hope to do someday as muchs trips as you have done. Thank you, Therie! Have you seen the Northern Lights in person? That being said, the factors include: — It also means going out of light polluted areas, so heading into the countryside 2. Enjoy, people! Thank you so much! It was definitely cloudy when we saw the Northern Lights outside of Tromso.
Hi Andy, Sure. Which country are you planning to visit? Thanks for a very useful and eminently readable article.
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