From Father Christmas, the Northern Lights and dog sledding in winter to white water rafting, canyoning and kayaking in summer we offer a compelling range of holidays to suit active families. Artisan Travel provides dream fulfilling holidays which marry expertise and local knowledge to provide unforgettable year-round experiences.
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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. Coronal Holes — A clue to when the Northern Lights might appear?
How do the Northern Lights appear? What is the Solar Maximum? And the image he got it was something even more unbelieveble, a really strong green cloud hovering above the mountains. Photographs tend to amplify the intensity quite a lot. Glad to got to see the Northern Lights, Daniel! I have seen them five times.
Once purely by chance from South Wales on 8th November , very bright reds and overhead, spectacular, even Patrick Moore mentioned this display in one of his many books. I was on Orkney last year and heard that the night I arrived the lights had made an appearance so the next night I walked above the street lights of Stromness at about ten p. I was treated to a greyish white display for about two hours, Really had to adjust my eyes to the dark and be patient, It was a very slow formation, like someone shining the beams of torches into the air or a SLOOOOW heart monitor.
The same happened the next night. I saw them again from Glastonbury in October, very clear and looked like a crazy cloud formation but it was such a clear night there was no way it was a cloud. The last time was on Samhain, October 31st, Bitterly cold Halloween evening and my friend and I were walking through a cemetery near Newbury, We saw a very distinct single curved line, again greyish in colour which gradually moved lower in the sky until it faded.
So yes, head out a few hours after dusk, away from Street lights.. Autumn is good!! Then wait and be patient. It is not always going to be a multi colured time lapse display, but you will be rewarded for your patience. Hey I loved your pics and article about the Aurora lights.
I live in Dublin and Unfortunately due to my collage life I cant plan a visit to Iceland or Finland more than a weekend ,until, end of may. And I missed the aurora in January where it appeared in Iceland. So I was wondering if I have any chance to travel on a weekend or do I need more than 3 nights?
Plus, is it true after it will start to disappear? There are no guarantees even if you stay three nights. And no, the Northern Lights are not going to disappear. This is going to sound like a lie, or a boast or whatever, but I have just seen the lights again. From Glastonbury.
Because I posted here a few days ago and have been renewing my interest, I found out today that the aurora put on a good display in Britain last night. I can just see the Northern horizon from my living room window, and despite a few clouds to the South and West we had a clear and cold night tonight. I watched for a while, it was not behaving in a cloud like way, but nothing great, so I was about to retire to bed. As I have observed before, beams carry far across the sky to East and West, and tonight there were a few at opposing angles.
At one point a totally random curved wisp just appeared in the East and then went as quickly. Will definitely keep them in mind when i plan a visit to see the Northern Lights. Seeing the lights is not as simple as folk believe. I have been interested in Astronomy since a young age and know enough about constellations etc to know even which direction to look in.
That sounds obvious, but a group of us drove out to the Ring Of Brodgar on Orkney one crystal clear night at ten p. Some of our party did not know how to find the Pole Star, I was happy to point it out to them, as the lights will always start in this direction. Unfortunately it was a crystal clear night but COLD, even in mid September and although we observed the beginning of the lights as a low greyish arc in the North with the sloooow heart monitor effect starting at midnight, some of the party were a bit disappointed and cold and wanted to leave..
The Moon on a stick?? Photos on this site and in general of the lights are stunning, as are time lapse videos, but folk need to realise that although bright colours can appear was red, so red!! Have managed to pick out pink and yellow shades before, but it does require being away from any light pollution and being incredibly patient. Also they do dance, but definitely not in the way folk think. Not sure I am in the right place to ask these questions… We are trying to calculate our best place to see the Northern Lights anytime between Dec.
Any thoughts? Hi Tina! Unfortunately, no one can give you an answer to where you can see the Northern Lights between December 24 and January 2. I can tell you that the Arctic receives the bulk of its snow in December and January so weather is just less stable. If you happen to see the Northern Lights, you count yourself lucky that you did. All that said, we believe Abisko, Sweden is one of the best places for a good chance to see the Northern Lights because of its micro-climate.
Abisko: no or few clouds, away from lights. Fancy places to rest [STK — swedish mountain club]. Good access — short trip by train from Kiruna. As others have said NL are really unpredictable — we was frantic looking at Aurora forecast — but we could see them three nights in a row.
Be alert the whole thing lasted half hour in my case. Your blog is so informative and real, your pictures are stunning. Glad to hear you enjoyed it! Certainly feel free to share on your FB Page. Where are you starting your own Northern Lights tour? After midnight, they stepped out of the ice house and noticed the northern lights. They took out folding chairs and sat on the ice with the lights appearing to dance on the ice around them.
Thanks for sharing, Keli! Jennifer, thanks for your post, very informative. I am thinking of coming to see the Northern Lights from United States and have a hard time selecting which country to go to. Will end of October be a good time?
As you said even though I really want to see the Northern Lights, I need to adjust myself and tell myself that it is an added bonus.
Being said that, which country should I visit? I heard a lot about Reykjavik but is afraid of too much tourist. Any suggestions? Hi Maureen, it really depends. Iceland will be nice in October. It will still be quite nice in October, but in Iceland you can have every type of weather all in the same day. We are two people from Chile we will be at Reykjavik the nights 19, 20, 24, 25, 26 august and we want to see the northern lights on a private tour to a good place.
I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but it is extremely unlikely that you will see the Northern Lights in August. We have just booked to go to Reykjavik on 5th February for three nights. Im a bit gutted after reading this now? The weather is just a bit stormier than other months, but there is always a chance.
Iceland is stunning and never disappoints! I loved your blog about the northern lights. This year, it has been a really high Northern Light activity in Iceland.
I saw the strongest northern lights ever late August this year! Last week I also got a chance to join a northern light boat tour! Then the guide asked us to run out and the whole sky was lit up by the northern lights. We sat on the deck for one hour enjoying the show! Trying to see northern lights and believe ending of solar maximus soon with Iceland in January best time.
Otherwise would Finland be possible when? You have the potential to see the Northern Lights in any of these destinations from September — March. Just realize that January is one of the worst months with the heaviest snowfall in all of these places, so you tend to experience more cloud cover and weather that prevent you from seeing the Northern Lights due to lack of clear skies.
I have a question. Not, not necessarily. The days are getting much longer already in March in the Arctic. The key to being able to see the Northern Lights is darkness and when there are only a few hours of darkness, the chances of seeing the Northern Lights are greatly reduced.
I am planning a trip to Finland in February. Can anyone help with the best places to sight the Northern Lights in Finland? Anywhere above the Arctic Circle in Finnish Lapland.
Rovaniemi is extremely popular with the Santa Claus village there. There is also the snow hotel at Kemi. Basically, you want to stay outside of the big cities like Oulu for easy Northern Lights viewing. Awesome photos and advice. We always hope that travelers we send to Iceland between September and March get to see the Northern Lights, but we always fill their itineraries with suggestions for so many other things to do that the Northern Lights would hopefully feel like a bonus, as you say.
The dream of my life is to watch an aurora, but the trip is very expansive for me and my wife, so we only have one shot to see it. In wich place we have more chances to see an aurora and wich month of the year?
We were thinking about Tromso or Reykiavik in september for ten or twelve days, What do you recommend us?? Yellowknife in Canada is an excellent place for aurora hunting and the end of September would be a good time. Apparently equinoxes are the best time of year and this year will be September 22nd. Plan for some activities and sight seeing and have some aurora forecast websites bookmarked on your phone to keep track of storm activity. Take a good DSLR camera as the auroras I saw in Finland last year were very disappointing to the naked eye but looked amazing when shot with a long exposure.
Especially the last one with the horses. Absolutely worth the chase! September to March is considered Aurora season. It also means going out of light polluted areas, so heading into the countryside. Cold, clear, crisp weather, no precipitation rain or snow etc — again partly this is a visibility issue.
Cloud-cover will kill your attempts to view Auroras. Some months in the September — March season like January can be a bit dodgy because it snows a lot, and there is cloud.
Solar maximum helps. I chose late Feb-early March because of the combination of factors above, being near the equinox as well. The weather was pretty much perfect, with no precipitation most days, clear cold skies. I also went with an experienced off-road company who specialise in Aurora tours www.
Their drivers are experienced Aurora hunters and while they cannot promise they will find you Auroras to look at on a single given night, they will give you the best chance to see one or more if they are there to be seen.
If you are and have a 4WD vehicle, of course feel free but be safe. If you are from warmer countries and have little experience driving in very wintry conditions, I would highly recommend going with a professional tour company like superjeep. I did this and even though I am an experienced driver with a 4WD vehicle and not totally unfamiliar with winter weather driving, I enjoyed the experience more for being with this tour group.
I was especially lucky as we had a solar flare on the night we went out, so the whole sky was full of Auroras! Thanks for all your insights, Jadey. It does not need to be cold, and in fact, the Aurora is present all year round. So so so informative! We have seen multiple reviews online that It might not be good time, possibility of being cloudy. I am planning on being in Oslo mid October. I decided to do an add on to see the Northern Lights.
I am now getting very confused. It seems like Tromsco is good but that Abisko would be better. What are your thoughts on this? If your goal is to see the Northern Lights, then yes, we recommend Abisko. It has a micro-climate that gives it much more stable weather than anywhere else in the European Arctic. Have you read our article about Abisko? I did a lot of research. On trip advisor, they said the lights chasers in Tromco are great and pretty much get you to see them.
I looked at reviews from last October. They may keep you out until 3 AM. There is a network of people in touch with one another to find them. They are willing to travel far to get to see them. I booked Wed. Good luck!
There can be weeks with nothing. Just have your expectations set and it will be a real bonus if and when you do see them. From what I have read online, most people had clouds and the chasers found the breaks. Fingers crossed. Very cool that you got to see the total eclipse! Fairbanks, Alaska has been the best place so far for me. I usually capture great pictures over the pond but Alaska Oct has been the best so far.
I shoot with my Nikon DA with the 14mmmm for the best results. Iceland is a nice place to go as well since my friend lives there. Finland, Sweden, and Norway are also excellent countries to visit. One bucket list item is to see the Southen lights in Tasmania or Antarctica. This photos are amazing and I love the trip about staying at a place that has wake up service But really cool. 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! For those planning their own aurora hunt we advise going whenever it's convenient for you to spend the most amount of time as possible with your eyes on the sky. Whatever the year or weather prediction we say "Just go for it" and there's no time like the present! This graph shows that my best aurora experiences are spread out across the peak phases of the solar cycle.
Predicting the exact month, week and night is the hard part and involves a lot of luck and just being there. When are the best months to see the northern lights? What is the best time to see the northern lights?
Midnight-to-2am is the best time to see the northern lights but they may occur anytime from sunset to sunrise. The later you can stay awake the better chance of getting to witness the grandeur of the northern lights. If you have clear earth weather and active space weather we highly suggest staying at your post until dawn. View our Aurora Hunting Tips.
What causes the aurora borealis? The aurora borealis, also known as the northern lights, form when charged particles emitted from the sun solar wind get caught up in the earth's magnetic field and collide with atoms and molecules in our atmosphere. These collisions release little photons of light miles high in our ionosphere.
The rays that you see are our magnetic field getting illuminated by the incoming energy. It's like throwing dye in the sky. What causes the different Aurora Borealis colors? When oxygen atoms and molecules get bombarded they release green and red photons. When nitrogen molecules get struck they release the beautiful and rare purple light. More here: What Are the Northern Lights. Where do auroras occur? In the southern hemisphere they have the Aurora Australis , the southern lights, which are best viewed from Antarctica.
Where in Alaska can I see the aurora borealis? In Alaska, the best place to see the aurora borealis is around Fairbanks. Where in Fairbanks can I see the aurora borealis? If you are do-it-yourself adventurer, rent a 4-wheel drive SUV, get a north-facing hotel room Pike's Lodge is convenient and then search out Ester Dome and Murphy Dome.
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