Northern Lights Tour Packages

Northern Lights Tours in Iceland

The auroras - or polar lights - are a natural phenomenon which appears in the sky in high-latitude regions near the Arctic and Antarctic Circles. This odd occurrence can paint the night sky with dancing light and surreal colors.

The Best Northern Lights Spots In and Around Reykjavík

Even if you do not want to leave the city, you can still find some nice spots in town where the light pollution is lower and your chances are better.

In Reykjavík:

• Grótta Lighthouse, Seltjernernes peninsula
• Harpa Concert Hall
• Perlan
• Heiðmörk Nature Reserve
• Reykjavík’s City Parks (Hljómskálagarður, Klambratún, Laugardalur, and Elliðaárdalur)
• Úlfarsfell, Úlfarsáldalur

Outside of Reykjavík:

• Thingvellir National Park car park
• Gullfoss car park
• Hafravatn Lake
• Kleifarvatn Lake

Northern Lights over Laugarvatn Fontana geothermal pool. Photo: Laugarvatn Fontana

Northern Lights Tours in Iceland

If you take an organized Northern Lights tour, you will be in the safe hands of a local tour guide. These guides are experts, especially skilled at finding the best spots, and at making the most of the stay while you are waiting for the show.

Every tour is different. There is no fixed location. The tour operators pick the destination based on the actual cloud cover and the aurora forecast. They know all the best viewpoints, the safest parking places, have years of experience, and local wisdom.

Northern Lights tours depart almost every day from the middle of September until the middle of April. A tour can get canceled due to unfortunate weather conditions or cloud cover. They will not take you out if there is no chance to see any lights. In these cases, you will be offered a spot on the next day’s tour or get a full refund.

No one can assure that you will see the aurora. Even if the conditions seem optimal, you can go on a tour and have no luck with the lights. In this case, you will be offered a spot on the next day’s tour for free. In order to maximize your chances, book a Northern Lights tour on the day of your arrival and repeat the tour every day until you finally see the aurora.

There are plenty of amazing and adventurous ways to see the aurora which make the waiting time fun. You can take a bus tour, super jeep tour, go on a boat ride, or combine them with other activities and multi-day tours.

Enjoy the benefit of being guided by local experts. They closely monitor the forecasts and have a great amount of experience with the Icelandic road conditions and terrain. Relax and enjoy the comfort of having nothing to worry about, and no need to drive in a foreign country in a dark and snowy winter night.

Aurora dancing over Jökulsarlon glacier lagoon

How to Dress for a Northern Lights Tour

Thanks to the warm ocean streams around the island, being at 65° North in Iceland is much more pleasant than other parts of the world at the same latitude. But having said that, Gulf Stream or not, we are still at 65° North, so winter is pretty cold. Be prepared for the Icelandic conditions.

Choosing the right clothing will make your waiting time much more tolerable and comfortable. Standing in the darkness, waiting for the magical auroras to show themselves requires good insulation since you will be standing around with very little activity.

Have a warmly insulated, windproof outer layer. Good, warm, sturdy, waterproof boots; warm, windproof hats and gloves; and a cozy scarf are all necessary. It is smart to have some reusable pocket warmers to use during the long waiting period.

Read More About The Northern Lights

Read our complete northern lights travel guide