A minibus evening tour where we look for the northern lights. We check the cloud and aurora forecast and drive out of Reykjavik to a location where conditions are optimal to find the magical auroras.
Included in this tour are free photos of you and your group so you can keep the memory of this natural wonder! See photos from previous tours here.
Duration: ~4 hours
Pick-up: 21:30 - 22:00
Available: Sep - Apr
Age limit: 6 years
Difficulty: Easy / Sightseeing
Tour Highlights:
- Northern Lights search
- Small group tour in a minibus
- Free photos of you/your group
- Expert Aurora Guide
- Stargazing
Location:
South West Corner of Iceland
Included:
Pick up and drop off at hotels or guesthouses in Reykjavik, tour in a minibus, English guidance, northern lights tour.
Bring with you:
Hiking boots or sturdy footwear, warm outdoor layers, weatherproof top layer, headwear, gloves, and scarves. There is no such thing as too many layers on a northern lights tour! A tripod for your camera is very useful too.
Contact us:
If you have a question about this tour you can use the contact form here below.
If you have a general inquiry (cancellations, feedback, reschedule etc) please click here
from:
9 990
per adult
Children (6-11 years): 4 950
Popular Tour - Likely to sell out
You have selected: Northern Lights Tour
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Aurora Bonus
If the Northern Lights don't show up on your tour you can contact our sales team here and we will book you on another departure, free of charge upon availability. Please remember to mention your booking number in the email. Please note that the Aurora Bonus is available once per customer.
Tour Description
The Northern Lights
Escape the city's light pollution and come with us to look for the magical Northern Lights or Auroras Borealis as they are called as well. Our specialised guides will decide, on travel day, where to go, after taking into account both the aurora forecast and cloud cover to maximise your chances of seeing them in all their glory. We travel in a minibus, which means small groups and therefore personal service from our guides.
Remember to bring a tripod if you want to take a picture of the northern lights
Places
We never know where the best conditions will be. The weather changes quickly and the destinations vary. We might head to the National park Thingvelllir, Reykjanes (The Southern Peninsula) which is covered with lava and extreme landscape or Borgarfjordur which is a beautiful fjord in west of Iceland to name a few.
What are the Northern Lights?
This natural phenomenon happens because of chemical reactions in the Earth‘s atmosphere. Gaseous particles collide with electrically charged molecules and atoms released from the sun‘s atmosphere. These particulates from the sun are blown towards earth by the solar wind and can enter both the northern and southern hemisphere because of weak magnetic field at the poles.That‘s the reason for why we only see those dancing lights close to the Northern pole (Auroras Borealis) and south pole (Auroras Australis).
The different colours are due to different molecules, oxygen forms the most common one, yellow/green and nitrogen produces blue/purple-red for instance.
magical auroras iceland
Please note: As the success of the Magical Auroras tour is heavily dependent on weather conditions, we reserve the right to cancel departures until 18:15 on the day of the tour. If the tour goes ahead and no northern lights are seen we offer clients the chance to join another evening’s departure free of charge upon availability. The second tour might possibly be in a minibus. Note that you need to re-book through the booking portal link in your voucher.
Read customer reviews
Magical Auroras - Rated 4.8/5 based on 55 customer reviews
Gilly is our hero!
5 by Cole September 30, 2018
The night had gone on and we hadnt seen anything more than a 3, but just as we were about to enter the city Gilly spotted the lights ans we got to see a wonderful view!!
Good trip
5 by Yeo Tze Hern April 7, 2019
Tour guide Andreanne was good and clear about where to find the aurora. She is very patient too, making the whole trip enjoyable. Really grateful for her.
They tried!
4 by RAGHU April 7, 2018
The tour guide tried his best to find a gap in the clouds. But couldn’t. He drove South for quite a distance. After a wait we headed north. No luck. Mini bus is recommended as it helps get in and out fast in the cold night.
April 12th Tour
5 by Mariana Oliveira Rodrigues April 20, 2018
The tour was great, but our tour guide Clemmy really made the difference. He has an extensive knowledge and he’s very passionate about the northern lights. We got a tour and a lesson about nature and science. The tour was a great experience and even though the lights were not too bright, Clemmy took some great photos of the Aurora. Definitely recommend this tour!
Amazing tours with great guides
5 by Dilini April 19, 2018
Having spent a full day and night on tours, I can’t say how much we enjoyed the time. Both guides were great and so informative. Would highly recommend
Amazing tours with great guides
5 by Claire April 19, 2018
Having spent a full day and night on tours, I can’t say how much we enjoyed the time. Both guides were great and so informative. Would highly recommend
Brilliant guide
5 by Shelley Harris April 14, 2018
We took the Northern Lights evening tour, and had a brilliant time - even though, on this occasion, the lights were not forthcoming; we only saw a tiny green pulse in the sky. Nevertheless, we had a wonderful evening, enjoying an unpolluted night sky, across which a dazzling shooting star scattered its light. Our guide Clemmy was absolutely superb - expert and friendly, a great communicator. Our kids are still talking about him.
Perfect day
5 by Mylene Le borgne March 3, 2018
Everything was great and well organized. Our guide was awesome with lots of stories
We Didn't See the Lights
5 by Margo March 27, 2019
But man were those night sky views something special. Our guide was friendly and kind, patient and knowledgeable. The tour does offer a year to rebook to see the lights, if you did not have the opportunity to see them, and unfortunately we did not get to reschedule during our trip, and who knows if we'll be within the year, but our trip during the day was well-worth the value and the opportunity to even experience the night sky with a knowledgeable guide was pretty special in and of itself.
Northern Lights
5 by David and Ellen Jordan March 25, 2018
The guide we had and the knowledge he imparted on the night could not have been better. The bonus of course was that we experienced seeing the lights in their majesty and would not have done so without the persistence of our guide who travelled far and wide to get a decent cloud break. It was stunning. Thanks again.
Great Experience
5 by Andrea S March 19, 2018
We were picked up promptly and having picked up others we headed out of town. Our tour guide was really helpful, friendly and knowledgeable and really took the time to explain how to get the best pictures. You really do need to get your camera sorted whilst on the bus as it is infuriating for others if you are flashing lights around once you get to a destination and they are trying to get pictures! Our guide spent a lot of time taking photos so that even if ours hadn't tuned out well we still would have had good ones to download. A fantastic experience and I would highly recommend!
Northern Lights - 9 March 2019
5 by Visiting from San Francisco March 18, 2019
"Our group had an amazing experience. Of course, it due to the fact we were fortunate enough to witness this unbelievable phenomenon in our lifetime. I love that this company offers free photo taking. It made it all the more memorable. Our guide, Andreane, was awesome. Thank you.
The driver...
5 by Paloma Jarque March 15, 2019
... was amazing! His name is Gomi, he was super nice and patient!
Extreme Iceland tour
5 by Armando March 13, 2019
"I found all 3 of my booked trips in Iceland booked through Extreme Iceland to be amazing. The tour guides/drivers were very informative & friendly, they were on time for the pick ups and allowed a bit of flexibility with the tours to accommodate the passengers.
Additionally the booking administration always kept me informed of any changes to the schedule well in advance.
I would definitely use Extreme Iceland tours again & recommend them to anybody wanting a more personalised small group tour."
Aurora guide fantastic
5 by Tariq Pir March 12, 2018
Very enthusiastic and informed guide. He wanted us to get the most out of the tour.
Northern Lights
5 by Pietro & Claudia March 10, 2018
Great experience with Northern Lights tour on March 2nd. Tour guide was simply the best! We saw an amazing show in the sky. Unforgetable experience!!!
Really nice tour!
5 by Ludovico February 7, 2019
We had a wonderful night. Weather conditions were perfect, a bit cold and windy but "no pain, no gain". We were lucky in search of Northern Lights and we had incredible moments with our guide and adventure mates. Nick was very nice and qualified: during the trip he gave us lots of information on the phenomenon itself and, once we arrived on site, he took us beautiful photos giving us unforgettable emotions. Thanks Extreme Iceland!
Nick was great
5 by JMB February 5, 2019
Nick was fantastic! We had to go out twice as we missed them the first night, and we had Nick both nights! He was great. And the pictures we got the second night were amazing.
A pleasant tour
5 by Coco February 23, 2019
The tour guide is very professional and humorous, tell us many fun facts of Iceland. He drove us to a dark place and we spotted the northern lights successfully. Even the picture of us was not captured very good by him but it was still a pleasant tour.
Unbelievable
5 by Dustin Kennedy February 23, 2018
I booked Extreme Iceland for a variety of tours while in Iceland and none disappointed. I wish I had experienced this company before I arrived as most my tours were booked before we landed, and the ones I went on with other companies did not even compare. I must say, our driver was unbelievable. Not i only informative the entire time on educating us, but would not quit until he found the lights. He was calling friends in different a parts of Iceland getting weather and my updates in effort to plan and head to the right spot. We drove for hours, in which other drivers and tours had quit and gone home, well we were one of the only tours to see the lights that night as a result. When we finally found a break in the sky, our driver couldn’t have been more excited for all of us. He took professional pictures for us as well, and uploaded them for us to download. Such an awesome experience. You would be crazy not to book with these guys. Thanks again!
Saw the lights!
5 by Cynthia February 22, 2019
Small tour more personal than a trip on one of the large tour buses. We saw the lights even though they were dim. They came back three times while we were there. If we had not been satisfied we could book another tour for free.
Outstanding Northern Lights Tour
5 by Rob Pierce February 21, 2019
"This was the first time that I had ever seen the Northern Lights and honestly had no idea what to expect. But the tour guide, Nick, made it absolutely pain-free.
First, I received a confirmation email/text earlier in the day to let me know that the conditions were right for the lights that evening. After the bus picked us up, in addition to giving a scientific and mythological overview of the lights, Nick filled us all in on what settings our cameras needed in order to see them.
When we reached our destination, Nick set up his own camera and took some great shots of us with the lights in the background. To make things even a little more magical, I proposed to my girlfriend on this tour and Nick had all the right poses and ideas in mind to capture it in a truly breathtaking way. Thanks, Nick!"
Great combo offer
5 by Kashyap Dixit February 16, 2019
We took the tour package containing golden circle tour with aurora sightings. We were lucky to have sunny weather for the morning tour, but aurora sighting was very feeble. They rescheduled us to the tour very next day without any additional charge, which was amazing. We had great sightings next day, and got free photographs taken by our tour guides with their great camera. Overall, very satisfying experience for good price.
Wow
5 by Elizabeth Echevarria & Veronica Perez February 15, 2019
"Nick,
We are so glad we got you as our guide. You not only kept all of us entertained by your funny stories on our long drive out, you were also quite instructive. You explained a rather scientific - astronomical process, in easy to understand and more familiar concepts. As someone who took a college course in astronomy, back in the day, you explained the phenomenon of the Northern Lights in 10 min. what took my college professor 60 min, and I spent hours trying to comprehend.
You gave us the experience of a lifetime. Thank you for helping us experience something on our bucket list. I loved Iceland, but if I can return, I would next time choose to do so in the summer, rather than the middle of winter ;)"
Beautiful
5 by Arlene February 15, 2019
The tour guides job was fairly easy on the night we had our tour. We could see the lights from the bus before we arrived at our destination. He was willing to stay as long as we liked to view and wait for more.
The PERFECT experience!
5 by Tessa February 13, 2019
"Frimann was a terrific guide! He kept us informed at all times, where he was headed and his plans to guide us find the aurora!
He was very helpful with the photos-taking, and although we didn’t see a very clear aurora that evening, Frimann made it a great tour for us to be a part of."
All time best guide
3 by Luke February 13, 2018
I don’t recall the name of our guide, but she was absolutely fantastic! Very knowledgeable, fun and interesting. Very safe driver as well.
Extreme Iceland
5 by Emily February 11, 2019
Extreme Iceland was amazing! I went on a number of tours with them, and the guides were friendly, informative, and they Meade the whole experience really nice. Extreme Iceland gave me the opportunity to do things I would never have done on my own, and they were professional and easy to deal with in every respect. I highly recommend them.
Excellent tour :)
5 by Lorna February 1, 2019
"Tour was well organised, pick up was easy and the guide was excellent and attentive to everyone and gave us lots of info.
He took us to an area where no other bus was and seeing the lights is a great experience.
Would definetly use this company again."
Highly recommended
5 by Ycka December 3, 2018
Clemmy was our tour guide. He explained very well how the northern lights was formed. He was not just a great tour guide, but a very good photographer as well. He taught us the right setting for our cameras so we could get a good photo of the northern lights.
I just want to suggest that he should turn off his cellphone or put it away from his mic while talking on the tour so it would not make static noise.
Amazing experience
5 by Emily December 27, 2018
Wow is all I can say! The tour guide was extremely patient and knew the best spot to be in on the night. He also took some brilliant photos which were available to view online the very next day! Thanks so much
Iceland December 2018
5 by Mark georgiou December 24, 2018
Went to Iceland to see the Northen Lights, Whale watching, Glacier climbing, Snowmobiling and the golden circle tour. Only thing we didn’t see was a Whale. Used Extreme Iceland for all the tours, they give you the option of going out again if you don’t see the Lights or the Whales until you do. We didn’t see the Northern Lights on our first attempt so tried again on the last night, we managed it due to the understanding and knowledge of the tour guide, he made a call to remain where we were and an hour later we witnessed the magnificent sight. Snowmobiling was an amazing experience, guides were really professional, fun and really nice people who enjoy their work so it was highly enjoyable. I would recommend it. Buses were of a high standard and generally prompt. Very good service, I would use them again.
Last Night of 3 week holiday in search of Northern lights
5 by Judi December 2, 2018
We had done a northern lights cruise up the coast of Norway without seeing the lights, we then flew to Iceland for a week and had two outings to see the Northern lights while on a tour with no luck. Our flights were changed which meant we had one more night in Iceland so I booked with Extreme Iceland to go out for the last time to hunt the Northetn lights. Our driver and guide was Gumi and he was wonderful . Lots of great information . We drove out to the National park but there was too much cloud cover so he moved on . Through the camera we could see a small arc of green so he quickly got everyone to have a photo with this green behind them . It wasn’t much but if nothing dlse came at least it was something . It was getting late but he was happy to stay out the suddenly the sky lit up , the Northern lights were dancing all over the sky, it was magical .
Great guide!
5 by Katy December 18, 2018
We had the same tour guide Nick (Scottish, wasn’t told his surname!) for the northern lights tour and also golden circle tour 2 days later. Nick was very knowledgable, we learned so much, and he was also very laid back and we felt very comfortable on our tours. Nothing was ever too much and we all had such a laugh! Would highly recommend! Thanks again Nick!
Amazing Experience
5 by Daniel December 17, 2018
I had some tours with Extreme Iceland, and all of them were excellent. I don't have a single bad thing to say about the guys. Had a great time!!
Fantastic Northern Lights Tour
5 by Marlen December 15, 2018
I greatly enjoyed this tour . Nick, our guide , was most informative about the northern lights. I especially appreciated the camera utilized to capture NL images . I highly recommend this tour - a must do.
Northern Lights
5 by Pravir December 10, 2018
Very satisfied. Cannot complain too much once you have seen the lights!
Tour guide was very helpful in helping other set up their cameras to get the most optimal picture. The only complaint is that the tour guide should have been taken photographs of the customers given. Nevertheless he was friendly and informative.
It would also be great to have a link to all the photos that he took with his camera on the night.
Absolutely Incredible
5 by Richard November 9, 2018
Had an absolutely fantastic time. We were lucky enough to see the Northern lights and they were incredible. The tour was amazing and Arnar was brilliant!
Amazing
5 by Martin & Sue November 6, 2018
We had an amazing experience with Extreme Iceland! We were unable to get on our first choice Northern Light tour but booked Extreme and was so glad that we went with them instead. Picked up as told and then very well looked after by Nick who took us out to try and see the lights! He took us to different sights in an effort to try to get the best visibility and we were rewarded by midnight with a fabulous display of the lights captured by Nick on his camera but also visible with the naked eye! Nick stood out in the cold and made sure everyone got a good photo! We would highly recommend Extreme and the work Nick put in to making our evening so special! Many thanks we are still talking about it now!
They won't give up!
5 by Hadi November 4, 2018
"Short and to the point:
- Knowledgable guide
- Experienced ppl, really do know how the chase the lights
- Wont give up! Will go to 2-3 locations if they have to to find them
- Gets boring while you're waiting for the light to appear, nothing anyone can do about that
- Take with you some snacks, packed soup maybe and good music. Can be a while till you see anything
- Check venue.is for best updates on Aurora activity
- BOOK FOR EVERY DAY YOURE THERE FOR! Tours get cancelled (and refunded) if its raining or very cloudy (which it often is)"
Nice tour, but missed the lights!
4 by Linda November 29, 2018
Terrific guide (Clemmy), very entertaining and knowledgeable. Went out to try to see the lights the first day of our trip, but they were a no-show. It was very easy to rebook for another try 2 days later, got the same great guide, but unfortunately nature did not put on much of a show. Clemmy has his camera set up, and we could see the lights in the camera screen just above the horizon with his aperture settings picking up the faint green color. Unfortunately it wasn’t much to see with the naked eye - just a faint light color in some areas. We probably could have pushed to rebook for a third try, but decide 2 attempts were enough for us. Minibus was a tight fit but otherwise comfortable. Tour length (about 4 hours) was long enough to get a good try at seeing the lights, but not too long to get boring or frustrated. Would recommend this tour despite our disappointment with nature!
Great Company
4 by Emily November 29, 2018
I booked three tours with Extreme Iceland (Arctic Adventures) and had a great time on all three! The staff is absolutely fantastic! I would definitely book through this operator again.
Northern lights
5 by Helen November 19, 2018
Bit of a mishap with the traffic not being very good, but not the driver's fault. Our tour guide explained the chances of us not seeing anything and what we could expect to see (no green in the sky) so we were already prepared. We were very lucky, we caught them straight away and they gave us plenty of time to watch them. A real bonus was the picture they took of everyone and put on a googledocs so you can download your picture the next day and have a lifetime momentum.
November 11th Tour
4 by Jessica November 18, 2018
The tour was good. The tour guide did a very good job of explaining the chances of seeing or not seeing the Aurora. We didn’t see much, but did a little. Supposedly he took photos of us, but I have not yet seen the photos on the website. Not sure what happened there?
Only works if the lights show up
3 by DCC November 17, 2018
Knew this going in and our guide seemed a bit rushed. However he did his best to try and find some light to look at. We went off the road and our bus got stuck and had to be towed out. But almost magically, the lights showed up so it was a fine time anyway. Felt bad for the diver as I know this was one of those things that just happens.
Magical Aurora's
5 by Ron October 7, 2018
The guide was very knowledgeable and kept us informed of where we were going and what we were looking for. We had stopped a couple of times as we were to meet up with a second Extreme Adventures Minibus, however after a couple of stops and not connected we just moved on. This resulted in a couple of unnecessary stops but nothing of great significance.
The guide took us to a couple of locations where we were able to get a good view of the Aurora's. The guide also advised what we were looking for and pointed out where they were once spotted. He also provided good assistance for ensuring the proper camera settings were in place for the best picutres.
Northern lights tour with Extreme Iceland
5 by Chris October 17, 2018
Loved this tour. We were lucky enough to see the lights and would recommend to anyone.
The bus collected us on time at our hotel and dropped us back again afterwards.
The driver didn't really say much on the way to the location and we stopped off for half an hour at a service station for no apparent reason.
That said... I didn't book the tour for a chat on the bus so I knock no points off for that. I didn't even mind the delay at the service station because I think it was the case we were just waiting for optimum conditions.
Either way the tour took us to see the northern lights we wouldn't have otherwise seen so absolutely no complaints whatsoever.
October 16th Tour
5 by Hsiuwen October 16, 2018
Simon, our tour guide, was awesome. Simon is knowledgeable, polite and very patient taking pictures for us one by one. We saw the northern lights pretty soon after leaving the city, which was great. On top of that, right before midnight, a huge scale of northern lights appeared! I am so happy and grateful! Thank you for a wonderful viewing of the wonderful northern lights!
Never give up
5 by Yasushi October 1, 2018
The solar activity was low, but the end of tour, we finally saw the northern lights. Never give up!
Northern Lights tour
5 by Elle January 27, 2018
An amazing tour- a poor northern lights forecast, but we were treated the most spectacular display. Simon was a great tour guide- really friendly and knowledgable :)
If only the weather was as cooperative!
5 by Robyn January 23, 2018
We had aurora sightings being called in pretty much from the moment of pickup. Our driver hurried us down to the shore, while we were still in town and sure enough, we got to see the lights!! When that started to fade, we headed out of town to try our luck, but the clouds had other ideas, unfortunately. Still, we were only in Iceland for 3 nights and knew it was quite possible we wouldn't get to see them at all, so we were over the moon to have it happen so easily! The pics our guide took for us are just awesome and I will remember that trip for a very long time! Thank you
Only a glimpse but still worth it
4 by Lisa January 21, 2019
Our tour guide did the best that they could with the shifting conditions of the weather, cloud cover, etc. I felt that our driver and the companion driver were truly concerned with getting us to an area where we could see the lights which was the reason for our tour taking a little longer than expected. You are dealing with Mother Nature so, of course, there are no guarantees. Because we were only able to see the lights in the far-off distance, our guide took the time to ensure he used his camera with a slowed shutter speed to capture each group of people on the bus with the lights in the background. While it was disappointing that the weather didn't cooperate and we weren't able to see the lights with the naked eye- I was grateful to have the photos that DID show the lights.
Excellent Tour
5 by Andrew January 2, 2019
It was so worth it. Our tour driver was really nice and informative. He took us to a little private spot to see the lights. Must do for Iceland in the winter.
Great guide!
5 by Zoë January 12, 2019
My boyfriend and I went on the Magical Aurora tour last weekend with Frienman. He was very funny and approachable and very knowledgeable. The conditions weren't great but he took a less travelled street and we were lucky enough to see the Northern Lights! He took amazing photos for us and honestly couldn't be happier with the tour considering the poor forecast. Highly recommend!
Great experience
5 by Dedra January 10, 2019
Extreme Iceland was very easy to work with. I was able to book everything online and received timely communication. They were very organized and the guides were friendly and knowledgeable. I love that the Northern Lights tour included photos for those of us who did not bring a real camera and tripod.
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