How to Plan a Trip to See Aurora Borealis? My Personal Experience on Spotting Magical Northern Lights in 2026!
Have you been wondering how to plan a trip to see Aurora Borealis? We’re Divinely Guided!
The quest to witness the Aurora Borealis, or Northern Lights, is a dream for many adventurers and nature lovers alike.
While Giorgy traveled to Finnish Lapland in hopes of catching this natural spectacle, a stroke of bad luck with the weather meant that remains a dream nowadays.
Therefore, today, I, Igor, am excited to share with you not just tips on how to plan a trip to see the Aurora Borealis but also my personal experience that turned into a once-in-a-lifetime adventure.
Aurora Borealis – fascinating light show that lures people from all over the world. Coming to the coldest part of the earth just to experience this spectacle. Many people have the luck; some are leaving disappointed as there wasn’t a good time for the show.
Let’s read my experience of the first time seeing Aurora Borealis in Iceland, including a few tips on spotting it.
You’d think how silly we’re that we’re chasing something like this and then you experience it yourself and understand it all.
I wanted to live in Iceland for a couple of winter months to explore Icelandic hidden gems and see the widely celebrated Northern Lights. I enjoyed Icelandic summer, the midnight sun, and nature in bloom.
But immediately when the days got shorter and nights longer, my body felt excited. I knew the Aurora Borealis season was almost here.
What is the Aurora Borealis & How Is It Formed?
Dancing in the night sky. Quickly changing colors, its shape. Disappearing and then coming back. As quickly as it comes, it leaves. Sometimes, it takes hours; another time it’s just a minute. The show is over. The curtain falls. The queen bids farewell.
The Aurora Borealis is one of our planet’s most spectacular natural phenomena. It fascinates travelers, photographers, and scientists. But how is Aurora Borealis formed? What is it? And why is it so unique?
This is how is Aurora Borealis formed… Generally said, it is a kind of cosmic dance in the Earth’s atmosphere over 90 kilometers above the Earth’s magnetic field.
The breathtaking color waves are caused by disturbances in the magnetosphere caused by the solar wind, a stream of charged particles (protons, electrons, and alpha particles – helium nuclei) emanating from the Sun.
The extent of the aurora depends on the strength of the solar wind.
However, the exact physical processes leading to the different aurora types have yet to be discovered. And that’s what makes this natural phenomenon so fascinating from a scientific point of view.
Tips on How to Plan a Trip to See Aurora Borealis
Here I am going to share some personal tips on how to plan a trip to see Aurora Borealis!
#1. FINDING THE RIGHT PLACE
The aurora borealis is a phenomenon that occurs at high northern latitudes and is common in Arctic and subarctic regions such as Alaska, Scandinavia, or Iceland.
It can also be observed in the southern hemisphere, where it’s called aurora australis, for example in Patagonia, New Zealand, or Antarctica.
Although there have been a few exceptions, and people could see it in mid-latitudes, these types of aurorae are usually not that strong.
#2. FINDING WHEN IS THE BEST TIME TO SEE AURORA BOREALIS
The aurora can only be observed under dark clear skies (i.e. without clouds). Therefore, you cannot expect to arrive in Iceland in July and see the Northern Lights.
In the northern hemisphere, it’s the best time to see the Aurora Borealis from September to late March. In the southern one, from May to late September.
#3. WAITING FOR THE RIGHT CONDITIONS AND THE BEST TIME OF NIGHT TO SEE AURORA BOREALIS
Watching the Northern Lights in the sky is ideal in the middle of the night when the night sky is at its darkest. For this reason, you should also prefer to stay away from larger cities that are sources of light smog.
The sun’s activity also plays a role, as it is not constant but changes continuously. It’s therefore worth taking the solar cycle activity forecast into account.
#4. THE BEST COUNTRY TO SEE AURORA BOREALIS
Taking all of the above into account, Iceland itself is the best country to see the Northern Lights.
If you want to see the most amazing aurora of your life, you’d go to one of the best spots in the Icelandic Highlands, such as Thórsmörk, Kerlingarfjöll, or Landmannalaugar.
However, if you’re lucky, you can see it wherever you are. Because even though the cities here are lit up, the light smog isn’t as great as other places.
But, if you’re a photographer or want to see the best northern light, you should leave the city and go far away from the civilization.
Very important note: you need to be patient when it comes to the Northern Lights. Sometimes, you will wait for hours and don’t see anything, another day you will be lucky within minutes.
Sometimes, everything from conditions to good place will be perfectly set, but the sky will stay dark. Another day it will catch you unprepared and unexpectedly.
People sometimes forget that aurora is a natural so there is no best way how you can force it.
THORSMORK
The Nature Reserve in Icelandic Highlands, Thórsmörk, is a great place for chasing the Northern Lights.
First of all, it’s very far away from any city so there are no city lights. Secondly, the high mountains and glaciers nearby protect the sky from the prevailing cloudy winds from the south.
For this reason, the sky over the valley is often clear, as the clouds do not reach us over the mountains.
The First Time Seeing Aurora Borealis (My Personal Experience)
My time in the land of fire and ice was indescribable. I visited some of the best spots in Iceland.
I watched puffins, hiked mountains, hitchhiked, traveled to the south and the north, saw live volcano eruptions, and experienced midnight sun, but the most emotional moment was when I caught Northern Lights for the first time.
The Aurora Season Is ON!
It was the beginning of September and I thought the northern lights season starting way later. I was mistaken. It was a normal working day at the busy souvenir shop in downtown Reykjavík.
I was walking my regular route from work to home when my phone went crazy with notifications. A friend of mine started sending me photos of aurora from her window view. I immediately looked up trying to spot at least a small dancing tail. Nothing.
My heart was bouncing so hard but as I walked on a main street, the city lights obstructed the view. I didn’t see anything. Sometimes I thought I could finally see it but no. It was just a cloud cover or light reflection.
By the time I got home, my phone was flooded with pictures. Even though I could barely walk after a full day of work, I knew I couldn’t just go to sleep.
The excitement of finally seeing the beauty with my own eyes wouldn’t let me sleep anyway.
I checked the aurora forecast, found that tonight offered great conditions, and was determined. I’m giving up sleep tonight. Tonight I’m going aurora hunting.
I texted a friend, put on five layers of warm clothes, grabbed my tripod and camera, and headed out for a night’s adventure.
The Night Adventure BEGINS!
I was in Reykjavík, which is not the biggest city but still, there is a lot of city light, so it isn’t a place you would go chasing aurora borealis. I also didn’t imagine it that way.
In my dreams, I was creating an image of me relaxing in one of many hot pots in Iceland and enjoying the show while dipping my body in the relaxingly hot water. Well, spoiler alert, it didn’t happen this way. But that’s ok. Let’s go back to Reykjavík.
Fortunately, Reykjavík is quite a small city and I lived not far from the shore where the lighting wasn’t that bright. So I found the perfect spot in the bay where the view of the opposite shore and Mount Eskja stretches out, perfect for my first aurora photos.
I placed the tripod, set the camera while trying to remember all the information on how to take photos of northern lights, and waited. I wasn’t alone there of course. People had the same idea or maybe didn’t have anything else to do at midnight in the middle of the week.
It was like waiting for your favorite singer, standing in the crowd, eyes fixed on the stage while curiosity, excitement, and fear of disappointment flow through your body.
But then suddenly you hear excited exclamations, astonished wows, you look up and are speechless in amazement.
There was no time to get my camera and for the first few minutes, I didn’t even want. I just wanted to enjoy the show. I imagined someone using a huge brush to color the night sky, quickly making its moves so it looks like dancing.
Sometimes I thought about a dancer’s skirt that flutters in the air and changes direction and shape with every movement.
When Nature Performs Its MAGIC!
It was fascinating. It took me some time until I could capture it on my camera. I was too afraid of losing some pressure moment. And I almost did. After some time, it looked like the aurora was losing its strength so we all thought it was going away.
The show is over. And it disappeared for a while. But then, boom. Lighting. The explosion of colors, light collums falling on our heads.
I’ve never experienced anything like that. It came unexpectedly, left us in awe, and as quickly as it came, it left.
After that moment, the show continued. At one moment, there were maybe three light dancers but nothing like that precious one. It was a really good polar night for my first aurora borealis experience.
Final Thoughts: Diving Into My MIND
I love nature. The more I travel, the more I experience the power and magic of nature, and the more I can feel connected with it.
When I lived in Greece I used to sit by the sea watching waves and changing the water color. It was my sea therapy and it gave me the energy I needed.
The same it was with Aurora Borealis. It was my therapy. I used any opportunity to watch it and I had never enough. When I saw the 10th waterfall, I was honestly a bit sick of it.
But when I saw the 10th aurora, I was still amazed the same as the first time. Sometimes maybe more.
I’m thinking why. Is it because it’s never the same? It’s always changing and so quickly, you cannot get tired of it. You don’t want to leave until it stops because you’re afraid you’ll miss something amazing. It’s hypnotizing.
And because it’s so fascinating, you don’t think about anything else.
You don’t think about stress at work, the argument with your friend, or how tired you feel. You just observe the live show created by nature. Suddenly, you feel small. You feel like nothing matters only keeping this moment forever.
Meditation works in the same way. That’s why it became my drug. I got addicted. I always felt relaxed, my mind was clear and my mood immediately changed.
I didn’t travel to places in the middle of nowhere. I didn’t go for the northern lights hunt. Sometimes I watched it from my balcony. It wasn’t perfect but it was perfect for me. All these moments were just mine.
FAQs How to Plan a Trip to See Aurora Borealis
How Is an Aurora Borealis Different From an Aurora Australis?
Aurora Borealis and Aurora Australis are both natural light displays that appear in the sky near the Earth’s polar regions.
The main difference between them is their remote locations.
Aurora Borealis, or Northern Lights, can be seen in the northern hemisphere, while Aurora Australis, or Southern Lights, can be seen in the southern hemisphere.
Northern Lights or Aurora Borealis?
The term Northern Lights and Aurora Borealis are often used interchangeably, but technically they have different meanings.
Northern Lights refer to the natural light phenomenon that can be seen in the northern hemisphere. Aurora Borealis refers to the scientific name for this phenomenon.
How Often is the Aurora Borealis?
The frequency of Aurora Borealis varies depending on the location and time of year.
In places closer to the North Pole, it can be seen almost every night during the peak season. In more southern locations, it may only appear a few times per year.
Aurora Borealis Where Can You See It?
The Aurora Borealis can be seen in the northern hemisphere, specifically in areas near the Arctic Circle.
This includes countries like northern Norway, Iceland, Finland aka finnish lapland, Sweden, some parts of Canada, and Alaska.
These best places are known for their dark skies and clear weather forecast conditions which make it easier to see the Northern Lights.
Author: Igor Vilcek
Igor is one of the most passionate guys about Iceland you can find. He has spent months in Iceland over several years hiking in the remote highlands and driving the rough Icelandic F-roads. Yet, he keeps coming back to scout for new unconquered spots.
Sabiduri Planning Guide
🧘🏽♀️Where to find spiritual retreats around the World?
The good news is that they can be found in various locations, from secluded places in nature to bustling cities. Find your ideal retreat here!
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100% YES! — With basic coverage averaging just $50 for your stay, enjoy peace of mind with a plan from Travel SafetyWing, one of the biggest names in travel insurance.
🚗 Is it safe to rent a car around the World?
Yes — Renting a car is one of the best ways to see the country you find yourself in because public transportation cannot reach everywhere! I always rent with Discover Cars, which checks both international companies and local companies, so you get the best rates.
📴 Will my phone work abroad?
Maybe — It depends on your company, so check with your provider. If you don’t have a free service, buy a SIM Card once landed in the country.
🛌🏼 What’s the best way to book my accommodations?
For hotels, Booking is the best site, but for hostels, use Hostel World. If you’re considering Flats, don’t forget to also check Couchsurfing, which is free and you stay with locals.
🛩️ What’s the best site to buy flights?
For finding cheap flights, I recommend Kayak.
🛂 Do I need a visa for these destinations?
Likely Not — U.S., Canadian, and most European Passport holders don’t need a visa for most of destination around the World. BUT check here for more travel requirements. The majority of travelers will receive a 90-Day stamp Tourist Visa upon arrival.
