Why did you choose Iceland?

The main reason that Iceland was at the top of my bucket list was the chance to see the Northern Lights. I had seen some Aurora Borealis during my college job working in the Boundary Waters in northern Minnesota. However, they were always faint, cloudlike tendrils that you had to squint and ask, “Are those really the Northern Lights?”

Don’t get me wrong, those are still exciting to see. But I wanted more.

I didn’t just want the “blink and you’ll miss it with the naked eye” kind of Northern Lights. The kind that now you can check with your iPhone to reveal the colors that you can’t physically see yourself. No, I wanted to see real, live colorful displays. At least green, and some purples or other colors wouldn’t hurt. In true millennial fashion, I described them to my friends and family as “Balto Northern Lights,” referring to the 1995 animated film.

Why Visit Iceland in winter?

Aurora-maxxing

Of course, there was a risk that I would not see the Northern Lights at all during the trip. While Iceland does often fall in the probable area of Northern Lights viewing, the main issue is cloud cover. January in Iceland has very long nights, but it is often snowy and cloudy. You also can be thwarted by the moon- a new moon is preferable for dark sky viewing. In Iceland, many tours will not run if there is no chance of seeing the lights. So your chance of seeing beautiful Balto-like auroras is down to some smart planning, being flexible, and a bit of luck.

Since my dates were pre-determined, I looked for tours with several different Northern Lights excursions to maximize my chances. I also wanted to make sure I would see amazing natural beauty and activities that would make the trip worth it even if I didn’t see the lights (more on non-aurora activities in Iceland in this post). I also knew I wanted to get out of the city, but did not want to drive on icy winter roads by myself, so a small group bus tour was ideal. I eventually chose a Northern Lights tour offered by Arctic Adventures that also included the Golden Circle and the South Coast. Many other tour companies like Troll and even Icelandair offer similar tours, so you can shop around. It included a boat tour from Reykjavik harbor, a mini bus tour, and a two-night stay at hotel in the countryside where the skies would be darker. I crossed my fingers and hoped that I’d see the lights at least one of those four chances.

Pro tip: I learned later that another bonus opportunity to see the lights is on your flight! However, you need to book a window seat on the northern side to see these. For eastbound flights from North America, book a window seat on the left side of the plane. If you’re flying from Europe, it’s the opposite.

To prepare for my aurora hunt, I familiarized myself with the pertinent terms. The KP index measures the level of geomagnetic activity coming from the solar activity. The greater the KP index, the farther south it is visible and the more intense the aurora can be. To see the aurora in most U.S. states that aren’t Alaska, the KP needs to be pretty high. However, because Iceland is so far north, you can see the aurora at even a KP 2, so don’t despair!

I subscribed to an app called “My Aurora Forecast” which gives viewing probabilities, cloud cover forecasts and user-reported sightings. The U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Agency (NOAA) also publishes some dashboards and forecasts.

Yes! I saw amazing Northern Lights on 2 out of 4 nights. On the first night of my scheduled tour (my second night in Iceland), I headed to the Old Harbor for a Northern Lights boat tour. I bundled up and headed to the top deck. The forecast had been a low KP that day according to NOAA, but I was still cautiously optimistic. The boat was a bit crowded, since many people had been rescheduled from the previous night when it was too cloudy. As we started to depart, I saw a faint band of aurora visible despite the harbor lights.

A crew member joked that he didn’t have to fill the time with facts because nature was putting on the show that night. Still, he offered great tips about how to turn down the brightness on your phone, TURN OFF THE FLASH, and increase the exposure. But mostly, he recommended just enjoying the show. Take some pictures, but they will never be as good as they are in person.

He was right. When we left the harbor, the bright green band turned into two bands/streaks, rippling and moving through the Milky Way. The band looked like rising smoke out of a nearby mountain, twisting like a tornado out of the summit.  

At one point, I was chatting with fellow passengers who had gotten “bored” with the lights. But just then, the sky opened up. The twisting bands started to spiral outward until they covered the whole sky. We could see not only green, but some pinks and purples. As we headed back to the harbor, the spiral faded into streaks. Needless to say, I felt incredibly lucky to have this experience on one of my first nights in Iceland. It was a much better way to spend Inauguration Day.

My second Northern Lights success of the trip was when I was staying in a small hotel near Kirkjubæjarklaustur. At first, it didn’t look like we’d have any success because of cloudy skies. But the second night we were there, the Iceland Met Office forecast showed that the clouds would break over our area briefly from about 10pm to midnight. There was a chance! So with a few others from my tour group, I hiked away from the hotel’s lights and lucked out again. At first, we only saw faint cloud-like wisps. However, as we waited and watched, the lights brightened and extended, flickering in the distance.

But two out of four nights was just fine with me. I feel so lucky to have witnessed this natural phenomenon. It was by far one of the highlights of 2025 for me, and I hope to go back to Iceland- or to chase the Northern Lights in another polar location.