Located less than 10 miles from the Russian border in Finnish Lapland, this remote Arctic destination is a top-rated locale to view the northern lights due to the lack of light pollution. Visitors can even camp on a nearby ice sheet while basking in the glow. Visit Troms sells aurora-watching trips around the city of Troms in Norway. See Related: Best Finland Igloo Hotels You Can't-Miss. T he northern lights are an atmospheric phenomenon in which undulating waves of green, purple, and red lights dance across the sky. In fact, they have awhole section about iton their website! Saariselka, Finnish Lapland. While the northern lights are hard to predict, the best time to catch a glimpse of this phenomenon is typically during the spring and fall and experts at the park recommend visitors face north after midnight for the best chance to see the show. You can also check out Voyageurs Forest Overlook, Beaver Pond Overlook and the Kettle Falls Dam area for top-notch views. To start planning your trip, use ourguide to stargazing in Acadia National Park. New policies may be in place, including capacity restrictions, reservation requirements or mask mandates. Christmas is just a few days away, and if you're in the mood to celebrate, consider taking a family drive and enjoying these beautiful and enchanting neighborhood Christmas lights displays. I hope you find resources here to help you do just that. This beautiful place is under the Auroral Oval, a ring-shaped zone showcasing much of the action. There you have it: the 25 best places to see the northern lights in the world. Use the airline's app or make an international call if your flight has been canceled. This phenomenon occurs when electrically charged particles from the sun enter the Earth's atmosphere and collide with gaseous particles, such as oxygen and nitrogen. Follow this author to stay notified about their latest stories. Made famous for being home to many of Canadas polar bears, the Arctic area of Churchill, Manitoba is a popular destination for winter wildlife expeditions. This 13-day cruise itinerary departs from London for the North Sea with stops in ports of call that are top aurora-viewing locales, including Bod, Troms, Alta and Narvik. The effect of the northern lights inside Icelandairs Hekla Aurora plane. Whitehorse (Yukon) Whitehorse is one of the best places to see the northern lights in Canada. There, on a clear night, you'll get an unfettered look at the sky, which from September through March, is often ablaze with bright colors. There are also other stargazing opportunities throughout the year at Headlands. Copyright, Juan Pelegrn. If . For the more adventurous aurora seekers, head to the top of the Greenland Ice Cap for spectacular views of the lights: This impressive glacier covers 80 percent of the country and is accessible via the tiny town of Kangerlussuaq. Experts from the National Park Service are onboard to provide commentary, offering guests insight on what they are viewing. The 6 igloo resorts include Northern Lights Village . This island chain is part of the Kingdom of Denmark but autonomously governed, like Greenland. Its a truly fascinating place to stay while you wait for the Northern Lights to appear. You can pair your pursuit of the auroras with a trip to see the polar bears, or simply visit to chase the northern lights. For a custom guided tour to view the nighttime lights display, including the Milky Way and the constellations, you can hire Voyageurs Outfitters. When geomagnetic storms are big enough, the northern lights can be visible as far south as . Your best shot to see the aurora borealis is September through mid-May. This facility is found in an optimal setting, thanks to the clear skies and aurora activity most nights of the year. Another good location to chase evasive Northern Lights is the remote wilderness of Eeyou Istchee Baie-James in Northern Quebec. Stay away from places with street lightning such as Lerwick or you will be disappointed. There are some accessible places . In the solar maximum, the sun is more "active", leading to northern lights that are caused by solar flares and coronal mass ejections (CMEs). In addition to the aurora, Orkney is home to breathtaking coastal landscapes and more sheep than you can count. To help you narrow down a literal hemisphere of places to try and see the northern lights, weve pulled together the best places to see the northern lights from all of the posts weve written so far. Phone +1 218-283-6600. However, these auroras are sudden and short-lived. [See more of the Scottish Highlands: Things to Do | Tours | Hotels | When to Visit | Photos ]. When you're not chasing the lights, enjoy other Arctic activities like a husky safari, ice fishing, snowmobiling or a day in the snow meeting the local reindeer. This group of captivating islands, located about 10 miles from Scotland's remote northern coast, is one of the best places to see the northern nights in the country. For a festive holiday experience in the winter, visit the Santa Claus House in the city of North Pole (around 15 miles southeast of Fairbanks). Your email address will not be published. Some of the most popular places are near towns or interesting geologic features, but if youre traveling Iceland on your own, you can set up pretty much anywhere on a good night and get a great view. Some years they can be seen as early as August. If you are a true northern lights enthusiast, youll be delighted to find so many places in Scotland with great dark skies and good northern views. Lapland is a region that stretches across the northernmost sections of Finland and Sweden and is home to the Indigenous Sami people. In late January to early February, the city hosts the Northern Lights Festival, a 10-day music and performing arts event featuring a variety of musical genres. Northern Hemisphere. Atop this forest sits Perlan, which houses the only planetarium in the country and a museum featuring exhibits about Iceland. Svart Hotel with a view of the northern lights. Guests will be able to kayak right under the property, go ice climbing, indulge in night fishing andbest of allsee spectacular northern lights views. By day, you can explore local history and cultural museums to get a sense for Russian history. The northern lights are an optical phenomenon of the Earth's atmosphere, characterized by bright bands of a wide range of shapes and colors, typically red-green-blue, called auroral arcs, caused . Lake Saadjrv is a major recreational area with beaches, as well as nearby cultural sites and museums such as the Ice Age Centre. This time of year offers offers a unique opportunity to view the lights both in the sky and reflected in the lakes and rivers, which you won't see if you visit in the winter months. Perlan is also home to the world's first indoor ice cave and glacier exploratorium. Yellowknife, Canada. The aurora borealis occurs so frequently in Churchill that scientists have built a research station to study the phenomenon there. For luxury in the wilderness, take a bush plane toBlachford Lake Lodge, a fly-in eco-lodge with viewing from a hot tub under the stars and more. Travel company Off The Map decided to ease the pain by offering two mobile methods for the enthusiastic aurora seeker. Late-season expedition cruises to the last continent offered in March also bring the opportunity to view the southern lights and enjoy Antarctica's fleeting summer. 2:47. You might have to walk a little way outside the city for the best view, but it can sometimes be seen even within its limits. When it comes to wildlife viewing, humpback whale sightings are abundant, and you'll still see penguin colonies including king and gentoo penguins. This makes them a good destination to see the northern lights in winter! Its the best way to see thenorthernlights, explore ice caves and avoid the crowds. Top Rated: Last minute places for couples: CT, IL, CA, MD, VT, VA, Atlanta, From Chicago, MD beaches. Like Norway, Finland has plenty of great places to spot the Northern Lights, particularly in its Lapland region. Set in a remote part of northern Sweden, the property promises to be the ultimate place to catch the northern lights. NOAA's Space Weather Prediction Center has issued a G3 (strong) geomagnetic storm watch into Thursday. Ultimately, the best place and time to see Northern Lights is above 65 N latitude, between late September to March. This position gives it uniquely exceptional conditions for viewing the Northern Lights. New Zealand's winter months June to August are the best time to see the southern lights, but you can still view them in the spring (September to November) and in the fall (March to May). By Caitlin Morton. It's the southernmost island that's populated in the country. A short drive from Whitehorse in Yukon at 60.6 North, the Northern Lights Resort and Spa features chalets with vast windows and an outdoor jacuzzi. The Shetlands are one of the best places to see the Northern Lights in Scotland. Sleep in a Log Cabin Under the Northern Lights in Alaska. If you're one of the lucky few people on the planet to travel to the southernmost continent on Earth Antarctica you'll have an adventure of a lifetime, especially when the aurora illuminates the sky. Villages such as Klondike, Campbell, and Whitehorse make excellent base camps for travelers, and as usual, you'll want to leave the city lights behind to get the full experience. Iceland is, for the most part, not a hugely developed country. 1. Best time to see the northern lights in Iceland. Options include everything from snowshoeing and dogsledding under the dancing lights to camping in a remote wilderness setting while the auroras blaze across the sky overhead. In Fairbanks, you can see the aurora almost anywhere on a strong night. Want northern lights viewing thats pretty much guaranteed? Finnish Lapland is also known as the home of Santa Claus, the Smi people (the only Indigenous people in the European Union area) and as many as 200,000 reindeer. Required fields are marked *, Hi! You can read more about these 5 spots below, as well as 20 alternatives that are also good spots to see the northern lights but less popular and/or further off the beaten path. Enter Chena Hot Springs Resort, with . For a once-in-a-lifetime experience, make reservations to stay overnight in unique camping accommodations at Aurora Village to view the lights. 4. This property also offers Kelo-Glass Igloos that combine the comforts of a log chalet with the visibility of the glass roof. Located on a similar parallel to Troms,Norwayand near Russias border withFinland, Murmansk offers similar aurora viewing conditions with far fewer crowds. During the day, head out on reindeer and snow tank safaris. Aug. 18, 2022 Updated: Aug. 19, 2022 9:03 a.m. 4. But dont limit yourself: You can also spot the southern lights in the southern hemisphere. This densely wooded and hilly area in Reykjavik sits at 200 feet above sea level and has walkways and paths where you can see the nighttime show. , explore ice caves and avoid the crowds and snow tank safaris far south as is... 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