Guide to Seeing the Northern Lights in Iceland

Seeing the aurora borealis is one of the coolest things you can experience in Iceland! In this guide I will tell you the best time to see them and where to see the Northern Lights so you can check off this off your bucket list!

When to Go

Timing your trip to Iceland in order to see the Aurora Borealis is crucial, because parts of the year they cannot be seen! When the nights are longer between September through April is your best chance of spotting them. To maximize your chances further plan your trip around the two equinoxes in March or September when there is high geomagnetic electrical disturbance which causes the northern lights.

We visited during the March equinox and were treated to amazing activity and crystal clear skies! It was like nothing I’ve ever experienced before and I felt like a kid on Christmas morning when it got dark every night and we poured ourselves a glass of wine, bundled up and headed outside to them!

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How to See the Aurora

The first thing you’ll want to do is check out the Northern Lights Forecast so you can see the amount of activity predicted the next 3 days. The forecast will also show you where the skies are clear and where there is cloud coverage. You definitely want to pay attention to the sky clarity because if seeing the northern lights is your goal you don’t want to end up in a cloudy spot when there is high activity! Check the Northern Lights Forecast often, Iceland weather can differ drastically from one region to another! It will also help you know when it gets dark enough to see them for the evening. For us it was completely dark at around 9:30 pm so we didn’t have to stay up too late and we just looked out our window and saw them starting up!

Where to See the Northern Lights

In our experience the south and southeast part of the country had the best visibility in March. The further north we got the more snow and cloud coverage there was - so try and optimize the best activity days accordingly!

Skaftafell Campground: This was a great campsite that provided total darkness and snowcapped mountains as a backdrop amazing for watching the aurora! We just slide open our van door and saw them right there!

Viking Cafe Campsite: This was another perfect viewing spot for the northern lights! The Vestrahorn mountains and Viking prop set made for very interesting surrounding and the photos turned out amazing!

Hotel Ranga: If camping in a van isn’t your style, there’s no better choice than Hotel Ranga. Cozy up in a hot tub and take in one of natures greatest marvels! The hotel is 2 hours from Reykjavík and has nothing but wide open skies to see the Aurora and hundreds of stars!

Weather & Road Closures: It’s also very important to check the weather for the day and the road closures map to make sure your route is clear to avoid any surprises! The map provides very detailed information about all the roads in Iceland and something you definitely want to check often if you visit Iceland in winter

What to Pack For Your Northern Lights Adventure!