3 Guaranteed Ways To See The Northern Lights In Iceland You NEED To Know About

This post is all about the 3 Guaranteed Ways To See The Northern Lights In Iceland You Need To Know About

Whether it’s your first time chasing the Northern Lights in Iceland or you’ve seen them before it can be challenging to figure out how to see them, when to see them, and where to see them.

I remember our first time here, I had no idea how to see the Northern Lights in Iceland, when to see them, and we chased them for four days.

Luckily, we got really creative with the ways we found them and now I’ve put together the ultimate Northern Lights in Iceland guide for you!

From when to see them, where to stay, the exact locations we saw them, and what to expect, here is everything you need to know.

This post is all about the 3 Guaranteed Ways To See The Northern Lights You Need To Know About

Before we get into HOW to see the Northern Lights, here are some things you need to know:

Best Times To See The Northern Lights

What month is best to see the northern lights in Iceland?

The best months to visit Iceland to see the Northern Lights in Iceland are from September to April. Peak Northern Lights in Iceland season is November - January.

We saw them at the end of April, which was extremely lucky but to see them you need to fit 3 criterias: darkness, as little cloud coverage as possible, and solar activity.

What Time Should I Be Able To See The Northern Lights?

The best time to see the Northern Lights in Iceland are during the darkest times of the night. We saw them as early as 11PM but they were the brightest at around 3AM.

To see the Northern Lights at night, schedule them into your itinerary so you can be up during the darkest periods.

Where is the best place to see the Northern Lights in Iceland?

Alot of people think you need a Iceland Northern Lights tour package to see the lights, but I highly recommend not doing a tour!

The lights are high up in the sky and seeing the sky is free. We never did a tour but saw them 3x during our trip, all you have to do is be a little creative.

To see the Northern Lights in Iceland, you’ll need to move away from Reykjavik, the capital. The reason for this is that to see the Northern Lights, you’ll need as little light pollution as possible.

How Can You Maximize Your Chance Of Seeing The Northern Lights in Iceland?

1.Stay At An Airbnb Where Guests Frequently See Them

One of the best ways to see the Northern Lights in Iceland is in the comfort of a warm Airbnb.

From November - April, Iceland is FREEZING. Going on a tour around this time or even seeing them in your car would require a lot of thick layers, patience, and heat.

Instead, to see the Northern Lights in Iceland, I recommend going on Airbnb, searching through the latest reviews, and seeing when guests have actually seen them.

The exact airbnb we stayed at where we saw them was this one, which is really affordable, and also right next to a spa! 10/10 recommend.

2.Stay At A Hotel Where You Can Frequently See The Northern Lights

Similar to the last one, staying at a hotel that’s known for seeing the Northern Lights in Iceland can be a safe bet to see them. Plenty of hotels in Iceland have a Northern Lights wake-up option too, where the staff can call you on the phone if they see them at night.

This way you can get a good nights rest, and some hotels even have a viewing roof terrace. Some examples of these hotels are: Hotel Ranga, The Retreat At Blue Lagoon (one of my favorites), and Land Hotel

3. Look Up A Hotels Live View Camera

How do you make sure you see the Northern Lights in Iceland?

Perhaps the most creative way and one of my favorites - this can be easily done no matter where you’re staying is to look up a hotel’s Northern Lights live view camera, see if you can see the Northern Lights there, and drive to the hotel.

Then when you get to the hotel, you can just pull over a block away and enjoy the views.

The hotel we decided to look up was Land Hotel, by looking here, you can see a 24/7 live camera view of the sky and access any in prior years to see if it’s a good time to see them. This is also the most cost-efficient way and my lazy girl hack.

You do not need a Northern lights Iceland tour to see the Northern Lights!

Make Sure To Download These Apps

Last but not least, you have to download these apps to see the Northern Lights in Iceland and other places worldwide.

These apps will tell you your probability of seeing the Northern Lights, if other people in your area are seeing it, and the cloud coverage to give you a location with a clear sky. We saw them with only a 20% probability on the Hello Aurora app so stay positive even if the number seems low!

Hello Aurora Forecast App
My Aurora Forecast & Alerts App
Aurora Forecast App

And there you have it, My guide on guaranteed ways to see the Northern Lights in Iceland.

Just remember, if you can’t see them by eye, try using your camera and seeing if you can see them there. Sometimes the camera picks it up better than our eyes do.