Our pick
Reykjavik: Northern Lights Tour w/Pro Photos, Small Group, Aurora Viking
Aurora Viking is a small Reykjavík company whose two owners, Kolbeinn and Emil, still lead most of the tours themselves. The listing says they have decades of practice at finding the lights. The minibus holds no more than 18, picks you up at your hotel and heads for whichever part of the countryside has the clearest sky that night.
A photographer travels with the guide and brings high-spec cameras built for night work. While everyone waits for the aurora, the crew hands out Viking costumes and replica weapons from a local museum for portraits under the stars. The listing admits some of those shots turn out hilariously bad. Hot chocolate and gingerbread arrive when the cold sets in.
- Price
- from ~$165 per person
- Duration
- About 4 hours, longer on some nights
- Group
- Up to 18 guests
- Pickup
- Hotel pickup and drop-off in Reykjavík
- Snacks
- Hot chocolate and biscuits
- Photos
- Guide and photographer on board
- No lights?
- Unlimited free retries, no refund
- Cancellation
- Free up to 24 hours; reserve now, pay later
How the night runs, step by step
The order depends on the cloud, and the guides may drive a long way for a better gap. This is the outline the listing gives:
Out of the city
- Pickup at your hotel in Reykjavík
- A drive away from the streetlights, toward the clearest sky on the forecast
- First stop on dark ground, with the photographer setting up
Under the sky
- Viking costumes and replica axes for portraits while you wait
- Hot chocolate and gingerbread when the cold sets in
- Drop-off at your hotel after midnight
What the price covers
The seat price covers transport and a guide, plus a photographer. What it leaves out is the part nobody in Iceland can sell.
Included
- Hotel pickup and drop-off
- A guide plus a photographer
- Viking costumes and weapon replicas
- Hot chocolate and biscuits
Not included
- Warm boots and outer layers
- A refund if the lights stay away
- Dinner before you go
- A guarantee of a clear sky
Between us, before you go
A word from one cold-footed amateur to another. The free retry is generous, but it only helps if you still have an evening left in Reykjavík, so book this for your first or second night. Once you have joined the tour there is no refund, whatever the sky does.
Boots matter more than the jacket. Our guide to dressing for an Icelandic night covers the rest.
Why it beats the big coaches
When the aurora flares, eighteen people spread out along a lava field without trouble, and the photographer has time for every couple. A coach of sixty takes longer to empty and refill, which matters when a gap in the cloud is closing. You pay roughly double a coach seat, with the photos already counted. Eighteen seats or a sixty-seat coach weighs it against the alternatives.
Who we would not send on it
Families with children under seven, who are not allowed on this tour. Travelers who want to go further off the main roads in a vehicle built for it, who will like Nordur Travel's 4x4 minibus better. And anyone who wants a sure highlight even under cloud, who belongs on Arctic Adventures' lava tunnel evening.
Book it if
You want one well-run night in a group small enough to know by name, with a guide who will not give up early. Get collected from your hotel and laugh at your own Viking portrait. Come home with sharp photos you did not have to take yourself. It suits couples and friends, and first-timers with only a phone.
Skip it if
- Want a 4x4? Try Nordur Travel, from ~$167
- Want a cave first? Check the lava tunnel night
- Need a refund option? Read how the retries work
- Bringing young children? See aurora tours with children first
Ready for a night under the oval?
The tour is on Viator and on GetYourGuide, with slightly more reviews on Viator. Both let you cancel for free up to 24 hours before, so you can watch the cloud forecast before you commit.
