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Nordic Visitor can assist in your trip planning and tailor a tour package to your interests. Keep browsing below for our suggestions of tour packages that include northern lights cruises in Norway. In the coming days, a host of choices are available to us, and depending on ice and weather conditions, the east coast of Greenland is ours to explore. The members of our experienced Expedition Team, who have made countless journeys to this area, will use their expertise to tailor our voyage to suit the day-to-day conditions. This allows us to make best use of the prevailing weather, ice conditions and any opportunities for wildlife encounters. We generally attempt up to two landings or Zodiac excursions per day, including cruising along spectacular ice cliffs, following whales feeding near the surface.
Northern Lights Circle Tour
The Best Way to See the Northern Lights Is...On a Cruise? - Condé Nast Traveler
The Best Way to See the Northern Lights Is...On a Cruise?.
Posted: Mon, 26 Sep 2016 07:00:00 GMT [source]
The adventure begins in Akureyri, the unofficial capital of north Iceland, before heading for Greenland's breathtaking Scoresby Sund, the largest fjord system in the world. If you do have a little more time, you can opt for the 13-day Spitsbergen - Northeast Greenland - Aurora Borealis itinerary, which embarks in the Svalbard archipelago before sailing to Greenland and down to Iceland. Both take place in the late summer into early fall, as darkness returns to the skies in the Arctic. Rates for the eight-day itinerary start from $4,600 per person for the 2023 sailings.
Norway And Northern Lights, 12 nights, Nov 1 2024
In genuine expeditionary style, we keep our itinerary flexible to allow for spontaneity. We plan to visit Hornstrandir peninsula, one of Iceland’s remotest and most pristine regions, which is filled with deep and dramatic fjords, towering bird cliffs, stunning natural beauty and opportunities for wildlife encounters. Enjoy the bountiful silence and magnificent landscapes seen by the few adventurers that make their way here. In Húsavik, we hope to have magical encounters with the many whales that visit this part of Iceland, known as the country’s whale-watching capital. Crossing the Denmark Strait to Iceland, search for whale blows and photograph the many seabirds that trail our ship in the ever-present arctic winds. The dark night skies promise more opportunities to experience the northern lights.
All Norway Tours

The most affordable option on this list, British cruise line P&O operates 12-day sailings to Norway year-round, but during the auroral season, there's a strong chance you'll see the northern lights while onboard. Guests embark in Southampton, England, before sailing north to Norway, traveling as far north as Tromsø, well north of the Arctic Circle. We recommend splurging on a room with windows for the best northern lights viewing options. However, those in interior cabins can always run up on deck — which you should do anyway to witness the full grandeur of the atmospheric phenomenon. If you don't have two or three weeks to take off work to go northern lights watching, consider Oceanwide Expeditions' eight-day aurora borealis sailings from Iceland to Greenland and back.
Steeped in myth and lore, the Northern Lights are a magical sight that capture the imagination of cruise passengers of all ages. Onshore activities for cruisers might range from museum and science center visits to dogsledding with huskies, cross-country skiing, snowmobiling, ice-fishing, and scenic helicopter rides. Some cruises offer guests opportunities to spend a night in a snow-ice hotel and visit wildlife sanctuaries where wolves, wolverines, musk oxen, elk, reindeer, and other Arctic mammals might be spotted. And in some ports, cruise guests may learn about and visit with some of Norway’s indigenous Sámi people who, under Norwegian law, are generally the only people in Norway who may own and herd reindeer. From there, it’s onward to Rørvik, an ancient fishing town, and then Lødingen, a village known for its place amongst the fjords.
Day Ol Pejeta, Aberdare,& Solio Ranch Safari on 4x4 Jeep
Throughout the area there are ancient Thule archaeological sites, historical trappers’ huts, and the cabins of present-day Inuit hunters. A highlight is a visit to the Inuit village of Ittoqqortoormiit, the most isolated and northernmost permanent settlement in the region, with approximately 450 inhabitants. The community has an excellent museum, gift shop, an abundance of Greenlandic sled dogs and provides the opportunity to meet the friendly locals. See The Northern Lights with Aurora Expeditions and our Expedition Team will take you on excursions unique to the High Arctic, fully included in the cost of your expedition.
Sea Kayaking in Norway
There is no best place to witness an aurora which, in our opinion, only adds to the mystery and appeal surrounding them. This is why Aurora Expeditions’ Northern Lights tours don’t focus on one spot or location. The Northern Lights are most frequently visible in high-latitude regions in the Arctic, but most accessible between 10° and 20° of the North Pole in a band called the ‘auroral zone’. An aurora is a natural light display that can appear as brilliant green, yellow, red, blue and purple light patterns, spirals or dynamic flickers covering the night sky. The aurora borealis originates on the sun’s surface with a massive explosion of electromagnetic matter, which projects a stream of charged particles known as solar wind into space. When these particles approach Earth a few nights later, they distort our magnetic field.
Northern Lights cruises
Take an exhilarating ride through snow covered pine forests before learning how these magnificent creatures are trained. Bridgett Quinn Weber, an advisor with Cruise Specialists who works with expedition cruises offered the advice below. If the lights appear during the night, the crew will play an announcement over the in-cabin TVs (meaning guests need to leave their TVs on all night to hear it).
Aurora hunting: What it's like to chase the northern lights along Norway's dramatic coastline - Space.com
Aurora hunting: What it's like to chase the northern lights along Norway's dramatic coastline.
Posted: Sun, 07 Jan 2024 08:00:00 GMT [source]
Northern Lights Cruises FAQs
There’s just something about the juxtaposition of floating on the ocean—the planet’s still unknowable, final frontier—while staring upwards towards the heavens that intensifies the aurora experience. Nordic Visitor works only with licensed, reputable travel partners that meet our high standards. Plus, Havila and Hurtigruten have the same strict expectations for their certified agents. To ensure the highest quality for our guests, we maintain close connections with them and try their cruise services ourselves. They are calculated based on the days of voyage, ability to carry out the activity and exchange rates. In Antarctica, keep your camera on-hand for unforgettable encounters with penguins, seals and whales, and occasionally leopard seals or orcas.
You will have the opportunity to view some of the largest sea bird colonies in the northern hemisphere. You should be fit enough to paddle for up to three hours and climb between moving Zodiacs on the water. Regular exercise is recommended, because the fitter you are the more you will enjoy the experience.
Add another layer to your once-in-a-lifetime holiday and make the most out of your time in some of the most remote places on earth. Crossing south of the Arctic Circle, we visit the Vega archipelago, which became a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2014. Vega Island is fantastic for birdwatching and here eider ducks are the main attraction, where they are raised for their down, which at one point accounted for one third of the islanders’ income. The islanders still make houses for the birds to nest in and in return, the ducks provide valuable down when they and their chicks leave the nests to continue their lives at sea. The archipelago reflects a traditional way of life that has not changed for more than 1,500 years. On nearby Torget Island, we plan to land and hike to Torghatten, a fascinating rock formation with an equally interesting legend describing the hole in the mountain as having been created by a troll’s arrow.
From there, the ship will sail as far north as possible, to a few kilometers from the Russian border, before sailing back to Tromsø, then visiting the wild and rugged Lofoten Islands and the Trondheim fjord. Each fall, one or two of the ships in Cunard's legendary fleet head north for Norway, where guests are treated to scenic cruising along the coast. The 12-day itineraries depart from Southampton, England, before traveling to Alesund, Tromsø, Narvik, and Haugesund, sailing through majestic fjords along the way. Since the ships sail this itinerary from October to November, the skies will be dark enough to see the northern lights, should they decide to appear. In 2023, the voyage will be undertaken by Queen Victoria, while next season, the Queen Mary 2 and the upcoming Queen Anne will take the reins.
You’re also more likely to see them if you visit in colder months, as the most brilliant displays occur both in dark and cold environments. Because it’s a scientific phenomenon beyond the comprehension of modern science, you can only truly predict occurrences of the Northern Lights roughly two hours before they happen. This is a difficult question to answer, as sightings are more dependent on cloud cover and luck than anything else, and the weather is so varied around the Norwegian coast.
Generally, skies are clearest near the spring and fall equinoxes in later September and March. Some late September/early October Alaska cruises can include northern lights sightings as well. All aboard the Island Princess with Princess Cruises to begin a bucket-list worthy voyage to find the northern lights. This round-trip journey from London (Southampton), England includes stops in Norway, as well as days spent cruising the North Sea, the Norwegian Sea and the Arctic Ocean where you’ll cross the Arctic Circle.
Havila Voyages is proud to sail on Norway’s most important coastal route, with new, environmentally friendly ships. Nordic Visitor did a great job with set up for accommodation and travel within the country. I liked the way it was set up to visit popular destinations/excursions but also allowed time to explore on your own.
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