A dedicated Northern Lights holiday is an event in and of itself. Both of the most popular destinations for this type of popular winter split - Sweden and Iceland - offer plenty of scenic natural beauty and good enough to see and do to make the investment worthwhile. It is virtually impossible for anyone to come off one of these holidays feeling anything but exhilarated. Get to know more at Norway Northern Lights Tour and Northern Lights In Finland.
Of course, the main point of this type of split is, without question, to catch a glimpse of the famed Aurora Borealis. And since this phenomenon is well known for being elusive and appearing at random, travellers need to afford themselves the most optimal opportunities to attain a sighting. Those who intend to visit the Arctic Circle with the intention of chasing the lights are top served embarking on a dedicated small group organised tour, with local courses and infrastructure in place to assure the very best experience. The following information will offer you a brief overview.
Where to Go
The first step towards ensuring a Northern Lights holiday is successful is to choose the right geographical latitude. The truth that this natural phenomenon is special to polar latitudes is no secret, but what many people may not know is that there is a specific region - known as the 'auroral oval' - where the likelihood of seeing the lighting increases exponentially. Despite this fact, merely pinpointing the oval doesn't make the task any easier, as this region is nearly twice as wide and twice as removed from the Earth's magnetic pole as midnight is usually from midday! As such, it is simpler to merely make reference to some of the areas where auroras are more common. These include Iceland, Swedish Lapland, Greenland and Svalbard, along with areas to the severe north of the United States, Russia and Canada. Of these, Sweden and Iceland are by far the most popular and easily accessible destinations for a successful Northern Lights holiday - and both have a huge number of other attractions as well, making for a diverse and fulfilling encounter.
When to Go
Accurate timing is definitely another of the main components behind a successful Northern Lights holiday, and another reason bundle tours are so successful. It is not enough to simply program it for 'winter', as this season is quite broad in scope. It may be simpler to think with regards to aiming for October or March (the tail-end months of the cool season) as the ideal time for a break of this type. November through February are also suitable months, but late spring and summer time are not recommended, as skies are bright round the clock, thereby eliminating any chance of aurora viewing.