Iceland
The most consistent sky in this catalogue, which is worth more than the best one
Iceland's reputation is that it is beautiful and cloudy, and half of that is wrong. Across eleven seasons of reanalysis, counting nights with at least two hours of cloud cover at or below 50% in the hours tours run, Reykjavík gets a usable sky on 35.6% of season nights. That puts it second in Europe on this site, ahead of Rovaniemi at 31.5%, Alta at 29.3%, Tromsø at 25.4% and Abisko at 18.7%. Only Kiruna, at 38.8%, does better.
The more useful number is the spread. Reykjavík's worst month is 31.1% and its best is 40.7%: a range of nine points across the entire season. Tromsø swings seventeen, Rovaniemi thirty, Yellowknife thirty-two. Everywhere else in this catalogue there is a right month and a wrong month; here there is barely a difference.
That flatness is the argument for Iceland and nobody makes it, because it is a boring virtue. If you are planning around a specific week, or you have a single night, or your dates are set by somebody else's calendar, a destination that is the same in November as in March removes the largest variable from the decision. The Arctic destinations offer higher peaks and demand that you turn up in the right month.
What Iceland charges for it is the second-best sky rather than the best, and a latitude that is not really the point: at 64°08′N Reykjavík is under the auroral oval every night the sun is down.
Choose a destination in Iceland
Northern Lights Experiences in Iceland
Reykjavík Small Group Northern Lights Hunt with Local Hunters, Max 16
Sixteen guests keeps the guide talking to the group rather than at it. The stop comes from live forecast data, and everyone goes home with a small gift.
Seven Day Self Drive Campervan Tour of South and West Iceland with Aurora
Seven days and five nights on a route built for winter, with a blue ice cave hike, a glacial valley run and the Icelandic Lava Show already booked in.
Small Group Northern Lights Jeep Tour with an Icelandic Guide and Photos
Vikings, Norse gods and the elves Icelanders are still careful about fill the road time, and the guide works the camera too. Free retry if luck goes wrong.
Small Group Northern Lights Tour by Sprinter Minibus from Reykjavík
Fewer passengers means the driver can change plan faster and the guide talks with you, not over a microphone. Cocoa, pastries and hand warmers at the stop.
Small Group Northern Lights Tour from Reykjavík, Max 19, with Photos
Guides who forecast for a living avoid the lay-bys every coach has parked at. Icelandic wool blankets, cocoa, and your photographs by email within 8 days.
Small Group Northern Lights Tour from Reykjavík, Maximum 19 People
No itinerary is printed in advance: the location comes from the weather and the aurora forecast read together before each departure, late August to April.
Small Group Northern Lights Tour from Reykjavik with Free Photos
The guide teaches you to photograph a moving green light in the dark, phone or camera, and sends a portrait afterwards. The destination changes nightly.
Small Group Northern Lights Tour from Reykjavík with Snowsuits and Photos
Winter jumpsuits, outdoor chairs and spare tripods say this operator has stood in cold fields. Unlimited photos, and unlimited re-runs if nothing appears.
Small Group Northern Lights Tour with Free Photos and Hot Chocolate
A minibus with Wi-Fi, a location chosen from that night's cloud data, and free rebooking if nothing shows. Green comes from oxygen around 100 km up.
South Coast, Sólheimajökull Glacier Hike and Northern Lights from Reykjavík
Black sand and waterfalls, a guided hike onto Sólheimajökull where the ice runs blue, then free hours in town before the aurora hunt. No car needed at all.
South Iceland Highlights and Northern Lights Combo Full Day Tour
Seljalandsfoss, the waterfall you can walk behind, and the black sand of Reynisfjara by day, then the evening guides take over well past the streetlights.
Spirit of the Aurora: Reykjavík Group Tour with a Dedicated Photographer
One person on board does nothing but take photographs. The tour only runs when the weather justifies it, and that call is made by 5pm on the day.
Three Day Aurora Hunt and Glacier Lagoon Tour with Snæland Travel
Two nights near Vík, an evening aurora hunt when the sky allows, and a day at Jökulsárlón and Diamond Beach. Golden Circle and Friðheimar on the way out.
Three Day Iceland Tour: Ice Cave, Glacier Hike and Northern Lights
Two ways of meeting the ice, on the surface and inside it, plus the Golden Circle and the south coast to Diamond Beach. Short cave season, so book early.
Three Day Tour: Ice Cave, South Coast, Golden Circle and Aurora
Jökulsárlón sits 380 km from Reykjavík, which is why this takes three days instead of one long drive. Blue ice cave, glacier hike and free farm ice cream.
Two Day Snæfellsnes Tour with Lava Caving and Northern Lights
Kirkjufell, Arnarstapi and the black church at Búðir on day one, then underground into Víðgelmir, one of the largest lava caves in Iceland, on day two.
Whale Watching by Day and Northern Lights by Sea from Reykjavík
Two sailings from the same harbour: minke and humpback whales across Faxaflói by day, then the aurora from the deck, with no headlights or roads in the way.
Winter Whale Watching and Evening Northern Lights Cruise from Reykjavík
A three hour whale sailing at 09:00 or 13:00, hours of your own around the Old Harbour, then a night departure further out into Faxaflói bay for the aurora.
Ratings collected by Viator and Tripadvisor