The Northern Lights is one of the most rare and elusive natural phenomena out there, and viewing the legendary sensation is something that ends up on a lot of tourists’ bucket lists. If you’re interested in finding a great place to view the Northern Lights, you’ve come to the right place! In this video, we’ll be taking a look at some of the best places the world over to get a good chance of seeing the Northern Lights for yourself in all of the phenomenon’s stunning, natural glory. Join ViewCation as we take a look at the best places to see the Northern Lights.
Sweden
The Northern Lights is an elusive natural phenomenon, and the first place that we’ll be taking a look at in this video to view it is an elusive man-made phenomenon! Those who haven’t heard of Sweden’s Icehotel are certainly missing out, as the location is one of the most interesting to stay in the entire world. Not only is Sweden’s Icehotel an incredibly interesting place to stay in and of itself, but it’s also one of the best places in the world to view the Northern Lights! In particular, the Icehotel is generally considered to be the best Swedish location to view the Northern Lights.
For those who are just hearing about Sweden’s Icehotel now, they may be surprised to learn just how true to hotel stays to it’s name! The hotel is an actual hotel made out of ice, and this means that the structure has to be rebuilt every year with new ice. Just because the hotel is made out of ice, however, doesn’t mean that all of the rooms are freezing cold. There are plenty of cold rooms to stay in, and these can be some of the most popular choices for those looking to get the full experience of the venerated Icehotel. However, there are also warm rooms to choose from for those who would prefer to have a more comfortable stay.
The temperatures in the cold rooms can get as low as 17 degrees Fahrenheit, so be sure to bring a blanket! Besides the fact that the hotel is made out of ice, it offers a fairly luxurious experience for visitors. Stays certainly aren’t cheap, and the fact that tourists are granted an impressive opportunity to view the Northern Lights is certainly factored into the overall price tag. Those who wish to get a chance to see the Northern Lights while staying at the Icehotel will have numerous ways to do so, with some of the best ways being excursions that the hotel itself offers. These include both snowmobile safaris and photography tours, with the latter tours having an emphasis on viewing the Northern Lights in areas that have a decreased amount of light pollution so that tourists can snap up some pictures.
If you’re staying at the Icehotel and you want the absolute best chance of seeing the Northern Lights, you might want to take the trip over to the Aurora Sky Station, which is located in Abisko. The location might be a little bit out of the way compared to the destinations of other excursions, but the journey will be well worth it for those who want to experience the Northern Lights in the fullest glory possible. The Aurora Sky Station is located nearly 1,000 meters above sea level, which greatly reduces the amount of light pollution that it’s visitors are subject to. Because of it’s location, the Aurora Sky Station is one of the few locations where the Northern Lights can be viewed daily for a major period of the year. This period of the year lasts from October through March.
Iceland
While Iceland ironically isn’t the home of the Icehotel, it is home to numerous locations that offer significant chances of viewing the Northern Lights. One such location is Hotel Ranga, which is located towards the south of Iceland. There are numerous interesting activities that those staying at Hotel Ranga will get the chance to take part in, with some of the hotel’s more popular activities for tourists including dog sledding, whale watching, taking tours of the nearby glaciers, and going fishing in the nearby freshwater. However, it’s also unquestionable that one of the best activities to take part in while staying at Hotel Ranga is to try and get a good view of the elusive Northern Lights.
Though the Northern Lights might not be viewable every single day at Hotel Ranga, they are viewable a significant portion of nights from August to the beginning of May. There isn’t a great deal of light pollution around the area, which makes the views of the Northern Lights fairly incredible.
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Cherry Springs State Park in Pennsylvania
Most tourists that are aspiring to see the Northern Lights in all of their naturally occurring glory think that they’ll have to travel outside of the United States to do so. However, this isn’t necessarily the case. For instance, there’s one location in the state of Pennsylvania where there’s a good chance of seeing the Northern Lights for a significant portion of the year. This location goes by the name of Cherry Springs State Park, which has received the highest level of International Dark Sky Park designation by the International Dark Sky Association. For those who aren’t familiar with their officially dark-sky terminology, this means that Cherry Springs State Park has a significant decreased amount of light pollution when compared to other state parks. This means that the sky is incredibly dark, which makes for great viewing of the stars. It also makes for great viewing of the Northern Lights!
Cherry Springs State Park takes it’s darkness seriously, which means that the lighting fixtures that you’ll find throughout the popular state park aren’t the kind that you’ll find at other state parks. These light fixtures are special in that they minimize light pollution while still allowing visitors to see where they’re going. The park also has some stringent rules involving the use of flashlights, and there are also some rules about how bright your car’s headlights can be. Following these rules is certainly worth it for those who want to get a great view of the popular state park’s uniquely dark sky. However, visitors should note that the Northern Lights is not going to be viewable every single night. Even if you have to wait a couple of nights to see the Northern Lights, you’ll still be able to get a bunch out of simply taking in the view of the average night sky at this fantastic dark-sky park.
Churchill, Canada
Those looking for a great place to view the Northern Lights in the country of Canada should look no further than the Manitoba-located town of Churchill. The Northern Lights are said to be viewable in the town of Churchill around 300 nights a year, which means that those who are staying in the area for at least a couple of days are all but guaranteed to get an exceptional view of the naturally occurring phenomenon. The town of Churchill is all about the Northern Lights, as the town even features an awesome tourist location by the name of the Churchill Northern Studies Centre. Here, visitors can learn all about what makes the Northern Lights occur, and they can get a look at some awesome photography that will give them a better look at the Northern Lights then they’ll be able to get normally.
Scotland
In Scotland, the Northern Lights isn’t referred to as the Northern Lights. Instead, it’s referred to as “the Mirrie Dancers”. Whatever you want to call it, Scotland is the best place in the United Kingdom to get a glimpse of the natural phenomenon. One of the best places in Scotland to see the northern heights is a location by the name of the Sumburgh Head. This is a hotel that was fashioned out of a renovated lighthouse. Not only does this renovated lighthouse offer some nice views of the Northern Lights, but it’s also plenty of fun to stay in regardless!
Greenland
Greenland is another notable country where there are some incredible views of the Northern Lights to be found. Greenland is a location that doesn’t have a lot of light pollution anywhere, which makes it a bit of a paradise when compared to other countries around the world. One of the best places in the country to get a view o the Northern Lights goes by the name of Kangerlussuaq. Kangerlussuaq used to be a military base, but now it’s a tourist destination! The location offers tourists the chance to see the Northern Lights around 300 nights of the year.
Tromso, Norway
Norway is another country that offers it’s visitors the chance to see the Northern Lights. The country’s largest city goes by the name of Tromso, and it’s located right in the middle of what is referred to as the “auroral oval”. For those that don’t know, the auroral oval is the area where the Northern Lights are viewable. As a result of the city’s location along the auroral oval, Tromso is often given the designation of being the “Gateway to the Arctic”.
Finland
Those staying in Finland can get the opportunity to see the Northern Lights around half of the year, with the natural phenomenon occurring in the area around 200 nights of the year. A popular place to view the Northern Lights in Finland is at the Kakslauttanen Resort, which is located just slightly north of the Arctic Circle. Here, visitors can get the chance to stay in a glass igloo, from which they’ll be able to see the Northern Lights when the naturally occurring phenomenon decides to show it’s face. They can also choose to take a reindeer-drawn sleigh ride out on an excursion that will offer them a better chance of seeing the phenomenon.
Fairbanks, Alaska
Finally, let’s take a look at a great place to view the Northern Lights in Alaska. The Chena Hot Springs Resort in Alaska is a great Northern Lights-viewing location, and it differs from all of the aforementioned locations on this list in that it’s not freezing cold! As the name of the location suggests, the Chena Hot Springs Resort offers visitors the chance to view the Northern Lights from the comfort of it’s hot springs.
If you’re planning on viewing the Northern Lights during your lifetime, any of the above locations would be a great place to do it! Now it’s time to hear from you: did you know that there’s a state park in Pennsylvania where the Northern Lights can be viewed many nights throughout the year, and that there’s a hotel made of ice in Sweden that offers great views of the naturally occurring phenomenon? As always, like this video to show your support, and subscribe and hit the notification bell if you’d like to be among the first to know when more ViewCation videos are on their way!