A good aurora night starts before you ever see the sky move. This Northern Lights tour from Reykjavík is built around photo-friendly setups and real waiting comfort, with a professional photographer guiding you toward the best chances for the aurora borealis. You leave the city lights behind, chase darker skies, and then settle in for a long, calm session of watching, learning, and shooting.

I especially like the way you get proper gear support: warm winter jumpsuits, outdoor chairs, tripods, and help getting your camera or phone settings working. I also love the food and drink spread—hot chocolate, cinnamon rolls, pastries, dried fish, chocolate, plus Icelandic vodka and snaps—so waiting doesn’t feel like punishment.

One drawback to consider: aurora tours depend on weather and cloud cover. Even with strong planning, you may not get a dramatic display on your first try, so you’ll want to be flexible with your Reykjavík dates.

Key Points I’d Put on Your Shortlist

• Small group (max 18), which makes it easier to hear your guide and move your camera setup without chaos
• Warm snowsuits + chairs so you can stay outside longer and actually enjoy the night sky
• Unlimited high-res photos included, plus on-the-spot help with camera settings
• Planned for forecast conditions (weather, cloud cover, geomagnetic activity), not random “let’s drive and hope”
• Re-run option if you miss the lights, and in rare situations, they aim to keep running until you see aurora
• Pickup within Reykjavík, with bus-stop limits in central areas—plan your walking if needed

Northern Lights Tours in Reykjavík: What This One Really Does Differently

Reykjavík is a great launch point for the aurora, but it’s also a city. Light pollution can turn faint aurora into a “maybe I imagined that” moment. The big idea here is simple: you go where it’s darker, then you stay comfortable enough to wait for the aurora to show itself.

This is not a quick bus stop-and-sprint operation. It’s built for the full rhythm of an aurora night: drive out, set up, wait, photograph, and keep adjusting as conditions change. Your guide is also a professional photographer, so the session is both practical (how to see and shoot the lights) and cinematic (the photos are part of the point).

And yes, the warm gear matters. I’ve done enough cold-weather sightseeing to know that the best tour plan in the world falls apart if people are shivering through it. Here, the tour gives you winter jumpsuits, chairs, tripods, and plenty of warm drinks and snacks so you can focus on the sky.

The Meet-Up and Pickup Plan: How You’ll Actually Get From Your Hotel to the Van

The tour starts at 8:00 pm, which is a strong time window for aurora hunting in Iceland during darker months. You’ll use a mobile ticket, and you’ll be confirmed at booking.

Pickup is mostly within Reykjavík city limits, but there’s a practical catch: parts of central Reykjavík are restricted for bus driving. That means the operator may not be able to stop directly at your exact hotel address. Instead, you’ll likely be routed to a designated bus stop and then you’ll walk from your accommodation if your location is in a restricted area.

If you’re staying outside Reykjavík, pick-up is offered at BSÍ Bus Terminal. For your planning, treat that as a clear signal: this tour is easiest when you can reach Reykjavík city center without lots of transfer complexity.

Your Guide + Photo Setup: More Than Just Taking Pictures

The tour is designed around the aurora, but it also treats photography like a skill you can learn quickly. Your guide (a professional photographer) sets up camera equipment for the group and gives you assistance with your own camera settings. Even if you mainly shoot with a phone, you’ll get pointers on what to do so your results look like aurora instead of blurry green streaks.

You also get tripods as part of the experience. That’s a big help if you’re traveling light, or if long-exposure gear would be annoying to pack. A lot of people feel stuck on aurora tours because they don’t know the basics of shutter speed and focusing—here, the help is built into the session.

Another point I like: the tour includes unlimited high-res photos taken during the experience. That’s useful because even if your own camera settings are off, you still get a set of polished aurora photos from the guide’s setup.

Stop 1: The Southern Region Aurora Hunt (The Part That Matters Most)

The main event is where you leave Reykjavík’s city glow and head into darker wilderness. The tour focuses on maximizing your odds by planning the route based on:

• weather
• cloud cover
• geomagnetic forecasts

That forecast-driven approach matters because the aurora isn’t just visible or not. It can be there but muted, or it can be active but blocked by clouds. By chasing forecast conditions, you’re increasing the chance that the night you’re outside is the night the lights actually come through.

At the destination, the guide sets up a photo session and then prepares a cozy area with a table of treats. Expect time for waiting and watching, with a comfortable setup so you can stay outside. This is where the small-group format helps: you can get positioned, adjust your camera, and still keep the mood relaxed while the sky does its thing.

How long is this? The core session is described as about 3 hours at the activity location, and the overall tour runs 4 to 6 hours. In other words, you’re not just stepping outside for a single viewing moment—you’re settling in for a real aurora watch.

What to Be Aware Of Here

Even on a well-run tour, aurora intensity varies. Sometimes it’s subtle and slow, sometimes it looks like curtains moving across the sky. You can control your comfort and your technique, but you can’t fully control the sky’s performance.

Warm Gear, Chairs, and Snacks: Turning Waiting Time Into the Best Time

This tour gives you warm winter jumpsuits and comfortable outdoor chairs. That’s not a luxury add-on; it changes how you experience the night. When you can sit without going numb, you’ll keep watching instead of checking your phone every few minutes to see if it’s still worth it.

Your snack and drink menu is unusually substantial for a Northern Lights tour:

• hot cocoa
• cinnamon rolls
• pastries
• dried fish
• chocolate
• plus premium Icelandic vodka and snaps

That food and drink spread does two things for you. First, it keeps energy up during a long cold session. Second, it gives you a break from technical thinking—after you’ve set your camera, you can just relax and let the aurora arrive on its own schedule.

You’ll also have WiFi on board, which can help if you want to look up how long exposures work or share quick updates while you’re traveling.

Photos Included: Why That’s Good Value, Even If You’re Not a Photographer

Aurora photos are tricky. You’re dealing with darkness, movement in the sky, and cameras that need the right settings to capture more than what your eye sees. With this tour, you get unlimited high-res photos from the experience.

That means you’re not gambling everything on your own technique. You can still practice on your tripod while the guide captures the group with professional equipment. You’ll end up with a set of real results you can use right away, without spending your vacation time troubleshooting settings.

If you’re the kind of traveler who wants souvenir-grade photos but doesn’t want to become an expert overnight, this is a smart way to do it.

Re-Runs If You Miss the Lights: Flexibility That Actually Helps

Aurora nights can be cruel. Clouds happen. The lights can stay faint. This tour includes a free re-try in case of non-sighting, depending on availability. In rare situations where unforeseen circumstances obstruct the view, they offer unlimited re-runs until you see the lights.

So the tour isn’t asking you to accept disappointment as your final product. It’s built to give you a second (and in rare cases, more) chances.

Practical advice: if your schedule allows, don’t cram Reykjavík into a single night. Even though this tour works hard to pick good conditions, you’ll give yourself a bigger safety net when you have extra nights to try again.

Small Group Size (Max 18): The Comfort Factor You Feel Immediately

A maximum of 18 travelers is a sweet spot. You get more personalized attention than big bus tours, and you won’t feel like you’re trying to photograph through a crowd.

In a cold, dark setting, that matters. You need space for tripods. You need time for your camera settings. You need a moment to step aside and warm up. Smaller group setups make that feel manageable, and it also makes it easier to hear your guide when the aurora shifts quickly.

Value for Money: Is $212 Worth It?

At $212 per person, this is not the cheapest way to chase the northern lights. But price is only half the story. Here’s what you’re paying for, and why it can be worth it:

• Snowsuits + chairs + tripods: you’re not renting or packing extra cold-weather gear
• Unlimited high-res photos included: that’s real value if you want strong results without mastering aurora settings yourself
• Assistance with camera settings: less guesswork, better odds of usable photos
• Small group format: better comfort and more time to work through technical basics
• Forecast-based location planning: less wasted time, more structured effort to maximize visibility

If you’re an experienced aurora photographer traveling with your own gear, you might feel like part of the package is overkill. But if you want a guided, gear-supported, photo-backed aurora night that doesn’t turn into a cold endurance contest, the value is easier to justify.

Best Fit: Who This Tour Works For

This tour fits best if you:

• want aurora hunting with photo support, not just sightseeing
• value comfort in the cold (jumpsuits and chairs are a big deal)
• want photos included so you’re not disappointed by amateur camera results
• prefer a smaller group and a guide who can manage the night calmly

It might be less ideal if you hate waiting in the cold (even with gear), or if your schedule is extremely fixed with no flexibility for a re-try.

Should You Book This Northern Lights Photo Tour?

Yes, you should book this tour if seeing aurora and getting strong photos are both part of your plan. The warm snowsuits, chairs, and included photography help reduce the two biggest risks of an aurora trip: losing comfort and losing photo results.

I’d also book early in your Reykjavík trip window so you can swap dates if the sky needs a better night. And if you want to get the most out of it, pack layers even with the jumpsuit, and plan to spend the whole time focusing on the sky instead of rushing between activities.

If you only have one evening in Reykjavík and you can’t move anything, consider that weather still rules the night—even with forecast planning and re-tries.

FAQ

What time does the Northern Lights tour start?

The tour starts at 8:00 pm.

How long is the tour?

It runs about 4 to 6 hours total, with roughly 3 hours at the aurora viewing activity.

What’s included for photos and equipment?

You get unlimited high-res photos from the tour, plus tripods and assistance with your own camera settings.

Do you provide warm clothing and seating?

Yes. You get warm winter jumpsuits and comfortable outdoor chairs.

Do you offer a re-try if there’s no Northern Lights sighting?

Yes. There is a free re-try in case of non-sighting depending on availability, and in rare situations with obstructed view they offer unlimited re-runs until you see the lights.

How does pickup work in Reykjavík?

Pickup is available within Reykjavík, but central areas may have restricted bus stops, so you might need to walk from your accommodation to a designated stop. If you’re staying outside Reykjavík, pickup is available from BSÍ Bus Terminal.