About
The northern lights are best seen away from the street lights, and on Svalbard you cannot simply walk out of town in the evening because of the risk of polar bears.
This tour solves both.
We pick you up at your hotel, and your guide drives our Mercedes-Benz Vito to viewpoints outside Longyearbyen.
Before we leave, the guide checks the aurora forecast, cloud cover and road conditions and chooses the route that gives us the best chance of a clear sky.
The weather can differ from one valley to the next, so being able to move makes a difference.
At each stop we step out into the dark to watch the sky, and get back into the warm vehicle when we get cold.
Your guide carries polar bear protection and keeps an eye on the surroundings, so you can concentrate on the sky.
Tour plan
- Pick-up at your hotel in Longyearbyen
- Drive out of town, with stops at viewpoints chosen for the conditions that evening
- Photo stop outside the Svalbard Global Seed Vault, lit up against the dark mountainside.
Your guide explains why seeds from almost every country in the world are stored here. The vault itself is not open to visitors.
- Hot drink and biscuits while we wait for the aurora
- Drop-off at your hotel about three hours after pick-up
What if there are no northern lights?
The aurora is a natural phenomenon, and nobody can promise that it will appear.
The tour runs even when the forecast is low or the sky is cloudy.
You still get an evening drive through the Arctic winter darkness, the stop at the Seed Vault and stories about the nature and history of Svalbard from a local guide.
Good to know
- Season: October to March
- Duration: approx. 3 hours
- Group size: 2 to 8 guests
- Difficulty: easy. Short walks on snow and ice close to the vehicle
- Language: English
- Included: guide with polar bear protection, transport, hot drink and biscuits, hotel pick-up and drop-off in Longyearbyen
- Bring: warm winter clothing, hat, gloves and winter boots with good grip. It is often colder outside town than it feels in the centre, especially when it is windy.
Tip: combine the evening with our Ice Cave Hike during the day. Private tours and tours in other languages are available on request.
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