Discover the Golden Circle, Snæfellsnes Peninsula, Blue Lagoon, Jökulsárlón Glacier Lagoon, and black lava beaches on this 7-night northern lights holiday.
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Icelandic Northern Lights Exploration
Wasserfall an dem man hinter lang gehen kann
Wasserfall an dem man hinter lang gehen kann
Climb a volcano, learn about Iceland’s history at a Settlement Center, meet Icelandic horses, see turf farmsteads and churches.
There is an optional ice cave tour at Vatnajökull glacier from October to April (weather permitting) and an optional northern lights by boat cruise from Reykjavík. Our Northern Lights Exploration series are designed to include the highlights of Iceland and aim to maximise the chances of seeing the elusive northern lights, as most nights are spent in the darkness away from light pollution.
Location
Iceland
Duration
7 Nights
Available dates
Dec - Mar
Price per person (excl. flights)
from £2,600
Overview
Highlights
- Track record of 85-98% chance of seeing the Northern Lights
- See amazing Icelandic landscapes mixed with soft adventure and cultural experiences during the day
- Climb a volcano crater and walk between two continental tectonic plates
- Visit the Settlement Center in Borgarnes
- Descend 35m underground into Vatnshellir cave situated under Snæfellsnesjökull glacier
- Relax in the Blue Lagoon and learn about living with volcanoes
- See Icelandic horses and taste freshly baked hot spring bread
- Five evenings Northern Lights Academy
- Program offered in two group sizes: maximum 16
What’s included
- 7 nights accommodation with breakfast at comfort tourist-class hotels
- 6 days escorted bus tour with English-speaking guide/driver-guide
- Arrival & departure airport private transfer (no guide)
- Visit the Settlement Center in Borgarnes
- Guided tour into Vatnshellir cave
- Hot spring tasting with geothermal cooked bread & eggs
- Visit Icelandic horse stable & geothermal greenhouse
- Visit the Lava Exhibition Center
- Visit Skógar folk museum & turf houses
- Entrance with towel to Blue Lagoon
- Northern lights program
A note on flights
While flights are not included in the holiday price, our team will happily provide a quote and arrange them for you. Simply ask one of our Travel Experts for details of the available options.
Day by Day Itinerary
Day 1
Individual transfer by Flybus shuttle bus from Keflavik airport to your accommodation in Reykjavik. You may explore Iceland’s capital city on your own if time allows.
Day 2
At 09:00 meet your tour guide who shows the group the highlights of Iceland’s exciting capital, before you head west.
Stop in Borgarnes and learn about Iceland’s earliest days at the Settlement Center. Next, we head to Borgarfjörður, known as the Saga Valley because of its many important historical events. Get a chance to climb the Grábrók volcano crater and visit Deildartunguhver, Europe’s most powerful hot spring.
Hraunfossar is a series of waterfalls pouring from beneath a wide lava field. Barnafoss – the ‘children’s falls’ – is nearby with its own tragic tale. The afternoon includes a lecture about the Northern Lights. After dinner, step into the hotel garden in search of the northern lights followed by a hot cup of chocolate or tea.
Day 3
The Snæfellsnes Peninsula, “the peninsula of the snowy mountain“, juts out from Iceland’s west coast, like a long arm with a clenched fist at its tip, and is in many ways a microcosm of the whole island. A rugged mountain chain runs its length. Visit the fishing village of Grundarfjörður, a place with an impressive coastline and mountains, lakes, and waterfalls behind the village. One of the most photographed and famous mountain in Iceland, Kirkjufell, can be seen jutting out into the bay.
Visit Arnarstapi and Hellnar before experiencing the area from below, inside Vatnshellir cave. We take you 35 meters underground and about 200 meters into the lava tube under the glacier Snæfellsjökull! On the way back to Borgarnes the guide gives you some practical tips on how to photograph the auroras as part of the Northern Lights Academy program. Naturally, once darkness falls, we are out in the hotel garden to chase the northern lights and to soak in the hotel’s outdoor hot tubs.
Day 4
Travel along the Hvalfjörður fjord. The first stop is Þingvellir National Park, a UNESCO World Heritage site. Travel the Golden Circle route, see steam rising from the Geysir geothermal fields. The chef of the Restaurant Geysir invites you to taste freshly baked hot spring bread served with Icelandic butter, boiled eggs and herring. On we travel to the double waterfall of Gullfoss.
In the afternoon, learn about the Icelandic horse, its unique qualities and history, and visit a geothermal greenhouse, before reaching the accommodation in south Iceland. Tonight, step into the darkness and search for the elusive northern lights in the peace and stillness of rural Iceland.
Day 5
Today we travel along the south coast. At the Lava & Volcano Exhibition Center, learn about geology and active volcanoes. Further east we visit one of Iceland’s finest folk museums. This museum contains an outstanding collection of farm and domestic artefacts from Iceland’s past and several turf-built houses.
Nearby is Skógafoss waterfall which is 60 meters high and one of the most impressive waterfalls in the country. In the afternoon take a stroll on the black lava beach and along bird cliffs at Reynisfjara in south Iceland. We spend two nights near Kirkjubæjarklaustur in the Vatnajökull National Park region, located in darkness and ideal for a northern lights search.
Day 6
Today’s program is all about glaciers, ice and icebergs. We travel to Jökulsárlón, a glacial lagoon filled with floating icebergs. We explore the amazing site, and might see seals swimming in arctic waters. You can walk on the black sandy beach, the so-called diamond beach, where large icebergs get stranded.
In the afternoon we visit the tiny turf church at Hof and spend time at Europe’s largest national park, which has Iceland’s highest mountains, an alpine environment, and Europe’s largest glacier. In the evening enjoy a film presentation about the northern lights as part of the Northern Lights Academy program. Be careful not to go to bed too soon in this remote and quiet location, or you may miss out on one more chance of seeing the northern lights shimmering and dancing across the night sky.
Day 7
From Kirkjubæjarklaustur we head across the Eldhraun lava field to the village of Vík, where we make a photo stop. The black lava beach with high bird cliffs and pounding waves is awe-inspiring. Further west we reach the high but narrow Seljalandsfoss waterfall which plunges from the mountain.
In the afternoon we get to soak in the famous Blue Lagoon. We reach Reykjavík around dinner time for one last night.
Day 8
Individual transfer by Flybus shuttle bus from your accommodation in Reykjavik to Keflavik International Airport.
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Reviews
See what our clients say
Brilliant short break. Hotel Ranga was lovely, excellent food. Managed to see the Northern Lights as well! Iceland on the whole was quite expensive but a lovely place to visit, the people were very friendly.
Linda Palmer
Overall very good. Staff excellent and helpful. Accomodation basic but was what we expected. Tour guides very good (nature walks, snow mobiles, dog sleighs). Sky station disappointing as we never got to go up due to the weather and this seem to be a recurring feature.The alternative walk at night and meal was a let down as a result.Overall would recommend to others.
John Kirby
Dear Abigail, We have safely returned from Iceland and we wanted to say a huge and sincere thank you for all the plans that you put into place to make this one of the most memorable holidays we have ever had. It was simply beautiful each and every day. The cabin was idyllic and so cosy and warm. The tour guides were so knowledgeable and friendly and the scenery was breathtaking. All the arrangements worked so well and we will remember the trip for a long time to come.
Thank you once again.
Gillian Griffiths
We did the aurora nights break and had a great time overall. Everything related to flights, hire car, and hotels ran smoothly. There were a few issues largely relating to the weather and driving conditions (we travelled in mid March), but what we did manage to do was amazing.
The blue lagoon was easy to access from the airport and was a brilliant experience. We booked the standard package and it came with a free drink and face mask. Facilities were clean and organised with free toiletries in the shower rooms, which helps if you’ve gone there straight from the airport.
The drive to Hotel Ranga afterwards was long but fine (check out the road on google streetview to know what to expect). The hotel and staff were great. We were limited to one option as vegetarians on the bar and a la carte menus, but the food was lovely and if you are a meat eater you will see options of unusual dishes like puffin and reindeer.
Our northern lights super jeep trip was cancelled on both nights due to a poor forecast, but we were lucky enough to get an aurora wake up call from Hotel Ranga the first night. We couldn’t use the hottubs as there are only a few and they were always taken in the limited time we spent at the hotel, so don’t go expecting to get lots of time in one and you won’t be disappointed. View them as an add on if you can time it right. We were travelling with an 11 year old, so we didn’t stay up really late. If you are a couple you probably have a better chance of getting one later on.
The glacier/volcano super jeep trip was outstanding. Our driver, Íbí was excellent. She went above and beyond and gave us such an awesome experience. We were also super lucky with the weather the first two days and had great views across Iceland.
The ice cave tour was also incredible and the guides running it were excellent. The group size was much bigger than expected (especially after the more exclusive volcano super jeep tour), but it was broken down into smaller groups that were managed well, with plenty of time factored in for photographs. There were several unexplained delays getting to the cave during the tour that meant we weren’t able to ‘mini tour’ the rest of the South Coast afterwards, so if you plan to do the ice cave don’t overplan for the afternoon as you may not have much time. Not a huge disappointment for us as we got to experience the cave, but I imagine someone who planned a full itinerary afterwards might be frustrated by the estamiated timings not always being right and subject to change with the weather (which was wicked that day).
Driving around Reykjavik was a horrible experience as we arrived around rush hour and weren’t prepared for all the traffic, having only experienced quiet roads along the south coast. It was difficult finding a parking space, so be prepared to drive around a little when you arrive. If you haven’t driven on the right before and are not a confident driver this could leave you feeling stressed. Again, check out the roads into Reykjavik on Google maps to get a sense of what awaits if you aren’t used to self-driving.
We didn’t get to tour the golden circle because of road conditions/ice/road closures, so we spent the day in Reykjavik instead. This turned out okay for us as we did some of the attractions (Lava Centre and Fly Over Iceland – both hughly recommended), but it ended up being an extra expense and we missed out on the golden attractions. Again, not a big issue if you are aware this could happen. The weather is so changeable that having a plan B is a good approach.
Weekend a la Carte sent us a text warning us about the bad weather conditions, which we’d already seen on the Safe Iceland app, but we were grateful for anyway. It was good to know they were looking out for us!
All in all, a remarkable trip, with some unique experiences. If you book this in the knowledge that nature will have her own way, and you may not see everything you want (especially in winter), you will have a great time. Ranga is definitely the best place to maximise your chances of seeing the lights.
Sarah Brooks
An amazing trip and excellent service provided by all involved. Great value for money too. Food was excellent. Accommodation was wonderful and the trips booked were outstanding. An amazing trip
David Watson-Cammock
An excellent holiday which was enjoyed by all. The super jeep ride on the second day to the Eyjafjallajokull volcano was memorable and thanks to our driver Margaret who proved to be a really good guide. We thoroughly enjoyed the facilities in the hotel Ranga. The staff were very helpful and we managed to see the Northern Lights. The Hotel Reykjavik Centrum was very nice with amazingly helpful staff. All in all, the whole holiday was brilliant.
Brian Coombs
A fantastic short break which fulfilled all expectations. Well organised with a polished delivery, we could not have asked for more. The accommodation was perfect for us and the guides knowledgeable and helpful. Every day was packed with adventure, each lasting longer than scheduled but we were never rushed; the guides took pride in showing and explaining their beautiful country. We would certainly use Weekend a la carte again and recommend them to others.
Carol Mumford
This was a bucket list trip. The company are specialists and I’ve valued their advice. Everything from the when to go for the best opportunity to see the lights and equipment needed and provided.Our activities included, the Ice Hotel, night photo shoot, snowmobiling, guided walk and the sky station meal. All excellent and well run by knowledgeable experts and guides. The Abisko Lodge is warm comfortable and relaxing the food is excellent and the staff welcoming, friendly and very helpful. I would highly recommend if you’re looking for a different and exciting experience.
Jean Lavender