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Alaska Northern Lights

Our most recommended Alaska Northern Lights

Fairbanks: Moonlight Dog Sled, Dinner & Northern Lights

1. Fairbanks: Moonlight Dog Sled, Dinner & Northern Lights

Experience the beauty and wild side of Alaska. Yanking on their lines and ready to run, your dog team will be anxious to carry you away from your Fairbanks accommodation to this spectacular viewing of the Northern Lights.  Most of the sled ride takes place in an open area so should the Aurora begin early you will have a thrilling view of the sky from the dog sled. The Aurora Borealis is one of the planet's most breathtaking phenomena. In Alaska, a land that stays dark for most of the winter, these spectacular lights bring the sky to life with other-worldly colors that shimmer and dance across the sky. The yurt is only a short drive from Fairbanks but far from the obstructing glare of city lights. Be treated to a hearty midnight dinner in an off-the-grid yurt.  Stay warm with a late salmon dinner and lively conversation in the comfort of your yurt while waiting for the Aurora. The large north-facing windows of your yurt offer the perfect Aurora viewing opportunity. However, should you decide to go outside for photographs or a full view of the sky, you will need to dress in warm layers.

From Fairbanks: Chena Hot Springs Northern Lights Tour

2. From Fairbanks: Chena Hot Springs Northern Lights Tour

The Northern Lights are one of the most spectacular natural phenomena on the planet and on this night tour, you will have the chance to see these marvels of nature for yourself. Your evening begins between 4~5pm when you will be collected from your hotel in Fairbanks and head approximately 60 miles (100 kilometers) to the Chena Resort. Here you will first have a chance to cool off (before heating up) in the spectacular Ice Museum. This building, built entirely out of ice, boasts a full Ice Bar and chandeliers built painstakingly out of hand-crafted ice.  At 8pm, you can soak your cares away in the warm and inviting Chena Hot Springs. You'll be pleased to know that the resort makes use of the first low-temperature binary geothermal power plant built in Alaska and is working on several alternative energy projects, including production and use of hydrogen and vegetable oil for fuel. The resort is conducting collaborative experiments in greenhouse production of vegetables with the University of Alaska Fairbanks Agricultural and Forestry Experiment Station. All in all, the resort is absolutely beautiful and you can soak in its natural springs for at least two hours. By 12:00 midnight, you can begin to look out for the Northern Lights. Soon, if you are lucky, the Aurora Borealis will appear. This natural light display is caused by the collision of energetic charged particles with atoms high in the atmosphere. The result is a breathtaking display of light that can be bright enough to read a newspaper by. Around 2:00 AM, depart back to Fairbanks and arrive around 3~4am. The night will surely be one you will never forget.

Alaskan Northern Lights/Aurora Borealis Lodges

3. Alaskan Northern Lights/Aurora Borealis Lodges

Book a visit to one of these luxurious Fairbanks lodges for a stunning view of Aurora Borealis. The viewing night begins right at the Fairbanks accommodation where guests marvel at the beauty of the Northern Lights from the comfort of these cozy lodges. Guests are picked up and transported to one of the best viewing lodges in the Fairbanks, Alaska area. The lodge is carefully selected to ensure that guests can gaze upon the Northern Lights with ease. Trust the experts to provide you with an incredible vantage point for spying the famous phenomenon. Outside of Fairbanks and away from the city lights, these wide open areas ensure a perfect way to take in Alaska's winter sky. Enjoy the sights from inside the lodge, or even step outside to snap some photographs of the brilliant sky.

From Fairbanks: Northern Lights and Arctic Circle Tour

4. From Fairbanks: Northern Lights and Arctic Circle Tour

Experience Alaska like you have never seen it before while enjoying a scenic drive and narration from your expert guide. Travel along the famous and rugged Dalton Highway (well-known from the TV show Ice Road Truckers) to the Arctic Circle. Hear about how the summer nights are white and the winter dark. Take a selfie or have your photo taken with your certificate to mark your crossing of the Arctic Circle. Have a once-in-a-lifetime experience comfortable transportation and personalized service. Enjoy a flexible travel itinerary to ensure guests can take advantage of unique photo opportunities. The tour will incorporate many stops for your viewing pleasure. Please note that seeing wildlife or the Northern Lights is not guaranteed.

From Fairbanks: Arctic Circle Northern Lights Full-Day Trip

5. From Fairbanks: Arctic Circle Northern Lights Full-Day Trip

Alaska is a land of constant change. On this full day tour, you will have the chance to experience some of the best and most unique things that make your Alaska trip a once-in-a-lifetime experience. Beginning at 1 PM, get picked up from your hotel and venture up to the Arctic Circle (66.5622°) north of the Equator, where you can have your pictures taken and receive a "Cross the Circle-Certificate." It is here that explorers have been venturing for centuries, drawn by the power the planet has to offer. As you continue your day, pass the Trans-Alaska-Pipeline. Here you can glance one of the world's largest pipelines, which stretches over 800 miles (1,287km). It is a crude oil pipeline privately owned by the Alyeska Pipeline Service Company, and here you will learn the engineering and building process of this epic land-crawling beast. Judge for yourself its impact on the landscape around it. After the pipeline, head straight for the banks of the mighty Yukon River. Walk right up to the edge of its banks, where you will gaze out over the beauty in front of you. From here, head to the high plateau of Finger Mountain, where you will hopefully see moose, fox, bears, and perhaps even a mysterious lynx if you're lucky! Up on the mountain, snack on sandwiches, sweets and hot drinks. Through the night, travel back to Fairbanks. Soon, if we're lucky, the Aurora Borealis appears. This natural light display is caused by the collision of energetic charged particles with atoms high in the atmosphere. The result is a breathtaking display of light that can be bright enough to read a newspaper by! Drive through the night, gazing up at the spectacular Northern Lights, before arriving back in Fairbanks around 3 AM.

Northern Lights & Chena Hot Springs Tour

6. Northern Lights & Chena Hot Springs Tour

Located 60 scenic miles from downtown Fairbanks, experience the Aurora Ice Museum and the Chena Hot Springs Resort on a guided tour. Get the chance to spot the famed northern lights. Start your trip with a guided tour through the Aurora Ice Museum, displaying magnificent ice sculptures that will leave you amazed. Enjoy a cocktail in a glass made of ice (optional and not included in price). Then, head over to the resort. Enjoy a meal at the restaurant that offers locally cultivated vegetables and Alaska caught wild salmon (not included in price and dining is optional). Afterward, soak in the Chena Hot Springs' legendary healing mineral waters. Take a short stroll up to the Aurorium to watch the beautiful and breathtaking Aurora Borealis dance overhead in the dark nights (visibility of northern lights not guaranteed). The activity center is a great location to warm up while waiting for the northern lights. There will be plenty of time for photography to ensure you will not forget this experience.

From Fairbanks: Northern Lights & Murphy Dome Tour

7. From Fairbanks: Northern Lights & Murphy Dome Tour

Your Murphy Dome/Aurora Borealis night begins with pickup at your Fairbanks hotel in town. This tour provides you with one of the best northern lights viewing spots near Fairbanks. One of the highest peaks in the area, Murphy Dome is the perfect location to visit and watch the night sky. Its wide open spaces away from the city lights ensure a perfect view of Alaska's winter sky. This 360-degree horizon sets the stage for a phenomenal northern lights show. Stay warm with hot drinks and a seat in a 15-passenger van while waiting for the dancing northern lights. Join this tour for the experience of a lifetime!

Chena Lake: Aurora Borealis Viewing & Ice Fishing Adventure

8. Chena Lake: Aurora Borealis Viewing & Ice Fishing Adventure

Get ready for a 5-hour adventure in Alaska’s winter wonderland. Travel to Chena Lake Recreation Area to go ice fishing and look for the aurora borealis (northern lights) from the comfort of a cozy heated cabin. Follow your guide to a heated cabin, your base for the expedition, to stay warm in the cold temperatures. The cabin comes with covers in the floors that are moved for perfect ice-fishing spots. Sip on hot cocoa and enjoy reindeer sausage served with bun, directly flown in from Anchorage to grill in the cabins while you ice fish. Receive all the necessary fishing gear from your guide. Get tips for catching and pulling in a fish from the ice-cold water. Once you catch a fish, enjoy a fish cookout, where you can eat the fish you caught. The tour practices sustainable fishing methods. You can keep 1 fish per participant for your guide to cook for lunch or you can take 1 fish home. The rest of the fish are released back into the lake to grow and for others to catch on another day. We target King Salmon, Arctic Grayling, Rainbow Trout, and Arctic Char.

Late Night Yurt Dinner and Northern Lights

9. Late Night Yurt Dinner and Northern Lights

Experience the beauty and wild side of Alaska. Spend a night away from Fairbanks and savor a home-cooked cabin dinner before feasting your eyes on the infamous Northern Lights. The aurora borealis is one of the planet's most breathtaking phenomena. In Alaska, a land that stays dark for most of the winter, these spectacular lights bring the sky to life with other-worldly colors that shimmer and dance across the sky. Your yurt is only a short drive from Fairbanks, but far enough to avoid the obstructive glare of city lights. Stay warm with a late dinner (salmon) and lively conversation in the comfort of your cabin while waiting for the aurora. The huge north-facing windows of the cabin offer the perfect viewing opportunity. However, should you decide to go outside for photographs or a full view of the sky, wear layers to keep warm.

Healy: Denali Aurora Quest

10. Healy: Denali Aurora Quest

Search the skies for the Northern Lights on a 3-hour guided tour in the Denali area. The Northern Lights (Aurora Borealis) are one of the world's most spectacular natural phenomenons, and Alaska is one of the best places in the world for viewing. Get picked up from your Healy area accommodation in a 15-passenger, climate-controlled van. Journey away from the lights of town in search for the Northern Lights. The area around Denali makes an ideal spot for stargazing and catching the sometimes elusive Aurora Borealis. Your Alaskan guide will provide commentary and conversation on the area's unique history, formidable climate, dynamic geography, separate scientific facts and fictional myth as you travel to various spots to get the best view.  At each predetermined viewing area, take an opportunity to step outside and stretch your legs, sip a warm complimentary drink, and learn how the Lights are the result of collisions between gaseous particles in the Earth's atmosphere. This bucket list experience will provide multiple photo opportunities with your local guide providing pointers to really capture the moment. The Northern Lights are visible only during the winter months (September to April) and sightings are not guaranteed.

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What people are saying about Alaska

Overall rating

4.9 / 5

based on 8 reviews

To be honest- this winter (early February) trip is not for the weak! It was freezing! I had on a fleece lined base layer (top and bottoms), a turtleneck sweater, a fleece vest, snow bibs, a puffer jacket and an OmniHeat hooded parka with hand warmers and I was still freezing!!!! Not to even mention having to pee and stripping down all of those layers IN AN OUTHOUSE!!! Just getting out of the tour van for 5 minutes felt like an eternity! Having said that- it was worth every second of me feeling like I was going to turn into a snowman! 1st Alaska Tour was nothing short of amazing and all credit goes to our tour guide, Kirk! He was very thorough in explaining portions of the roads we traveled- how scary they were while making us feel safe. We really enjoyed his company and hospitality. Seeing the Aurora Borealis in person (and as early and as often) as we did was something I will never forget! We even got to see them at the Arctic Circle! What an experience! We highly recommend this tour!

This was an incredible experience! Our guides/hosts were friendly and welcoming. The dog-sled ride was fun and it was so interesting to hear the guide's experiences with the sled dogs and racing. It was also a highlight to interact with the dogs before the ride, too! Dinner was delicious and the yurt was warm and comfortable. We didn't see the northern lights because of weather, but the dog-sled ride and dinner was a highlight of our trip, regardless! I have recommended this experience to my friends and family who are interested in visiting Fairbanks - 100% recommend!

Great dog sledding experience! Friendly staff, mushers, & dogs. Comfortable yurt, good food, and had fun getting to know the people on the tour with us. Small group made this possible. Unfortunately, the Aurora did not make an appearance but none of us control the weather! We had an awesome time nonetheless.

Northern lights, great fishing, awesome reindeer dogs, and our fish was cooked up to perfection! Cabin was very warm our host Cody kept things moving along. Fantastic choice!!

It was a long trip but our guide was excellent and we felt very safe on a crazy icy highway in his hands.