How to see the Northern Lights in Iceland : Using a Bus Tour

How to see the Northern Lights in Iceland

I have to admit the only reason I booked my trip to Iceland was to see the Northern lights as I didn’t really know much else about the country apart from this was the best place to see the Aurora Borealis.

My quest for searching for the Northern Lights begun, I didn’t realise it would involve so much chasing around I thought you would just see them in Reykjavik at night by looking up in the sky.

What are the Northern Lights

The Northern Lights are a natural phenomenon also known as Polar lights and if they are seen in the Southern Hemisphere they are called Aurora Australis.

They are colourful lights that appear in the sky at night and can be various colours but most commonly the northern lights are green.

The pictures used at the beginning of post are not my own as I did not know how to capture the lights on camera. But I wanted to share with you how spectacular they can look when the photo is taken properly.

To be honest I dont understand what they actually are I just know I have seen pictures and they look beautiful and it was on my bucket list to see the Northern Lights in Iceland.

They can be spotted in other countries such as Finland and even closer to home in Scotland. However Iceland was the cheapest and best option for me on my quest to spot the Northern Lights.

I visited Iceland on my own and booked my tours through Viator there is also a cool group tour with G Adventures which you can book here

Searching for the Northern Lights

I went on a bus tour to see the Northern Lights on my first night in Iceland since this is the top thing in Iceland I wanted to see.

I was so excited, the forecast for seeing the lights was great so my fingers were crossed that I was going to see them on my first night and every night after that.

Which bus tour in Iceland did I use

The tour company I used was Gray Line, it picked me up from the hotel and took me to the main office to get onto a larger coach. 

I was on the 7pm tour and it was nearly full I had a spare seat next to me and I think there are only a couple of spare seats so it is really popular.

There are also tours leaving at 8pm and 9pm. I got chatting to a couple who have been out the previous night and didn’t see anything, they told me if you don’t see something you get a free tour which I wasn’t aware of had a few days in Iceland so I was not that concerned if I wasn’t going to see the lights as I had more nights to try and spot them.

Chasing the Northern Lights is really surreal it was like we were hunting for aliens or something.

They call it chasing the Northern Lights as that is literally what we are doing. They are told over radios where the lights are or are likely to be showing and the bus heads in that direction.

A quick message over the radio could mean we all have to get on the bus and quickly head to a new destination before the lights disappear so it really each like chasing after something that can vanish in a few seconds.

We pulled up outside a café where it was possible to get hot drinks and snacks. It was only about 8pm and someone told me the lights don’t normally show until 11-1am. Everyone was excited, there was a great atmosphere as we all stood out in the cold looking up at the empty sky.

It was so windy and cold. I started taking pictures of the sky even though there was nothing there but sometimes you can pick the lights up with a camera even if you can not see them.

My camera wasn’t getting anything but another guy was getting some great shots, he explained to me about having to change the settings on my camera, being a bit of a novice and only snapping on auto I knew nothing about what setting to use. You can find out more information here if you are interested in taking pictures of the Northern Lights.

Two other coaches arrived and then we went off in convoy.

We had a tour guide but he wasn’t very informative and was actually quite boring so I switched off listening to him and looked out of the window trying to spot the lights. 

We went to another viewing point this time it was just an empty carpark. It got more windy and freezing cold as the night went on. I got off the bus but didn’t last long as I was being blown over and there was nothing to see yet so I decided to get back on the nice warm bus.

There is a bit of excitement as the tour guide says the lights are coming they are just very faint at the moment. I could not see anything. Nothing gets stronger and we head back to Reykjavik slightly disappointed but I still have a few more days here to try again.

Even though the lights were very faint we are told we are entitled to a free tour. I thought the lights in Iceland would be easy to spot and I didn’t realise we would be driving around hunting for them.

The next time I went out on a 9pm tour.

This time we did a different route the tour companies monitor where the best places to see the lights on the night will be, first we stopped by a church.

Read More : Where to eat in Reykjavik

There are about 6 coaches already there. Our coach parks right on a path of ice which is not good as we all go skidding when we get off the bus.

The tour guide put down some sand down but it was still really slippy so I didn’t want to keep getting on and off the bus as I had no one to hold me up. 

However it looked like the lights were coming, but there are so many artificial lights every time I took a picture it was picking up the street lamps.

I couldn’t see anything. There is a lot of caos as people are banging into each other as it is dark and slippery and everyone is looking up at the sky rather than where they are walking.

It was not a nice experience as it was cold and just too many people as the are coach loads there. So I get back on the bus feeling miserable that the lights still haven’t shown again.

We then drive to the south coast for about 1 hour. We are now in a convey of 6 coaches and I bet the locals think there goes the “light hunters”. Our guide said this was going to be the stop for the night now and it was looking really good that the lights were going to show.

The 2nd tour guide was much better than the 1st night, she was entertaining and told us some interesting facts about the Aurora Borealis.

We were parked in a carpark of a restaurant, we are told we can go in for some really good lobster soup but I was still full from my fish and chips earlier.

I got off the bus to explore but the wind is so strong, we get attacked by lots of flying little stones so most of us get back on the bus again. The things with this tours is most of the time is going to be spent on the bus so be prepared, bring snacks, drinks and maybe some music to listen to as there is so much waiting around for the Northern Lights to appear. 

I decided once the lights start to show someone was bound to come and tell us on the bus and then I would brae the cold in the meantime I stayed warm on the bus, but even the bus was getting a battering from the wind and was thrashing about as one pint I thought it was going to tip over. and then I could get off into the cold. 

All the lights were switched off on the bus so we were sat there in the pitch black. It was such a weird experience at first as we all sat there silent not really sure what was going on. But then everyone started chatting and it was lots of fun hearing about peoples experiences in Iceland so far. I love listening to other people travel stories.

After an hour passed, no lights and again we left disappointed. I was starting to think I was not going to see the lights during this trip to Iceland.

If you are going to go to Iceland to find the Northern Lights then I would advise you are prepared for the cold here are my essentials for a trip to Iceland in the Winter

Was it going to be 3rd time lucky for me to see the Northern Lights in Iceland, this time there was a mistake and the coach ended up leaving without me to compensate the company put me on a luxury bus tour to see the Northern lights and this is the one I recommend people do.

Use the Luxury Bus tour to see the Northern Lights in Iceland

The luxury bus tour to see the northern lights is a mini bus and the guide is also the driver. This tour was such a contrast to the other tours where they treat you like cattle.

You even get a bottle of water and a blanket. I would highly recommend going on the deluxe tour even though it is twice the price it just felt more special.

We went to a lovely restaurant called the cow shed which is literally a converted cow shed and you can even hear cows (obviously there not in the restaurant but sheds next door) and we were given delicious volcano soup which is a beef broth (mushroom option for vegetarians) and homemade bread.

It is great when they include food on a tour as it is such an icebreaker when people are sat around a dinner table they get talking and we all got chatting and then it felt like we knew each other and I was sharing the tour with friends which made it so much nicer than the large bus tours.

After dinner we drove to the waterfall Seljalandsfoss. I had been to this during the day but it looked totally different at night time.

It was magical, the stars were so vivid and bright I had never seen stars like it before. My pictures really don’t do the lights justice as I didn’t have a tripod which you really need to take decent pictures of the Northern Lights.

After a few minutes of looking up at the sky I got back on the bus to warm up. Everyone else soon got back on and we drive off to another spot.

I was looking to the right of the bus and it looked like a big cloud was appearing the driver said “That’s the lights” and we all got off the bus really excited. The cloud started to get brighter and brighter and then there it was the Northern Lights. OMG it was one of the most spectacular things I have ever seen and this is so worth the days of waiting as I suppose it made it more special because I really thought I wasn’t going to get to see them.

Seeing The Northern Lights at last

Maybe if I had seen them on the first day I might have not appreciated them as much.

To watch them by this beautiful waterfall as well was amazing. I don’t want to lessen the majestic of the lights but it is not as neon as it shows on the pictures though it is still very special and definitely worth seeing.

My camera picked up the lights though again not brilliant I was a giddy little kipper as so chuffed with what I was getting.

We were given some hot chocolate as we watched the lights. They looked like they were dancing as they moved about.

After about ten minutes they started to fade. We drove off and a few minutes down the road we could see them appearing again so the driver pulled over.

Wow these ones were vertical and horizontal and they were also dancing. There was one point where two little clouds made a cross in the middle of the lights. 

I had now seen the lights crossing something off my bucket list. I was so happy as I got into bed at 2am cold and knackered but it was absolutely worth it.

After my stay in Reykjavik, I stayed in Keflavik and I didnt have to drive anywhere to see the Northern Lights.

My bedroom started glowing green I walked outside and there were the Northern Lights it was amazing if you have time definitely try and spend a night in Keflavik its close to the airport so not out of the way

Further articles you may find interesting

10 Essentials you need for Iceland

Why visit Iceland : My guide to Iceland

20 Cool facts about Iceland

If you liked this post please share and pin for future reference