You can’t understand Finland without sauna. You can’t understand winter without cold water.

Put the two together and something very real happens — your body resets, your mind quiets, and winter suddenly feels less like something to endure and more like something to enjoy. Yes, enjoy! For us, it feels like a high.

That’s what we experienced with StayLapland. We’ve done saunas before. We’ve done winter trips before. But it was my friends’ first ice dip. And I’m pretty sure they got as hooked as us!

In the Nordics, sauna isn’t a “wellness activity”— it’s a way of life.

Ready to dive in?

We’ll say this upfront: we usually don’t do northern lights tours.

We’re perfectly happy standing alone in the dark, refreshing forecasts, watching cloud maps like it’s a second job, and waiting patiently for the sky to make up its mind. That’s our normal rhythm.

But this Rovaniemi trip with my friends came with a few complicating factors.

We didn’t have a car. Clouds were threatening every single evening. One of my friends had never seen the northern lights. And we were staying close enough to the city that light pollution was always lurking in the background. Add a short stay to the mix, and suddenly “we’ll figure it out ourselves” starts feeling less noble and more risky.

So we booked a tour. And honestly? We’re really glad we did.

Rovaniemi in winter is… a lot.

Within about five minutes of arriving, you’ll see it: tour buses unloading at industrial speed, groups moving in formation, and yes — at least one fully grown adult dressed as an elf, enthusiastically herding people toward Santa Claus Village like it’s a festive airport security line.

But if you’re the kind of person who quietly backs away from crowds, prefers snow over shopping bags, and suspects that Lapland might have more to offer than a receipt printed with reindeer on it — good news. It absolutely does.

This article is about winter activities in Rovaniemi that don’t involve Santa. Think ice hotels that melt in spring, national parks where trees look like they’ve given up on physics, saunas followed by holes cut into frozen lakes, and nights spent waiting quietly for the sky to decide whether it feels like showing off.

If you’ve been researching the Lofoten Islands, you’ve probably noticed a pattern: most content focuses on summer. Hiking. Midnight sun. Dry trails and long days.

So a fair question comes up fast:

Is Lofoten actually worth visiting in winter?

The honest answer is ABSOLUTELY yes — if you understand what kind of trip it becomes. Winter in Lofoten is quieter, moodier, and less predictable. You won’t hike high ridges. You will spend more time watching weather, light, and sea. And trust us, you’ll want to, because this is without a doubt one of the most spectacular places on earth. It also means lower prices and a lot less people, which is always nice — in our humble opinion.

If that sounds appealing, winter can be one of the most rewarding times to go.

Time off is limited. Flights and hotels aren’t cheap. And winter travel in Lapland adds friction whether you like it or not. So this guide is about experiencing Lapland well in one week — without rushing, without backtracking, and without pretending the Arctic is smaller or easier than it is.

If you’ve got more time, perfect. Stay longer.
If you’ve got seven days, this is how to make them count.

We’re unapologetically in favor of slow travel. Fewer places, more time. Staying somewhere long enough to notice how the light shifts, how silence settles in, how weather quietly dictates the pace. In the Arctic, less is often more: winding down in a sauna after a day outside, waiting for the northern lights, watching the snow fall, enjoying a “fika” by the fire.

But we also know reality.

Time off is limited. Flights and hotels aren’t cheap. And winter travel in Lapland adds friction whether you like it or not. So this guide is about experiencing Lapland well in one week — without rushing, without backtracking, and without pretending the Arctic is smaller or easier than it is.

If you’ve got more time, perfect. Stay longer.
If you’ve got seven days, this is how to make them count.

The 2025-2026 northern lights season has been exceptional so far, and one thing is clear: people aren’t just asking where to see the aurora anymore. They’re asking which kind of trip actually fits them.

Short stay or long trip?
Car or no car?
Tour or no tour?
Quiet or social?
First time or return visit?

This guide helps you choose the right northern lights destination based on your travel style, so your trip works in real life — not just on paper.

Seeing the northern lights is one of those travel dreams that feels almost mythic — until you start planning it and suddenly everything involves icy roads, late-night driving, weather stress, and rental car disclaimers written in very small print.

Here’s the reassuring truth: you absolutely can see the northern lights without a car. In many cases, it’s not just easier — it’s smarter. We’ve done it plenty of times — Luleå, Alta, Kiruna, Rovaniemi, etc. — as we usually don’t rent a car in winter.

This guide is for travelers who want the aurora without white-knuckle winter driving, missed turnoffs in the dark, or constant road-condition checks. We’ll show you how it works, where it works best, and how to choose accommodation and tours that do the heavy lifting for you.

So you want to catch the Northern Lights? Smart move. But here’s the thing — the aurora doesn’t just show up on demand like a Netflix show (or, as a local joked in Alaska, by activating a switch). Timing is (almost) everything. Get it right, add a pinch of luck, and you’ll be under a sky on fire. Get it wrong and… well, you’ll just be staring at some very expensive clouds or, at least, a stunning starry sky.

This guide covers the best months and seasons to see the Northern Lights (in Europe, North America, and even the Southern Hemisphere), plus a few insider tips — and some gear recs — to up your odds...

In Luleå, winter doesn’t whisper — it glows. Between November and March, nights stretch long enough for the Northern Lights to take over the sky, turning this quiet city on Sweden’s frozen coast into one of the Arctic’s most underrated aurora destinations.

We stayed there a week in February, and saw the aurora 3 nights in a row!

Most travelers rush north to Kiruna or Abisko — and miss Luleå’s secret: you can see the Northern Lights here without leaving civilization.

You’ve seen the photos: glass igloos glowing under green skies, cozy cabins deep in Lapland, snow hotels made entirely of ice. It all looks unreal — and it is, until you find yourself standing outside at midnight, in –25°C, watching the aurora swirl above your room.

We haven’t stayed in every one of these hotels (we’re working on it, promise), but we’ve researched them, seen many in person, and talked to travelers who’ve frozen in all the right places. Here’s our handpicked list of the best hotels in Europe to see the Northern Lights in 2025, from Norway to Finland to Sweden — plus a few bonus picks in Iceland worth every chill.

The northern lights seem to be everywhere on social media. A couple of decades ago, this breathtaking natural phenomenon was only accessible to just a few lucky people. Now, it’s easier than ever to try and see them.

But between the best locations, when to go, the weather forecast, and the more scientific details such as the Kp-index (Kp-what?), it's not always easy to know where to start.

So if the northern lights have been on your bucket list for a while, keep reading for a few northern lights tips!

The northern lights don’t understand borders (and sometimes, neither do we). From the icy plains of Alaska to the wild Southern Ocean, auroras ripple across both hemispheres in glowing ovals of light.

If you’ve already dreamed your way through Iceland or Norway (see our Europe guide), here’s the global bucket list: the best places in the world to chase the aurora borealis — and even its southern twin, the aurora australis.

The Northern Lights are one of those rare things that live up to the hype. They look like magic — glowing curtains of green, pink, and purple rippling across the night sky. But behind the wow-factor is a cocktail of solar physics, Earth’s magnetic field, and a bit of folklore humans have been spinning for centuries.

This guide breaks down what the Northern Lights actually are, how they form, why they come in different colors, and the surprising ways they affect both people and animals — without turning into a boring science lecture. We’ll even talk about the different shapes they take, so you can show off at the next party (providing your friends are nerds like us!)

The aurora is wild enough on its own. But try to photograph it and suddenly you’re fighting the dark, the cold, and a camera that refuses to focus. And by the time you figure it out, Lady Aurora is already gone. Don’t panic: you don’t need to be a pro to bring home shots that look like they belong on a postcard — or at least on Insta. You just need a little prep, the right gear, and a few tricks to outsmart the Arctic night.

This is your beginner-friendly guide to photographing the Northern Lights — no tech snobbery, no 200-page manual, just clear steps to help you capture the sky on fire.

So you’ve booked your aurora adventure. Flights? Check. Camera? Charged. Excitement level? Off the charts. But here’s the deal — the Northern Lights love the kind of weather that can turn your eyelashes into icicles. We’ve been there —repeatedly. Yes, voluntarily. And we know how to dress for our beloved Arctic! But show up unprepared and you’ll spend more time shivering than stargazing.

This guide is your survival kit: what to wear, how to layer, and the gear that actually keeps you warm at –30°C while waiting for the sky to put on a show.

You’ve seen the photos. The swirls of green and purple. The ice hotels and starry skies. But how do you actually plan a Northern Lights trip in Europe without blowing your budget, freezing your face off, or ending up in the wrong place at the wrong time?

We’ve chased the aurora across Scandinavia and beyond — from cozy Finnish cabins to Swedish frozen lakes. We’ve waited hours in the cold, sometimes with a reward and sometimes with nothing except frostbite. We’ve tested apps, gear, and all the local tips we could get.

So, here’s our not-boring, fully practical guide to the best places to see the Northern Lights in Europe — and how to pick the one that matches your vibe.