The best place to see the northern lights in Norway is pretty muc anywhere in the Northern Norway. The Lyngenfjord region and Tromsø lies directly below the aurora oval, making it the perfect place to spot the northern lights. In the Lyngenfjord region, you can find plenty of places with very little light pollution, you can often even see and photograph the aurora from your accommodation. 

Find a place with an open sky view towards the north, and wait. The northern lights often cross the sky east - west. 

The best time to see the northern lights in Norway is from mid Septemeber to end of March. A couple of weeks earlier and later you can also see the stronger aurora sometime around midnight. It is best to head outside between 21:00 and 02:00, most often the northern lights appear around 23:00-01:00. 

Early season is often a better time to spend hours outside hunting the northern lights, as the temperatures are milder than in mid winter. 

Key points to remember when taking a northern lights photos in Lyngenfjord region 

• Keep the camera steady, a tripod is recommended. Use your back or rocks if you don't have a tripod. 
• Set the camera focus to infinity
• Use as wide aperture as you can, like f2.8, f3, f4 - depends on the how bright it is outside as well
• Longer exposure time, normally 5-10 seconds is enough. If it is a slow-moving or weaker aurora, try 10-20 seconds. 
• ISO at 800, this again depends on how bright it is. If it is dark you might want to try a higher ISO. 

Local tips for a good aurora photography tour in Northern Norway 

• wear warm clothes and a reflective vest 
• wear warm gloves
• wear warm shoes and be careful when walking on the shores, the rocks might be slippery 
• bring an extra battery for your camera
• a headlamp to see what you are doing (remember not to point it at others photographing the northern lights!)
• maybe even bring a thermos with something warm to drink

You can see the northern lights from when it gets dark around 17.

Statistically, the best chances are between 21:00 - 01:00 at night in our region. However, we recommend to keep an eye out anytime after dark.

During the day it is too bright to see them at Tromso level. However, in other places, like Svalbard, northern lights are usually seen in the afternoon. 

We recommend wearing warm clothes when going out at night to see the northern lights. Even in the autumn, it can get chilly at night, a warm pullover and windproof jacket can be useful.

In the winter, we recommend to wear layers, with wool as a base layer. Gloves, scarf and cap as well as warm shoes. Always wear a reflective vest when you go out in the dark. 

It is hard to see the whales in the darkness, so we do not offer night time whale safaris. For you to get the best experience seeing the whales we recommend you to join a whale safari during the daylight.

We offer a great variety of guided northern lights tours. You can take part on husky sledging, reindeer visit or snowmobiling safari under the northern lights. Snowshoeing at night time to see the aurora outside of the illuminated zones is a popular activity too. We even offer guided photography tours where you join a professional photographer to take you hunting northern lights. As the night can get long, maybe you want to book a dinner at a traditional lavvu while waiting for the northern lights? 

There are several apps that can give you an idea about the northern light possibilities while you are in the region. 

Norway Lights is a basic app and gives you an idea if you should head out to see the aurora borealis.

The "Aurora Forecast 3D" is good for predicting the northern lights in the near future. Developed from the University Centre in Svalbard (UNIS).

Also take a look at the weather forcast and try to head where you can see clear sky. If you see the stars, you might see the aurora too!