How to see the Lofoten Northern Lights

If you’re visiting Northern Norway in winter, the chances are that you’re hoping to see the Northern Lights.

That’s one of the things we were hoping to see during our visit to Tromsø and Lofoten in winter.

After a failed attempt to see the Northern Lights during our trip to Iceland, and numerous attempts in Canada, we finally got to experience the Northern Lights in the Lofoten Islands and Tromsø.

When you get a great Northern Lights show, it really is as magical as everyone claims it is.

However, the Northern Lights aren’t guaranteed. And, even when you do see them, they can just look like clouds in the sky to the naked eye.

Seeing the Northern Lights where they’re clearly green and dancing across the sky takes time and patience but luckily northern Norway is a great place to up your chances of seeing the Northern Lights.

Lofoten sits in the middle of the Northern Lights Oval (auroral oval) so your chances of seeing the Northern Lights in Lofoten are higher than in many other locations.

The Northern Lights can fill the entire sky across Lofoten although sometimes you’ll only see a few bands across the sky.

If you’re planning a trip to Lofoten, here is your Lofoten Northern Lights guide.

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What are the Northern Lights?

The Northern Lights or the Aurora Borealis are a natural phenomenon where you can see green (and sometimes pink or purple, red, blue and yellow) lights dance across the sky above you.

The Northern Lights are caused by electrically charged particles from the sun entering the Earth’s atmosphere.

The altitude of the Northern Lights determines the colours that we see.

The Northern Lights aren’t always visible, even in Northern Norway. You need solar wind activity for the Northern Lights to be visible, along with clear, dark skies.

Lofoten is great for viewing the Northern Lights as it sits at a latitude of 62 degrees north. This means that the Northern Lights can be visible even when there isn’t a huge amount of activity.

Plus, you’re surrounded by incredible mountain peaks that make that Northern Lights viewing even more impressive.

When to see the Lofoten Northern Lights?

To see the Northern Lights, you need clear skies, and darkness and you must be far enough North.

Lofoten is definitely far enough north to see the Northern Lights and darkness also isn’t a problem with Lofoten having Polar Night from December to January and short days for a month or so on either side.

That means you just need good Lofoten weather for a cloudless sky.

That last part can be the trickiest, as Lofoten is known for its winds, rain and temperamental weather.

When we visited Lofoten from November to December, we were treated to 5 weeks of beautiful weather and had many nights with clear skies!

However, many people say that this is the worst time to visit Lofoten due to bad weather, so maybe we were just extremely lucky.

Personally, I loved visiting during this time since there wasn’t snow on the trails yet so we could hike, there was barely anyone around and accommodation was cheaper!

When is the best time to visit Lofoten Islands for northern lights?

The Northern Lights in Lofoten are most active from September – mid-March. This is the Lofoten northern lights season and when you’re most likely to see them.

Due to Lofoten’s Polar Night and short days, you’ll have more opportunities to see the Northern Lights from December to January, but it can be riskier weather-wise.

For months where the weather is nicer and you can still see the Northern Lights, aim for mid to late September, or February. Bear in mind you’ll have snow in February, but it’s unlikely there will be any in September.

Really, the way to think about it is to consider what other things to do in Lofoten you want to try.

If you want to go hiking, horseriding or kayaking, then September to October may be best for you. If you want to ski or enjoy the snow, then go from January to February.

What time can you see the Northern Lights in Lofoten?

Any time once it’s dark! We saw the Northern Lights from 6 pm, and up towards midnight. If it’s dark it’s worth having a look outside!

In Tromsø, we actually saw our best Norther Light display just after 4 pm!

How to see the Lofoten Islands Northern Lights

To see the Northern Lights in Lofoten you need to do the following things:

• Find a dark sky: While you can see the Northern Lights from the middle of a city from time to time, your chances are much better if you find a super dark area.
• Check the weather forecast: Thick cloud cover and snow mean you won’t be able to see the Northern Lights. Though we’ve seen northern Lights through gaps in the clouds, it’s much better if the sky is completely clear. Plus, you can stargaze while you wait.
• Use Northern Lights forecasting software: We used a couple of tools including the Aurora Fcst app and Solar Winds charts. Oh, and following local tourism boards and people on Instagram; people will usually add a photo to their stories when the Northern Lights are out!
• Book a tour! If your time in Lofoten is limited and you’re really set on seeing the Northern Lights, the best way to see the Lofoten Northern Lights is to book a tour. The guides will take you out to the darkest, clearest skies and help you with your camera settings!

Best Lofoten Northern Lights Tours

The best Lofoten Northern Lights tours include warm weather gear to keep you warm while you wait and a good cancellation policy where you can cancel for free, or reschedule if the weather looks bad.

All these Northern Lights tours in Lofoten offer a great way to up your chances of seeing the Northern Lights by being guided by expert Northern Lights hunters!

• From Svolvær, Northern Lights tour: in a small group, includes a hot drink and cake
• Northern Lights chase with a photographer: Find the Northern Lights with an experienced, local photographer
• Northern Lights cruise & tasting menu: Get out on the water with some great food and see the northern lights from the deck
• From Svolvær or Leknes, Northern Lights tour with campfire and dinner: Enjoy a BBQ dinner by a cosy campfire while you wait for the Northern Lights on a beautiful Lofoten beach.

Where to see the Lofoten Northern Lights?

The reason many people come to Lofoten to see the Northern Lights is that the surroundings are so spectacular.

In Tromsø, you get great scenery too and arguably your chances of seeing the aurora are actually higher, but Lofoten’s scenery is even more spectacular and it’s easier to find dark skies.

There are no bad places to see the Northern Lights in the Lofoten Islands. But, if you’ve seen the Northern Lights a few times and are looking to see them somewhere super cool, or want to maximise your chances of seeing them, some Northern Lights locations in Lofoten are listed below.

First, find somewhere with minimal light pollution. This is typically on a road outside of the town, outside your secluded cabin with the lights off, on the Lofoten beaches, or up a mountain!

The Northern Lights are normally most active in the north or northwest so somewhere with a clear horizon in that direction is best. However, we saw the Northern Lights from all directions, and often straight overhead, so this isn’t a must.

Some of the best places to see the Northern Lights are from the Lofoten beaches on Flakstadøy and Vestvågøy.

Uttakliev beach

Uttalkiev beach is one of the most popular beaches for Lofoten Northern Lights watching and photography.

You’re surrounded by amazing scenery and there’s little light pollution.

You also have a clear view of the horizon and you can sit in your car and stay warm while you wait for the Northern Lights to turn up.

Haukland beach

Next door to Uttakliev beach is Haukland beach which can be another great location for Lofoten Northern Lights photography due to the scenery.

This beach is best when the Aurora is very active as the horizon is a bit concealed by Mannen. So you’ll need an active aurora to increase your chances of seeing the lights.

Unstad beach

Unstad beach has a clear view of the horizon and a car park where you can sit in your car or campervan to stay warm. There will be some light pollution from the houses behind you, but it’s not too much.

Skagsanden beach

This popular surfing beach in Lofoten is also very popular with photographers of the Northern Lights.

The beach points north and you can also get a great view of the lights from within your car.

Plus, there are toilets year-round near Lofoten Beach Camp.

Storsandnes beach and Myrland beach

Storsandnes beach was right outside our first Airbnb in Lofoten and we saw some great northern lights from here.

It’s very dark with just a few houses nearby and you have mountain backdrops as well as some interesting rocks on the beach.

Myrland beach, just a couple of kilometres up the road is similar and perhaps even more picturesque with an even clearer horizon.

Hamnøy

While photographing the red fishing huts in Hamnøy, we met a local photographer who showed us her Northern Lights photos in Hamnøy. You can get some incredible photos from the bridge in Hamnøy.

Hike a mountain

If you’re an experienced hiker ad have both warm gear and a headlamp as well as spikes if needed and the weather is looking good, you can hike a mountain to witness the Northern Lights!

Check out my list of the best Lofoten hiking.

Best Northern Lights forecast apps

To increase your chances of seeing the Northern Lights in Lofoten and minimise your time waiting around, you can use these apps and websites to see a Northern Lights forecast for Lofoten.

• yr.no – weather forecast app that’s commonly used in Norway
• Northern Light Aurora Forecast: Shows you the KP index, the likelihood of seeing the lights and the weather
• NOAA Real Time Solar Wind: This was the most accurate for us. Look for big drops in the red line in the first chart or instability. When you see this, head outside and wait 15-20 minutes and you may see some great lights!

How to photograph the Northern Lights

We’re not expert Northern Lights photographers or photographers in general, but we do know a few things that can help you photograph the Northern Lights.

Honestly, iPhones and phones with night-mode cameras are so good now that you can get a pretty decent photo showing the green stripes in the sky just with your phone.

But, for that crystal clear Northern Lights photo or times when you can’t quite make out the green, knowing how to use your DSLR camera will help.

Put your camera into manual mode, place it on a tripod and adjust the ISO, shutter speed and aperture. You’ll need a few test shots first to make sure your settings are right.

In general, you want the widest possible aperture (f/2.8 or f/4), and ISO of around 1600 or higher, and a shutter speed from 6 seconds to 15 seconds depending on how bright you want the rest of the photo to be. We took some photos with a 2-second shutter speed which I liked.

If your image is too dark, increase the ISO and/or shutter speed (the shutter speed shouldn’t exceed 20 seconds). If the image is too bright, decrease the ISO and/or shutter speed.

FAQs about the Northern Lights Lofoten Islands

How to get to the Lofoten Islands Norway

We drove to Lofoten from Tromsø. The whole journey takes around 6 hours from Tromsø to Svolvaer, and around 8 hours if you’re going from Tromsø down to Å at the southern tip of the Lofoten Islands.

We broke this journey up by visiting Senja and Sommarøy on the way down to Lofoten, which I’d highly recommend if you’re visiting Lofoten in winter too.

We rented a car for our whole 2 months in Norway from Europcar at the Tromsø airport and it came with studded winter tyres which are a must if you’re driving a lot in Lofoten in winter – it gets icy and snowy!

I use comparison sites like DiscoverCars and RentalCars to book my car rentals as it’s easy to check prices and compare the best deals!

Flights to Lofoten airports

There are two small airports in Lofoten, plus a third on the island of Røst. The two main Lofoten Islands airports are Svolvaer and Leknes.

These airports are domestic airports only so you’ll need to transfer at a larger airport before boarding your plane to Lofoten.

There are a few direct flights between Svolvaer and Oslo in the spring and summer months.

In fact, you’ll usually have to transfer a couple of times. Flights from Oslo to Lofoten usually stop at Bodø before travelling onwards to Svolvaer or Leknes. If you’re flying from outside of Norway to Lofoten, that means changing at Oslo and again at Bodø.

You could also fly to Harstad or Narvik, both of which are cities close to the ‘entrance’ to Lofoten.

Skyscanner is what I usually use to find cheap flights. I’ve also started using WayAway which works in a similar way to find you cheap flights BUT you get cashback on all flights, hotels and car rentals you book. Right now you can get 10% off WayAway Plus which gives you even more cashback!

Ferry to Lofoten

There are a couple of ferries to Lofoten. The most well-known one is from Bodø to Moskenes. This is a car ferry service and possibly the most comfortable.

Alternatively, you can take the Hurtigruten coastal ferry from Bodø to Stansund and Svolvaer. This is a more expensive option and not all Hurtigruten ships take cars.

If you’re not taking the ferry with a car, the Bodø to Svolvaer ferry might be a great option for you. It’s passenger-only and an express boat so gets you there quicker than the Bodø – Moskenes ferry.

If you’re looking to limit your flights a little, you can fly to Bodø, rent a car and then take the Bodø to Lofoten ferry which arrives at Moskenes in the south of Lofoten.

The ferry to Lofoten can get very busy in the summer which is a downside to visiting Lofoten in summer in general: crowds.

However, in winter in Lofoten, things are much quieter. But you will need to make sure you get to the ferry terminal in time as there are only two sailings a day to Lofoten in winter.

You can check the timetables for the ferry to Lofoten from Bodø here.

The ferry to Moskenes from Bodø takes about 3 hours and, on a clear day, you’ll get incredible views of the mountains as you approach Lofoten.

However, the journey can be rough so not the best idea if you’re someone who gets seasick!

Train to Lofoten

There is no train to Lofoten. Bodø, or Narvik, are the end of the line depending on which direction you’re coming from.

If you’re travelling from Norway or Sweden to Bodø or Narvik, it’s best to book in advance. That way you can get cheaper tickets.

From Bodø you can take the ferry to Lofoten. From Narvik, you can take a bus, or drive to Lofoten.

You can book trains online in advance by using TheTrainline.com which makes it super easy to plan your journey ahead of time!

Bus to Lofoten

There is no direct bus to get all the way to Lofoten from Oslo. The easiest way is to take the train to Bodø then take a bus if not driving or taking the ferry. If you’re coming from the north, such as Tromsø to Lofoten, then take a bus to Narvik and then switch to go to Lofoten.

The bus from Narvik to Lofoten goes all the way to the end of the road at Å, though you may need to change in Svolvaer or Leknes; especially with reduced service in winter.

Bu information for buses to Lofoten can be found here: reisnordland.no

Where to stay in the Lofoten Islands

Booking accommodation in Lofoten in winter is much easier than in the summer. In the summer, Lofoten is a busy, busy place and accommodation prices can be sky-high or booked up months in advance.

In the winter, however, many places have spare rooms with last-minute availability and prices are generally cheaper. Especially if you’re visiting in November and December before ski tourism has kicked in.

While we stayed in Airbnbs so that we could have access to a bit more space, and a full kitchen, if I was visiting for a shorter period of time, these are the Lofoten Islands hotels I would book.

• Nusfjord Arctic Resort: Beautiful fishing cabins right on the water with mountain views and access to a wood-fired hot tub.
• Trevarefabrikken: Lofoten’s coolest hangout spot in trendy Henningsvaer with stylish rooms and access to a beautiful sauna.
• Svinøya Rorbuer: Set in Svolvaer, this hotel has both hotel-style rooms as well as 1-bedroom Lofoten cabins all with beautiful views.
• Rostad Retro Rorbuer: This beautiful fishing cabin in Reine is right on the water. It’s super cosy with beautiful views and a kitchen.
• Skårungen Hotel: Tucked away between Svolvaer and Henningsvaer, the Skårungen hotel is in a picturesque area where guests have access to a restaurant and cafe and a spa, hot tub and sauna. It would be a lovely place to spend a trip in Lofoten in winter!

Last Updated on November 5, 2023 by Hannah