The northern lights 4x4 tour with hot cocoa

About this experience

Nordur Travel runs this as a four-hour evening hunt. A specially modified 4x4 minibus collects you from one of 28 pickup points in Reykjavík, including Harpa, Hallgrímskirkja and the Reykjavík Cruise Terminal, and the guide then heads wherever the cloud map looks thinnest. The listing sketches the route as a photo stop and a guided tour in the Capital Region, "for reference only". That is the honest way to put it: nobody knows the route until the evening forecast is in.

The 4x4 matters more than it sounds. A big coach needs a car park and a paved road. A lifted minibus can pull onto gravel and lava tracks where there is no street light for kilometres, and it can turn round fast when a gap in the cloud closes. The group stays small, at one guide per 16 guests, so getting everyone back on board takes a minute rather than ten. Commentary is live, in English and Spanish.

Two caveats. You are still buying a drive to dark sky, not the aurora: on a grey night you can spend four hours looking at cloud, and the answer then is the free retry, valid for up to two years. And four hours means a late night. If you have one evening and a tight budget, the Gray Line coach does the same basic job for about half the price, with a far bigger group.

• A specially modified 4x4 minibus that can leave the paved road
• Small group: one guide per 16 guests
• Hot chocolate, Icelandic pastries and two hand warmers each
• Photos of you under the lights, taken by the guide
• Free retry for up to two years if you see nothing
• 28 pickup points, Harpa and Hallgrímskirkja among them

How the day runs

1. AfternoonThe go or no-go call

   Reykjavík operators check cloud cover and the aurora forecast during the day. If your night is cancelled by the operator, you rebook or take a refund, so check your email before you head out.

2. EveningPickup in Reykjavík

   Wait at the pickup point you chose, dressed for a night outside. The minibus does a round of the stops before it leaves town.

3. First hourOut of the city glow

   The guide drives toward the clearest patch of sky in the Capital Region and explains how the aurora works on the way. Wi-Fi on board.

4. Most of the nightStops under the sky

   At each stop you get out, let your eyes adjust and wait. Hot chocolate and pastries come out, and the guide photographs you with the lights when they show. If the gap closes, you move.

5. About 4 hoursBack to Reykjavík

   Drop-off in town, usually late. Ask the guide how the photos reach you, and if the sky stayed empty, how to book the free retry.

What's included

Who it suits

What guests say

Tips before you book

• Book it for your first or second night in Reykjavík. If the sky stays empty, the retry still has nights to work with.
• Dress for standing still in the cold: a thermal base layer, wool, a windproof shell, hat and gloves. Two hand warmers go only so far.
• Look at the Icelandic Met Office aurora forecast in the afternoon. On the cloud map, white means clear sky and green means cloud.
• Bring a power bank. Cold drains phone batteries fast, and you'll want your own shots as well as the guide's.
• Cancellation is free up to 24 hours before, and you can reserve now and pay later. Book early and drop it if the week looks hopeless.

Read next:

• Best aurora tour
• Guarantees & retries
• Aurora forecast

Frequently asked questions

Compare with

Small-Group Premium Northern Lights TourA minibus instead of a coach for about four hours, at a mid-range price. Read the inclusions and retry rule first.★ 4.4 · 4 hours · from $113Northern Lights Super Jeep TourBig tyres for tracks a bus can't take, pickup at your door, cocoa, free photos and a retry valid for three years.★ 4.2 · 4 hours · from $205Small-Group Northern Lights Tour with Pro PhotosA small-group minibus with pro photos of you under the lights and a free retry in the title. About four hours.★ 4.8 · 4 hours · from $165