Carina Otero viewing the Northern Lights over Sirkka Levi in Finland in march 2024. Image taken on an iphone 13 Pro.

I recently traveled to Levi Finland in March 2024, and during my seven-night trip I was able to view the Northern Lights on five of the nights, simply from vantage points that were easily walkable from my hotel near the main town. I was immensely grateful to have been able to see the aurora with my own eyes, and hope that everyone can have the opportunity at least once.

To be honest, it wasn’t until after my trip to Lapland, Finland that I came across many articles listing tips for increasing your chances of seeing the Northern Lights, and having had experienced it myself, I felt many of the articles were downright wrong and not helpful. Because I happened to be immensely lucky (luck has almost everything to do with it), I’ve created a list of my tips for how to be best prepared to view the aurora when the opportunity arises.

Continue reading to discover my tips:

My advice for increasing your chances of seeing the Aurora Borealis:

On my last night in Finland, the best view of the Northern Lights was overlooking the ski slopes just outside my hotel, Hotel Levi Panorama

The view of the Northern Lights that same night, taken from the forest path near the hotel

1. Don’t travel purely for the Northern Lights, but rather think of seeing them as a bonus

Though it may not be a definitive tip, this was my exact approach: the goal of my trip to Levi Finland was to ski, and I told myself that if I happened to see the Northern Lights while I was there then I would consider myself to be very lucky. The Aurora Borealis is a natural phenomenon that moves and changes quickly, is not easy to predict, and is never guaranteed.

Destinations such as Levi Finland have a lot of other enjoyable winter activities like saunas, spas, downhill and cross country skiing, hiking, snowmobiling, husky safaris, reindeer encounters, restaurants, and cultural immersions, among many others. If you design your visit to the arctic around any of these types of activities, you could spare yourself the disappointment if the aurora doesn’t become visible during your stay, and could consider yourself very lucky if you do happen to witness a display of the Northern Lights.

As with any bucket-list travel experience, having the right attitude and managing your expectations will usually yield the best outcomes.

2. Download the Aurora App

When I first checked into my hotel and mentioned that it would be nice to see be able to see the Northern Lights during my stay, the front desk staff simply recommended I download this Aurora App, and it was the most helpful tip I had received. The app shows a visual map of real-time activity (helpful), pinpoints of other app users that have reported sightings (helpful), the current measurement of the KP Index and probability of seeing the aurora in your exact location (less helpful), and live streams showing the sky in various locations in or near the Arctic Circle (most helpful).

Screenshots of helpful information in the Aurora App while I was in Levi Finland

I make note that the KP Index and probability that are indicated in the Aurora App are not entirely helpful, because on several of the nights that showed a very low KP Index and a very low probability of seeing the aurora, I was still able to witness beautiful displays.

3. Choose a destination where you can view an online live stream of the sky

The most helpful feature that enabled me to see the Northern Lights during my trip was the Aurora App’s feed of livestreams of the sky that are published by various destinations and organizations. I didn’t know until I arrived and started using the app that Levi publishes a livestream of their sky, which happened to be very convenient for me.

I was able to pass the time in the comfort of my warm hotel room while keeping an eye on the livestream, and if I saw that the aurora was visible, I was able to quickly throw on my boots and my jacket and walk outside to look up in the sky. Because the aurora can move or disappear quickly, I imagine this tool is only helpful if you are in the exact location of the livestream you are viewing as the same aurora can look very different from different locations even if they are relatively nearby. Choosing a destination where you can use their livestream as a helpful tool can better prepare you for being ready to view the Northern Lights if they happen to become visible in your location.

4. Stay somewhere inland instead of somewhere coastal

This was just a mere observation I gathered while browsing the various live-streams that appear within the Aurora App for different towns in or near the Arctic Circle during the single week of March that I visited Finland, so I’m not sure how valid it is but I felt was worth mentioning—

I seemed to notice a trend that coastal towns (Tromso and Lofoten Norway, the Shetland Islands, Iceland, etc) seemed to be cloudier or even rainy compared to towns that were more inland (Abisko and Kiruna Sweden, Levi and Saariselka Finland) which tended to have clearer skies on more nights. I’m not an at all an expert in whether these geographic differences really have anything to do with how clear the sky may be on any given night, but it was just something I observed, and something that I felt may have contributed to why I had such great luck during my stay in Levi Finland.

The aurora on my first night in Finland, during an almost full moon

The view changes quickly. Image shot with a tripod and self-timer on iPhone 13 Pro. The foreground is illuminated by street lights and an almost full moon.

The brightness of an almost full moon, just behind me.

5. Ignore the moon phases— if the conditions are right, you could still see the Northern Lights during a full moon

Because the purpose of my trip to Finland was to ski, I honestly didn’t even think of checking the moon phase before traveling.

On my first night in Lapland I checked the livestream for Levi, and as soon as I saw a glimmer of the Northern Lights I went outside toward a forested area near my hotel and immediately saw a ribbon across the sky. I was too fascinated by the display that I didn’t even notice that behind me was a nearly full moon, and it wasn’t until I started taking photos that I realized that the area I was in was also brightly illuminated by the streetlights just beside my hotel. Despite the bright lights and moon, I was still able to see and photograph the aurora and that special moment that I will never forget.

My second night in Lapland was the true full moon, and while the aurora that night was bigger and brighter, there were some clouds in the sky and some precipitation due to snow in the forecast. The aurora was positioned directly above me and closer to where the moon was positioned, so the display was entirely different than what I had witnessed the night before. I think the precipitation and cloud coverage reflected some of the light from the full moon, so while the aurora was still visible, it was a bit harder to see and harder to photograph than it was on the previous night when the sky was clear.

6. Choose accommodations that have access to a dark or elevated area

I chose to stay at Hotel Levi Panorama simply because it was dog-friendly and ski-in/ski-out, but it wasn’t until I was physically there that I realized it truly was an ideal place to view the Northern Lights. The accommodation was also a great choice for me because it had easy access to the main town of Sirkka Levi, and since I was traveling alone I didn’t want to stay somewhere too remote.

Hotel Levi Panorama is slightly elevated (by about 500ft) above the main town, and the side overlooking the ski slopes offers a large, open view of the sky looking toward the north and east. The hotel is forested on all other sides, so it’s relatively easy and convenient to find a dark clearing or area by foot to view the aurora in different directions. As you may notice in several of the photos I’ve included in this article, many of the aurora displays I was able to witness were overlooking the bright lights of the main town from an elevated vantage point, and I imagine I if I was in the town itself I would not have been able to see the same aurora due to close proximity to the source of light pollution.

You can read more about my experience at Hotel Levi Panorama here: Ski In and Ski Out of This Dog-Friendly Hotel in Levi Finland: Hotel Levi Panorama

7. Please don’t just drive around aimlessly

Driving around in the dark aimlessly, while distracted, in an unfamiliar place, on snowy or frozen roads is never a good idea and I definitely don’t recommend it for chasing the Northern Lights.

The aurora can move and disappear quickly, so even if you are tracking the the lights on various livestreams, by the time you are able to safely access a good vantage point, the view may have already completely changed or disappeared. I think following the other tips listed in this article are more productive ways to be prepared to see the aurora if it occurs in the destination where you are traveling.

8. The direction of the aurora can affect how visible it is to you

Even though the moon was nearly full on the first night of my trip, the aurora was positioned on the opposite side of the sky so it was very easy to see. On the second night of my trip, the aurora was positioned directly above me and closer to where the moon was, making it a bit more difficult for my eyes to adjust to the darkness.

On my third, fifth, and seventh nights of my trip, the aurora was positioned somewhat closer to the horizon, and I was able to easily see these particular displays because of my elevated vantage points near my hotel. If you’re already located far north within the Arctic Circle, the display of the Northern Lights can potentially become visible in any direction but could be blocked from your view by trees, light sources, or other geographical features like mountains.

Night 1 of 7

Night 2 of 7

Night 3 of 7

Night 5 of 7

Night 7 of 7

One last point: Is it necessary to book a Northern Lights tour?

As someone who successfully managed to see the Northern Lights on five nights during a seven night trip to Lapland without booking a tour, I would say no it is not necessary. I imagine it could be a rewarding experience to see the aurora from a beautiful vantage point with the guidance of a knowledgable local, but even if you book and pay for a tour there is no guarantee that the lights will show and you could still spend hours just waiting in the cold.

Unless you are happy to take the risk and expense and it’s very important to you to go on a tour for a particular reason, for example: needing expert guidance and hands-on instruction for photographing the Northern Lights with your specific equipment, then it could be worth it. However if you are like me and happy to simply see the Northern Lights with your own eyes and maybe take a few iPhone photos, then you can potentially still have a great and more comfortable experience by following the other tips mentioned in this article.

And one last question: Is it possible to photograph the Northern Lights with an iPhone?

Yes! All photos shared in this article were taken on my iPhone 13 Pro. Most photos were taken while my phone was set on my lightweight travel tripod and I would let it automatically adjust to the visible light, which usually defaulted to a one- or three-second exposure in Night Mode.

Viewing the Northern Lights is certainly a powerful and unforgettable experience, and I’ve learned from my personal experience that it’s possible to see them without stress, and without sacrificing comfort or sleep. By following my tips, especially my first and most important tip of realistically managing your expectations, you can ensure you have a great trip and are well-prepared if the timing happens to work in your favor.

Are you a planning a trip to the Arctic Circle in hopes of seeing the Northern Lights and have questions about my experience? Let me know in the comments below, and good luck!