Green Skies at Night – Tourist’s Delight!

There are so many options now where you can try see the Aurora Borelis  ‘Mother Nature’s ultimate light show’ and it seems to be on people’s bucket list nowadays.

According to the National Geographic Magazine the ‘best’ places to view them are, in no particular order: Iceland, Fairbanks Alaska, Yellowknife Canada, Tromso in Norway, North Sweden and Finland, Greenland and not least New Zealand and Tasmania where they are known as the Aurora Australis.

These special lights can normally be seen above 60 degrees latitude (North Pole) and below 60 degrees (South Pole) The best time of year is from the end of August to April, and on a cold, crisp night as the fewer clouds – the easier they can be seen!  Tourists stay all over the world in hotels, lodges, ice hotels, igloos but where better place than from a ship as the less light pollution the better!

Most of the mainstream Cruise Lines offer cruises to Iceland and Norway during the winter months with the hope of seeing this natural spectacle, but I was lucky enough to see this natural phenomenon when I was cruising on one of the smaller Hurtigruten ships north of Tromso in Norway.  When travelling o these vessels during the winter months (01 October to 31 March) they actually have a guarantee that if they do not make an appearance – Hurtigruten will give you another voyage for free (terms and conditions apply of course!).

Hurtigruten sail out of Bergen and can be reached by regional flights from the UK. It takes 12 days to complete the round trip voyage and these are working ships so they transport goods, produce and locals between the different ports.  They are definitely an experience taking in what is alleged to be the ‘World’s most beautiful sea voyage’ but please do not mistake them for ‘cruise ships’.  Having said that with a fleet of eleven vessels varying in size there is something for everyone.  The cabins are cosy and compact and the public areas are spacious but the food is something else with the amazing fish and seafood  that is so fresh it was swimming in the ocean onlya few hours earlier! All served either by waiter or for you to select yourself on one of their delicious buffets.

When you hop into your cabin bunk at night you can initiate the alarm to be notified if the Northern Lights choose to show themselves which inevitably they do just after you have switched the lights out as happened to me!  So you jump out of bed in your pyjamas and throw as many layers on as possible over the top and scramble out on the viewing deck gazing skywards with your fellow travellers – but it was certainly worth it!

Don’t forget as it get towards the shortest day (about 3^rd week of December) the hours of daylight diminish so much we had 22 hours of darkness each day – however having been to that part of the World in June/July and experiencing the ‘Land of the Midnight Sun’ that is an experience and a half as well!

Contact me to find out more!