Iceland tours continue unaffected. Read about the latest eruption

About Tour

Explore the South Coast on an unforgettable 5-Day Northern Lights package.

Highlights

  • Boat Tour from the Old Harbor
  • Golden Circle
  • Reykjavik
  • South Coast
  • Glacier Hike
  • Geysir Hot Springs
  • Seljalandsfoss Waterfall
  • Skógafoss Waterfall
  • Skaftafell - Vatnajökull National Park
  • Jökulsarlón Glacier Lagoon
  • Ice Cave Visit
  • Reynisfjara Black Sand Beach

Included

  • Hotel Room With Private Bathroom for 4 Nights
  • Hotel Breakfast on Days 2, 3, 4, and 5
  • Pick-up and drop off from Reykjavik
  • Northern Lights Boat Tour
  • All required safety equipment
  • Northern Lights photos
  • Free wifi on the minibus
  • Unlimited re-try valid for 3 years to take a tour when no Northern Lights are seen

What to bring

  • Warm outdoor clothing
  • A waterproof jacket and pants
  • Headwear
  • Gloves
  • Spikes which fit onto your shoes are very useful in icy conditions (ice grips or traction cleats)
  • Good hiking boots are essential, ice crampons are provided for the glacier hike, it is not possible to fit them to any other kind of footwear
  • If you don´t have good hiking boots you can rent them from us when you book the tour online

Tour Snapshot

Availability Sept - April
Duration 5 day
Departs From Reykjavik
Difficulty Easy Suitable for most people in fair condition.
Ratio 1:18 Guide to client ratio
Meet on Location No
Pick Up Yes

From

1 233
Per
Adult
  • Small Group Experience
  • Expert Guides
  • Free Wifi
  • No Booking Fees
  • Fast & secure payment
  • Best Price Guarantee

From

1 233
Book Now

Itinerary

Hike on a glacier, visit the glacier lagoon, step inside an ice cave and explore the iconic Golden Circle. Cap off your Iceland adventure with a view of the beautiful Aurora Borealis from a boat!

Once you check-in at your hotel, meet your guide at the Old Harbor in Reykjavik to board your Northern Lights cruise. Our crew monitor the aurora forecast daily and will cruise out to get the best view of the Aurora Borealis, away from city lights. Stay warm and cozy in the galley until the crew calls you out to the main event! We’ll also show a video telling you all about Icelandic folklore, photos and fun facts of the elusive lights. After the Northern Lights show, we’ll take you back to the harbor and you can make your way to the hotel in Reykjavik.

Day Highlights
  • Small Group Boat Tour
  • The Old Harbor
  • Northern Lights
Included
  • Warm Overalls
  • Northern Lights Boat Tour
  • English Speaking Guide
  • Northern Lights Video
  • Hotel Accommodation
Accommodation
Hotel Island
or similar

Now it’s time for the iconic Golden Circle and its three main highlights: Thingvellir, Geysir, and Gullfoss.

walking path in thingvellir national park
Day Highlights
  • Thingvellir National Park
  • Geysir Geothermal Area
  • Gullfoss Waterfall
  • Seljalandsfoss Waterfall
  • Skógafoss Waterfall
  • Vik
Included
  • Breakfast at the Hotel
  • Guided Minibus Tour
  • The Golden Circle
  • Seljalandsfoss and Skógafoss Waterfalls
  • Hunting for the Northern Lights (weather permitting)
  • Hotel Accommodation near Vik
Accommodation
Adventure Hotel Geirland
or similar hotel.

After breakfast, it’s time to visit Reynisfjara black sand beach. This world-famous beach has been rated one of the most beautiful. Look for the Reynisdrangar basalt sea stacks and nearby Dyrholaey arch.

birds eye view of reynisfjara black sand beach
Day Highlights
  • Reynisfjara Black Sand Beach
  • Reynisdrangar Basalt Pillars
  • Jökulsárlón Glacier Lagoon
  • The Diamond Beach
  • Ice Cave
Included
  • Breakfast at the Hotel
  • Guided Minibus Tour
  • Guided Ice Cave Tour
  • Hunting for the Northern Lights (weather permitting)
  • Hotel Accommodation near Skaftafell
Accommodation
Adventure Hotel Geirland
or similar hotel.

Make sure you get enough breakfast for your glacier hike later today! We’ll meet our glacier guide, who will outfit you with ice crampons and safety equipment.

Day Highlights
  • Guided Glacier Hike
  • Northern Lights Photos
  • The Northern Lights
Included
  • Breakfast at the Hotel
  • Guided Minibus Tour
  • Guided Glacier Hike
  • Northern Lights Tour (weather permitting)
  • Hotel Accommodation
Accommodation
Hotel Island
or similar

Hit the streets of Reykjavik! You have a whole day to get to know the city and its local culture.

rainbow painted street road in reykjavik
Day Highlights
  • Explore Reykjavik
Included
  • Breakfast at the Hotel

Went to a tour but didn’t spot the Northern Lights? No worries, you can book another tour from Reykjavik to see the lights free of charge. Note that this deal is unlimited and is valid for 3 years. So, don’t give up on your first time, get in touch with our Customer Care to witness this natural phenomenon.

The ice cave’s look cannot be guaranteed to match the photos, as these natural formations change with the seasons, time of day, lighting, and other environmental factors. Thank you for your understanding.

Frequently asked questions

The Northern Lights are natural phenomena and we, unfortunately, cannot promise you will see them. Their appearance depends upon atmospheric and weather conditions.

For more information on the Northern Lights, please have a look at our Northern Lights tours.

We, unfortunately, do not have one simple answer to this question.

There isn’t just one single setting for your camera that ensures great photos. However, if you have manual options, you are probably best served with experimenting with various combinations of ISO, aperture, and exposure settings. As a rule of thumb, ISO setting between 800 and 3200, aperture between f/2 8 and f/5.6, and shutter speed at between 15 seconds and 30 seconds have proven effective.

A good thing to keep in mind, ISO setting between 800 and 3200, aperture between f/2.8 and f/5.6, and shutter speed between 15 seconds and 30 seconds have given great results.

Different combinations may give very different results. Higher ISO setting will allow you to capture faster exposures, but the downside to this might be for example grainier images.

If the shutter speed is above 15 seconds it will result in a slight star movement.

Wider angle lenses are usually more versatile in low light settings, but longer lenses give you different options for compositions. Make sure that you remove all lens filters, as they may distort images. You will probably get the best results with manual setting for infinite focal length.

Reimbursement is not given if the northern lights tour goes ahead and no lights are seen but we do offer you the change to join a Northern Lights Minibus tour free of charge.

Please contact our Customer Care to re-book your tour.

When Northern Lights tours are canceled it’s usually due to unfavorable weather conditions.

In that case, your options will be to:

  1. Reschedule for another day.
  2. Choose another our tour and use the deposit for it.
  3. Get a full refund.

Please go to the customer portal to re-book your tour or contact us by phone at +354 562 7000.

The northern lights are a pretty difficult thing to predict. We recommend you to check en.vedur.is to see the forecast and if the level is high and the skies are clear then it’s very likely that the tour is going ahead. We do update our website’s tour departure sheet with the information at 17:00 pm the latest. If your tour is canceled then you will receive an email from us.

If we think there is no chance at all of seeing the lights we will cancel the tour. We don’t want to bring you out and disappoint if there is no chance of the lights to be seen.

Yes, the guide on your tour will take a photo of you with the northern lights in the background.
These can be single or group photo’s and are free of charge.

The Northern Lights season is from late August until mid-April. However, if you want to increase your changes of seeing them, it is best to wait until the clear winter months of mid-September until March.

The northern lights depend on luck and weather if that is in your favor than you will be able to see the Aurora Borealis above the inviting streets of Reykjavík. Whether you see the lights or not they depend on two different factors. The first being the weather. If the sky is clear, no clouds, then you are halfway there to seeing the astonishing spectacle that is the Northern Lights (although light pollution can sometimes be a problem). Increased solar activity is the second half so, if these two merge together you may well be able to see the Northern Lights from Reykjavik.

Iceland is known for unforeseeable weather. It is likely that you can see all 4 seasons in one day.

Dressing for that kind of weather can always be demanding, so we suggest dressing in layers. 3 or 4 upper layers are highly recommended, for example, a light t-shirt (preferably wool) next to the skin, then a fleece or heavy wool garment topped off with a waterproof windbreaker.

Jeans are not recommended for our trips as they are not suitable for the weather conditions, they become very heavy, cold and uncomfortable to wear when they get wet.

Lightweight hiking pants, track pants or long cotton pants are convenient and wear wind/waterproof pants over them. There is high UV and sunlight reflecting off on the glacier so we highly recommend using sunglasses and sunscreen even if it is cloudy.

You will need sturdy hiking boots that fit crampons for the glacier hiking tours. If you do not own a pair then we rent out suitable hiking boots as well as a waterproof raincoat and trousers.

It is good to bring your own backpack on our full-day or half-day tours. It’s the best carry-on for a small lunch, extra clothes, and other necessary items.

The scenery on the tour is full of stunning, breathtaking views that you’ll almost definitely want to capture forever, so you should definitely bring your camera along. Your tour guide will also be happy to take your photo.

This is surely a personal choice, we do not deny pregnant women on our glacier trips but we highly recommend you to take a closer look at our trip description and difficulty ratings, they will hopefully give you a better idea. We also recommend you to contact your physician, as pregnant women’s health can be quite different. If you have any further questions or concerns then feel free to contact us.

Lunch is not provided on any of our trips, therefore we recommend you bring your own lunch, snacks, and a bottle of water (you can refill it on the trip). It is especially important to make sure you bring lunch on our longer trips.

Crampons enable you to walk on the glacier ice without slipping. They are metal spikes that we attach to the soles of your hiking shoes.

Yes, we have specially trained and certified glacier guides on every glacier tour that we offer. And for our 3rd party tours we only partner with operators that meet our quality and safety standards.

Yes, we provide you with all the necessary glacier gear for our glacier hiking tours. Ice axes, crampons, harnesses, and helmets are provided. This will help you to complete the tour safely. The minimum shoe size to attach crampons is EU 35.

Iceland is known to have a lot of snow and when the snow stays long enough in one place than it turns to ice. Over long periods of time, the ice layers up becoming huge blocks called glaciers. It forms to create ginormous glaciers that sweep across huge masses of land. Iceland is home of the largest glacier in Europe that is called Vatnajökull. The Glacier Guides can tell you more about and everything you need to know about the Glaciers.

Rain is common in Iceland but we never let the rain be in our way to go forward with our tours.
That’s why we highly recommend appropriate clothing so you can stay warm and dry.
Nature is out of our control and therefore we need to adapt to the weather. Your safety is our priority so if your safety is compromised by going on the tour then we will cancel it and you will get full reimbursement.

The guide on your glacier hiking tour will provide you with all the information you might need when preparing for a glacier hike.

Yes, the parking fee depends on your car category.

Category A - Passenger car, 5 seats or less: ISK 750

Category B - Passenger car, 6-9 seats: ISK 1,000

Motorcycles: ISK 300

You can always check the newest fees here.

We always recommend booking a multi-day tour starting at least one day after arriving in Iceland. If you’re flying in from the US or will be landing early (4-6:30 am) you should be able to join the tour, but some risks would follow (i.e if the flight gets delayed) and could, therefore, miss out on the tour.

For multi-day tours, each participant is allowed to bring a small backpack and 1 piece of luggage weighing a maximum of 20 kg (44 lbs). If you have more or heavier luggage with you, you will need to book storage for the surplus luggage before you arrive, there is a small fee for using this facility. Luggage storage in Reykjavík can be added during the booking process of your order in the extras section.

* The combined dimensions of each bag must not exceed 158 cm (62 in).

When booking with Adventures.com, you are guaranteed accommodation at a nice country hotel and/or a guesthouse. The hotels we have partnered up with are all of the same standards and offer nice rooms with made-up beds. The rooms come with private or shared bathrooms, depending on your booking. The standard room is a twin room but it’s possible to request a double room or a triple room, with no extra charge.

If you are traveling solo, you will have to add the single room fee if you wish to have a single room.

All hotels have free Wi-Fi. Towels, a hairdryer, and a kettle are accessible at all of the hotels. Hotel breakfast is included!

If your tour includes accommodation, breakfast is always included during the tour at the hotel/guesthouse restaurant.

Meals and beverages are otherwise not included on your tour. (Unless it’s specifically stated in the description of the tour)

On our multiday tours, we will be making stops at restaurants and convenience stores where you will be able to purchase all necessities.

You should count on spending around 8,000 ISK (80$) on food each day per person. Cash is not necessary, as credit cards are almost always accepted. Having a small amount of cash doesn’t hurt though.

Breakfast is included at all the hotels we stay in during the tour. The breakfast will be a typical breakfast buffet, offering bread, toppings, cereal, yogurt, fruits, coffee, and tea etc.

Your guide will also find a good place for the group to eat lunch. We always try to choose places that have a wide selection of dishes on the menu, so there will be options available for everyone. The dinner is usually at the hotels we stay at for the night.

We do welcome participants of all ages older than the listed minimum age for each tour. We have people of ages ranging from 8-99 years joining our multi-day tours.  Our average group usually consists of participants between the age 20-55 years. We do get a lot of solo travellers joining our tours, as well as families and friends.

If you have difficulties participating in any of the activities included in the tour, for example, a glacier activity, you are more than welcome to skip it. You can explore your surroundings in the meantime or wait elsewhere. Our guide should be able to drop you off at a nearby place where there are some services available.

A single supplement is available if you want to have your own room, but you are not required to pay a single supplement. If you are a single traveler and do not wish to book a single room, you’ll be roomed with another traveler of the same gender.

Don’t worry, you can always rent sturdy hiking boots, a waterproof jacket and pants in the booking process. We do not rent these items from the location, they must be ordered in advance.

We drive on average around 300 km (186 miles) per day on our multi-day tours. You will be spending approximately 4-5 hours in the car each day. We do of course stop on multiple locations throughout the tour for sightseeing, activities, bathroom breaks and lunch stops.

Similar tours that people also viewed

Contact us for more Information about this tour