See the Northern Lights
In this guide
There’s a specific moment every aurora-chaser describes the same way: a faint gray-green haze overhead that you almost write off as cloud — until it moves. Then it brightens, splits into a curtain, and starts rippling in a way nothing else in the sky does. Photos flatten it into a static green smear. In person, it’s alive, and most people who see it well end up planning a second trip before the first one’s over.
OuterSpaceTrip may earn a commission from booking and gear links on this page, at no extra cost to you.
What you’re actually looking at
The aurora is the solar wind — a stream of charged particles constantly leaving the Sun — colliding with Earth’s magnetic field. Near the poles, that field funnels the particles down into the upper atmosphere, where they slam into oxygen and nitrogen and make them glow: green from oxygen at lower altitudes, red from oxygen higher up, blue and purple from nitrogen. The stronger the solar wind, the further from the poles the glow reaches — measured by the Kp index, a 0–9 scale NOAA publishes as a forecast. Fairbanks and Anchorage sit far enough north that even a modest Kp 3–4 night is usually enough; anything above Kp 5 (a minor geomagnetic storm) can push the aurora visible much further south.
2024 marked the peak of the current 11-year solar cycle, and activity is easing from that high — but slowly, and with real storms still showing up on the way down. Treat 2026 as a still-elevated window, not a fading one: a strong solar flare can deliver a Kp 7–8 night with almost no warning, which is exactly why the tours below build in a flexible viewing window rather than one fixed shot.
Fairbanks, Alaska — the deepest lineup of real tours
Fairbanks sits almost directly under the auroral oval, which is why it has the widest range of guided options of any U.S. city: small-group van tours that chase clear sky pockets, heated-cabin viewing at a wilderness lodge, and combination trips that pair aurora-watching with Chena Hot Springs. Most run a multi-hour window rather than a fixed slot, because clouds move and the display itself is unpredictable — a good operator adjusts the plan rather than sitting still and hoping. Current listings, prices, and free-cancellation terms are on GetYourGuide’s Fairbanks northern lights tours.
Anchorage, Alaska — the easier trip to book
Anchorage sees the aurora less reliably than Fairbanks (it’s roughly 300 miles further south), but it’s a much bigger airport with far more flight options, which makes it the practical choice if Fairbanks doesn’t fit your itinerary. One tour worth calling out specifically: a photography-led aurora tour where the guide is a working photographer who sets up tripods for the group and walks you through camera settings in the field — a genuinely useful shortcut past the trial-and-error most first-timers go through alone. Current tours and pricing are on GetYourGuide’s Anchorage northern lights tours.
Yellowknife, Canada — the best odds in North America
It’s not the U.S., but it’s worth knowing about: Yellowknife, in Canada’s Northwest Territories, sits almost directly under the auroral oval’s most active band and gets more clear, dark nights per season than either Alaskan hub, which is why serious aurora-chasers treat it as the gold-standard trip. A bus tour with an onboard photographer along the Ingraham Trail runs from roughly $68–$88 depending on length, and multi-night cabin-based packages start around $227. See GetYourGuide’s Yellowknife aurora tour for current dates and pricing.
Guided tour or drive out on your own?
A tour is worth it for the same reason a guided stargazing tour is: someone else is already watching the forecast, has scouted a spot away from city light pollution, and can react in real time when the display shifts. That matters more for the aurora than for stargazing, because it’s genuinely unpredictable — a clear Kp forecast can still produce nothing, and a mediocre one can surprise you. If you’re renting a car anyway and comfortable driving unlit roads at night, checking a Kp forecast app and heading somewhere dark yourself is free and works fine on a good night. A tour mainly buys you better odds and someone who knows what a promising sky looks like before it’s obviously happening.
How to photograph it
The aurora is bright enough that a modern mirrorless or DSLR camera captures far more color and structure than your eyes pick up in the moment — which is part of why photos of it circulate so widely. The core settings: a wide-angle lens (14–24mm), the widest aperture it has (f/2.8 or faster), ISO 1600–3200, and a shutter speed of 5–20 seconds — shorter if the aurora is moving fast and you want to keep its ribbon structure sharp, longer if it’s faint and slow. Manual focus set to infinity, a sturdy tripod, and a 2-second timer or remote shutter to avoid shake round out the setup. Our Milky Way photography guide covers this same core skill set in more depth — the aurora just rewards a faster shutter speed than a static starfield does, since the display itself is moving.
One difference from a summer Milky Way shoot: the cold. Fairbanks and Yellowknife both run well below 0°F on a clear winter night, and cold drains camera batteries fast — carry spares in an inside pocket, not your camera bag, and keep your hands functional with touchscreen-compatible gloves rather than fumbling bare-handed between shots.
What to bring
- Real cold-weather layers. You’ll be standing still outside for an hour or more at temperatures far colder than a typical stargazing trip. This isn’t optional gear — it’s the difference between staying out long enough to see something and giving up after ten minutes.
- Spare camera batteries, kept warm. Lithium batteries lose charge fast in extreme cold. A dead battery mid-display is the most common regret aurora photographers report.
- A Kp-index or aurora forecast app. Checking the forecast before you commit to a night out — or before booking a specific tour date, if your trip has flexibility — meaningfully improves your odds.
- Patience for a second night. Aurora displays are genuinely hit-or-miss even under a good forecast. Most operators build a multi-night buffer or a rebooking policy into multi-day packages for exactly this reason.
The bottom line
Fairbanks gives you the deepest menu of real tours and the best odds inside the U.S. Anchorage is the easier trip to book if your travel dates or flights don’t line up with Fairbanks. And if you’re willing to cross into Canada, Yellowknife beats both on clear-sky odds and is the cheapest of the three per tour. Wherever you go, the camera settings are the same, and the trip pairs naturally with our astronomy binoculars guide for the rest of the night sky once the aurora settles down.
Frequently Asked Questions
Where's the best place in the U.S. to see the northern lights?
Fairbanks, Alaska, sits almost directly under the auroral oval and has the widest range of guided aurora tours of any U.S. city — van tours, heated-cabin viewing, and combination trips with Chena Hot Springs. Anchorage sees the aurora less reliably but is a much easier city to fly into, making it the practical pick if your travel dates don't line up with Fairbanks.
When is the best time to see the aurora borealis?
Aurora season in Alaska runs roughly late August through late April, with the darkest, most reliable viewing from September through March. Full darkness and a clear, moonless night both help — most tours run in a multi-hour window rather than a fixed time slot, since the display itself is unpredictable even on a promising forecast night.
Do I need a guided tour, or can I see the northern lights on my own?
You can see it on your own if you're comfortable driving unlit roads at night and check a Kp-index forecast app first — dark, clear sky away from city lights is the only real requirement. A guided tour mainly buys you better odds: an operator who's already watching the forecast, has a scouted dark-sky spot, and can react in real time if the display shifts, which matters more for the aurora than for regular stargazing because it's genuinely harder to predict.
What camera settings do I need to photograph the northern lights?
Start with a wide-angle lens (14-24mm), the widest aperture available (f/2.8 or faster), ISO 1600-3200, and a shutter speed of 5-20 seconds — shorter if the aurora is moving fast and you want to preserve its structure, longer if it's faint. Manual focus set to infinity and a sturdy tripod are both required, since any shake ruins a multi-second exposure.
Will the northern lights still be strong in 2026 as the solar cycle declines?
Yes, for practical purposes. Solar Cycle 25 peaked around October 2024 and is now easing off that high, but the decline is gradual, and individual solar storms can still produce strong, unpredictable aurora activity well into the back half of the cycle. 2026 is a still-elevated window compared to a typical solar minimum year, not a faded one.
Rob founded OuterSpaceTrip and writes its operator cost guides, the Space Tourism Price Index, and the See Space Now gear reviews. He tracks pricing and flight-status announcements from every major operator and tests the stargazing gear we recommend. How we pick and source ▸
How to Photograph the Milky Way
The settings, the lens, and the planning steps that separate a blurry disappointment from a photo that stops people mid-scroll. For any modern camera or mirrorless body.
Read →Guided Stargazing & Dark-Sky Tours
No telescope, no dark-sky research, no planning — a local guide sets up the gear and points out the sky. Real, bookable tours from $20.
Read →The Best Astronomy Apps for 2026
Free apps that turn your phone into a star atlas, satellite tracker, and clear-sky forecast — the fastest way to learn the night sky.
Read →Subscribe free, get the Starter Sky Plan.
Your welcome email brings The Starter Sky Plan: seven clear nights from your first good look at the Moon to Saturn’s rings with your own eyes. Then one email a week on what space costs and what to watch for. No spam, unsubscribe anytime.