Kan Dail
Imagine the glowing green Aurora Borealis ribbons fluttering above your private glamping abode deep within Norway’s snow-tipped forests. Imagine how you feel as you embrace their dance, and understand that all the stories are real, and this is actually happening to you, here and now.
Many people visit Norway each year chasing this dream. However they are often so fixated on the lights themselves they fail to appreciate how the accommodation they stay in can be crucial to enjoying the Northern Lights in all their glory.
Let us convince you why winter camping in luxury accommodation will give you the ultimate Northern Lights chaser experience. We are not talking about simple convenience, and proximity to their skies.
We are talking about accommodation which is made of the same stuff as the experience – a precious luxury which anyone can embrace, but precisely because it has its own original charms, attractions and purposes. Just like you, in fact, which is ultimately why people reconnect with the depths of their own personalities by chasing the Northern Lights.
There are many different ways of seeing the lights, with today’s modern technology. But nothing beats being there as they happen, the mystery unfolding dramatically above you, in skies unencumbered by light pollution in a proper wilderness.
Why Winter Glamping Maximizes Aurora Viewing
Specially designed winter glamping venues, which range from transparent insulated pods to ancient traditional tepees called Lavvus, are pristine viewing locations as they are far from the city lights which would otherwise dampen visibility across the ink black Arctic skies. WonderInn properties, designed with such viewing in mind rather than for other purposes, represent the best option for sky watchers.
WonderInn recognises that the Northern Lights are an attraction in themselves. In its glamping offerings you can comfortably scan the horizon for hours, watching the colorful light displays peak and subside according to solar flare activity, rather than having to spend your time worrying about rushing to buses departing from hotel car parks on tight viewing tour schedules.
The lights will decide when they come to you. The best way to meet them on the same terms is to organise your own time in your own glamping property, where your only priority is enjoying your stay.
Prime Locations For Seeing the Lights
Central Norway balances accessibility with optimal dark sky parks like Lierne. It contains multitudes of remote forested glamping sites, and the occasional farmhouse on the hills which puncture its frozen lakes and valleys.
Lofoten has gained a reputation as a Northern Lights viewing location because it is possible to see in all directions. It has mountains which break up the clouds, thus creating gaps through which the lights can be seen even when they may be obscured in other locations.
But for guaranteed front row seats head for Tromsø, known as the Northern Lights capital, which has specially designed mirrored glass cabins and futuristic pods with widescreen viewing ceilings. If you want to see them from outside, these pods and cabins give access to Fjellheisen Mountain, the highest point in the city, whilst still offering comfort and convenience, and further light views, when you return.
Abisko National Park in Sweden, just across the border, also offers epic sightings from custom crafted wilderness huts. This park is 4 ¼ hours from Tromsø by public transport, and about the same distance from the glamping sites at Lofoten.
Top Winter Activities Paired with Glamping
Northern Lights vigils need only be part of the story. You can also enjoy exclusive snowshoe treks across the windswept drifts, led by expert guides, equipped with steaming thermoses of warm berry juice.
Tverfjellet is a relatively short trail in the north suitable for the beginner. If adventure is in your blood and energy in your veins, you can take on the Oldervik to Tromsø trail, which is 37.5 km and passes through spectacular alpine plains and excellent viewing sites.
On returning you can shake off the chill in private riverside hot tubs under starlit skies. Or you could find yourself bundled up in reindeer pelts, listening to indigenous tales around crackling fires in the Lavvu tent villages, after an afternoon racing huskies across frozen lakes.
Extending Your Winter Adventure
It is often difficult to leave a Norway glamping site when you have experienced one, as many reviews demonstrate. If you feel the same way you can luxuriate further by tacking on extra nights, or upgrading to the deluxe domed suites, which boast floor to ceiling Observatorium glass pyramids for heavenly viewing.
But for the ultimate ICC (International Certificate of Competence in Tourism) award experience, book ‘Dark Sky Discovery’ holidays on Hjerttind mountain. These include professional photography and astronomy workshops, which capture the science behind the scenes as you endeavor to memorialize the inhabitants of the galaxies wheeling overhead.
What to Pack for Glamping Northern Light Expeditions
As with all Norwegian winter adventures, weatherproof outer layers and sturdy footwear are essential. For chasing clear skies across snow blanketed tundra, bring knitted caps, thick socks and mittens.
Chemical activated hand warmers are also important for those hours spent scanning horizons. Thermal long underwear to go under the woollen sweaters is also a worthy investment.
Cameras should have manual exposure adjustments, and lenses which support at least 20 seconds of open shutter speeds or mobile apps which allow similar customization. You won’t want to miss anything, so take further professional advice on photography before you go.
Final Tips for Successful Aurora Hunting
Give yourself as many nights as possible to witness Lady Aurora’s fleeting magic amidst the short winter days, when there won’t be much sunlight to get in the way. Come properly dressed, and have your camera prepared, so you don’t suddenly think “I wish I had done that” when you’re right there, and the opportunity may not come round again.
The swirling colors of the Northern Lights create jaw dropping spectacles, and being there to capture them yourself gives you dimensions you hadn’t previously thought about. But remember, even cloud covered evenings pass quickly, as you trade stories and play cards by headlamp light, awaiting future optical fortune in the vast, imperturbable, dazzling arctic.