Northern Lights by Boat from Reykjavik

by Sea Trips Reykjavík · Northern lights · Boat tours · Reykjavík

4.60· 348 Google reviews of the operator

Fine on your own
Couples

from €88.02 per person

Next departure: Thu 22 Oct

Book Thu 22 Oct · €88.02 Other dates

Northern Lights by Boat from Reykjavik — Sea Trips Reykjavík

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13 photos from Sea Trips Reykjavík. Tap any one for the full-size original.

Duration
2 hours
Difficulty
Very easy
Season
Sep – Apr
Starts in
Reykjavík
Pickup
Hotel pickup available at extra cost, or meet at the start point
Starts at
Please check-in 30 minutes before departure
Ægisgarður 2, Reykjavík
Guide
Guided in English
Departs
21:00, 22:00
Cancellation
Free until 24 hours before

About this experience

Hunting the northern lights on the North Atlantic ocean is an amazing experience. Sailing away from the coastline of Reykjavik and seeing the Aurora Borealis out on the ocean with beautiful mountains and the city in the background is something to remember.

Description from the operator, Sea Trips Reykjavík. Prices and availability in the booking panel are live.

Included

Duration 1.5 - 2.5 hours
Double observation deck
Professional guides
Warm blankets
Free Wi-Fi
Drinks and snacks available for purchase
Restroom on board
Pickup is available for an extra charge

Good to know

We recommend all guests dress warmly in layers and good footwear it is always colder on the water and don´t forget your camera

Please check-in at the Old Harbour House at Aegisgardur 2, 101 Reykjavík 30 minutes before departure.

The tour takes about 1.5-2.5 hours depending on how early/late the lights might appear.

If you added pick-up service, we will pick you up 75–45 minutes before departure. This is the pick-up window. Traffic may cause small delays, but we’ll do our best to arrive within that time.

Weather is a big factor for the tour, we may have to cancel the tour due to unfavorable weather conditions.
The tour takes place in wild nature, sightings cannot be predicted or guaranteed. If there are no sightings on the tour, we do not offer refunds but instead, we offer our passengers a free return to join our tour depending on availability or receive a voucher valid for up to three years.

Cancellation for this tour

Free cancellation until 24 hours before departure; no refund after that. If the operator cancels for weather or safety, you get a full refund or a new date.

If the weather cancels this tour

Iceland's weather is real. What usually stops this one is a solid cloud forecast — most operators call it by late afternoon and let you rebook on a clearer night free of charge. Here is exactly what happens to your booking.

1Sea Trips Reykjavík decides, and tells us. Operators cancel when it is unsafe or pointless, and we back that call every time — we do not ask them to run anyway.
2We contact you by email, and by phone if your tour is the same or next day. You choose: another date if there is one you can make, or a full refund. There is no fee and nothing to argue.
3The refund goes back to the card you paid with, through Stripe, usually visible within a few working days. If this tour was one of several in your booking, the others are untouched.

What you do not get is the day back. If this is the only free day in your plan, put a spare day next to it — the planner leaves days free with the rest-day option. And if you want out because the forecast looks bad, that is your own cancellation: free until 1 day before departure, the operator's policy after that.

Questions on the day: [email protected] · +354 497 1373. How cancellations work in Iceland →

Why this one and not the cheaper one?

The nearest cheaper Iceland Reykjavik Northern Lights Bus Tour guided in Chinese冰岛雷市中文极光团 from Magic Iceland Travel is €73 — €15 less. Here is every difference we can actually measure.

	Sea Trips Reykjavík · €88	Magic Iceland Travel · €73
How long it runs	2 hours	4 hours
How hard it is	Very easy	Easy

On everything we can measure, the Magic Iceland Travel tour is the better buy. The €15 is not buying anything we can point to, so unless you want this operator in particular, take the cheaper one.

Who this is not for

Not available in summer; the operator runs it roughly September to April.

Read off the operator's own conditions. If none of it applies to you, this is a good one.

Why we list it

Sea Trips Reykjavík is one of 204 operators we work with — chosen for reliability, honest descriptions and how they treat guests when weather changes plans. We don't list everything; we list what we'd book ourselves. The six checks every operator passes →

What travellers say about Sea Trips Reykjavík

Read all 348 reviews on Google →

Operator rating 4.6/5 from Google — these are reviews of the company, not this specific tour. Shown as Google returns them, unedited.

János Kiss
★★★★★ · a month ago
Luckily, the boat wasn't crowded at all, which we were really happy about. The vessel was very comfortable, and having multiple decks meant we could enjoy the scenery from different viewpoints. Unfortunately, despite the beautiful weather, we didn't spot any whales, and only a few of us caught a brief glimpse of white-beaked dolphins swimming alongside the boat. But no worries—better luck next time! Since the tour wasn't successful in spotting whales, we received a voucher to book another trip for free within the next three years.
Zack Eckley
★★★★★ · a month ago
An absolutely incredible experience out on Faxaflói bay with Sea Trips Reykjavík. We were lucky enough to spot several whales, which made the trip truly unforgettable. The crew onboard were wonderfully friendly, attentive, and knowledgeable throughout the entire sailing. On top of that, the tour was very reasonably priced for such a fantastic adventure. Highly recommended if you’re visiting Reykjavík!
Hernan Torres
★★★★★ · a month ago
Puffin Watching Yacht Cruise from Downtown Reykjavík – Small Group Experience https://seatrips.is/tour/puffin-watching-yacht-cruise-from-downtown-reykjavik/ It was a really smallest group experience, like a private tour for both of us, we booked way before our trip, very easy, and once over there, the day before someone from the tour operator called me to see if we were willing to move our tour time from 2:30 pm to 12 pm, because some technical issues, I know things happen, so no problem, we went there around 11:30 am, nobody was in the office because all shops around there were doing some painting, we went to a restaurant across the street, and Ana was there, we did the check in and ready to go on board the “Sea Ranger”, small powerful and beautiful yacht and guess what? We were the only passengers, the whole boat just for us! Ana was the guide and a young nice man the pilot, they took us to 2 small islands near the port, no more that 15 minutes away, and we were able to see those beautiful, colorful, small and fast elusive sea birds, it was worth and we took several pictures /videos from them very close, you cannot step on land, it’s forbidden, and they don’t stay put for the pictures! You need to know, the birds have their own “calendar for the year” , that day (8/19/26) was the last day for the season, they go and live on the sea and come back next year in early April, how? Good question. In the background you can see the Tall ship ARC Gloria from the Colombian Navy on its yearly cruise with Naval Cadets on board
Katie Hepting
★★★★★ · 6 months ago
Claudia was an incredible guide for our northern lights tour on March 22, 2026. She was very attentive and informative, giving constant updates on light activity and giving us all tips for photographing. Inside the boat was warm and cozy, and you can’t beat having bathrooms and a bar available! The boat wasn’t packed full of people which we appreciated. It was very easy to move around. Highly recommend this tour!

Reviews from Google · updated 21 Oct 2026

Read before you book

Iceland in August: what tours runAugust keeps the Highlands open and brings back the first dark nights. Puffin boats thin out after mid-month; northern lights tours restart late August or in September.
Best Northern Lights Tour in Iceland (2026): 5 PicksThe northern lights tours we would book ourselves from Reykjavík and Akureyri, by minibus, super jeep and boat, with real prices and honest odds.
Blue Lagoon and northern lights: one day or two?Do them on different days. The one-day combo is 15 hours and €306; the lagoon fits your arrival or departure, and a €73 lights bus fits any clear night.

Reviews from our travellers

Only people who booked this tour through us can write here. We publish every review in full — good or bad.

Reviews arrive the day after each trip — none yet for this one. After your tour we send one email asking how it was, and what you write goes here, unedited.

Northern lights — questions people ask

When is the best time to see the northern lights in Iceland?

September to April, when the nights are dark enough. Within that, late September to March gives the longest dark hours, and the equinox months, September and March, often have active skies. There are no lights in June or July; the sky never gets dark. Anyone selling you a June lights tour is selling you a bus ride. Give yourself at least three nights, because clouds, not the aurora, are the usual reason people miss them.

Are the northern lights guaranteed on a tour?

No. Nobody can promise them, and we will not. Two things have to line up: a clear sky and solar activity. Guides check the cloud forecast at vedur.is and drive to gaps, which is the real value of a tour over standing outside your hotel. What most operators do promise is a free second attempt if the lights do not show. Check the exact retry policy on the tour page, because the number of retries and the validity period vary.

Is a northern lights bus tour or a boat tour better?

Bus, if you want the best odds. A minibus can drive an hour inland to find a clear patch; a boat stays in Faxaflói and sees whatever sky is over Reykjavík. Boats are shorter, about two hours, and pleasant with hot chocolate, and Reykjavik Sailors' cruise (/experience/6637/) includes a free retry. For a serious hunt, a small-group minibus like BusTravel's (/experience/150646/) or a 4x4 tour (/experience/1088067/) is the better bet.

Can I see the northern lights from Reykjavík itself?

Yes, on strong nights. The city is small and the sky over the sea to the north is fairly dark. Grótta lighthouse at the western tip and the Ægisíða shoreline are the usual spots, twenty minutes' walk from the centre. On average nights the street lights drown out a faint aurora, which is why tours drive out. If the forecast shows high activity and clear sky, walk to Grótta first and save the tour money.

Hotels

Where to stay for this tour

From the cheapest to the top end of what is near Reykjavík, from our hotel partners. Rooms are booked on our hotels site.

All hotels in Reykjavík →

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from

€88.02 per person

Sea Trips Reykjavík's own price. 3% off the whole trip when you book two or more tours together, in one checkout.

Your date

The next departure we can see — change it if this tour is for another day.

Pick a date to check departures.

Departs21:0022:00

Reykjavík: light 08:37–17:48, 9 h 11 min of daylight.

✓ Free cancellation until 24 hours before
✓ Instant confirmation by email
✓ If Sea Trips Reykjavík cancels for weather or safety: a full refund, or another date
✓ Card — Apple Pay or Google Pay where your device offers it — through Stripe; the charge is made in Icelandic krónur
✓ Price promise: Sea Trips Reykjavík's own price, or we refund the difference
✓ One checkout, even with tours from several operators
✓ Vetted operator — the six checks every operator passes

Pairs well with

Add any of these to this tour and 3 % comes off both at checkout — about €5 on the cheapest pair. One basket, one payment, however many operators they come from.