From Alaska to Finland, these seven hotels give you a great chance to see the northern lights and stay in style while you’re at it.
The Nordic air is freezing. From the hot tub, steam rises into the starry sky.
As you take another sip of wine, light starts rippling above you: dancing beams of green and purple. You lean back, further immersing yourself in the warm water, eyes pointed to the sky. You’ve waited a long time to see this.
“Yesterday was a great night with auroras and the Milky Way lining up,” said Johan Löfgren, owner of the Arctic Gourmet Cabin in Sweden. “But overcooking the piece of reindeer meat — just to get a picture — was of course not an option. I got to enjoy it a little bit anyway; it’s a nice experience to share with total strangers, or the one you hold dearest.”
If you’re chasing the aurora borealis, your best bet is to escape the city. But that doesn’t necessarily mean leaving luxury behind. At these seven hotels, fine dining, thick blankets, crackling fires — and, fingers crossed, an unforgettable display of lights — await.
Though the bed is the focal point — draped in pillows and blankets, and adjustable to the perfect viewing position — each igloo also offers private bathrooms with heated floors, a kitchenette, Bluetooth speakers and complimentary breakfast. The “Premium” igloos look out over the snowy valley with unobstructed views.
Prime viewing season is from mid-November to mid-April, when you can spend your days skiing at the nearby Levi Resort before retiring to the lights at night.
It doesn’t get much more intimate than this pair of cabins, which can each accommodate two guests at a time. Located in the northern tip of Sweden and free of light pollution, Arctic Gourmet Cabin is a fabulous place to catch the aurora — preferably between mid-September and mid-April, and preferably from the hotel’s outdoor hot tub. Other activities include dog sledding, snowmobiling and ice fishing.
The cabins are small, but modern — and come second to the real highlight of a stay here: the food, served in a third four-seat restaurant cabin. Owners Johan and Malin Löfgren met while working in the restaurant of the famed Icehotel; she’s a sommelier, and he’s a chef.
Now they’ve brought their culinary expertise to a two-table restaurant in the woods, cooking up five-course meals centered around local specialties like reindeer, moose and arctic char — all paired with an eclectic selection of wine.
Set on 120 acres south of Whitehorse, the property offers sprawling views of the surrounding mountains. For lodging, you can choose from four log cabins — each built by hand from locally grown timber, and exuding romance with gas fireplaces and European linens.
During the winter season, your stay will include breakfast, lunch and leisurely family-style dinners in the main lodge, where you’ll have the chance to meet your fellow aurora-fiends. Daytime activities include snowmobiling, snowshoeing and ice fishing, or indulging yourself at the resort’s Finnish-style spa.
Getting to this all-inclusive lodge — 60 miles north of the Arctic Circle — is half the adventure. A private ski plane picks you up in Fairbanks, and after two hours, will touch down in the pristine powder of the Brooks Mountain Range.
From then on, you’ll be completely surrounded by the Alaskan wilderness — including its famed aurora. And, if you book a five-night photography safari guided by expert Alaskan photographer Nathaniel Wilder, you’re guaranteed to leave with some stunning shots. The tour is available in February and March, when aurora activity is at its peak.
The lodge, which was built by hand from local white and black spruce, is 100% solar-powered, providing 24-hour electricity, hot showers and a sauna. Its simple rooms have flannel sheets and thick quilts that invite you to snuggle up with a good book; the rest of the time, you can partake in activities like snowshoeing or cross-country skiing, or just conversing over home-cooked meals beside a cozy wood stove.
“Alaskan guides will keep you entertained with stories and adventures from life in the Arctic, while providing you the opportunity to create your own,” explained owner John Gaedeke, a second-generation guide who was raised on Iniakuk Lake.
Another country, another igloo hotel — but this one’s not made of glass. Located on the banks of the Alta River, Sorrisniva claims to be the largest and northernmost ice hotel in the world.
Hewn each year from snow and ice — including artistic details like chandeliers and sculptures — the hotel occupies nearly 27,000 square feet.
If you overnight in one of its 30 rooms, you’ll stay snug in an “extreme” sleeping bag covered by reindeer hides, before warming up with a morning trip to the on-site sauna.
The hotel is open from December 18,2017, through April 8,2018, with closures over Christmas, New Year’s and Easter. If you visit before January 17,2018, you’ll experience the “Polar Night” — a period when the sun never rises — which the hotel says can be a special time to see the northern lights.
This remote lodge in the Canadian province of Manitoba delivers the ultimate foray into nature. To access it, you’ll fly 30 minutes from Churchill to the shores of Hudson Bay. Not only does this region claim to be one of the best places in the world to see the northern lights, it’s also a haven for wildlife.
When you return to the lodge, you can relax in your wood-paneled room, wrapping yourself in a chunky blanket before enjoying a hot meal in the panoramic dining room. Then, at night, get your camera out again, for it’ll be time to photograph a different natural wonder.
Although it’s conveniently located just two hours from Iceland’s main airport, this hotel is still far enough removed from the city to offer excellent northern lights viewing between September and April.
In fact, it caters to aurora seekers, offering a wake-up call when the lights come out, overalls to help you stay warm outside and blankets and benches that welcome you to lie down and watch the show. Or, if you don’t want to venture outside, you can view the lights from the hotel’s observatory, which comes complete with a resident astronomer and multiple telescopes.
