Eye On Travel: Northern Lights..Camera..Action

Northern Lights: Lapland not Bolton town centre

If you find the British winter too mild and sunny then head north and in 3 hours you can instead be in a land of snow, ice and perpetual darkness.

Of course you could save time and money by putting on a coat and climbing into your freezer for a few days but you would miss the opportunity to see one of the nature's most spectacular shows - the Aurora Borealis, or Northern Lights. If cool is the new warm, where should you go?

Blue Lagoon: Iceland practising for global warming

The easiest and cheapest option is to go to Iceland. The country not the shop. A short break to capital Reykjavik will allow you take a brief and bus orientated excursion outside the city to see the Northern Lights.

Sighting is far from guaranteed but aim for the darkest time of the year and keep your fingers crossed. Afterwards, enjoy the bars and clubs whilst drinking heavily before recovering in the Blue Lagoon thermal pool on the way back to the airport.

GET THERE: There are flights from several UK airports to Keflavik - unless that volcano goes off again. Flight time from London is around 3h. It’s 50km from Keflavik to Reykjavik

Sweden: Gimme Gimme Gimme lights after Midnight

If you prefer combining light spotting with winter sports then Swedish Lapland has the answer. Around 200km north of the arctic circle you will find the ski resort of Riksgränsen with 29 marked runs & plenty more off piste.

Snow reliability is not much of a problem and the season runs from February to June. Aim early as by May this is the land of the Midnight Sun. The Lights are best observed from a hot tub with a glass or three of glögg.

GET THERE: Fly to Kiruna and it’s 130km on to Riksgränsen. There are a handful of direct (3h+) flights from Heathrow with SAS (Scandinavia’s airline not the special forces) otherwise you will have to change aircraft in Stockholm adding a couple of hours.

Multi-tasking Reindeers: Transport and possibly dinner

If all this snow brings out your inner Santa, head next door to Finland's Lapland for a 3-4 night Arctic Experience package. This involves having a go on a reindeer sleigh, a husky dog sled and a skidoo (snowmobile).

You can also stay in an ice hotel (don’t turn the heating up) and will have a presentation on the northern lights before hopefully seeing them. Snow clothes and boots are provided.

GET THERE: Monarch Airlines flies from Gatwick and Manchester to Kittila between 30 December16 and 14 February17. Packages include all travel, activities, clothes and hotel.

All at Sea: Northern Lights. Or The X Files

Fjord Fiesta: The daytime’s not bad either

Finally, if you just want to sit and wait for the Northern Lights to come to you - with a money back guarantee - head to the Fjords of Norway. Shipping line Hurtigruten operates 12 Ships which ply a 2,500 mile round trip between Bergen to Kirkenes and the far north.

With daily departures, choose the full journey (12 days), one way (6 days) or any part in-between. Bring plenty of jumpers and look out for the Northern Lights on deck with minimal light pollution outside of summer.

With cruise ship standards, food is highly rated with plenty of fresh fish whilst the cabins are kitted out with fully assembled furniture so you can enjoy this most relaxing way to watch nature’s light show.

GET THERE: WIth daily departures from Bergen and Kirkenes, you can fly here from UK airports. Mid-route you can fly to join a Ship at Tromso or Trondheim. Some flights operate via capital Oslo which makes an additional stopover option. Duty Free purchases are advisable!

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Standard low cost packages are bookable through my multi destination EyeLine Travel website.

For tailor made packages, to book a trip to any of the places featured above or just for some information, please Contact me and I will do the hard work for you.