September or February? Choosing your aurora month in Alta
The sky over Alta is dark enough for the northern lights for roughly seven months a year. Each stretch of that window brings its own weather and light, and its own choice of tours. Pick your weeks with those trade-offs in mind, and leave a spare night for the clouds.
Why the summer months are out
The aurora shines over Alta all year round, but you only see it against a dark sky. From roughly mid-May to late July the sun never sets here, and the light nights on either side hide the lights completely.
The dark season opens around late August or September and closes around late March or early April. Inside that window cloud and the length of the night shape your chances far more than the date on the calendar.
Alta sits at about 70° north, close to the band where the aurora is most often overhead. Our page on what makes Alta a strong base covers the geography, and it holds for every month below. No month guarantees a sighting.
September and October, before the snow
Autumn is the quiet opening. The nights lengthen quickly, and by October the evenings bring plenty of dark hours after dinner. The weather is usually milder than in winter, so an hour at a roadside stop is a far gentler test.
The birches turn yellow and orange in September, and green light over autumn leaves looks nothing like the snowy pictures most people expect. Lakes are still open water, so a calm night can give you a reflection as well.
The drawback is that there is usually no snow yet. Snowmobile tours need it, so they only run in the snow months, and Flatmoen's horse sleigh swaps its runners for a carriage. Check each listing for the dates it actually runs.
The polar night, late November to mid-January
From about late November to mid-January the sun does not rise over Alta. Midday brings a few hours of soft blue twilight, a stretch known as the polar night, and the rest of the day is dark.
These are the longest nights of the year, though the tours still set out in the evening. The polar night changes the feel of your whole trip more than it changes the odds on a single tour.
They are also among the coldest weeks, and a clear sky inland often means −20 °C (−4 °F) or below. Our guide to clothes for a Finnmark night goes through the layers.
The holiday weeks around Christmas and New Year often bring more visitors to town. A minibus with 13 seats can fill days ahead, so book early if your trip falls then.
February and March bring snow and longer days
Late winter suits many visitors best. The snow lies deep, the days are light again, and the weather is often more settled than in early winter, though Arctic weather never promises anything.
This is when the full range of tours is usually running. You can drive a snowmobile toward Finnmarksvidda or ride a sleigh behind a Fjord horse on real snow, as well as joining the minibus and bus tours.
Nights shorten fast through March, and by early April the sky near midnight is no longer fully dark. Late in March, a tour that stays out until after midnight gives you the most dark sky to work with.
The months side by side
| When | Dark hours | Snow tours | Main drawback |
|---|---|---|---|
| September and October | Growing fast | Usually not yet | No snowmobile, sleigh on wheels |
| November | Long | Once the snow settles | Unsettled weather |
| Late November to mid-January | Longest, no sunrise | Yes | The coldest nights |
| February and March | Shrinking | Yes | Shorter nights by late March |
| Mid-April to August | Too few or none | No | No aurora to see |
Choosing a tour for the month you have
In any month, the tour that copes best with the weather is the one that can move. Alta Adventure's small-group hunt, from ~$257, goes looking for the clearest patch of sky even when that means a long drive. A minibus also needs no snow.
GetYourGuide reviewers give it 4.6 from 150+ reviews; Viator's 130+ average 4.5. The group stops at 13 people, and you are back in Alta normally just after midnight.
A minibus that follows the clear sky
Pickup in Alta with warm suits and boots to borrow. Hot chocolate with snacks at short stops, or a campfire when the drive runs long. Adults and teens from 12 only. From ~$257, with free cancellation up to 24 hours ahead on GetYourGuide.
The activity tours belong to the snow months. Our side-by-side of all five shows what each gives up, chiefly the freedom to chase a gap in the clouds.
Arriving by ship fixes the date for you. If that is your case, our guide to aurora tours from the cruise pier covers pickups and timing.
Leave room for a second night
Whatever the month, one grey evening can wipe out a tour. Book yours early in your stay, so a cloudy first night still leaves time for another try. Our page on nights when clouds hide the lights sets out the options.
A second evening does not have to cost as much as the first. Finnmark Adventure's Northern Lights Bus, from ~$149, is among the cheaper evenings here. The drawback is the bus itself, with up to 53 people on board and a score of 4.4 from 53 reviews.
On the day, check the cloud forecast before the Kp number. Our guide to Kp and cloud cover over Alta explains why the clouds matter more.