Northern lights in Kiruna and Abisko

7 min read Updated October 2026 Compare all tours

The local tourist office says the aurora can often be seen from the end of August and as late as April. The Swedish Tourist Association, which runs the Aurora Sky Station in Abisko, narrows the best chance to mid-November until mid-March. By 1 April twilight lasts until after 20:30, and the tourist office no longer sees good chances. In the middle of winter the dark lasts longest: in Kiruna the sun stays below the horizon from 11 December to 1 January.

Within a night, the most active aurora usually appears between 21:00 and 23:00. Evening tours are timed around this window, and most of them last between four and six hours.

Clouds decide the night

The aurora forms far above the weather. Clouds sit lower and block it completely, so a strong forecast is worth little under a closed sky. The tourist office recommends checking two things before you go out: the aurora forecast, which many people read as the KP index, and the ordinary weather forecast. It also warns that a starry sky can turn to snowfall in the time it takes to get dressed.

You can sometimes see the aurora in central Kiruna, but street lights wash it out. The advice is to find a dark place away from artificial light and to give your eyes time: switch off torches and leave the phone in your pocket. A guided tour solves the transport part, since you are not driving icy roads at night to chase a gap in the clouds.

Why many tours head for Abisko

Abisko lies 93 km west of Kiruna along the E10, a little over an hour by car, at the edge of Abisko National Park and the lake Torneträsk. The Swedish Tourist Association describes a local weather phenomenon there that often brings clear skies even when the surrounding area is cloudy. Swedish Lapland adds that the area receives less rainfall than the rest of Sweden, and the Kiruna tourist office points to the low light pollution. None of this makes Abisko a sure thing, and on a night with clear sky over Kiruna a long drive west may not be needed.

The trip by Paradise Lapland is built around this idea. A heated minibus with up to eight guests drives towards the national park, stops at viewing spots on the way and changes the route when the clouds move. If the weather allows, the group walks near the Abisko canyon. Pickup and drop-off are in Kiruna only, so you cannot use the tour as a ride to Abisko. Snowsuits are lent, and the tour is for guests from 12 years.

Other evening formats

The campfire night by Lights of Vikings is the choice for people who want pictures of themselves under the aurora without bringing a camera. The guides look for a spot under clear sky, light a fire and photograph the group, and the photos and videos are included. Groups are limited to eight, snowsuits are provided, and the tour lasts five hours. It is not offered to children under 10 or to guests over 70.

Kiruna Buss runs its tour in a heated bus rather than a minibus. The driver follows a flexible route to the clearest sky of the night, and you receive digital photos from the tour. The files come at 75 ppi, and raw files are not handed out. Children can join from 5 years.

Some tours start with a meal. Stejk Street Food serves dinner in a heated lavvu, a tipi-style tent, then sends minivans of up to eight guests out in any direction the weather allows, ending at a campfire in the snow. The evening takes six hours and is open from 12 years. Stejk states clearly that it is not a photography tour, and it refunds you if it cancels because of bad weather. Explore Arctic grills a Sámi-inspired barbecue for two hours in a lavvu at Poikkijärvi, with vegetarian and vegan options, then drives to a viewpoint for another two hours.

For families with younger children, the short van chase by Explore Arctic is the lightest option at 3.5 hours, with up to eight guests and children from 4 years. Warm clothes are not lent on this tour, so you need your own.

You can also look for the aurora from a snowmobile or a dog sled. Some evening snowmobile tours offer a seat in a sled behind the guide for guests without a car licence; our page on snowmobile tours from Kiruna compares them. Evening husky rides are on the husky sledding page, where one kennel near the Icehotel notes that its evening rides only have an aurora chance from December to February.

The Aurora Sky Station above Abisko

The Aurora Sky Station sits at about 900 metres on Mount Njullá, also written Nuolja, above Abisko. A chairlift takes you up in about 30 minutes; the FAQ of the Swedish Tourist Association gives 20 to 40 minutes. From the top you look over the national park, Torneträsk and the U-shaped valley of Lapporten.

In the 2026/27 season the night visit runs from 19 October 2026 to 27 March 2027, from 20:30 until 01:00 at the latest. Booking ahead is recommended; drop-in tickets are sold at the lift when places are left. Booked guests get warm overalls and winter boots, but you bring your own hat, gloves and base layer. The lift can close in bad weather. The station also runs a live camera with an image about every five minutes, which is a quick way to check the sky over Abisko before you decide where to spend the evening.

Sleeping in Abisko

If you spend a night or two in Abisko, you are already where many Kiruna tours drive to. The bus from Kiruna bus station to Abisko Turist takes about 1 hour and 15 minutes, and the station of the same name lies inside the national park; the day trips page covers the route by train, bus and car.

Tours from Abisko collect guests from accommodation in the village only, never from Kiruna. The aurora chase by Lights Over Lapland searches around the national park within a round trip of at most 100 km, lends warm clothing and serves a hot drink. It takes 3.5 hours and accepts children from 5.

Cameras, phones and batteries

The tours handle photos in very different ways. Lights of Vikings and Kiruna Buss send you pictures afterwards. Paradise Lapland and Explore Arctic help you with your own camera and give photo tips, and Explore Arctic also lists photography equipment. Stejk offers smartphone tips but says plainly that photography is not the focus.

If you bring your own camera, the tourist office suggests a tripod as well. Cold drains batteries faster than most people expect, so bring spare batteries and keep them warm in an inside pocket.

Staying warm while you wait

An aurora night is mostly standing still in the dark. The tourist office gives about minus 20 degrees as a usual January figure and calls such numbers hints only, and the Icehotel warns that it can reach minus 30 outside. Dress in layers, with wool closest to the skin, and pack hand warmers. The tourist office also reminds visitors that snow and ice are too cold to sit on directly.

What the tours lend differs a lot. The Abisko trip from Kiruna and the campfire night include snowsuits, Stejk lends shell jackets and boots if needed, and Explore Arctic provides clothing on request for its barbecue evening but not for the short van chase. Our page on what to wear in Kiruna lists the layers to pack.