A few years ago I watched a documentary featuring Johanna Lumley on her adventure to see the Northern Lights. Something she had dreamt about since she was a little child. I completely related to her story as it was a long standing dream of mine to see that mysterious green light that lit up the sky in some far away cold country. A country so far from Australia, and something so rare to see, I never thought in a million years I would actually witness it first hand.

Since my return from that once in a lifetime experience I have had the same discussions with people I have met along the way, some who had also watched the same documentary and expressed how much they wanted to see the lights. So below are my tips, in the hope that you too can dance with the lights in the sky one day.

Seeing the Northern lights is never guaranteed and there are many influencing factors whether you will see them or not. The time of the year, cloud coverage, light, weather forecasts all play an important part.

The two very important factors when planning to see the Northern Lights: Research and some good old-fashioned luck.

The main countries to view the Aurora Borealis are Norway, Finland, Sweden Iceland, Southern Greenland, Northern Siberia, Alaska and Northern Canada.

At the time I was living in London, which gave me the ideal base to explore. After doing much research my friend and I decided to fly to Tromso in Norway. We only had five days to explore and wanted to make sure we gave ourselves the very best chance to witness the lights. Tromso is located at the top of the Arctic circle right in the middle of the Aurora Borealis zone making it one of the best places in the world to observe the lights.

Whilst some say the highest possibility to see the lights is February and March, we travelled in October, the perfect month given the lights start in September and we didn’t want to experience death defying minus temperatures in the middle of a Norwegian winter (I am a girl from Bondi Beach after all)

There must be minimal cloud coverage and dark skies to ensure the best chances to see the lights. This means the period straight after a full moon is your starting date to book your tours.

We booked a tour for three nights of the five that we spent in Tromso, and we saw the lights each night. The most common colour of the Northern lights is green. Less common are shades of red, purple, pink and blue. Knowing this, I was ecstatic when I saw all of those colours!  I feel this was all a combination of careful planning – including the right tour guide and a lot of LUCK!

The right tour guide was Kjetil Skogli, otherwise known as “The Aurora chaser” was the saviour in Johanna Lumley’s documentary. And perhaps my real reason for picking Tromso.
Kjetil, a skilled cameraman with outstanding knowledge of the area will do everything he can to ensure you see the lights. (Again, it is dependant on luck too) He will stay as long as possible in the hope that they will appear, or will drive you to the next location if he feels there is more chance there. Warm weather gear is provided along with hot drinks and a fire to warm your hands whilst you wait.

The nights were long and cold but all that was forgotten once the night lit up. I can clearly remember the first night of our tour, (rather early in the night) The sky flashed pinks, blues and greens. Once I scrambled to set up my camera and tripod to gather proof of this magical sight,  I could stand back in complete and utter awe. As the sky danced above us all I could do was smile knowing my dream had just come true.

Kjetil tours sell out fast as they only accommodate eight. http://www.kjetilskogli.no/

Fly: SAS airlines via Oslo to Tromso from London.

Stay: Clarion Collection
Norway is very expensive. I still remember my AUD22.00 hot chocolate, but the Clarion Collection offers very reasonable rates.
Approximately NOK1590 / AUD267 pn. The hotel is perched along the waters edge and includes a free daily breakfast along with (my favourite part) free waffles and hot drinks between 3pm-6pm.

Close by is the slightly more upscale Radisson Blu which has rates for NOK1635 for a standard room including breakfast. It is also where the tour starts from each night at 7pm

Lastly if you want the ultimate experience in luxury (if you want to call staying in an igloo that) check out  http://www.kakslauttanen.fi/en/accommodation located in Finland

If those countries are too far for you to travel, try your luck at the Auroras Australis. The southern lights seen from Tasmania and New Zealand

My Northern lights prints are available for purchase HERE  (CLICK LINK)