How Much is a Trip to Alaska to See the Northern Lights

Alaska is one of the few places in the United States where there is enough solar activity for you to see the northern lights. I planned a last-minute trip to Alaska to go aurora hunting in the Fairbanks area with three of my friends. Our trip cost $3,680 total and $920 per person, not including little trinkets and small purchases throughout the trip. 

In this post, I will detail the cost breakdown of our entire trip to Alaska to see the aurora borealis, as well as provide some helpful information to plan your own northern lights vacation. You have the best chances of seeing the Northern lights on a clear day in the Aurora Oval. While there are other cities in Alaska within the Aurora Oval, I recommend Fairbanks, AK. 

Consider booking your trip for at least 4 days and 3 nights to increase your chances of seeing the Northern Lights.

Let’s get into it!

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Cost Breakdown of my 4-Day Trip to Alaska to See the Northern Lights

When my friend asked me to join her on a trip to Alaska to see the northern lights, it was only three weeks out. As a type-A planner, I was scrambling to get everything done in time, with how last-minute it felt. But those are some of the best trips! Hopefully, you can use this guide to plan your own trip to the Arctic Circle.

In this guide, I will share how much each part of my unforgettable Alaska adventure cost, the best places to see the night sky in the Alaska belt, and tips & tricks I picked up from the friendly locals.

What to Know Prior to Trip Planning

When planning your trip to Alaska to view the Northern Lights, it is important to remember that different parts of Alaska have varying aurora activity. The closer to the Arctic Circle and away from city lights, the better chances you have of viewing the aurora. Before we do a comprehensive cost breakdown of each part of my trip, let’s talk about some important factors for aurora viewing. Whether you’re planning your trip for late September or late April, here is exactly what you need to know.

What are the northern lights?

The Northern Lights are a natural phenomenon caused by solar activity. The Northern Lights or Aurora Borealis, is caused by interactions between charged particles in the sun and Earth’s Magnetic field. When this interaction occurs, bright lights of green, purple, blue, and pink will appear in the sky. This auroral activity will happen in the auroral band in the northern latitudes.

When to go see the Northern Lights?

When planning your trip to see the Northern Lights, plan to be in the auroral oval encompassing interior Alaska. Solar activity varies from day to day so you can check the 27-day forecast, but be mindful that the forecast can change within days and hours of itself.

A full moon will inhibit viewing, just like city lights and clear skies are necessary. So you will want to check for a new moon and any weather conditions before heading out on any exhibitions.

2024 has the best forecast for viewing the Northern Lights; however, the Northern Lights are viewable regardless of the year. Solar wind activity is just forecasted to be exceptionally high in 2024. 

The best time of day to view the Northern Lights is between 10 pm and 3 am.

Where can you see the northern lights?

The Northern Lights are visible in many areas of North America, but Alaska is a great place to view them because of their frequent visibility. The aurora can sometimes be viewed from northern Minnesota, but it is not consistent. A great place to plan your trip to see the northern lights should have consistent viewing potential.

How to View the Northern Lights?

When viewing the northern lights, you can opt to go with a tour company or on your own. When I planned my trip, I booked my tour at the last minute. I wanted to try to see the lights on my own first and then if I couldn’t see them, book a tour where the chances are increased.

Tour Company

Booking with a tour company ensures that you have local experts with you for a better chance of viewing the northern lights. There are some tour companies that offer multi-day explorations to view the lights, like the Salmon Berry Tours, but a one-day tour is just as phenomenal.

When I booked my tour, I had a later start time, so our knowledgable guides were able to tell us if the first group of tourists was able to see them or not!

On Your Own

If you plan to view the Northern Lights on your own, I suggest stopping in the Morris Thompson Cultural & Visitors Center to speak with someone about the different suggested areas for Aurora viewing. This will give you a better chance of seeing them on your own. When I went it was suggested I go to places like Murphy’s Dome and Chena Lake.

Basic Costs of a Northern Lights Trip

The basics include necessary purchases for your trip to Fairbanks, Alaska to see the northern lights. The major expenses of the trip come from transportation and sleeping arrangements. Some can be split amongst multiple people like the sleeping arrangements and rental cars!

Basic expenses cost $637 per person.

Flights

My flight to Alaska cost $343 on Alaska Airlines. I adjusted my departure date to get a cheaper flight, but my return trip needed to be on a specific day. The flight could have been slightly cheaper if I had flexible dates on both the departure date and the return trip. I suggest using a flight cost calendar to find the best flight options!

Sleeping Arrangements

There are plenty of hotel options in Fairbanks, AK, that are good for viewing the northern lights. We opted to stay in a Vacation Rental in North Pole instead of Fairbanks, which is a short 15 minutes away but has fewer city lights and significantly less light pollution. We stayed in North Pole for two nights, and on the last night, we stayed at Chena Hot Springs Resort.

Moose Tracks Rental Property

North Pole, AK has some great vacation rentals available. Check out our rental here. 

There are some really cool hotels in Fairbanks where the hotel staff will call when the Northern Lights are visible from the hotel. 

Moose Tracks Cost $531 in total.

Chena Hot Springs Resort

Chena Hot Springs Resort was such a cool stay! I thought it was awesome to have the hot springs on site for taking a warm dip in the springs and being able to view the northern lights. The resort offers tickets to the Ice Museum as well. Check out the booking page here. 

For a phenomenal northern light stay with panoramic views from your cabin, check out Borealis Basecamp. Their viewing packages are amazing, and they have really cool shelters for viewing the lights! Unfortunately, they were already booked out for the entire 2024 year when I checked in January. Look at their page here! 

Chena Hot Springs Resort Stay costs $249 in total. 

Book Chena Hot Springs here

Related Read: Best Hotels in Fairbanks, Alaska

Car Rental

We experienced -40 degree temperatures so we made sure to talk with the rental service about how to take care of the car in those temperatures. When you book your car, try to ask for one that has been winterized and can be plugged in overnight to avoid the car not being able to start in the morning. 

Our rental car cost $280 in total.

Food & Drink

Food & drinks are going to impact how much a trip to Alaska is to see the Northern Lights. There are plenty of local restaurants and breweries, which can really add up cost-wise. We did a mixture of groceries and eating out

Groceries

We decided to get some groceries, which cost $112. Groceries included breakfast food, hot beverages for keeping us warm while watching the northern lights, and snacking after hot tubbing.

Breweries & Restaurants

I spent $135 on 3 meals and 5 drinks at breweries and restaurants. Some people in my group spent more and others spent less! 

Activities in Fairbanks

A significant portion of the trip cost came from the planned activities on the trip. There is a lot of free time in Fairbanks as you wait for an opportunity to view the elusive northern lights. With the weather averaging -30 degrees Fahrenheit, spending time indoors was the way to go. Here are the activities we did on our winter trip to Alaska to see the Northern Lights.

Read Next: Best Activities in Fairbanks, Alaska

University of Alaska Fairbanks Museum of the North

The Museum of the North is located in the University of Alaska Fairbanks Geophysical Institute. The Museum of the North was the first activity that we did when we landed, as we came to terms with the fact that we would be inside a lot during the trip. The Museum of the North was beautifully curated with excellent art, storytelling, and artifacts. We spent about two hours in the museum looking at the exhibits before finding a place to eat dinner. 

Cost: $20 per person

Morris Thompson Cultural & Visitor Center

The Morris Thompson Cultural & Visitor Center was a free indoor activity! It is a great place to go and learn about everything Fairbanks has to offer, as well as learn about the history of the area. The small museum inside the visitors’ center was interactive and engaging! There was a small gift shop and a local artist’s shop. 

Cost: Free

Fairbanks Ice Museum

The Fairbanks Ice Museum is best described as quirky. We went in the middle of the day and were the only ones there. We enjoyed taking pictures with the sculptures and going down the ice slide…about a million times. If you go at 5 pm you can see an ice sculptor working on a piece and watch a video all about carving ice. 

Cost $15 per person

Chena Hot Springs

We chose to stay at the Chena Hot Springs Resort so the hot springs were included in the price of our stay. The hot springs were such a cool experience! The water was hot and contrasted with the freezing air, it felt like you could stay in there for hours. There are optional massage add-ons too if you want to make a spa day out of it. Towels are $5, Lockers are $0.50, and the hot springs(if not staying at the resort are $20)

Cost: Free with a Resort Stay

Full Chena Hot Springs Bundle without a Stay Here: Hot Springs, Ice Museum, & Northern Lights Tour

Aurora Ice Museum (w/ Appetinis)

The Aurora Ice Museum is located at the Chena Hot Springs Resort. With a resident professional ice sculpture, the Ice Museum is incredible. The tour was 45 minutes which was too long for some and too short for others. I felt like it was the perfect amount of time for the size of our group. There were different themed ice rooms to explore and the “Aurora Bar ” where the tour guide poured us appletinis in ice-carved martini glasses. 

Cost: Tour $20, Appletini $20

Northern Lights Tour

The Chena Hot Springs Resort offers a northern lights tour and from my research, it is best aurora tour to witness the vibrant green lights from Aurora Borealis. The tour was 5-hours long and began at 10:30 pm. It was definitely a late night, but we got to stay in heated yurts with available hot drinks like hot chocolate and cider and cups of noodles and oatmeal. It was perfect for warming up and then heading outside to capture the northern lights in sub-freezing temperatures.

I highly recommend doing an Alaska northern lights tour to see the northern lights. 

Cost: $80 per person

Dog Sledding

On the last day of the trip, which was the warmest at -12 Degrees, we went dog sledding with Paws for Adventure. This was one of my favorite activities. The dog sled ride lasted 30-minutes and then we had as much time as we wanted to interact with the sled dogs. They were a rambunxious group and the tour guides were super friendly and knowledgeable about the dogs and dog sledding as we mushed through the Boreal forest.

Cost: $90 per person

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Pack It Up

I spent $920 on my four-day trip to Alaska to see the Northern Lights with some expenses split between four people. The different tours definitely added up and were an additional cost, but they were all an integral part of the unforgettable experience. Northern Lights viewing is a bucket list event. 

There are ways to make the trip cheaper by doing fewer tours or eating out less, however, it all came together to be a wonderful trip in Fairbanks, Alaska. 

If you have any questions about planning your own trip to Alaska to see the northern lights, leave a comment! I’d be happy to help!