Polar Activities
From chasing the northern lights to dog sledding across frozen tundra — 44 activities across the world's most extraordinary environments.
🌌Northern Hemisphere Activities
Northern Lights Tours
Guided aurora borealis viewing tours, typically departing at night to dark-sky locations away from city light pollution. Expert guides use real-time Kp index data and local knowledge to maximise sighting chances. Dress in extreme-cold-rated layers and be prepared to wait patiently — the reward of seeing the sky erupt in green, purple and red is incomparable.
Husky Sledding
Drive or ride a team of Siberian or Alaskan huskies through snow-covered forest and tundra. Available from gentle 1-hour introductions to multi-day wilderness expeditions with overnight stays. Let the dogs do the work — experienced mushers will teach you commands, and the sound of paws on packed snow through silent Arctic forest is something you never forget.
Dog Sledding
Traditional sled dog experiences in Arctic wilderness, often used interchangeably with husky sledding, though some operators use mixed breeds. A quintessential Arctic activity that has been used for transportation and hunting across the polar north for thousands of years. Book multi-day expeditions for the full immersive experience of camping in the wilderness.
Reindeer Sledding
Ride a traditional reindeer-drawn sled guided by Sami herders through silent boreal forest. A deeply cultural experience across Finnish and Norwegian Lapland, often combined with visits to reindeer farms and Sami cultural demonstrations. Reindeer are far calmer than huskies, making this a particularly magical experience for families and those who prefer a quieter pace.
Ice Fishing
Traditional Arctic fishing through holes drilled in frozen lakes, often in heated lavvu tents or small wooden huts. A social, relaxed activity suitable for all ages and fitness levels — no experience required. Hot drinks, campfire-grilled catch, and the otherworldly silence of a frozen lake make this one of the most authentically Arctic experiences available.
Arctic Cruise
Expedition and luxury cruises through Arctic waters, including Svalbard, Northwest Passage, and Norwegian fjords, aboard ice-strengthened vessels with expert naturalist guides. Wildlife, glaciers, and aurora viewing from the deck of a specially equipped vessel in one of Earth's last true wildernesses. Small-ship expeditions offer zodiac landings to coastlines inaccessible to larger vessels.
Polar Bear Safari
Guided polar bear viewing from specially equipped tundra vehicles or boats in one of the world's most dramatic wildlife encounters. Churchill, Manitoba offers the world's most accessible polar bear encounters, where bears gather on the Hudson Bay shore in October–November awaiting freeze-up. Svalbard offers boat-based viewing in summer, where bears hunt seals along the ice edge.
Ice Hotel Stay
Sleep inside rooms carved entirely from ice and snow, rebuilt each winter from the ice of a nearby river, with temperatures kept at around -5°C inside. The original Icehotel at Jukkasjärvi, Sweden, pioneered this experience in 1990 and still offers artist-designed suites of breathtaking craftsmanship. Thermal sleeping bags, reindeer hide beds, and warming saunas make the experience surprisingly comfortable.
Aurora Camp
Overnight wilderness camping dedicated to northern lights viewing, often in lavvu tents (Sami conical shelters) heated by a central fire, under starlit skies with aurora overhead. Combines authentic wilderness immersion with optimised aurora watching away from any light pollution. Guides keep watch and wake guests when activity peaks in the middle of the night.
Snowshoeing
Walk across deep snow on snowshoes with guides through boreal forest, open tundra, or along frozen lake shores — a gentle, meditative way to experience winter wilderness accessible to all fitness levels. Snowshoeing requires no prior experience and opens up landscapes completely inaccessible to normal walkers. Night snowshoe tours under the aurora are among the most magical polar experiences available.
Sami Cultural Experiences
Authentic encounters with Sami Indigenous culture — traditional joik music, reindeer herding demonstrations, lavvu tent meals, and handicraft workshops in the world's northernmost Indigenous culture. Concentrated in Finnish and Norwegian Lapland, with the best experiences involving family-run operations that share genuine living culture rather than staged performances. Ask about the spiritual relationship between Sami people and the northern lights — the stories are extraordinary.
Cross-Country Skiing
Explore Arctic and sub-arctic landscapes on classic Nordic skis on thousands of kilometres of groomed trail networks maintained across Finnish, Swedish, and Norwegian Lapland. Unlike downhill skiing, cross-country is accessible to beginners within an hour and provides a full-body workout through some of Earth's most serene winter landscapes. Many destinations offer lit night trails for skiing under the northern lights.
Northern Lights Photography
Dedicated long-exposure aurora photography tours with expert instruction, covering camera settings, composition, and timing — often with equipment loan available. Best locations combine strong aurora probability with dramatic landscape foregrounds: Lofoten's reflective fjords, Abisko's mountain backdrop, and Ilulissat's iceberg-filled bay. A mirrorless or DSLR camera with a wide-angle f/1.8–2.8 lens will deliver the best results.
Indigenous Cultural Experiences
Authentic Indigenous cultural experiences across Arctic Canada and Alaska, including Dene, Inuit, and Alaskan Native traditions around aurora watching, winter survival, drum dancing, and traditional storytelling. These experiences provide profound insight into the knowledge systems that allowed humans to thrive in one of Earth's most hostile environments for thousands of years. Choose community-run operators to ensure cultural authenticity and direct benefit to Indigenous communities.
Aurora Viewing Domes
Heated glass-roofed pods or geodesic domes where guests sleep or relax under a 360° canopy of stars and northern lights throughout the night, combining luxury comfort with unobstructed overhead viewing. Popular in Finland, Alaska, and Scandinavia, where operators position these domes in prime dark-sky zones away from light pollution. The experience eliminates the need to leave a warm bed to see the aurora — guides simply wake you when the display begins.
Alpine Skiing
Downhill skiing at Arctic and sub-Arctic resorts, combining world-class mountain terrain with unique polar conditions including Arctic light, long runs, and the possibility of skiing under the northern lights. Some resorts like Narvik offer skiing at the foot of fjords with dramatic scenery that rivals any Alpine resort. Equipment rental, lessons, and night skiing facilities are available at most major Arctic ski destinations.
Fjord Cruises
Boat tours through dramatic Norwegian and Icelandic fjords carved by ancient glaciers, offering spectacular views of waterfalls, cliffs, and wildlife from sea level. Winter cruises offer the magical chance to spot the aurora reflected in glassy fjord water, with sea eagles, porpoise, and sometimes orca accompanying the boat. The Hurtigruten coastal route from Bergen to Kirkenes is one of the world's great maritime journeys.
Arctic Distillery Visits
Tours and tastings at distilleries producing spirits from Arctic ingredients — cloudberries, seaweed, birch sap, and glacial meltwater, creating flavour profiles impossible to replicate anywhere else on Earth. Lyngen Alps Distillery in Norway is a notable pioneer of this growing trend, while Tasmania's whisky scene has developed a global reputation using some of the world's purest water. A warming and fascinating complement to any Arctic itinerary.
Icebreaker Cruise
Cruise aboard a real icebreaker vessel through frozen sea ice, watching the ship's bow crunch through ice sheets that would stop conventional vessels, then float in a dry suit in the frozen Arctic Ocean. The Sampo icebreaker in Kemi, Finland is the most accessible icebreaker experience in the world, operating November–April in the Bothnian Bay. Nuclear icebreaker voyages from Murmansk offer the ultimate version of this experience, reaching the geographic North Pole.
Puffin Watching
Guided tours to puffin colonies nesting on sea cliffs and coastal islands, where these comical and charismatic birds gather in their millions each summer. Orkney, Shetland, and Iceland host millions of Atlantic puffins each summer, with boat tours bringing visitors within metres of nesting birds who show remarkable indifference to human observers. The best light for puffin photography comes in the evening when birds return from sea with beaks full of sand eels.
Sami Cultural Heritage
Immersive experiences with Northern Sami culture, particularly at Jokkmokk's famous Winter Market (February), the world's largest Sami gathering where 30,000 visitors browse traditional crafts, watch reindeer racing, and hear joik music. Sami cultural heritage spans Norway, Sweden, Finland, and Russia's Kola Peninsula, preserved through a living tradition of reindeer herding, storytelling, and handicraft. The Ájtte Museum in Jokkmokk and SIIDA Museum in Inari offer excellent cultural context before meeting Sami families.
Ice Climbing
Scaling frozen waterfalls and ice walls using crampons, ice axes, and ropes under expert guide supervision — one of the most physically demanding and visually spectacular winter sports available in the polar north. Arctic destinations offer unique ice formations that form only in extreme cold, from the frozen curtains of Alta's canyon to Svalbard's glacier faces. No prior climbing experience necessary for introductory courses, though a reasonable level of fitness is recommended.
Northern Lights Cruise
Boat-based aurora viewing on sheltered fjords and coastal waters, combining the mobility to chase clear skies with panoramic 360° views unobstructed by trees or terrain. Tromsø-based operators run nightly cruises on the Kvalsund and Kaldfjord, tracking Kp index data to position the vessel under the clearest skies. The reflection of green auroral curtains in still fjord water creates double-sided displays that land-based observers can only dream about.
Volcano Hiking
Guided ascents of Iceland's active and dormant volcanoes, where the landscape shifts from green tundra to lunar black lava fields and steam vents as you climb to summits shaped by geological forces. Iceland sits atop the Mid-Atlantic Ridge, making it one of the most volcanically active places on Earth — Hekla, Askja, Snæfellsjökull, and the recently-erupting Reykjanes Peninsula are all hikeable with the right guide and conditions. Always check volcanic alert levels before departure — conditions can change with very little warning.
Midnight Sun Viewing
Experiencing the phenomenon of the sun remaining above the horizon at midnight, casting golden light across Arctic and sub-Arctic landscapes in the summer months — the counterpart to the polar night's northern lights. The midnight sun creates extraordinary long golden-hour photography conditions that can last for hours, and the psychological experience of perpetual daylight is simultaneously beautiful and disorienting. Nordkapp in Norway, Abisko in Sweden, and Reykjavik in Iceland are the most accessible places to witness this phenomenon.
Sauna Experiences
Traditional Finnish smoke saunas and lakeside saunas followed by rolling in fresh snow or plunging into ice-cold lake water — a ritual that has been central to Nordic wellness culture for thousands of years. Finnish saunas are not a luxury add-on but a way of life: most Finnish holiday cottages have a lakeside sauna, and the Löyly water-on-stones technique creates a steam (löyly) that is both intensely hot and deeply relaxing. The combination of extreme heat and cold-water immersion triggers an endorphin release that locals describe as better than any spa treatment.
🌍Available in Both Hemispheres
Snowmobile Safari
Self-drive snowmobile tours across frozen lakes, rivers, and forests, covering ground impossible to reach on foot. Half-day to multi-day expeditions available, with most destinations requiring a valid driving licence. Ideal for experiencing vast Arctic wilderness quickly — some overnight safaris include sleeping in traditional wilderness huts.
Whale Watching
Sea-based tours for humpback, minke, orca, and sperm whale sightings in Arctic and sub-Antarctic waters. Tromsø and Húsavík are world-renowned whale watching hubs, with sightings almost guaranteed in season. Choose rigid inflatable boats for the most intimate encounters, or larger vessels for stability in rougher Arctic seas.
Glacier Hiking
Guided hikes across living glaciers with crampons and ice axes provided, exploring a frozen world of crevasses, ice formations, and meltwater channels. Available at Iceland's Vatnajökull and Sólheimajökull, Svalbard's numerous glaciers, and in Patagonia. Always hire a certified guide — glaciers are dynamic environments where conditions change rapidly.
Ice Cave Exploration
Guided tours into natural ice caves beneath glaciers, where filtered light creates extraordinary blue and turquoise ice formations in sculpted chambers. Iceland's crystal ice caves at Vatnajökull are world-famous, with new formations each winter. Only accessible November–March when the ice is stable, and only with certified glacier guides.
Geothermal Pools
Soak in geothermally heated outdoor pools while watching for the aurora overhead or basking in the midnight sun, a uniquely Icelandic and Alaskan experience. Iceland's hot springs range from the famous Blue Lagoon to wild roadside pools accessible by hiking trail. Always check water temperatures — natural pools can reach dangerously hot levels, especially near volcanic areas.
Arctic Wildlife Watching
Guided wildlife viewing across Arctic and sub-Antarctic habitats — arctic foxes, musk oxen, walrus, caribou, and wolves in the north; penguins, seals, and orca in the south. The polar regions are among Earth's most wildlife-rich environments, concentrated by the extraordinary productivity of cold polar seas. Bring a 400mm+ telephoto lens and expect close encounters with animals that have little fear of humans.
Wildlife Photography
Expert-led photography expeditions targeting polar wildlife with professional telephoto equipment and patient, knowledgeable guides who know animal behaviour. Particularly outstanding in South Georgia where king penguins, elephant seals, and albatross gather in extraordinary concentrations. Expedition ships provide stable platforms for long lens work in challenging Arctic and Antarctic light conditions.
Landscape Photography Tours
Guided photography expeditions to iconic polar landscapes with expert instruction in long-exposure, golden-hour, and aurora photography techniques — covering both technical camera settings and artistic composition in extreme conditions. Expert guides know exactly when and where the light transforms landscapes into something extraordinary, from Lofoten's winter reflections to Iceland's volcanic coastlines. Trips are kept small (max 8 participants) so every photographer gets prime position at each location.
Arctic Kayaking
Sea kayaking through Arctic and sub-Arctic waters, from the sheltered fjords of Ísafjörður in Iceland to the iceberg-strewn bays of Svalbard and the remote coastline of Stewart Island. A uniquely immersive way to explore remote coastal areas inaccessible by land, getting eye-level perspectives on wildlife including seals, puffins, and whales. Always paddle with experienced Arctic guides — water temperatures are life-threatening, and weather changes rapidly.
Arctic Hiking
Guided and self-guided hiking across Arctic and sub-Arctic terrain during the summer months, from Faroese sea-cliff paths above crashing Atlantic waves to Alaskan tundra carpeted with wildflowers. Summer months offer continuous daylight for extended hikes through dramatic landscapes with no need for a headlamp. Lofoten's iconic Reinebringen hike and Abisko's Kungsleden trail are among the world's most spectacular mountain walks.
Fat Biking
Winter cycling on specially designed bikes with oversized, low-pressure tyres that float across snow and ice, opening up trails that are completely inaccessible to normal bicycles. Fat biking in the Arctic offers a unique combination of physical adventure and access to remote winter landscapes — frozen lake crossings, forest trails, and coastal paths transformed into rideable terrain. Dress in moisture-wicking layers and be prepared to work hard — the reward is a endorphin rush in some of the world's most dramatic scenery.
Hot Spring Bathing
Bathing in naturally heated geothermal springs that emerge directly from volcanic activity, often in wild, roadside, or remote locations far from any developed tourist infrastructure — a more intimate experience than larger geothermal pools. In Iceland, hidden hot pots like Landmannalaugar and the river-fed Hvammsvik are reached by hiking or 4WD track, rewarding visitors with mineral-rich water and extraordinary scenery. Always check temperatures before entering — volcanic springs can exceed 70°C in places.
Seal Watching
Guided wildlife tours to observe seal colonies hauled out on beaches, ice floes, and rock outcroppings — from the common harbour seal to the vast elephant seal beaches of South Georgia. The polar regions host extraordinary seal diversity: leopard seals in Antarctica, hooded seals in Greenland, and curious harbour seals that often approach kayakers in Norwegian and Icelandic fjords. Patience and quiet movement are rewarded with extraordinary close encounters.
Ice Diving
Scuba diving beneath frozen lake or sea ice, entering an extraordinary silent world of blue light filtered through the ice ceiling, with remarkable underwater visibility and marine life adapted to extreme cold. Svalbard offers some of the world's most rewarding ice diving, with kelp forests, sea anemones, and the chance of encountering ringed seals beneath the ice. Participants must be qualified divers with cold-water experience, and always dive with a tether line and surface safety team.
🐧Southern Hemisphere Activities
Southern Lights Tours
Guided Aurora Australis viewing from southern latitude destinations. Best from June to August in the Southern Hemisphere when long nights and high solar activity align. Viewing sites are often remote, so guided tours provide transport, real-time forecasting, and photography support for this rarer cousin of the northern lights.
Antarctica Cruise
Expedition cruises to the Antarctic Peninsula, Ross Sea, and sub-Antarctic islands on ice-strengthened vessels with expert naturalist guides and zodiac landing craft. Depart from Ushuaia or Hobart for an experience of raw wilderness found nowhere else on Earth — vast penguin colonies, calving icebergs, and the eerie silence of the world's most remote continent. Book 12–18 months in advance for the best ship and cabin selections.
Zodiac Landings
Inflatable Zodiac boat transfers from expedition ship to remote shorelines, landing on beaches inaccessible by larger vessels and getting you as close as regulations permit to wildlife. The primary way to access Antarctica's most remote landing sites, where you may step ashore among tens of thousands of penguins. Always follow expedition guide briefings on wildlife distances — 5 metres minimum from penguins, but they often approach you.
Penguin Colony Visits
Landing among wild penguin colonies on Antarctic and sub-Antarctic beaches — one of the most extraordinary wildlife encounters on Earth, where hundreds of thousands of birds create a cacophony of noise, movement, and comedy. South Georgia's Salisbury Plain hosts 250,000 king penguins in one of the planet's most astonishing wildlife spectacles, while the Falklands offer the most accessible colonies for travellers not joining a full Antarctic expedition. Penguins are fearless and endlessly curious — they will often approach and investigate visitors unprompted.
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