Iceland

Akureyri is Iceland's second city and the 'capital of the north', sitting at the head of the long Eyjafjörður fjord at 65.7°N — meaningfully higher than Reykjavik and with significantly better aurora probabilities. Surrounded by snow-capped mountains with minimal light pollution beyond the small city centre, Akureyri offers aurora viewing that can match Norwegian destinations in prime conditions. The nearby ski resort at Hlíðarfjall is Iceland's largest, and the geothermally heated outdoor pools are a must. Húsavík (40min away) is Iceland's whale watching capital. The Dettifoss waterfall and Mývatn geothermal area are easy day trips. Akureyri is genuinely charming — with heart-shaped traffic lights and a compact, walkable centre full of good restaurants. Far fewer tourists than Reykjavik.

Húsavík is a small fishing town on Iceland's north coast with the remarkable double distinction of being Europe's whale watching capital and an excellent aurora viewing base. Sitting just below the Arctic Circle at 66°N, it has longer winter nights than Akureyri and significantly less light pollution. The GeoSea geothermal sea baths, where warm mineral-rich water meets the cold Arctic sea, are a local highlight — and watching the northern lights from a hot outdoor pool as humpback whales breach in the distance is a genuinely unique experience. The town gained unexpected fame from the Eurovision film 'Eurovision Song Contest: The Story of Fire Saga'. Year-round whale watching tours have a very high sighting success rate, with humpback whales, minke whales, and even blue whales regularly spotted.

Egilsstaðir is the largest town in east Iceland and the regional hub for the country's most dramatic and least-visited landscapes. The town sits on the banks of Lake Lagarfljót — Iceland's longest lake, which according to local legend hides the Lagarfljótsormurinn, a worm monster said to have been sighted as recently as 2012. The surrounding East Fjords offer some of Iceland's most rugged coastal scenery, with fjords cutting deep between dramatic mountains and reindeer roaming the highlands — the only wild reindeer in Iceland. Aurora viewing is excellent from October through March: east Iceland benefits from lower rainfall than the west and south coasts, making clear-sky aurora nights more frequent. The Vatnajökull glacier, the largest in Europe by volume, is accessible from the south of the region, offering ice cave tours in winter. Egilsstaðir offers a genuine slice of rural Icelandic life rarely seen by tourists who stick to the Golden Circle, with local restaurants, petrol-station culture, and warmth.

Ísafjörður is the largest settlement in the Westfjords — Iceland's most dramatic and least-visited region, a remote peninsula of deep fjords, towering cliffs, and preserved medieval Arctic culture. The Westfjords contains the highest concentration of fjords in the country, and Ísafjörður's historic old town, built on a narrow spit jutting into Skutulsfjörður, is one of Iceland's most beautiful settlements. At 66°N — closer to the Arctic Circle than any other Icelandic town — winter darkness is extended and aurora activity is frequent and intense. Puffin colonies nest on the dramatic cliffs at Látrabjarg in summer, and sea kayaking between fjords is extraordinary in calm conditions. The Hornstrandir Nature Reserve, accessible only by boat from Ísafjörður, is one of the few places in Iceland where Arctic foxes remain completely wild and curious of humans. Winter access to the Westfjords requires flying — the mountain road closes in avalanche conditions — but the journey rewards those who make it with complete solitude, dramatic scenery, and outstanding aurora viewing.

Lake Mývatn is Iceland's most geologically dramatic landscape — a shallow volcanic lake surrounded by pseudocraters, lava pillars, lava fields, and steaming hot springs that create an almost Martian environment. The Mývatn Nature Baths, a geothermally heated outdoor pool, offer one of the world's great aurora-viewing experiences: soaking in 36–40°C mineral-rich water while the northern lights ripple overhead on clear winter nights. The lake itself freezes partially in winter, reflecting aurora in extraordinary ways. Nearby Hverfjall, a perfect 170m tephra crater, provides a dramatic high viewpoint for aurora photography. The Dimmuborgir lava formations — twisted rock pillars that look like a subterranean castle — are ethereal in snow and darkness. In summer, Mývatn hosts Europe's largest concentration of breeding duck species. The region sits in Iceland's arid interior, away from coastal cloud systems, making clear-sky nights more frequent than the south or west coasts. An exceptional combination of geothermal relaxation and dramatic aurora photography.

Reykjavik is Iceland's capital and the world's most accessible starting point for northern lights and arctic adventures. Sitting at 64°N, it's just below the ideal auroral zone, but its unique position makes it a hub for day trips to prime viewing areas — Þingvellir, the Snæfellsnes Peninsula, and coastal viewpoints where light pollution drops dramatically. The city itself shuts off street lights in some districts on good aurora nights. Iceland's volcanic geology means you can combine the northern lights with unique geothermal experiences: hot springs, geysers, and lava fields lit by the aurora create surreal landscapes. The midnight sun summer season draws an entirely different crowd. With direct transatlantic flights from New York (5h), Reykjavik serves as many travellers' gateway to the Arctic.

The Snæfellsnes Peninsula is often called 'Iceland in miniature' — a 90km finger of land west of Reykjavik that packs extraordinary geological, glacial, and coastal variety into a single accessible drive. The centrepiece is Snæfellsjökull, a glaciated stratovolcano that Jules Verne chose as the entrance to the Centre of the Earth in his 1864 novel — and which Halldór Laxness described as mystical in his Nobel Prize-winning work. The glacier crowns the peninsula's western tip at 1,446m and is Iceland's most westerly glacier. Kirkjufell mountain, rising sharply from the coast near Grundarfjörður, is the most-photographed mountain in Iceland and an iconic foreground for aurora photography. Whale watching in the peninsula's sheltered northern bays produces excellent minke and orca sightings. At 64.8°N aurora viewing is solid though slightly less reliable than north Iceland destinations — coastal weather brings cloud more frequently. The peninsula is close enough to Reykjavik for a 2-3 night self-drive circuit, making it Iceland's most accessible aurora photography destination.

Vík í Mýrdal is a tiny coastal village under the Mýrdalsjökull glacier, known for Iceland's most dramatic black sand beach, Reynisfjara, where basalt sea stacks rise from crashing Atlantic waves. At 63.4°N, it's the southernmost point on our polar destinations list, offering lower aurora probability than northern Iceland — but its dramatic volcanic landscapes lit by the aurora create images found nowhere else on Earth. The ice caves beneath Vatnajökull glacier (accessed from nearby Jökulsárlón) are the primary draw for many winter visitors. The combination of black beach, volcanic cliffs, waterfalls (Skógafoss and Seljalandsfoss are nearby), and potential aurora makes Vík the most scenically dramatic winter base in Iceland.