How to See Northern Lights in Finland: Don't make these 5 mistakes
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- čas přidán 30. 05. 2024
- 🌌Seeing the northern lights in person is a beautiful experience but hunting them is quite tricky. In this video, I offer advice on the best time to see northern lights, the best places to spot them, and the 5 mistakes you absolutely should avoid when searching for them. These tips can help you search for aurora borealis anywhere, but my experience is specifically in Finland.
It's hard to find a complete guide to help you make the most of your aurora hunting experience, but I have put together this make-no-mistake guide to help increase your chances of seeing the dancing bright lights.
🌟Here is the full guide on my blog: herfinland.com/northern-light...
Recommended Aurora Hunting Gear ⬇
-Lightweight and flexible tripod: geni.us/gorillapodhf
-Portable phone charger: geni.us/mobilecharger
-Northern lights app: Free version of an app called "Aurora"
-Reliable winter boots: geni.us/sorelwomen and all winter clothes herfinland.com/lapland-packin...
✨Do you want to see gorgeous aurora pictures taken in Finland? Check out Petri Puurunen on Instagram. He also offers great aurora photography workshops. / petripuurunen
🙏Thank you Petri for letting me borrow a couple of your beautiful pictures in this video.
❓Is it your dream to see the northern lights one day?
Her Finland Instagram: / her_finland
I just skipped all these steps and named our Finnish daughter Aurora. So I can easily see a Finnish Aurora.
Hahaha!! 🤣 so clever!!
Wait that's cheating
Pfahahha😂😂😂😂
As professional northern light hunter/photographer, here's some tips:
1) Check the weather:
You need clear sky, if you don’t see stars, there is no point to go out. Or use weather forecast to find a spot with clear sky!
2) Use an aurora app!
People use apps, but don't know how to use them...
DO NOT check the KP or predictions, KP is a matter of latitude and prediction are based on previous years: we don't care!
Go straight to the graphs and check the 4:
- The Speed of solar wind need to be above 350 km/s
- The density of Particles per Cubic Cm (P/CC) need to be above 5 (the second most important one)
- The inclinaison of magnetic field (BZ) need to be bellow 0 (the most important one)
- The intensity of magnetic field (BT) need to be above 5
Those indications are from DSCOVR satellite, it takes between 30-40mn to arrive on earth.
So you check when everything is ok, then you add Universal Time (2h for Finland), then 30mn = Enjoy!
3) Look in the north direction, find a lake, a bog or some place open in north direction.
The flames from the fox will appear on roughly 160° wide with north in the middle.
Sometimes everywhere but never at the beginning.
4) Use a phone and a tripod, go to your "pro" mode and add those preset :
2sec delay (do not move at all) / 4sec speed exposure (S) / ISO 1000 / Focus Multi (F)
And (of course) no flash.
5) Massive explosions like crazy pictures online arrives for real and you can see them clear, but they are extremely RARE, maybe 4-5 times per season, you need to be crazy lucky. 25% of time you will see nothing with your eyes, but camera will. 50% of time you will see an ark (big or small) and 24% of time they are a bigger but blurry.
Enjoy!
Thank you for sharing this Herve!!! 🤩
I was at my friend's cottage by lake in Mikkeli, having 4 hr evening swimming, sauna, eating sausages with drinks, snow everywhere, butt naked and having the best time and Boom, Northern lights appeared, it was fantastic to see, never forget it.
Welcome to Finland and I was visiting from America.
Oh! This sounds amazing!!! 🇫🇮
I saw a gorgeous green aurora when I was 10. That was 47 years ago, and I still remember it clearly. They truly are magical.
Even as an app developer, I really must agree with trusting apps blindly is a huge mistake. Never know when the show starts, and the beautiful landscape is quite amazing even without northern lights. One more mistake that might not be as bad, is the position and phase the moon is in during the period you go traveling for northern lights. Nice if possible to avoid full moon and if possible, go traveling when the moon is down during night. Thanks for great content!
Too of my bucket list to see the Northern Lights.
The informaiton you provided in your blog post was awesome, here in Australia we get cooked by sun where we live, about 35 to 40 degrees in summer and about 15 degrees in winter
I saw them on Sunday near Rovaniemi. Amazing!!
As always, a very informative and interesting video. Thank you Varpu!
Glad you liked it! Your comment made my day!
Thanks Varpu! This was excellent!
I appreciate the time and effort you put into doing this 🙌
Thank you for your comment, it was my pleasure to make this video! 🤩🧡🇫🇮
Believe it or not, I dreamt northern lights the last night and now you came out with this video 😃 I have spotted my first Aurora on the very first night in Rovaniemi some years ago. What a privilege! It looked like two thin green lines dancing in the sky. I was so mesmerized by that experience that I didn't want to take my camera off and get some footages. Sometimes I find the camera is a distraction, sometimes I want to fully enjoy the moment and I want it all for myself. After 30 minutes, I was freezing at -20°, it decided to vanish as quickly as it appeared. I ran to the hotel shouting at the receptionist "woooo I've just seen the Aurora!!!" And he replied, calmly, "pfftt we see it every night...."
And I was like "whaaaat I traveled 2000 km for this!!!!!!!!!" Haha!
Aurora was one of the greatest experience in my life
Wow, what a coincidence you had a dream about auroras! That's so great you had the chance to see them. I agree it's nice to stay in the moment and enjoy it for what it is. Thanks so much for sharing 😊✨
Wooow! What an amazing experience! Federico, I will travel 13.241 km to see the Aurora in March 2023. It's the dream of all my life and In month I will do it. I´m so happy and thrilled, can´t wait to travel to Finland with my husband ♥ Cheers from Argentina!
Thanks for the video !!
You are welcome!
I really did enjoy the video. Great presentation, very informative. Definitely going to apply your tips if I were ever to see the aurora. 😊
So glad it was helpful :)
Impressive video! thanks a lot! Taking notes right now and going in few weeks to try to catch it!
Great! And you're welcome, I hope you can catch the northern lights 🙏
Kiitos for sharing your tips to enjoy Lapland and auroras. I can't wait to come to Finland to experience all of this! I'll definitely buy a tripod!
Thanks for watching Carmen! Yes, I'm excited for you too! 🤩
Very informative video and great advice!! Thank you!
Thank you for commenting! 🧡🇫🇮
This is a wonderful video. Long ago, in 1989, I have visited Lapland during a training in Helsinki, Finland, and seen the Auroras. Your candid video brings back all the nostalgic memories. Thank you for the very informative and lovely presentation !
Omg ,your excitement when you are talking is just unreal , love it 😊
Awww, you are so sweet. Thank you so much❣️🇫🇮
hiiii! I really enjoy your video, it's useful and helped me a lot to know more about Finland.
Hei there Krystal! Thank you soo much!! So lovely to meet you here 🤩🧡🇫🇮
Looking forward to my very first northern lights experience in Finland, kiitos!!
Best of luck! Sounds like you have an exciting trip to plan 😊🙏
Thanks for your information
You're welcome 😊
thank you so much that was really helpful, wish I have the chance someday to see it
Very Informative and in love with your smily talking😍
Thank you so much for commenting. Awesome if this was helpful! 🤩
Love the video. Thank you so much. I have seen the Aurora in Lapland a few times (Tromso several times, Kiruna/Abisko a couple of times - though sadly, neither are in Finland, but the tours from the former often go across the border) & really love what I have been able to see. Good advice - especially about batteries (which lose their power very fast in the cold). The best display I saw was 30th Jan in 2017 in Finland. They are both wonderful and very addictive! :)
Thanks so much! And wow how cool, nice you got to see them too 🤩
Such a lovely smile. Thank you for the information I hope all are as cheerful and happy as you seem in Finland. 🙌🏾
Thank you for your comment!
Hey Varpu, thanks a lot for sharing your experiences. I just returned from Saariselkä with awesome pictures of northern lights.
Thank you for your comment Udo!! 🤩🧡🇫🇮
I love your contagious smile! 🤩
Awww, you are so sweet. Thank you so much❣️🇫🇮
Thank you for this and for your smiling face
You are welcome!
Hi Varpu, We were very fortunate to witness the Northern lights during our visit to Karkussen on 25-28th January 2023. the first night we saw them from our Igloo attached to our log cabin when we ran outside to photograph them, the second night we captured them during out reindeer safari!!!. I was always under the impression that the light could be seen green with the naked eye however, it wasn't until I pointed my IPhone 14 at the lights I could see them more clearly. Wouldn't it be amazing if someone could invent a pair of glasses with the same lens technology as our camera's much in the same way as 3D glasses were used in watching 3D films in cinema's? Keep up your amazing work! The Finnish tourism board should employ you full time to actively promote visits to your country with that natural welcoming Finnish smile!!!!!! Looking forward to returning someday! :)
Thank you for sharing your personal experience Rolf! It means the world to me!
Great video. Many thanks.
You are welcome! 🤩🧡🇫🇮
Always wanted to see them. Must be such an amazing experience... ❤️❤️❤️
It's so amazing! Hope you can see it one day 🙌
Wonderful presentation 🥰
Thank you so much!!!
Some suggestions to make mobile phone pictures of the aurora: Learn how to use the exposure and ISO features on your phone. My older Android in Pro photo mode will take up to a 10 second exposure at ISO 800, which helps bring out the colors. Newer phones have more features. Besides a tripod I recommend getting a Bluetooth camera shutter remote control. Once you pair it to your phone, you can snap a photo without touching the camera. Helps keep it from shaking and blurring the photo. Some phones use voice commands to trigger the camera, which works just as well. Enjoy!
Thank you for commenting! 🧡🇫🇮
Thank you for the tips fary godmother👍
You are welcome!
Thank you so much!🙂
You are welcome!
Wonderful advice! Esp. "don't make your trip all about Auroras". You would get very disappointed if you plan nothing ahead but only aurora, but fail to see it (which is very likely). I was lucky enough to watch my first aurora in Iceland in 2018. But in the same trip, the glacier trekking alone was such a wonderful experience. It already completed my trip even if I hadn't been able to see the aurora. Likewise, another amazing aurora encounter in Inari, Lapland in 2020 (even more beautiful, with those dancing lights of multi-color). But the fjord experience in Norway in the same trip was also precious enough to mark my trip.
What month did you go to Inari ? And where did you stay? ( if you don’t mind me asking ?
@@sriputcha3558 In mid Feb 2020, and i stayed with Holiday Village Inari. My cottage was just a few minute walk from the Lake Inari, where I spotted Aurora. Cheers~
Thanks:)
Hei Joe! Glad to meet you here! Thank you for sharing your experience! 🤩
Thank you for a GREAT video! :-) Excellent information, super well organized, wonderful presenting style. THANK YOU !!!! :-)
Glad it was helpful! Thank you for watching ❤️
Great smile!
You've convinced me! Been to Tromso. Lapland next
Thank you for the video and your suggestions I will be heading to Rovaniemi in March 2024. Can’t wait.
Hello, could you go last month? If so, how was it? 😊
Hi were you able to site aurora?
Varpu, you are an excellent blogger. Keep up the good work, I am from the Philippines admiring you.
Thank you!!
Im going to lapland in a month and I am so exited. My dream has always been to see the northern lights ans I hope it’s finally fulfilling. Thanks for your tips, especially regarding the powerbank, I was not thinking about this. Great video 👍🏻
Thank you for your comment! 🧡🇫🇮
Moi! Nice video. Joo, I plan on moving to Finland and have been looking in Roveniemi. Aside from the beautiful Northern lights I am captivated by the beauty of the wintry landscape. Kiitos!
Sounds amazing. Love Rovaniemi ❤️
We saw them in keflavik December 2022. All your advice was Perfect 👍
So glad you find my video helpful!
Yes!! Bucket list to experience the aurora! Mother Nature's light show!
Amazing! Hope you can experience it one day 💚
Hi. Thanks for your video. I'm Brazilian 🇧🇷 . See the northern Lights is my dream. 😍 Probably, I'll cry when i see.
Thanks for watching! I hope you can one day 💙
Hello Varpu, beautiful video :D Brazil is here!
Thank you so much!🧡🙏
you are so positive
Thank you for commenting! 🧡🇫🇮
Thank you very much. We head to Lapland in April.
Awesome! Best of luck 😍
Hi Varpu. Thanks for this great video and the advices about aurora hunting. I will visit Saariselkä in Februrary and I'm so exciting to see the Finnish Winter-Wonderland. And I'm dreaming of- and hoping to- see the Auroras. Your tips will be helpfull. Thanks!
Hi, coul you make ut for February? How was it? 🌸
Hello Varpu thanks for the video, it was great! I am from Australia and I would Loove to see the Aurora!
I have physical disabilities, what kind of tour would you suggest, will it be too Hard to see Santa’s home, dog sledding is out of the question but would there still be snowmobiling in March? I am really all over the place as I have no idea what month to go? I really want to see the northern lights. Thinking of doing a self guided complete tour of Iceland first.
Hei Melissa! 🙋🏼♀️ There are options for barrier free hotels in Lapland and the Santa Park is barrier free too! I am not sure regarding dog sledding as this you would need to reach by car most likely. Unfortunately snow is never something someone can guarantee, this is totally up to the year and the weather. I wish you all the best of luck with planning the trip and Aurora hunting!! 🤩🇫🇮🧡
I am from Tornio and I grew up watching those beautiful Northern Lights every winter. They were just stunning. We were living away from the city lights so when I got dark, it got really dark and the views were so clear. I can not tell you how much I miss Finnish FOOD, oooh oooh, poron kuivalihaa ja maksalaatikkoa ja monia muita. Hei hei.
Thank you for sharing Paivi! 🧡🧡🧡
Yes!! Seeing the Aurora is my lifelong dream!! I’m headed to Lapland in 6 weeks to search for northern lights, saunas, huskies, reindeer, and a level of cold that I have never known before!! This was super helpful! Thank you!!
Have fun, sounds amazing! Glad you found this helpful 😊
I'm leaving this Sunday for Yllas. I hope I see some aurora! Thank you for this video.
Thank you for commenting! Hope you catch them!! 🤩🧡🇫🇮
Watching from Philippines, we'll be travelling to Europe this Summer thanks for the tips ❤️
Thanks for watching! 💙
It's my dream. I have a short bucket list and this is on it.
Amazing!! 🤩
Dreaming to see Auroras too. Plan to go to Lapland this coming January 26 to 27. Hoping we can see Aurora this time.
Hello beautiful!!! Thank you for this video!!! 😍😍😍😍
Hi Yngrid! You're welcome, thank you for watching 🙏☺
Informative video. Indeed that's our mistakes. How many times we went for aurora hunting in Iceland,Findland with tours but nothing.Hoping on our next northern lights hunting we could get some luck. Thanks👍
Thank you for commenting!
Thanks for your Information! We will stay in Lapland in February 2023 and Hope so much to have some cloud free nights 🙏🏼
Hei Nino! 🙋🏼♀️ Lovely to meet you here! I wish you all the best for the Aurora hunting! 🧡
Thanks for sharing, Varpu! Quite good information and well packed! I'd say this is an excellent post for people traveling to Finland. However, for local residents, it may not be feasible to travel to Lapland on a short notice. I'd like to add a key element here - looking at the aurora forecast (long and short term) and getting familiar with the weather on the sun is key to hunting. I live in Espoo and like you say, have seen many faint shows but also some of the best shows of my life. Have you ever tried aurora hunting from south of Finland? :)
Glad you liked the video! Totally understand your point and I agree with checking the aurora forecast is very helpful indeed. There is indeed a possibility to spot Auroras in southern Finland too, but they are rather rare circumstances. Definitely, I will try south of Finland Aurora hunting this winter.
🎉gorgeous teacher
….. learn a lots of things from you 😊
Thank you for commenting!
Good Info! Will visit the place.Keep safe Varpu..
Sounds great! Thank you 😊
I saw the revontulet in Taivalkoski (near Kuusamo) in January when I was working in Finland many years ago. We all got dressed quickly (it was minus 35C) and went out onto the street to see it. The next night I was in the sauna and looked up through a small window and there it was again - green and moving slowly. So I called all my colleagues and we got dressed quickly (again) and rushed outside, but... no aurora! Disappointed we all went back inside and when I went to collect my towel from the sauna, I realised that it was steam from a factory chimney that I had seen through the green glass window in the basement where the sauna was. We all had a good laugh when I told them what had happened!
Hei George! This story is wonderful!!! Thank you for sharing 😍🇫🇮
Hi Varpu. I have seen the Aurora many times, but they were whitish, with a tinge of color or gray. They were sparkling ~ it was thrilling. But not being colors my friends said that I was seeing clouds instead of aurora. Thank you for mentioning that they are not always bright colors. Blessings from Northern Illinois, USA
Oh wow, still cool! Thanks so much for sharing, sounds like you may have seen an aurora indeed :)
My understanding is that when you photograph them is when you will see the colours that our eyes can not see. I know your post is a year old so you might not see this.
Amazing colors! The splotches of brown against the blue/gray background! I had to pause the video to make sure that I wasn't seeing things.
Haha ok nice!
Great video.
Sometimes the best things are the ones that are unplanned.
Back in the early 1970's I went on a camping trip with my now husband in Wisconsin (USA).
We went out on a pier on the lake to see the Milky Way.
Much to our surprise we also were treated to an aurora display.
Since we were so far south it was just white and gray.
Being unexpected, it was quite a memorable event.
Good grief, that was 50 years ago!
Thank you for sharing this story!
YES, one of my cream is to see auroras🤩🤩🤩🤩
Interesting.
thank you, it is great video, i hope to go there and enjoy it,,
Thanks so much! I hope you can too 😁
Great video! Some apps/services are actually really useful, but you need to know how to use them. For example the app you're probably talking about is based on the OVATION aurora model, which attempts to predict the probability of auroras directly above any given point. So if your app says the chance is 12%, the chance of seeing aurora at some angle when you look at the sky is a lot higher.
Thank you for your comment! 🧡🇫🇮
We went to Rovaniemi in February last year and LOVED IT so much. Sadly we didn't get to see the aurora, but I guess it means we'll have to go back, maybe even further north once our kids are a bit older ;)
Thank you for commenting! 🧡🇫🇮
I'm too far south (Nevada, USA. East of California) for auroras, but I still find them scientifically and aesthetically pleasing. And I enjoy learning about science. I thank you for the advice, it teaches a lot about the auroras that just looking at them doesn't teach you. The bonus is listening to your accent, I enjoyed listening to you talk.
Thank you for commenting!
We are going to Finland for a week on January 7, 2023, Kittilä, we hope that we will see the Northern Lights. Thank you very much for the tips in your video
Sounds amazing! Best of luck northern lights hunting 💪
Subscribed from Laos 😍
Thank you so much!
yes
I just came back from my trip to Lapland ,and everything what you've said is so true.Let me say ,this was one of my best trips I have ever made in my whole life.Its so so beautiful there.And yes,I was lucky and I saw Aurora ,last night before departure, I was losing all my hope ,and yet there she was .Amazing.Thank you for sharing this video ,information is very accurate.
Thank you for commenting Niko, it means the world to me! 🧡🇫🇮
I'm leaving this Sunday for Yllas. I'm keeping my fingers crossed. I have 4 nights so maybe I'll see some.
@@cb7457 Just go out there,follow these tips from this video ,everything else is up to mother nature.Good luck and enjoy.
@@NikoNeznanovich will do!!
How many nights did you go for?
I came to see about the northern lights!! finland fairy woman of my dreams!🙌
Thanks for watching ✨😊
@@HerFinland thank you!🙌
@@HerFinland i have stopped watching you channel,you know why?😂
👍 Kiitos paljon!
Ole hyvä👍
I’m going with my wife next month to Rovaniemi for our 10 yr anniversary. Hoping to see aurora but I know we’ll have a lovely time even if we don’t. Thanks for the helpful information
Thank you for commenting! I wish you all the best of luck with the anniversary trip and aurora hunting in Finland soon!!! 🤩🧡🇫🇮
@@HerFinland thanks so much 😉
Nice! Just made a similar vlog guide for finding them in Iceland 😎✌🏽
Ooh that's awesome, I'll have to check it out 😊
Thank you for the awesome video! I was planning to take a trip to Finland next year and your tips are super helpful!
Thank you for your comment! I hope your trip will be amazing!! 🤩
Now you got a indian 🇮🇳. Subscriber 👍
Thank you so much 🙏⭐
me2 bro...dont forget march 10 pm - 2 pm....lol
I saw plenty of Northern Lights in Helsinki last winter (2021).
You were very lucky then!!! 🤩
I'm a Bangladeshi... Thanks for sharing your experience
Thank you so much for the comment!🧡🙏
Nice explanation sis. 👍🏻
A subscriber from India 🇮🇳😊
Thanks so much. Happy to have you here 🇮🇳 🇫🇮
I live in Texas, in the US, it's my absolute dream to go to the northern European countries and see the aurora. I also really love the snow, because we get snow where I live, but not in abundance.
Big like for your beautiful smile🌺
Thank you so much!
I am from India , I like your videos , hoping to visit Finland once the pandemic is over
I hope you can too 🙏
@@HerFinland Kiitos
I’m heading to Kilpisjärvi next week. It’s a long trip for me. I am currently in Calabria, Italy.
Wow! Quite the long trip, sounds amazing. Enjoy 🤩
Yes, my dream indeed.
I hope it comes true for you 🙏
@@HerFinland thanks
AAAAHHH!! THANK YOU ! VARPU HER FINLAND -- WOW OUR FAIRY GODMOTHER !! GOSH ! UNFORTUNATELY, I WOULD NEVER SEE THE BEAUTIFUL NORTHERN LIGHTS !! EXCEPT ON TELEVISION OR MY COMPUTER!!!!!!! FROM U.K. (2021).
Thank you for your kindness. I hope one day you can see them though in person 😍
i am planning to go to finland by mid of october this year, i hope i can get the chance to see the famous northern lights
Hi from Mauritius.Visited Helsinki Vantaa in 2017.
Thank you for commenting! 🧡🇫🇮
what a beautiful lady and thankyou for the advice
Thank you 🙏 I hope it's helpful :)
I’m following you in tiktok as well , my Tutor😅
Amazing!! Thank you so much Ber!!!
Thank you Varpu! Very nice movie and very good notices what to do and what not. This will help in planning and for the stay there. Is the northern part of Finland much more expensive then the south? I mean for restaurants, car rentals, daily things etc.? Or is it only a small gap? Still thinking going to Lappland or Alaska to see the aurora. Both destinations are interessting, but Ivalo aera f.e. much is closer to Frankfurt with a direct flight to go. Maybe I should start in Finland :-). Merry Christmas to you and all the best for next year. Stay healthy!
Thanks for watching & I'm mglad it helps 🙏 I would say some things are more expensive in northern Finland depending on if you go to a very touristy city like Levi or Rovaniemi. Not too much more expensive though.
Best of luck and happy new year😊🙌
WOOW
🤩✨
Great ! Thank you for sharing. I went to Iceland a week ago without sucess for the Northern lights, but amazing to explore the island. Do you suggest a month to try again?
Hei Andrea! The best season for auroras in Finland is from October to March! I hope you catch them 🤩
Hi Varpu, thank you so much for sharing such informations, they are really helpful. I am planning to travel to Rovaniemi/Lapland in a couple of years and planning to go there towards the end of January. Based on your suggestions, is January also a good time to see the Auroras and also is winter quite heavily there during that month? If I want to enjoy a nice sightseeing in snowy winter season with nice Aurora view when would you suggest the time for visit (apart from March)? Also, if I travel to Rovaniemi is there any chance to see a nice view of Auroras or I can get to see that more towards northern part of the region?
Hi! Great questions. There are never any guarantees with auroras. Statistically, March is the least cloudy month in Lapland. I think it won't make much difference if you visit Lapland in Jan or Feb, but it will be brighter the later you go. This allows you to do more day activities. You can see auroras in Rovaniemi level but if you go further north your chances increase a lot. Hope this helps!
Go to abisko. Rovaniami doesn’t have great autoras