What it really costs
Northern lights tour price in Reykjavik: all nine, per person and per hour
A northern lights tour price in Reykjavik starts at $71 for a seat on the coach and runs to $319 for a fifteen-hour day that ends with an aurora hunt. This page prices all nine the same way and adds the costs the listing leaves out.
Quick answer
The short answer. Budget $71 for the coach, $94 to $157 for a small-group minibus, $155 for a tour with a professional photographer and $196 for a super jeep. Nothing here is cheaper at a desk on Laugavegur than online. The only real saving is not paying twice, which means booking the first night of your stay so the free repeat is usable.
What a tour costs
- Cheapest seat
- $71coach, four hours
- Small group
- $94premium minibus
- With a photographer
- $155highest rated on this page
- Super jeep
- $196off-road, small group
- By boat
- $91two hours from the old harbour
- Full day combo
- $319Golden Circle, Blue Lagoon and aurora
- Free repeat
- Includedon almost every tour
- Cancellation
- Free to 24 heverywhere here
Every trip, current fare
Every tour, priced two ways
Per person and per hour. The per-hour column is where the fifteen-hour combination stops looking expensive.
| Tour | Time out | Price | Group size | Cost per hour | Rating |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Northern Lights Bus TourThe classic coach hunt, cheapest seat | 4 h | $71 | Coach, up to ~80 | $17.75 | 4.3 · 14,873 |
| Premium Small-Group TourSmall group, flexible route | 4 h | $94 | Small group | $23.50 | 4.4 · 3,126 |
| Northern Lights Minibus TourMinibus with hot cocoa and photos | 4 h | $157 | Small group | $39.25 | 4.6 · 722 |
| Tour with a Pro PhotographerA photographer travels with you | 4 h | $155 | Small group | $38.75 | 4.8 · 446 |
| Northern Lights Yacht TourOut of the harbour by sea | 2 h | $91 | Boat | $45.50 | 4.4 · 1,342 |
| Super Jeep Northern Lights TourOff the road, into the dark | 4 h | $196 | Super jeep, small | $49.00 | 4.2 · 157 |
| Lava Tunnel & Northern LightsLava tunnel first, aurora after | 4 h | $196 | Small group | $49.00 | 4.7 · 80 |
| Whale Watching & Lights ComboWhales by day, aurora by night | 6 h | $190 | Boat | $31.67 | 4.3 · 131 |
| Golden Circle, Blue Lagoon & LightsGolden Circle, Blue Lagoon and the aurora | 15 h | $319 | Coach | $21.27 | 4.7 · 261 |
Reading the table
Why the cheapest seat is not the worst value
Three ways to divide the number, three different winners.
Per person the coach wins easily and it is not a bad ticket. It has more reviews than everything else on this page combined, which tells you people book it and mostly come back satisfied.
Per hour the picture changes. The Golden Circle day at $319 looks alarming until you divide it by fifteen hours that also include Þingvellir, Geysir, Gullfoss and the Blue Lagoon. On that basis it is the cheapest thing here.
But the honest measure for an aurora tour is neither. It is the chance of seeing something, and that is decided by whether the guide can move. The twenty-three dollars between the coach and the small-group minibus is the best-spent money on this page.
The photography tour at $155 is doing something different again: you are buying photographs you cannot take yourself. Its 4.8 rating is the highest here, and the reviews say the same thing repeatedly — people came back with pictures.
Not in the price
What the listing does not include
- Warm clothes
A few tours hand out overalls. Most do not, and standing still at minus five in city clothes ruins the evening.
- Getting to the pickup point
It is a designated bus stop, not your hotel door.
- Food
Hot drinks are usually included. Dinner is not, and you leave at nine.
- Photographs
Included on the photography tours, and on some minibus tours the guide takes them for free. On a coach, nobody does.
- A second night
The free repeat covers the ticket, not another night in the hotel.
- Tips
Not expected in Iceland.
Where you book
The price is the same everywhere
Every operator in Reykjavik publishes one seat fare and holds it across every channel: their own desk on Laugavegur, the booking platforms, and the hotel reception that takes a commission out of their margin rather than adding to your bill.
So the money is not the variable. Availability is, and in February on a clear forecast the small-group tours go first.
The one genuine saving is structural rather than commercial: book the first night of your stay. If the aurora does not appear you use the free repeat, and you have paid once for two attempts. Book the last night and a blank sky costs you the whole ticket.
Almost every operator here rebooks you free if the aurora does not appear.
Which tour we would book→A worked example
What two people actually pay
Two people, cheapest. Coach, two seats at $71 each. Four hours, hot cocoa, free repeat. Good value and a fixed route.
Two people, better odds. Small-group minibus at $94 each. The guide can move. This is the version we would book.
Two people, with photographs. The photography tour at $155 each. Portraits under the aurora included, and the highest rating in the city.
Two people, one day and one night. The Golden Circle and Blue Lagoon day at $319 each, which folds the whole classic itinerary and an aurora hunt into one fifteen-hour ticket. Expensive on the day, cheap per hour, and it removes a second booking.
Common questions
Northern lights tour prices, answered
How much is a northern lights tour in Reykjavik?
From $71 per person on the coach. Small-group minibuses run $94 to $157, a photography tour is $155 and a super jeep $196.
Is it cheaper to book in Reykjavik than online?
No. Operators publish one fare and hold it at their own desk, online and through hotels.
Why is the Golden Circle tour so much more?
It is a fifteen-hour day that includes Þingvellir, Geysir, Gullfoss and the Blue Lagoon, with the aurora hunt on the way home. Per hour it is the cheapest thing here.
Do I pay again if I see nothing?
No. Almost every operator rebooks you free on another night. That is why booking the first night of your stay matters.
Are hot drinks included?
On most tours, yes — cocoa and often Icelandic pastries. It is stated on each listing.
Do children pay full price?
Most operators have a reduced child fare and a minimum age, both stated on the listing.
Go deeper
More on the aurora in Reykjavik
Northern lights tours from Reykjavik
Every tour that leaves the capital, and how they actually differ.
VerdictThe best northern lights tour
Nine tours ranked for one decision, with a straight answer at the end.
The scienceAurora borealis, explained
What causes it, what the numbers mean, and what you will actually see.
By coachNorthern lights bus tours
The cheapest way out of the city glare, and its one real limitation.
Super jeepSuper jeep aurora tours
Off the road and away from the coach parks. Worth the money or not.
By boatNorthern lights boat tours
Two hours out of the old harbour, and why the sea has an advantage.
