Northern Lights in January: Where to Go, and the Tours
Where to see the northern lights in January: ten destinations ranked on clear dark hours, with darkness, cloud, activity and the tours as of October 2026.
In January, the best odds of a clear dark sky on this site are in Fairbanks (Alaska): about 6.5 clear dark hours a night on average, against 3.9 in Abisko and Kiruna (Sweden), the best of the European destinations. These are averages, dark hours times the cloud-free share of the night from NASA’s climatology, not a forecast. Across the European destinations, 18% of January’s dark hours had a Kp index of 3 or more in 2015 to 2025. The pick for January is Northern Lights Tour with Free Photos - Arctic Night Tours, from US$225 as of October 2026.
Check January dates in Fairbanks →
January at a glance
January is the coldest month and, inland, one of the clearest. The long nights continue, and the crowds of the holidays have gone. Reykjavik gets about 14.2 hours of darkness a night in January and Tromsø about 15.1.
| # | Destination | Clear dark hours (est.) | Dark hours | Night cloud | Dark hours with Kp 3+ | Tours |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Fairbanks (Alaska) | ≈ 6.5 h | 14.2 h | 54% | 14% | Check dates → |
| 2 | Yellowknife (Canada) | ≈ 6.3 h | 13.9 h | 54% | 15% | Check dates → |
| 3 | Whitehorse (Yukon) | ≈ 4.7 h | 13.7 h | 66% | 13% | Check dates → |
| 4 | Abisko and Kiruna (Sweden) | ≈ 3.9 h | 14.8 h | 73% | 18% | Check dates → |
| 5 | Iceland (Reykjavik) | ≈ 3.1 h | 14.2 h | 78% | 18% | Check dates → |
| 6 | Rovaniemi (Finland) | ≈ 3.1 h | 14.5 h | 78% | 18% | Check dates → |
| 7 | Alta (Norway) | ≈ 3.1 h | 15.1 h | 79% | 18% | Check dates → |
| 8 | Levi and Saariselkä (Finland) | ≈ 2.9 h | 14.7 h | 80% | 18% | Check dates → |
| 9 | Lofoten (Norway) | ≈ 2.7 h | 14.8 h | 82% | 18% | Check dates → |
| 10 | Tromsø (Norway) | ≈ 2.6 h | 15.1 h | 83% | 18% | Check dates → |
Darkness: sun more than 12° below the horizon, computed with JPL DE421 via Skyfield. Night cloud: NASA POWER, 2001–2025. Kp 3+: share of dark 3-hour windows from 2015-01-01 to 2025-12-31 with Kp 3 or more, GFZ Kp index (CC BY 4.0). Checked October 2026.
Where to go in January
Fairbanks (Alaska)
The most clear dark hours on this site in January.
Check dates →Abisko and Kiruna (Sweden)
The European destination with the most clear dark hours in January.
Check dates →Prices, ratings and review counts as listed on GetYourGuide in October 2026; operators change prices with the season, so treat them as the shape of the market, not a quote.
Is a tour worth it in January?
The forecast is free, and on a clear night you can see the lights from the edge of most towns on this site. What a tour adds in January is the drive to the clear patch, a guide who reads tonight’s cloud and the aurora forecast, warmth for hours outside and photos of you; many also give a free retry or a refund if the night is blank. Book early in your stay so a second chance still fits.
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Select your preferred date and time. Cancel up to 24 hours in advance for a full refund.
Other months: September October November December February March April. Or read the best time to see the northern lights.
Book the Top-Ranked January Tour
The best value tour in Fairbanks (Alaska), the top-ranked destination for January on this site.
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