Northern lights and riding: what the providers name, what the meteorologists say
A riding offer can name the northern lights, but it cannot ride them into being.
The Finnish Meteorological Institute gives probabilities for dark, cloudless nights. What that means for an evening ride in Lapland, near Alta and near Tromsø.
What the providers write
Several cards in our selection name a “chance” of northern lights: an evening ride near Tromsø, a northern-lights ride with Nordland horses near Bodø, a ride near Alta under the northern lights. No card promises it. One provider near Alta describes a ride through snow-covered forest with pick-up at your accommodation and names moose you may see with luck. This provider does not write about northern lights.
What the FMI says
The Finnish Meteorological Institute gives the probability of seeing northern lights on a dark and cloudless night: about 75 percent of nights at Kilpisjärvi, roughly 50 percent of nights in Lapland (examples: the ski resorts Ylläs, Levi, Saariselkä), roughly 25 percent in central Finland (Oulu, Kuusamo) and on average once a month on the south coast (Helsinki, Turku). Typical is the time around midnight, about two hours before and after; but northern lights can occur at any time when the sky is dark enough. They occur fairly evenly through the year, slightly more often in spring and autumn than in winter and summer; in summer the nights are too light. Taking the weather into account too, the FMI names March and early April as the best time in northern Finland. In Lapland northern lights are common even at low solar activity. The probabilities apply to dark and cloudless nights. With cloud cover you see nothing. The FMI gives no figure for rides.
What follows for a ride
- The evening ride often lies before the typical time. A ride that ends in the early evening ends, according to the FMI, often hours before midnight. Ask about the start time and the duration.
- The chance depends on the cloud cover. Ask whether the provider cancels, postpones or rides anyway when it is cloudy.
- Cold. In Tromsø the mean daily maximum is minus 1.0 degrees in January and the mean night minimum minus 5.3 degrees according to our evaluation of NOAA daily values. On the Lofoten (Svolvær) the daily maximum in January is 1.8 degrees. Ask which cold-weather equipment is provided.
How to read the cards
“With a chance of northern lights” means: the ride takes place on a winter evening. It does not mean: you will see northern lights. The offer near Alta names moose “with a little luck”, a possibility, not a promise. Check what applies if there are no northern lights.
Questions for the provider
- When does the ride start, when does it end, and how late is it then?
- What applies if there are no northern lights (refund, repeat)?
- Is it cancelled in clouds or a snowstorm, and until when will I know?
- Which cold-weather equipment is provided, and what do I bring?
- What level is required, and is there a weight limit in kilograms?
- How many guests and how many guides are there?
What we could not confirm
The FMI names Finland; for Norway (Tromsø, Alta, Bodø) we read no corresponding source. No duration on the cards. The NOAA values are not official normals.
Sources (read on 12 October 2026)
- Finnish Meteorological Institute, Auroras in Finland, en.ilmatieteenlaitos.fi/auroras-in-finland. Read in the browser.
- NOAA NCEI, Global Historical Climatology Network Daily, stations Tromsø (NO000001026) and Svolvær (NOE00133954), own means 1991 to 2020, original files read.
- Offers: Viator pool and GetYourGuide hand cards, as of 11 October 2026.