Private northern lights tour in Kemijärvi: the closest you can get
Illustration photo: the aurora over a Finnish forest, not on the tours described here.
The short answer
For a private evening at a known price, the closest thing in Kemijärvi is a local company's private guided day for one to four people, which includes ice fishing and a chance to see the aurora. If you want an evening alone rather than a day, ask the company that sells private aurora tours on request for a quote. For a fixed-price private evening, Rovaniemi is an hour away and sells several.
None of the aurora evenings with a printed price in Kemijärvi is sold as private. The resort’s three evenings need four adults to run, the hunt by car sells seats, and the small campfire evening limits a booking to four people without saying the fire is yours alone.
A private day for up to four
One local company sells a private guided day for one to four people at a fixed price of 1,290 euros, and ice fishing with a chance to see the aurora is part of it.1 It is a day rather than an evening, which suits a party that wants the whole outing with one guide.
A private evening on request
The town’s own list of programme companies includes one that sells private aurora tours and airport transfers.2 Its site prints no price and takes bookings by message, so the cost is whatever it quotes for your date and party.
Rovaniemi
Rovaniemi, 63 minutes away by road, sells private evenings with printed prices, compared on private northern lights tour in Rovaniemi. The shared evenings in Kemijärvi are compared on the best northern lights tour in Kemijärvi.
Tours you can book
A private guided day for up to four, with ice fishing in it
Run by Lappi Creative
From €1,290per group of up to 4
See it on the operator’s site(opens in a new tab)
Questions people ask
If four of us book the resort's kota evening, is it private?
The resort's pages say the evenings need a minimum of four adults, not that a group of four gets the evening to itself. Four of you would make the tour run, but the pages do not promise that nobody else joins. Ask the resort when you book whether other guests are already on the date, and whether it will keep the evening to your party.
What does the private day actually contain?
The company lists snowshoeing to the fells, ice fishing with a chance of the aurora, a visit to a local reindeer farm and lunch by the fire, and says each day is tailored to your wishes and the conditions. It does not print a timetable, so the balance between daylight activities and the evening is something to agree before you pay.
Can the six-hour hunt by car be booked for our group only?
Its listing sells places per person, picks up at two hotels in town and says nothing about a private version. A people carrier with no distance limit is the kind of tour that could be run for one party, but that is a question for the company, not something the listing promises. Ask before booking, and ask for the price in writing, since only the per-person fare is printed.