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Private northern lights tours in Saariselkä

A dark van with snow on its roof parked on a snowy plain at night, with a pale green aurora rising above it

Illustration photo: a van under the aurora, not from one of the tours compared here.

Lapland Handbook Staff How we research this

The short answer

Match the tour to the size of your group first, because each price covers a fixed maximum and a smaller group pays the same. Four people or fewer should compare the two four-person tours; five to eight should compare the two eight-person tours. Then check the details that cost money if missed: whether you are collected or have to reach a meeting point, and whether winter clothing is included or has to come in your suitcase.

How the operators compare

Prices are the operators' own published starting prices as of the date this guide was updated, and they change through the season.

Lapland Private Tours: up to 4Lapland Welcome: up to 4Royal Nordic: up to 8Authentic Experiences: up to 8
Group price €860 – the lowest group price €1,290 €1,789 €2,190
Group up to 4 4 8 8
Per person when full €215 – the lowest cost per person with every seat taken €322.50 €223.63 €273.75
Length 5 h 5 h 6 h 7 h
Getting you there Pick-up in Saariselkä, Ivalo or Inari Meet in the village; Ivalo extra Pick-up in Saariselkä Pick-up anywhere in Lapland
Winter clothing Not provided Included Bring your own Bring your own
Photos Shared by link Guided photography Edited professional photos Not stated

Highlighted figures are the best in that row: the lowest group price and the lowest cost per person with every seat taken. The per-person row is our arithmetic, the group price divided by the maximum. Royal Nordic's price is the undiscounted one. With fewer people the total stays the same and the share rises.

Where these figures come from
  • Lapland Private Tours: up to 4: The cheapest group price and, when four go, the cheapest night per head of the four. A minibus collects you from Saariselkä, Ivalo or Inari and the photos come by link afterwards. Bring your own winter clothing.
  • Lapland Welcome: up to 4: The one that lends winter gear, which matters to a group that packed for a city break. You meet the guide at the company's office in the village at nine; a pick-up from Ivalo costs extra.
  • Royal Nordic: up to 8: A photo tour: the guide shoots you under the sky with a system camera and delivers every edited picture afterwards. At full size it costs little more per head than the four-person minibus. Bring warm clothing.
  • Authentic Experiences: up to 8: The longest night and the widest pick-up, from anywhere in Lapland, with food and drinks included. It is the dearest, and the guarantee in its title comes with no terms on the page.

Private aurora tours from Saariselkä are sold in two sizes, for up to four and for up to eight, and the group prices run from 860 to 2,190 euros. The size matters more than the price. Divide each price by the seats it covers and the order changes: the eight-person photo tour costs almost the same per head as the cheapest four-person tour, and the second four-person tour becomes the dearest per head of all.

For four or fewer

Lapland Private Tours is the lower price by a wide margin and comes to your door in Saariselkä, Ivalo or Inari. Lapland Welcome costs more but lends the whole group winter gear, which on a five-hour night outdoors is worth real money if you did not pack for it. It starts from the company’s office in the village rather than your accommodation.

For five to eight

Royal Nordic is built around photographs: the guide works with a system camera and delivers the edited set afterwards. Authentic Experiences runs the longest night, seven hours, collects from anywhere in Lapland and includes food and drinks. It suits a group staying well outside Saariselkä that wants one operator to come to it.

Which to skip

For a couple, all four are a luxury. The per-person figures only apply to a full vehicle, and two people pay the whole group price.

The shared tours sold in the village, from a snowshoe walk to a van chase, are compared in the northern lights tour guide for Saariselkä. The rest of the resort is on the Saariselkä destination page.

What each shared tour costs per hour, and what a family of four pays on the ones that take children, is worked out in northern lights tour prices in Saariselkä.

Tours you can book

Questions people ask

Do two of us pay less than a full group?

No. All four listings charge one price for the whole group up to its maximum, so two people pay what four or eight would. The per-person row in the table only holds when every seat is taken; for a couple, the cheapest private tour here works out at 430 euros each. If there are only two of you, a shared tour with a small group limit is the nearest alternative.

What does the "100% guaranteed" tour promise?

The listing does not say. Authentic Experiences Rovaniemi titles its tour a guaranteed northern lights hunt and lists a guaranteed tour among what is included, but the page gives no refund, repeat night or other term for a night without the lights. Before paying 2,190 euros, ask in writing what happens if you see nothing, and keep the answer.

Can we bring young children?

Check the vehicle before you book. Lapland Private Tours says its tour is not suitable for children who need a child car seat, and sets a minimum height of 135 cm. Lapland Welcome's listing says infant seats are available. The two eight-person tours do not say either way. On a five- to seven-hour night, also ask whether the tour can end early if a child has had enough.

Written by

Lapland Handbook Staff

Lapland Handbook is written by its editorial staff in Rovaniemi. Every price, age limit and group size in a comparison is read from the operator's own page and marked "Not stated" when the operator does not publish it. Each guide names who should not book, and names the operator that suits each kind of group, whichever it is.

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