--- title: "Northern Lights Sailing Safari | Boreal Yachting Journal" description: "Northern lights sailing means using the boat to move away from town lights and cloud. Tromsø lies at 69.6°N, under the auroral oval, and the season runs from" lang: en json-ld: | [ { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://boreal-yachting.com/#organization", "name": "Boreal Yachting", "url": "https://boreal-yachting.com", "logo": "https://boreal-yachting.com/logo.png", "image": "https://boreal-yachting.com/logo.png", "description": "Premium Arctic sailing in Northern Norway and Svalbard. Whole-boat expeditions and charters from Tromsø since 2003.", "foundingDate": "2003", "email": "post@boreal-yachting.com", "telephone": "+4777729200", "address": { "@type": "PostalAddress", "addressLocality": "Tromsø", "addressCountry": "NO" }, "memberOf": { "@type": "Organization", "name": "Association of Arctic Expedition Cruise Operators (AECO)", "url": "https://www.aeco.no" }, "sameAs": [ "https://facebook.com/borealyachting", "https://youtube.com/@borealyachting" ] }, { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://boreal-yachting.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Journal", "item": "https://boreal-yachting.com/journal" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Arctic knowledge", "item": "https://boreal-yachting.com/journal/arctic-knowledge" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Northern lights sailing: an aurora photo safari", "item": "https://boreal-yachting.com/journal/northern-lights-sailing" } ] }, { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@type": "Article", "headline": "Northern lights sailing: an aurora photo safari", "description": "Northern lights sailing means using the boat to move away from town lights and cloud. Tromsø lies at 69.6°N, under the auroral oval, and the season runs from late September to late March. A boat can shift anchorage overnight to find the clearest sky.", "mainEntityOfPage": { "@type": "WebPage", "@id": "https://boreal-yachting.com/journal/northern-lights-sailing" }, "url": "https://boreal-yachting.com/journal/northern-lights-sailing", "image": "https://boreal-yachting.com/assets/whalesafari-aurora-Cwkl25hP.jpg", "articleSection": "Arctic knowledge", "wordCount": 144, "author": { "@type": "Organization", "name": "Boreal Yachting crew", "url": "https://boreal-yachting.com/about/crew" }, "publisher": { "@id": "https://boreal-yachting.com/#organization" } } ] --- [Skip to content](#main-content) [Boreal Yachting ](/) [Experiences](/experiences) [Destinations](/destinations) [Our Fleet](/fleet) [About Us](/about) [Journal](/journal) [For Partners](/partners) [Plan your journey](/plan-your-journey) 1. [Home](/) 2. / [Journal](/journal) 3. / Northern Lights Sailing [Arctic knowledge](/journal/arctic-knowledge) # Northern lights sailing: an aurora photo safari By [Boreal Yachting crew](/about/crew), Skippers and guides, Tromsø Publication date not available Northern lights sailing means using the boat to move away from town lights and cloud. Tromsø lies at 69.6°N, under the auroral oval, and the season runs from late September to late March. A boat can shift anchorage overnight to find the clearest sky. ![Northern lights sailing: an aurora photo safari](/generated-images/whalesafari-aurora-1440.webp) Northern lights sailing: an aurora photo safari. Tromsø sits at 69°N, inside the auroral oval. Our northern lights sailing trips are small photo safaris, guided by local crews and anchored away from town lighting. Guests learn to photograph the aurora from the deck of a heated yacht. The aurora season runs from September to March. The darkest, and often most active, displays occur between November and February. Our skippers know the local weather patterns and choose anchorages with the least cloud cover, sheltered from wind and with a clear view of the sky. The yacht provides a warm base for watching and photographing. Guides help with camera settings, composition and technique, whether on a DSLR or a smartphone. Between displays, guests experience the polar night: the deep blue twilight that stands in for daylight through the darkest months. Coastal villages are lit against the dark, and snow-covered mountains form the backdrop. Related experience: [Northern Lights Sailing](/experiences/northern-lights-sailing). Where this sails: [Sailing Tromsø](/destinations/tromso). About the author ## Boreal Yachting crew Skippers and guides, Tromsø Written by the Boreal Yachting editorial team using operational knowledge from the skippers and guides who sail Northern Norway and Svalbard. [Meet the crew](/about/crew) ## Read next [ ### Svalbard sailing: glaciers and polar bears A Svalbard sailing expedition runs from Longyearbyen between June and September, when the fjords are largely ice-free and the sun does not set until late August. Voyages of one to two weeks reach tidewater glaciers, walrus haul-outs and bird cliffs, under Sysselmesteren regulations and AECO guidelines. ](/journal/svalbard-expedition)[ ### Ski & Sail: 24 summits reachable only by sea Ski and sail combines ski touring with a boat as basecamp. The yacht anchors below the mountain, the group skins up from sea level, and skis back to the water. In the Lyngen Alps this reaches summits between 850 and 1,834 metres, from February to May. ](/journal/ski-and-sail) [All writing in the Journal](/journal) ## Start planning your Arctic journey. Tell us what you have in mind. We will come back to you within two working days with a considered answer — not a template. 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