Couple at a wooden fence under a purple and green aurora, starry sky
MinibusOur pick
Review updated Oct 2026 · Price checked 6 Oct 2026

Small Group Premium Northern Lights Tour — Our Review

Price from€101 per person
Rating4.4 · 3,182 reviews
Duration4 h
People next to youup to 19 people
Min age8+
PickupHotel, up to 30 min
If no lightsRetry · 3 years (big bus)
OperatorNorthern Lights Bus

The Small Group Premium Northern Lights Tour is the one we recommend to most first-time visitors: up to 19 people, 4 hours, €101, a guide rated 4.7 out of 5 and an open ticket for a free retry that stays valid for 3 years. The catch: the retry runs on the operator’s big bus, not the minibus.

Price €101 per person, one option
Group 19 people at most
Guide 4.7/5 guest rating for the guide
Retry 3 yrs open ticket, on the big bus
Updated Oct 2026Prices checked 6 Oct 2026Options and guest ratings read live on 6 Oct 2026All small-group tours →
About four hours

Small Group Premium Northern Lights Tour — What Happens on the Night

Pickup from 20:30, a small group at the stops, back after midnight.

Your evening, hour by hour

most displays
20:00
21:00
22:00
23:00
00:00
01:00
02:00
20:30–21:30 Pickup Hotel or bus-stop pickup in Reykjavík. Hotel rounds can take up to 30 minutes.
30–60 min Away from the city lights The guide picks a direction by the cloud forecast, not by a fixed route.
1.5–2.5 h At the stops One to three dark stops. Hot drinks on most tours.
00:30–01:30 Back after midnight Drop-off where you were picked up. Tours run 3 to 5 hours in total.
Source: operator listings (pickup, stops, return) · 6 Oct 2026 Check dates for tonight

The evening follows the usual Reykjavik rhythm. Pickup is from your hotel — 23 pickup locations are listed — and the operator warns it can take up to 30 minutes, so be outside on time. Start times on the date we checked were 20:30 and 21:30.

The minibus then heads for the clearest sky on the night’s forecast. With up to 19 people, the group gets off quickly, stays close to the guide and gets hot chocolate and refreshments at the stop. You are back after about 4 hours.

If the weather cancels the tour for every night of your stay, you get a full refund. If it runs and the sky stays dark, you get the 3-year open ticket instead.

What you actually pay

Small Group Premium Northern Lights Tour — Options and Real Price

One option on the listing — price checked 6 Oct 2026.

Options · prices checked 6 Oct 2026
Small-Group Premium tour, hotel pickup (23 locations)Recommended Hotel pickup in Reykjavik · start 20:30 or 21:30 €101 per personBook this option

There is one option and one price: €101 per person, the same as the advertised “from” price (€202 for two adults). Children pay the same; the minimum age is 8.

Compare like with like. The operator’s big-bus tour costs €72 and uses the same retry bus. You pay €29 more here for the smaller group and a guide rated 4.7/5.

Read before you book

Small Group Premium Northern Lights Tour — What’s Included

From the listing on GetYourGuide, and what isn’t on it.

  • Hotel pickup
  • Aurora hunting guide
  • Hot chocolate and refreshments
  • 3-year open ticket for a retry
  • Photos of you — not listed
  • Warm overalls — not listed
  • Pickups can take up to 30 minutes — be outside on time.
  • The retry runs on the operator’s big-bus tour, not the minibus.
  • Full refund if the weather cancels every night of your stay.
  • Night lows around −2 °C in winter; dress for standing still.

The listing covers the essentials and nothing fancy: transport, a guide who hunts the aurora, hot chocolate and refreshments, and the retry ticket. Photos aren’t listed — if you want pictures of yourself, the EastWest minibus (€144) and the Aurora Viking photo tour (€147.02) include them.

Small-Group Premium Northern Lights Tour from Reykjavik★ 4.4 · 3,182 reviews · up to 19 people · 4 h €101per person Book this tour Check dates All small-group tours → No lights? Free retry for 3 years on the operator’s big-bus tour.
Check your night

Small Group Premium Northern Lights Tour — Live Dates

Live availability and prices from GetYourGuide.

Small Group Premium Northern Lights Tour: €101, up to 19 people
Live dates · Small-Group Premium Northern Lights Tour from Reykjavikvia GetYourGuide
Loading live dates…
No lights? Free retry for 3 years on the operator’s big-bus tour
Powered by GetYourGuide — open this tour’s calendar
★4.4 from 3,182 reviews

Small Group Premium Northern Lights Tour — What Guests Say

Guest ratings by part of the tour, and the pattern in recent reviews.

Guest ratings by part6 OCT
Guide4.7
Transportation4.6
Value for money4.3
Gap of 0.4 between guide and value for money.
Source: guest reviews on GetYourGuide · 6 Oct 2026

What guests like: knowledgeable, persistent guides who chase clear skies, help with photos; hot chocolate in a small group.

What they’d change: rebooking details unclear — especially that the retry moves you to a larger bus.

The guide is the strongest part (4.7/5) and value for money the weakest (4.3/5) — a fair reading: you pay more than the big bus, and the retry puts you on the big bus anyway.

Similar price, different deal

Small Group Premium Northern Lights Tour vs the Alternatives

Three tours people weigh against this one.

Our verdict

Book the Small Group Premium Northern Lights Tour If…

Who this tour suits, and what to book instead if it isn’t you.

Book it if
  • You want a small group without paying for a private car
  • You have at least two more nights for the retry
  • Your children are 8 or older
Book something else if

Our verdict: the best default. For a first northern lights tour in Iceland, the Small Group Premium tour gets the balance right. You pay €29 more than the same operator’s big bus and get a group of at most 19, a guide guests rate 4.7 out of 5, and the same 3-year safety net. Few tours combine that many reviews — 3,182 — with a stated group limit.

Two things to know before you book. First, the retry is on the big bus: if your first night stays dark, your second try is on a full coach. Second, photos of you aren’t included — if pictures matter, the EastWest minibus at €144 or the Aurora Viking photo tour at €147.02 is the better buy.

Book it for your first night in Reykjavik. If the sky stays dark, the open ticket gives you every following night of your stay — and 3 years for a return trip.

Straight answers first

Small Group Premium Northern Lights Tour FAQ

At most 19 people. That is the largest group size an operator states for an evening minibus tour in our comparison. The same operator’s Hot Cocoa bus tour uses a full coach and states no limit, so here you share each stop with a much smaller group. A small group gets off the minibus quickly and stays close to the guide, and guests rate the guide 4.7 out of 5 — the strongest part of the tour.

€101 per person on GetYourGuide (6 Oct 2026), with one option and one price: hotel pickup from 23 locations in Reykjavik, with start times of 20:30 and 21:30 on the date we checked. Two adults pay €202, and children pay the same as adults; the minimum age is 8. That is €29 more than the same operator’s €72 big-bus tour, for a group of at most 19 and a guide rated 4.7 out of 5.

You get a free retry, not a refund: an open ticket valid for 3 years. The catch is that the retry runs on the operator’s big-bus northern lights tour, not on the minibus, so your second try is on a full coach — recent reviews say this isn’t always clear when rebooking. There is no refund when the tour runs. Book your first night in Reykjavik so the retry still fits your stay.

You get a full refund if the weather cancels the tour for every night of your stay — that is the condition on the listing. It is different from a night that runs without lights: then there is no refund, and you get the 3-year open ticket for a retry on the operator’s big-bus tour instead. Booking your first night in Reykjavik leaves the most evenings for the tour to run.

8 years. Children pay the same €101 per person as adults. For younger children, the EastWest minibus takes kids from 5, with up to 19 people and photos included for €144, and the same operator’s Hot Cocoa bus tour takes children from 6 for €72. The tour lasts about 4 hours and night lows are around −2 °C in winter, so dress children for standing still.

Yes — hotel pickup is included in the €101 price, from 23 pickup locations in Reykjavik. There is only one option, so there is no cheaper bus-stop version. Start times on the date we checked were 20:30 and 21:30, and the operator warns that pickups can take up to 30 minutes, so be outside on time and dressed for the cold. You are back after about 4 hours.

No, photos of you are not on the listing. The tour includes an aurora hunting guide, hot chocolate and refreshments, and recent reviews say guides often help with phone settings — but there is no photographer. If you want pictures of yourself under the lights, the EastWest minibus (€144, up to 19 people) includes photos, and the Aurora Viking photo tour at €147.02 adds a photographer-guide.

Yes, if a smaller group and a well-rated guide matter to you: it costs €29 more than the operator’s €72 Hot Cocoa bus tour and caps the group at 19. Guests rate the guide 4.7 and value for money 4.3 out of 5 (★4.4 · 3,182 reviews overall). If you only care about price, the big bus is enough — the retry puts you on that same bus anyway. See all small-group tours.

Our pick for most first-time visitors

Small-Group Premium Northern Lights Tour from Reykjavik

★ 4.4 · 3,182 reviewsup to 19 people4 hours
No lights? Free retry for 3 years on the operator’s big-bus tour.