Northern Lights Copenhagen to Copenhagen (Denmark through Norway) Recommendations

[RDAJ23]

My husband and I just booked this itinerary and are super excited.  Did anyone go on this cruise itinerary and NOT see the Northern Lights?  Any “must do” excursions?  Clothes - What is the recommendation for outer layers/type of layers?

 

We are new to Silver Seas and are looking forward to being “all inclusive”.

 

Thank you!

 

Robin

[Host Jazzbeau]

I don't know whether this came up in your research for this cruise, but Hurtigruten has a Northern Lights Promise on their cruises:

https://www.hurtigruten.com/en-us/offers/northern-lights-promise

[sea bright]

When is your cruise? We did a Copenhagen round trip on the Dawn last year, mid-September to early October. We did not see the Northern Lights (too many clouds at night). We still had a great time. The leaves were pretty much peaking and it is a beautiful part of the world!

[MBP&O2/O]

Personally I would have thought September was too early?

You are more likely to see the northern lights in winter, between the months of October and April, because the night sky is darker in winter and there are fewer daylight hours.

[sea bright]

They were visible in multiple ports the day before or after we were there. We just had bad weather. 

[RDAJ23]

22 hours ago, Host Jazzbeau said:

I don't know whether this came up in your research for this cruise, but Hurtigruten has a Northern Lights Promise on their cruises:

https://www.hurtigruten.com/en-us/offers/northern-lights-promise

It honestly was between Silverseas and Hurtigruten.  But their ship is like a ferry vs a luxury cruise. There’s no onboard activity except eating and the naturalist discussions.  Rooms appear to be rather bear-bones as opposed to luxury.  And their excursions are not Northern Lights focused, such as evening outing, as offered on Silverseas.

 

Am I being too positive about Silverseas?

[RDAJ23]

13 hours ago, MBP&O2/O said:

Personally I would have thought September was too early?

You are more likely to see the northern lights in winter, between the months of October and April, because the night sky is darker in winter and there are fewer daylight hours.

We are sailing OCT 3-17.  There are Northern Lights focused excursions as “Select” excursions 

[RDAJ23]

22 hours ago, sea bright said:

When is your cruise? We did a Copenhagen round trip on the Dawn last year, mid-September to early October. We did not see the Northern Lights (too many clouds at night). We still had a great time. The leaves were pretty much peaking and it is a beautiful part of the world!

Oct 3-17.  It does look pretty!

[Host Jazzbeau]

14 minutes ago, RDAJ23 said:

Am I being too positive about Silverseas?

No, your comparison to Hurtigruten is probably about right.

 

As to the Northern Lights, our friend recently did such a cruise on Fred Olsen and reported great success with the lights being out.  And her pictures are lovely.  But she did confirm that her eyes were unable to see any of the colors, the display looked like a milky film to the eye [apparently the cones, which see color, don't work in low light – so you only see with the rods, in shades of gray].  But she still had a great time.

[RDAJ23]

Thank you!!!  I’m hoping, on the excursions at night, to see colors. But seeing them in general would be amazing

[jpalbny]

22 hours ago, RDAJ23 said:

My husband and I just booked this itinerary and are super excited.  Did anyone go on this cruise itinerary and NOT see the Northern Lights?  Any “must do” excursions?  Clothes - What is the recommendation for outer layers/type of layers?

 

I have not done this itinerary but I'm on a similar Ponant voyage at about the same time. We'll be in Tromso on October 17th and I'm expecting the lights to be there to greet us! I expect cloudiness to be more of an impediment, than the lack of the Aurora, per se.

 

For clothing - prepare to dress warmer than you think you need to. For our Ponant voyage (Reyjavik to Tromso) I'm bringing warm clothing and also our Silversea Parkas (both layers).

 

5 minutes ago, Host Jazzbeau said:

As to the Northern Lights, our friend recently did such a cruise on Fred Olsen and reported great success with the lights being out.  And her pictures are lovely.  But she did confirm that her eyes were unable to see any of the colors, the display looked like a milky film to the eye [apparently the cones, which see color, don't work in low light – so you only see with the rods, in shades of gray].  But she still had a great time.

 

We did a trip to Northern Finland in November 2022, and while the lower-intensity Aurora looked like a gray film, the brighter ones were definitely colorful and we could see the greens with our own eyes. It was spectacular! But it's true that the less bright the Aurora, the more gray it appears.

[pavementends]

I've been on the Hurtigruten coastal ferry. I would do it again but it is a VERY different experience. The good thing about it is the chance to get off and stroll around every few hours. Less nice: basic cabins, not much food choice, pay for drinks, I think even water.

 

Best wishes, remember there is nothing guaranteed about the aurora.

[DavyWavey70]

6 minutes ago, pavementends said:

I've been on the Hurtigruten coastal ferry. I would do it again but it is a VERY different experience. The good thing about it is the chance to get off and stroll around every few hours. Less nice: basic cabins, not much food choice, pay for drinks, I think even water.

 

Best wishes, remember there is nothing guaranteed about the aurora.

The only thing guaranteed is that there are no guarantees. Hurtigruten coastal route is on my list to do but I’m certainly not expecting a luxury cruise experience. It’s something entirely different. YouTube can be invaluable researching such options. The Aurora really is the luck of the draw. I Wish you the very best of luck however you get there.