Northern Lights on an Alaskan Cruise? Think Again…(And How to Photograph it If You’re Lucky)

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Updated October 2025

Seeing the Northern Lights on an Alaskan cruise had always been one of my ultimate bucket list dreams. I’d seen the photos and thought, “What could possibly be more magical?”

So, when I read article after article claiming it was possible to witness the Aurora Borealis right from the ship’s deck, I was sold.

I packed my camera, my optimism, and my entire family, including my grandmother, mother, and grandfather in a wheelchair, and set sail to chase the lights of the north.

Armed with research, hope, and way too much caffeine, I stayed up for countless cold nights staring into the dark sky…waiting. Hoping.

What followed wasn’t the dream I’d imagined. It was a humbling lesson in timing, patience, and the fine print that cruise brochures don’t exactly advertise.

If you’re thinking about booking an Alaskan cruise just to check “see the Northern Lights” off your bucket list, please read this first.

I’m usually a glass-half-full kind of traveler, but this is going to be one of my brutally honest posts.

This isn’t a story of glowing skies and perfect photos. It’s a story about what really happens when you chase the Aurora from the open sea… from a photographer’s perspective, and from the heart.

I would still recommend an Alaska cruise to all of my fellow adventurers, just not to see the northern lights. 

Bucket List Review of Seeing the Northern Lights from an Alaskan Cruise Ship

Category	Luxury Outdoor
Who Should Add This to Their Bucket List?	Strong travelers who have realistic expectations
Best Time to Go	Fall and Spring (theoretically)
Traveling Difficulty	Easy
Physical Difficulty	Easy
Popularity Rating	7/10
Group Tour Required	No, can see from ship if you are lucky
Budget	$$$
Wheelchair Accessible	Yes
Favorite Place to Stay	Any ship that gives you a northern lights alert

If you need more information about the categories of this table, please check out the Bucket List Reviews guide.

Best Time to Cruise to Catch the Northern Lights

• Late September – mid-October = your best chance for dark skies + open cruise season
• Pick northbound routes (Seward → Vancouver) – more time under darkness
• Choose cruises with overnight dockings in ports like Anchorage or Fairbanks
• Avoid itineraries heavy on Inside Passage only – too far south for strong aurora activity

Full Alaska Cruise Vlog

Hopeful Expectations of Seeing the Northern Lights on a Cruise

Starting my journey, I did countless research on the best time to go and read every single cruise ship blog. 

That was my first mistake. I wish I had skipped the sales pitch of these cruise ships. I should have gone straight to the unbiased opinions of the travel blogs (like this one right here). 

Nevertheless, we ended up choosing Norwegian (NCL). I spoke with several cruise ship specialists to pick a cruise and that would be the best to see the northern lights.

All of the associates were very vague. It didn’t seem like they truly knew and didn’t quite give me the best explanations.

They did allude that fall was still the best time to see the northern lights. So, we ended up picking a departure in October since I read that September/October was the best time to go.

The time came and we boarded the Norwegian ship with a heart full of excitement and anticipation. 

The articles I had read made it seem so straightforward. Book during the right season, stay vigilant, and you would be rewarded with breathtaking views of the northern lights on an Alaska cruise. 

It seemed like a no-brainer, and I was ready to tick this off my bucket list. This was especially true since this was most likely my grandpa’s last “hurrah”. 

A Cold, Rainy Reality of the Northern Lights on an Alaskan Cruise

As the cruise ship set sail, my optimism was quickly replaced by frustration. 

The weather was relentlessly rainy and cold, conditions far from ideal for witnessing the northern lights. 

Despite this, I remained hopeful and vigilant, sacrificing sleep and comfort in the hope that the skies would clear up.

In fact, between me and my mother, we barely got any sleep at all. This was not ideal for a vacation. But, we were determined to find the lights for my grandpa. 

We took rotations about once every one or two hours, endlessly walking the decks in the rain for even the hope of a glimpse at the northern lights. No luck. 

After 5 nights of this, I started to get extremely frustrated. And with each night that I sacrificed my sleep and didn’t see the lights, the more desperate I became to find them. And a bigger deal it became to my mental and emotional health.

My nights on the cruise went like this:

Wake up, get bundled up, walk around aimlessly in the middle of the night, check the Aurora prediction again, get rained on, cry, go back to the cabin, and repeat in two hours. 

Unhelpful Staff and Missed Opportunities

To add to my woes, the staff on the Norwegian ship were of no assistance at all. 

None of them had ever seen the northern lights themselves, or at least anyone I talked to. Their lack of experience and guidance left me feeling even more isolated in my quest. 

In fact, when I checked with the front desk to see if they had a “Northern Lights Alert”, they kinda laughed at me. It made me think that it is not as common as I had once thought and hoped. 

One of the most heartbreaking moments came when I missed a fleeting glimpse of the lights by just 20 minutes.

Since I had to be facing north, the only area that I could see a glimpse of was this laser tag area. It was often blocked off due to rain. Every other section was for the VIP guests. 

The frustration of being so close yet so far was gut-wrenching.

I actually found out about this because I was seeing a show and the guests in front of me had a picture of what seemed to be the northern lights. I casually asked them if it was on the ship and they confirmed. 

So, not only did I miss the lights by about 20 minutes (after being up on the deck from 10 pm to 5 am for all of the previous nights), but it wasn’t even that impressive. The picture showed a dull green streak across the horizon. 

It was, anticlimactic, to say the least. But, I still would have liked to see it. 

The entire thing was, in simple and honest terms, emotionally traumatic. 

How to Photograph the Northern Lights (If You’re Lucky Enough to See Them)

If you do catch a glimpse of the aurora… first, celebrate! 

Then grab your camera (not your phone) and follow these simple tips to capture the magic:

Camera Settings

• Mode: Manual (M)
• Focus: Manual, set to infinity (or focus on a distant light before turning off AF)
• Aperture: f/2.8 or as wide as your lens allows
• ISO: Start around 1600–3200. Adjust based on brightness
• Shutter Speed: 5–15 seconds (shorter for faster-moving aurora)
• White Balance: 3500–4000K to keep the greens accurate
• Use a remote shutter or 2-second timer to avoid camera shake.

Note that these are just a starting point. You might have to experiment a little bit…

Gear Tips for a Cruise Setting

• Tripod: A must! But use the dock or port stop if you can; the ship’s motion makes long exposures tricky.
• Stabilize Everything: If you must shoot from the deck, brace your camera on a railing, lower your shutter speed, and take lots of shots to increase your chances of one sharp frame.
• Lens Choice: A wide-angle (14–24mm) lets you capture more sky and the ship’s silhouette for scale.
• Extra Batteries: The cold drains them fast, so keep extras close to your body for warmth.

Composition Ideas

• Include part of the ship or horizon to ground the scene.
• Look for reflections on water for double the glow.
• Capture multiple frames. You can stack or create a timelapse later.

Editing Tip

Pull down highlights slightly, boost clarity and contrast, and selectively enhance greens and purples to make the aurora pop without overdoing it.

Emotional Impact of Not Seeing the Northern Lights on an Alaskan Cruise

The emotional toll of this unfulfilled expectation was a little overwhelming. 

I spent several sleepless nights on the deck, shivering in the cold, only to be greeted by cloud-covered skies. 

There were moments when I found myself crying out of sheer disappointment and exhaustion. 

The romanticized vision of peacefully witnessing the northern lights from the comfort of a cruise ship was shattered by the harsh reality.

As I said before, the more I, unsuccessfully, searched, the more angry it made me when I couldn’t spot them. And the more heartbreaking it was when I missed them because I was putting on my rain gear at 2 am. 

My mum and I agreed that the Alaskan cruise was extremely fulfilling and an overall positive experience. However, anytime anyone mentions the northern lights, our left eye twitches a bit…

Read More – Fall Photography Guide

Romanticized Expectations vs. Harsh Reality

Comparing the reality of my journey with the romanticized expectations painted by various articles and reviews felt like a cruel joke. 

The serene images of the northern lights illuminating the night sky from the deck of a cruise ship were far from my experience of rain, cold, and emotional turmoil.

Don’t get me wrong, I will recommend an Alaska cruise all day long. It was one of the best cruises I’ve ever taken. 

However, if you have this vision of you glancing at the dancing lights from a cruise ship, skip it. Try another path. 

Granted, it is possible. It is just luck. 

Northern Lights on an Alaska Cruise Truth and Logic that Nobody Talks About

Here was the issue that I quickly realized (and nobody told me about):

The Alaska cruise season begins in the spring and goes until October. The lights can be visible from September to April. The deeper you get into the season, the longer the nights will get. On long and clear nights, you have a higher chance to see the lights. 

If you put two and two together, this means that late September and October are indeed the best time to see the lights (or in late spring) because the season then ends. I couldn’t find any cruises past this time, so it wasn’t possible to go into that December to February time.

Then you find out that this time is also the rainy season. So one of your only times to see the lights is also the time when you find the most cloud cover. 

You can see the dilemma…one that I, unfortunately, had to figure out by myself after no one was brutally honest with me. 

If You Still Want to Test Your Luck and Try to Spot the Northern Lights From an Alaska Cruise

If you are still set on trying this bucket list activity, I would aim for Spring instead (near the April Spring equinox), but I still wouldn’t get your hopes up. 

We decided to not wait because my grandpa’s health was declining and we wanted him to check this off of his bucket list and weren’t sure Spring was going to happen. 

Also, I would call beforehand and get them to confirm that they have a “Northern Light Alert service”. This way, you don’t have to wander around aimlessly and can actually get sleep. 

When I called Norwegian, they said to ask the ship when I got on. Well, I followed their advice and they didn’t even know what I was talking about. I was already on the ship by that point so was out of luck. Goodbye sleep. 

If you really want to see the northern lights, I would skip the cruise entirely and head inland further up north (like Fairbanks) from December to February. Again..it’s up to you.

Conclusion: Lessons Learned

Reflecting on this ordeal, I realized the unpredictable nature of such phenomena and the importance of managing expectations. 

The allure of seeing the northern lights on an Alaskan cruise can be tempting. It’s essential to remember that nature has its own plans. 

Future travelers should thoroughly research and, more importantly, remain prepared for the possibility that the elusive lights may not make an appearance.

In conclusion, while a cruise to Alaska offers many beautiful sights and experiences, relying on it to guarantee a view of the northern lights may set you up for disappointment. 

Still, keep in mind that an Alaska cruise itself is wonderful! It is truly an adventurer’s playground and deserves a spot on your bucket list! 

If you are still not convinced, you could still go for a standard Caribbean Cruise and be just fine!

However, if seeing the northern lights is a must for you, consider other venues and strategies where you have more control over the conditions and greater chances of success.

At the end of the day, I didn’t come home with the glowing photos I’d imagined, but I did come home with a new kind of appreciation for patience, perspective, and the beauty of chasing light, even when it never shows.

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