How to Witness the Northern Lights Using Points and Miles

 

If seeing the Northern Lights is on your bucket list, then you have come to the right place to find out how to use points and miles to make that dream happen. 

Recently, I went to Lapland Finland north of the Artic Circle in hopes of seeing the Aurora. Fortunately, we were able to see the lights twice during our 5 days in Lapland. 

The lights dance in the sky and the colors are barely visible with the naked eye. But their vibrant greens, reds and purples show themselves in the camera. 

So if this is on your bucket list, let's talk about how to use points and miles to get there. 

How to Witness the Northern Lights Using Points and Miles

First, the Northern Lights are visible in Alaska, Canada, Iceland, Sweden, Norway and Finland. Occasionally they are visible further south, but you can't count on it. And some people have actually seen them from the airplane, but again, you can't plan for that. You will also want to be in the area for at least 4-5 nights to have a good chance for clear skies. 

You can download the Aurora app which will notify you when there is a chance to see the lights in your area. 

The lights are visible from October through March. 

For our trip, we flew Finnair from LAX to Helsinki and then caught a second Finnair flight to Ivalo Airport in Lapland. You can also fly to Rovaniemi in Lapland. Finnair joined the Avios loyalty program in March 2024. Avios is the loyalty program for British Airways, Iberia, Qatar and Aer Lingus. Right now, you can apply for the Chase British Airways, Iberia or Aer Lingus credit cards and earn the 75,000 Avios bonus offer. But we have seen it as high as 100,000 Avios. 

Finnair is also a partner with American Airlines so you can book with American Airlines miles and a transfer partner with Capital One. 

The easiest way to earn American Airlines miles is by applying for the Barclays American Aviator Mastercard. It comes with a 50,000 American mile bonus after just one purchase and the $99 annual fee. I have seen this offer as high as a 70,000 bonus.  

How to Witness the Northern Lights Using Points and Miles

Of course, you can also fly to Fairbanks, Alaska to see the lights via Alaska Airlines, American and Delta. Bilt Rewards also offers transfers to American and Alaska Airlines. 

Once you are in the area, there are hotels built to see the lights featuring igloos like this one at the Northern Lights Village in Lapland so you can stay toasty warm and watch the lights dance outside. There are also Northern Lights tours. You could book this hotel through the Chase Travel Portal. A random check of rooms available April 12-14 would cost $316 per night or 46,312 Chase Ultimate Reward points with the Sapphire Reserve. Not too bad. 

If you head to Fairbanks, Alaska, you can find all the major hotel chains there including Marriott, Hyatt, Hilton and Wyndham. If you want the igloo experience, you can try the Borealis Base Camp for a pricey $990 per person for two nights. 

Other activities in Finland while you are waiting for the lights to appear include visiting a reindeer farm, snowshoe, sauna and driving a dog sled team. 

Seeing the Northern Lights is one of those bucket list experiences that is within reach with points and miles. As with all travel, if you want it almost FREE, you need to make a plan, plan early and be strategic. If you want help with this, join my Travel Coaching Program, it's affordable and I'll support you every step of the way so you can travel for almost FREE too.