by Sarah Kuta
Last updated: 11:40 AM ET, Tue July 28, 2026
Holland America Line is inviting travelers to experience the Northern Lights on a cruise.
To help guests experience this bucket-list phenomenon, the company is offering a series of Arctic Journey & Northern Lights voyages aboard Rotterdam and Nieuw Statendam in October and November 2026.
“We’re currently in a period of heightened solar activity, making this one of the best times in years to see the northern lights,” says Adam Burgasser, professor of astronomy and astrophysics at the University of California San Diego, in a statement from Holland America Line. “The coming fall and winter seasons offer some of the best viewing opportunities in the Northern Hemisphere.”
Guests can experience more than 30 hours of darkness while docked in Arctic Norway on October departures and nearly 60 hours on November sailings. When combined with time at sea, that grows to approximately 65 to 80 hours of darkness over a four-day period, creating exceptional opportunities to view the northern lights.
Travelers can enjoy extended calls and overnight stays in Tromsø and Alta—up to 36 hours in Tromsø and 30 hours in Alta, depending on the itinerary. Guests can immerse themselves in Sámi culture, enjoy reindeer experiences and join guided northern lights adventures designed to maximize viewing opportunities.
With long stretches of darkness at sea and minimal light pollution, guests can continue searching for the Northern Lights from the comfort of the ship, adding dozens of additional viewing hours beyond their time ashore.
To help ensure guests don’t miss a sighting, they can sign up for onboard northern lights wake-up calls when the aurora is visible. While aurora sightings aren’t limited to locations above the Arctic Circle, the extended time spent in Arctic Norway and the significant increase in nighttime hours later in the season give guests even more opportunities to witness the phenomenon from both land and sea.
“A cruise is an especially rewarding way to experience the phenomenon, with wide-open views of the dark night sky and little interference from city lights,” says Burgasser. “If seeing the northern lights is on your bucket list, now is the time. The next peak in solar activity won’t happen again until the mid-2030s.”
The Arctic Journey & Northern Lights departures for 2026 include:
- Rotterdam — 14-Day Arctic Journey & Northern Lights, Rotterdam to Amsterdam, departing Oct. 4, 2026
- Nieuw Statendam — 15-Day Arctic Journey & Northern Lights, Dover (London) to Rotterdam, departing Oct. 16, 2026
- Nieuw Statendam — 14-Day Arctic Journey & Northern Lights, roundtrip Rotterdam, departing Oct. 17, 2026
- Nieuw Statendam — 14-Day Arctic Journey & Northern Lights, roundtrip Rotterdam, departing Nov. 7, 2026
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