The Northern Lights still hold special significance for the Russian Saami tribes, who gather to watch the lights from the shores of the vast Lake Lovozero and read their fortunes in the colored streaks.Perhaps one of the lesser-visited Northern Lights regions, Russia is the go-to place if you want the wilderness to yourself, with a mammoth stretch of the country lying close to the Arctic Circle and almost all of the northern regions offering great views.
The Kola Peninsula, snaking toward Scandinavia in Northwestern Russia, is one of the principal viewing areas thanks to its prime location on the Northern Lights’ belt, with a number of guided excursions departing from the Arctic city of Murmansk. Get there in December or January and you’ll be gifted with pitch-black days and nights, as the sun disappears from view for around six weeks. Alternatively, Severodvinsk is renowned for having some of the brightest lights in Russia, with red and green glows even visible from inside the city, and Salekhard is the world’s only city located on the Arctic Circle, putting it firmly inside the superior viewing zone.