Northern Lights and Arctic Circle Day Trip from Fairbanks

After pickup from your Fairbanks hotel, your day trip begins as you head to the Arctic Circle, where explorers have been venturing for centuries, drawn by the power of planet Earth. Stop to take pictures and receive a 'Cross the Circle!' certificate when you get there.

Continue past the Trans-Alaska Pipeline, one of the world's largest pipelines, stretching more than 800 miles (1,287 km) across Alaska. Learn about the incredible engineering of this crude oil pipeline and the building process of this epic land-crawling beast, and judge for yourself its impact on the landscape around it.

Next, head to the mighty Yukon River to take a walk along the riverbank and gaze at the scenic landscape. Then it's up to the high plateau of Finger Mountain, where you have a chance to see wildlife such as moose, foxes, bears, and perhaps even a mysterious lynx, if you're lucky. Up on the mountain, enjoy some sandwiches, sweets, and hot drinks.

Then travel back toward Fairbanks at night, hoping for a sighting of Aurora Borealis, aka the Northern Lights. This natural phenomenon is caused by the collision of energetic charged particles with atoms high in the atmosphere, the result of which is an otherworldly display of light.

Your tour ends when you arrive back in Fairbanks at dawn.