Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
October
October marks the official onset of winter, with cooler temperatures, longer
nights and the appearance of the Northern Lights.
Northern Lights
Also called aurora borealis, these colourful, dancing lights are caused by charged particles
from solar flares colliding with the earth's atmosphere. They're only viewed in the dark-
ness of night with no cloud cover. The best months for viewing are October to April
(September if you're lucky), with peak visibility from December to February.
November
Summer is a distant memory. November sees nights lengthening (sunsets
around 4pm) and weather cooling, but Reykjavík parties hard, with big
crowds gathering for its flagship music festival.
Iceland Airwaves
You'd be forgiven for thinking Iceland is just one giant music-producing machine. Since
the first edition of Iceland Airwaves was held in 1999, this fab festival has become one of
the world's premier annual showcases for new music (Icelandic and otherwise). Check out
Days of Darkness
East Iceland (Egilsstaðir and the fjords) perversely celebrates the onset of winter over 10
days in early/mid-November, with dark dances, ghost stories, magic shows and torch-lit
processions during its unusual Days of Darkness (Dagar Myrkurs) festival.
