Will you get seasick on a northern lights cruise from Reykjavik?
Most northern lights cruises from Reykjavik stay in sheltered water for about two hours, and plenty of guests never feel a thing. Winter swell does reach the bay now and then. This guide covers where to sit and what to take, plus what happens when the sea is too rough to sail.
How rough Faxaflói Bay gets
The northern lights boats from Reykjavik stay inside Faxaflói Bay, the wide bay west of the city. Compared with the open North Atlantic it is sheltered water, and on many winter nights the surface is close to flat.
Winter still brings storms, and the swell they leave behind can roll into the bay for a day or two. On those nights a boat moves with a slow lift and drop that bothers some people within the first half hour.
Most guests feel fine on a calm evening. If you know you get queasy in cars or on ferries, plan for the rougher kind of night and you will not be caught out.
Why bigger boats roll less
Size and weight help a boat ride over swell rather than bounce on it. A heavier hull with a wide beam rolls more slowly, and slow movement is easier on the inner ear than short, sharp jerks.
Elding's classic whale-watching boat takes up to 150 guests on Viator, and the two Sea Trips boats each take up to 98. Harpa Yachts may put you on MY Amelia Rose (up to 95) or the smaller MY Harpa (up to 35), and you cannot choose which.
A smaller yacht feels more personal and puts you nearer the rail, but it moves more in the same sea. Our comparison of small yachts and big boats weighs that trade-off in full.
Where to sit and where to stand
Motion is smallest low down and in the middle of the boat, close to where it pivots. The bow rises and falls the most, and an upper deck sways further than the level below it. Move down and toward the center if you start to feel unwell.
Keep your eyes on something steady. At night the line of city lights along the shore, or the dark ridge of Esja to the north, gives your brain a fixed point to match against the movement.
Fresh, cold air on deck helps many people more than a warm cabin. A stuffy lounge with no view outside is often the worst place to be, so dress well enough to stay out, and our guide to what to wear on deck covers how.
Reading your phone or scrolling through photos on a camera screen makes queasiness worse for most people. Look up at the sky instead, and save the scrolling for the walk home.
Eat lightly before you board
An empty stomach and a heavy dinner both make nausea more likely. A light meal an hour or two before the cruise (soup and bread, say) sets you up better than a big plate of lamb.
Go easy on alcohol before and during the trip. Drinks are for sale on all five boats. A tea or hot chocolate is a kinder choice than a beer on a rolling night.
Plain crackers or a dry snack in your pocket can settle things if you start to feel off. Sip water too, because the warm saloon combined with a cold wind dries you out.
Tablets on board and in your pocket
Two of the tours here hand out remedies. The Sea Trips northern lights yacht from ~$103 lists seasickness tablets, and Reykjavik Sailors offers complimentary tablets on its whale and aurora combo.
The other listings mention none, so bring your own either way. Most seasickness tablets work best taken before you board, not once you already feel sick, and a pharmacist can tell you which kinds make you drowsy.
Ginger sweets or capsules are a mild option that some travelers rely on. Acupressure wristbands are another, and both cost little at a pharmacy in Reykjavik or at home.
Tablets handed out, two hours on the water
Sea Trips' yacht spends 2 hours on the bay, the shortest trip of the five, from ~$103. The listing includes seasickness tablets, there is a lounge inside below three panoramic decks, and GetYourGuide shows 4.4 from 1,300+ reviews.
When the operator calls it off
Boats from the Old Harbour do not sail in every weather. When wind or swell is too strong, the operator cancels the trip, and you are offered a new date or a refund.
A cancellation is annoying, but it means the crew judged the bay too rough for a pleasant trip. Check your email and the booking app in the afternoon before you head to the pier.
A weather cancellation differs from a night when the boat sails and the sky stays dark. Our guide to the free retry rules explains what each company does then, since the aurora is never guaranteed on any of them.
A two-hour cruise or a long day at sea
If seasickness worries you, the length of the trip matters as much as the boat. The plain northern lights cruises last about 2–2.5 hours, and part of that time is spent cruising slowly in darker water while everyone watches the sky.
The Reykjavik Sailors combo adds a whale-watching cruise of about 2.5–3 hours by day. Sensitive stomachs may prefer a single evening trip, and our guide to a whale and aurora day covers the combo in detail.
A land tour by bus avoids the sea altogether, at the price of a dark field instead of a heated lounge. Our boat or bus comparison helps if you are on the fence.