Delta Junction & The Alaska Range Feature Amazing Scenery For Aurora Photography
I personally guide Aurora Borealis Photography Tours for customers staying in the town of Delta Junction, Alaska located approximately 95 miles southeast of Fairbanks along the Richardson Highway. My standard service area also includes the Lodge at Black Rapids, located 38 miles south of Delta Junction in the mountains of the Alaska Range. The areas surrounding Delta Junction and the Lodge are some of the best places in Alaska to photograph the aurora due to their beautiful mountain scenery, high geomagnetic latitude, and lack of light pollution—much better than the greater Fairbanks area in my humble opinion. Clients can also enjoy other local activities during their stay including hiking, snowshoeing, ice fishing, dog mushing, viewing moose & other wildlife, flightseeing, exploring ice caves, and more! I also serve customers staying in the Fairbanks/North Pole areas for an additional $100 charge to cover my higher logistics costs, but please note that Fairbanks/North Pole customers will not be able to see any of the Alaska Range mountain scenery in these example photos. Customers who want mountains or water reflections in their photographs should stay in Delta Junction or at the Lodge at Black Rapids as there are no mountains nearby Fairbanks nor convenient sources of open water after freeze-up in late October.
Two matching parkas are available in case you underestimate subzero cold.
All of my clients receive a private experience viewing and photographing the aurora with flexible options available to suit their needs and budget. After I pick you up at your lodging establishment in a comfy SUV with heated seats and a dual panel moonroof, the tour schedule and itinerary revolves 100% around you. (Large groups ride in a 12-passenger van.) My tours are best suited for serious photographers who want more control over their shots as well as clients who desire a private experience viewing the aurora with their friends and families. I've been photographing the aurora since 2012 and have guided aurora photography tours since 2017. As a professional outdoor photographer, I focus on creating artistic aurora images and will help you achieve any shots you have in mind—even if that requires venturing off the highway on foot. If conditions permit I will take your portrait under the aurora (included in tour cost), or show you how to take your own! Professional full-frame camera, lens, and tripod rentals are available to customers, including top-notch Sony & Canon gear with optimal camera settings preset for shooting the aurora. I also have two matching loaner parkas available to keep you warm while you view or photograph the aurora, along with extra mittens and other limited gear.
Unlike other aurora tour operators, I offer strategically priced tour options that allow you to shift your tour date in case of cloudy weather or a poor aurora forecast as well as book additional tours at discounted rates during your stay. This increases your chance of photographing the best aurora display possible during your trip without having to book multiple tours at full price in advance to guarantee availability. I also offer discounts when you combine your tour with guided landscape photography, hiking, or snowshoeing adventures, including ice cave treks! If you’re looking for multiple nights of guided aurora viewing or photography along with guided daytime activities, check out my 3-Night/2-Day Aurora & Adventure Package.
See the Aurora Borealis Photography Tours FAQ for more tour details, policies, and advice for planning your trip, including clothing and photography equipment recommendations. Photographers should review my free aurora photography guide How To Artistically Photograph The Aurora. Feel free to contact me with any questions.
Example Customer Portraits
Check out my new aurora video shot with the Sony a7S III below!
Customers interested in aurora videography should inquire to ensure they have the right equipment before their trip. A camera with superb low-light video performance like the Sony a7S III plus an f/1.4 or faster lens is required to shoot quality video of the aurora, and you may need to download free or paid software to view your video files on a computer or to process them into more common file formats for viewing on phones and other devices.
Couple’s portrait at Quartz Lake north of Delta Junction.
Private Tours
Every tour is private and booked on a first-come, first-served basis. You're in charge of where we go and how long we stay out! It is recommended you book your tour before your lodging to ensure tour availability will exist. You can check the calendar on the reservations page or contact me for current availability. My private tour rates can be thousands of dollars cheaper than comparable private tours in Fairbanks, while groups as small as two people may find my rates even cheaper than some non-private tours!
Maximum group size: 6. Please inquire for larger groups. Additional people can be added to your tour at the listed rates after booking if you aren’t sure how many will be in your group.
Tours become NON-REFUNDABLE less than 10 days in advance of your reservation. Tours are 95% refundable if cancellations are requested at least 10 days in advance of the first night of your reservation. Less than 10 days in advance, tours may be canceled due to severe weather or unsafe travel conditions, but not for cloudy weather, snow, or cold temperatures. If a tour is canceled by Steven Miley Photography, customers are provided a full refund or the option to shift their tour without charge to another date during their stay if availability exists. See the Aurora Borealis Photography Tours FAQ for full details. Trip insurance is recommended for customers who are not able to complete their tour due to illness, travel delays, or other qualifying reasons. As an exception to the refund policy, if anyone in your party tests positive for COVID-19 in conjunction with your Alaska travel, your tour will be canceled and refunded.
Tour Rates
FLEXIBLE 3-NIGHT OPTION
Note: This option cannot be reserved less than 7 days in advance.
1 Person $600
2 People $675 ($337.50pp)
3 People $750 ($250pp)
4 People $825 ($206pp)
5 People $900 ($180pp)
6 People $975 ($162.50pp)
1 Person $500
2 People $575 ($287.50pp)
3 People $650 ($217pp)
4 People $725 ($181pp)
5 People $800 ($160pp)
6 People $875 ($146pp)
Choose this option to reserve a three-night window for your tour. Customers can freely shift their tour date within their reserved window to coincide with the optimal weather/aurora forecast. If viewing conditions are favorable on multiple nights, customers also have the option to book additional tours if desired during the remainder of their window with availability guaranteed after their first tour concludes with a $100 discount applied to the above rates. Customers also receive a $100 discount when they combine their aurora tour with a guided day hike—please book the hiking tour first and use the discount code “COMBO” when booking your aurora tour to receive the discount. (The $100 discount will be deducted from any refund due if only one of your tours is canceled. If you don’t use the discount code, a $100 credit can be refunded to your method of payment after you book both tours.)
Example: A family of four plans to visit Alaska and is interested in an aurora tour on January 4, 5, or 6 while staying at the Lodge at Black Rapids. To stay flexible for weather and increase their chance of seeing a good aurora display, they reserve the Flexible 3-Night Option for $725 total. After they arrive in Alaska, viewing conditions are great on January 4 and 6, so after consulting with me they decide to have their first tour on January 4 and book an additional tour on January 6 for an extra $625, bringing the total cost for their two private tours to $1350. A single non-private aurora tour with another well-known Fairbanks tour operator would cost this family $1200+ and would not offer the same flexibility!
Full payment is required in advance to reserve your tour.
Customers who desire more guided time with the aurora and who are also interested in guided hiking, snowshoeing, ice cave treks, or landscape/wildlife photography should consider booking an Aurora & Adventure Package. Please inquire about discounts if you would like to add a single guided day hike to your Aurora Borealis Photography Tour reservation, including trips to Castner Glacier.
SINGLE NIGHT OPTION
Note: This option cannot be reserved in advance and only becomes available on short notice (three days or less) when viewing conditions are favorable. Register for the waiting list below to be contacted if your desired tour date becomes available.
1 Person $600
2 People $675 ($337.50pp)
3 People $750 ($250pp)
4 People $825 ($206pp)
5 People $900 ($180pp)
6 People $975 ($162.50pp)
1 Person $500
2 People $575 ($287.50pp)
3 People $650 ($217pp)
4 People $725 ($181pp)
5 People $800 ($160pp)
6 People $875 ($146pp)
Because the chance of a quality aurora viewing experience is much lower when customers only have one night available for aurora viewing, I do not allow customers to book a single night for their aurora tour until ~3 days in advance when the aurora & weather forecasts are more reliable. However, customers may register for the waiting list at the bottom of this page to secure a place in line should a tour become available on their desired date(s). Customers who can’t find availability for the Flexible 3-Night Option above can also register for the waiting list in case their desired dates become available later. Please note that booking the Flexible 3-Night Option above is the only way to guarantee availability for a tour a week or more in advance.
Example: A couple vacationing in Fairbanks learns the aurora will be active two nights from now on the night of October 14. I confirm the weather & aurora forecasts are favorable and they book a tour for $675 total. The price is slightly more expensive than another well-known Fairbanks tour operator, but the tour is private so I can provide more flexible service such as picking the couple up at their vacation rental where other operators might refuse, or adjusting the pickup time so my customers don’t wait needlessly for hours for the aurora to appear.
Aurora Borealis Photography Tour Waiting List
If you are interested in the single-night option or your desired tour dates are unavailable, complete the form below to register for the waiting list.