Arctic Circle Day Tour
Description
Our Most Requested Tour: Explore Alaska’s Rugged Beauty & Cross into the Arctic Journey deep into Alaska’s untouched wilderness on this full-day adventure to the Arctic Circle: our most popular tour! Travel along the famed Dalton Highway, made famous by the TV show Ice Road Truckers, and experience the raw, unfiltered beauty of the Last Frontier. Ride in comfort in our climate-controlled van as your expert guide shares stories, local history, and insights about the landscape, wildlife, and culture that define this extraordinary region. Along the way, stop for scenic views, photo ops, and a walk through the arctic tundra. You’ll even receive an official Arctic Circle certificate to commemorate your experience. PLEASE NOTE: You are eligible for a full refund up to 7 days before your tour.
Tour Options
Itinerary
We begin our journey with a convenient pickup at your hotel/address inside the city limits of Fairbanks or North Pole. We will schedule your pick up time between 7 am and 8 am for you, depending on the location of the hotels. Settle into your seat and relax on the 200-mile (322-km) journey down the back roads of Interior Alaska. We provide free snacks and drinks on the road to ensure your utmost comfort in our climate-controlled vans. Take a trip back in time as you travel down the Dalton Highway. Enjoy the journey across the Yukon River, as you catch a glimpse of the wildlife that inhabits sub-arctic Alaska. With sweeping views of mountains and valleys, you will also see the Trans-Alaskan Pipeline System (TAPS), one of the largest pipeline systems, transporting thousands of gallons of oil from Prudhoe Bay to Valdez.
Travel on the famous Dalton Highway and spot wildlife along the Yukon River
Enjoy the beautiful area of Finger Mountain and take a walk around the short hiking path. This is just one more opportunity of many for some amazing pictures.
Upon reaching the Arctic Circle, one of the five markers of latitude (Tropic of Cancer, Tropic of Capricorn, Equator & Antarctic Circle) you will be met with a glorious site. The weather in this region can range from extreme cold in the winter months (September to May) to temperate heat, as high as 90 * Fahrenheit (32 * Celsius) in the summer months. (May to end of August). Hop out and stretch your legs, take a walk and capture photos of this unique location. After around half hour of sightseeing, enjoy flipping through your photos with your official Arctic Circle Certificate in hand. Sit back and enjoy the journey back to Fairbanks on this one of a kind trip. With your camera filled with photos and an official Arctic Circle certificate in hand to show off to your friends and family back home, relax on the drive back to Fairbanks. This small-group tour is limited to 8 to 9 people, ensuring you’ll receive personalized attention from your guide.
Stop at the Yukon River Camp and visit the mighty Yukon River. This is your last chance to visit a Restroom with running water (there will be many more stops at outhouses along the road). You will also have a chance to buy some more snacks or visit a one of a kind store with handmade gifts and fur items. Something you will not find at any other tourist store around town.
Highlights
What's included
Pickup Locations & Times
We will contact you the day before your tour with your exact pickup time. We can only pick up from hotels within the Fairbanks City-Limits. We cannot pick up from the airport. If you are staying at an Air BnB or outside of city limits, please contact the office via email or phone call.
Traveller Ratings
Important Information
- Not recommended for travelers with spinal injuries
- Suitable for all physical fitness levels
- Minimum numbers apply. There is a possibility of cancellation after confirmation if there are not enough passengers to meet requirements. In the event of this occurring, you will be offered an alternative or full refund.
- Please dress appropriately. The weather in the Arctic can change very quickly. During the summer months it can get very warm and rain might be always possible. We recommend wearing sturdy shoes and bringing a rain/weather jacket.
- The weather conditions are in no way predictable in our area and we will not offer a refund in case of too many clouds.
- Adult pricing applies to all travelers.
- This tour is not recommended for children under 10 years of age.
- There is a possibility of cancellation due to dangerous weather and/or road conditions. If this occurs, an alternative date or full refund will be offered.
- Type of transportation: Van
- The group size is limited to 8 guests for each Transit van. Larger group bookings are possible and multiple vans will be used in this case.
- This tour requires being able to enter and exit our van with limited assistance. Please contact us if you have any concerns about mobility.
- Every guest must sign a waiver before any tour so they clearly acknowledge the inherent risks of wilderness travel, assume responsibility for their own safety, and confirm they are medically able to participate.
- Not recommended for people with limited mobility.
Reviews(722)
Great! It was a bumpy ride but it just added to the total experience. Long day but worth it. Definitely recommend this tour and our guide Dylan.
Awesome Day! Be prepared for a long but great day over bumpy roads. You will see some astounding landscapes and wildlife. Get Milo as your guide. He is fantastic!
Road conditions are bumpy! Milo was our tour guide and he did a great job. He kept us informed and we learned a lot of things.
Our trip lasted about 13 hours. First, our guide gathered everyone – eight people in total. Our guide, Malo, is a very interesting character with a rich biography – a 23-year-old Canadian who has traveled throughout Europe and the USA, now settled in Alaska for a while. We traveled by bus and made many stops. The first was at the Alyeska Pipeline Viewing Point, a site dedicated to the Trans-Alaska Pipeline System. The official beginning of the Dalton Highway is the James Dalton Highway sign, often called the "Haul Road." The sign is located at the beginning of the road, about 80 miles north of Fairbanks. We also stopped at viewpoints, finally at the Yukon River – the largest river in the American Northwest. The river is wide, and its waters have a characteristic murky, brownish tint resulting from glacial deposits. There's a small shop and a pub in the Yukon, where we ordered food for lunch, which we ate on the way back. We also had a chat with a ranger. Then we stopped at Finger Rock for a short walk. And finally, the magical Arctic Circle – a marker where we took photos. The trip, although long, wasn't tiring; our guide took plenty of breaks and was very friendly, kind, and had a wealth of knowledge to share with us.
A very full day with a lot of riding, but adequate stops. Our guide was an excellent driver, very kind, but was a little weak in overall facts and figures knowledge. The experience was amazing. Moose, caribou, pipeline, arctic circle, but for me the star of the show was experiencing the Dalton Hwy. Seeing how the vegetation and landscape changes was so interesting. There were 4 others plus me in our tour. Everyone seemed comfortable, as was I. Loved it!
Best way to travel from Fairbanks to the Arctic Circle and experiencing the Alaska pipeline..
Milo was incredible, very knowledgeable and friendly. He really made the trip special with the running commentary on so many different topics. I would highly recommend Milo as a guide, and had the best time on this tour! I learned so much.
We had an absolute amazing time with Milo as our guide! They were full of knowledge and made the tour just the right kind of informative and fun! The tour was an awesome experience and Mili ensured we all got to know each other by sparking genuine conversations! The drive to the Arctic Circle was smooth and wonderful! We learned so much! Would definitely recommend!
Based on our experience (4 adults) I would NOT book this tour done with Alaska Wild Lights. This tour was the worst experience in our whole two weeks in Alaska. I booked this tour in February for a June 2026 trip to the Arctic Circle Day Tour. Before booking this tour, I called to confirm the information shown on their website stating a maximum of 8 people would be allowed on the tour as well as the type of vehicle would be a Sprinter (bus type vehicle allowing guests to fully stand up and also have ample leg room). Two weeks before our tour, I called again to confirm max number of people and the vehicle type in which I received an email confirmation stating 8 people max traveling in a Sprinter. The day we were picked up for the tour, it was NOT a Sprinter but an old passenger van AND there would now be 11 people on the tour. The passenger van was horribly uncomfortable with that many people crammed into the space and very difficult to get in and out of (could not stand up). There was absolutely no leg room or room to move around while traveling. Not only that, the air conditioning was not working and the passenger windows did not open at all, it was a very warm day. They provided a snack which was ONE bottle of warm water, a very small snack bag of chips and some sort of granola bar. This for a 15 hour road trip and there was no ability to buy water/snacks along the way. We did stop at the Yukon River Camp, no snacks or water available there to purchase either but you could buy a hamburger to eat there. We only stopped at port-a-potty locations when needed and at the Arctic Circle wood sign, no walks across the tundra as shown on their website, no stop at the Hilltop Restaurant & Marketplace just port-a-potties. I reached out to the owner of the company several times before writing this review with NO RESPONSE.
Dear Guest, Thank you for leaving your feedback. However, we must respectfully clarify your final statement: our management and customer service teams have actually replied to your emails, your calls, and your reviews regarding these exact concerns on multiple occasions. We have provided detailed explanations in our previous communications, so we are quite surprised to read that you claim to have received "no response." As we have explained to you previously, traveling to the Arctic Circle is an expedition to a highly remote destination. Occasionally, last-minute operational adjustments to vehicles and group sizes must be made to ensure the tour can proceed safely, rather than canceling a guest's trip altogether. Regarding your comments about the snacks provided, we sincerely apologize if they fell short of your expectations. We are flagging this internally to review our standard procedures and ensure we are providing the guest's trip experience for that long drive. Additionally, please note that our specific stops are dictated by the daily safety and availability of the very few outposts in this rugged region. While we regret that the rugged nature of this long journey did not meet your personal expectations, we stand by the detailed responses we have already provided to you privately. Sincerely, Alaska Wild Lights
It was a great tour. Our guide Milo was professional, extremely knowledgeable, and made the entire trip a great experience.
