Northern Lights Sleigh Rides in Alta

For a quiet evening out of town with dinner and a chance of the aurora, book the Sleigh ride under the northern lights at Flatmoen farm. A Norwegian Fjord horse pulls the sleigh through the forest and along the Alta River, and then you eat a three-course dinner around a fire. It takes about three and a half hours, groups are capped at 12, and transport from Alta is free. It was $333 per person on 4 November, the first date, when we checked in early November 2026, and it holds 4.8 from 25 reviews. Our review →

What the evening is like

The farm collects you in Alta and drives you out to the countryside, where you climb into the sleigh and bundle up under blankets. The Fjord horse is a sturdy, patient Norwegian breed, and the ride is slow enough to talk, with sleigh bells and the river beside you. At the end you stop at a wilderness shelter or at the farm’s fire house, depending on the weather and the time of year. The shelter has a half-wall against the wind, and dinner is served around the fire with conversation and local stories.

This is the evening I would pick for a couple who want something calmer than a night in a minibus. You sit side by side under blankets, the group is small, and much of the time is spent by a fire, not at a roadside stop. The farm lends blankets, but the listing mentions no thermal suits, so dress as warmly as you would for any winter night in Alta, where January and February average around -7 °C.

What dinner includes

The listing promises a late appetizer, dinner and dessert, a three-course meal, along with hot drinks during the break. It does not publish the menu. One guest in 2024 describes reindeer meat cooked over the open fire, but menus can change, and the listing says nothing about dietary needs, so message the farm after booking if you have any.

A set route under whatever sky you get

The sleigh follows the farm’s route and the dinner happens at the shelter, so the evening stays in one area. If the sky over Flatmoen is clear and the aurora is active, you may get photos between courses. If cloud comes in, nobody drives off to look for a gap. The farm is clear about this: it cannot guarantee you will see the Northern Lights on the tour. The reviews cover the range, from a guest who saw the aurora and called it the highlight of the holiday, to one with only a minimal view, to one whose night was clouded out and who still enjoyed the horses and the setting.

A dedicated chase works the other way. The Small-Group Guided Northern Lights Tour ($258 on 4 November, up to 13 people) drives to wherever the sky looks clearest, and Visit Alta says hunts that move to clear sky give you the best odds. If the aurora is the main reason for your trip, book a chase for your first evening and keep the sleigh for another. Our small-group tours page has the chase options.

No snow, no sleigh

The listing says that if there is no snow, the farm uses a horse-drawn carriage instead. That matters in early November. A guest who rode in late October 2026 wrote that they plan to go back “when there is snow”. If the sleigh itself is the point, book later in the winter, and keep in mind that free cancellation runs up to 24 hours before.

On horseback instead

The Horse Riding Under the Northern Lights comes from the same farm and follows a similar evening. You ride a horse through the forest and along the Alta River to a wilderness shelter, eat a three-course meal and watch the sky before riding back. It takes three and a half hours, was $344 per person on 4 November and holds 5.0 from 7 reviews. The listing does not state a riding level or a weight limit, and its “includes” line also lists a sleigh ride that the description never mentions, so ask the farm before you book. Tips are not included. Our review →

Shorter evenings and other sleighs

If three and a half hours feels long, the Sleigh ride and dining experience serves the same three-course meal in three hours and gets you home earlier ($280 on 4 November, 4.7 from 15 reviews). For a reindeer instead of a horse, the Reindeer Ride with Sami Siida is a two-hour evening with a Sámi guide and a bonfire in a lavvu, the traditional tent, and its first date is 11 December ($268, 4.8 from 29 reviews).

The third dinner evening on this page, the Arctic Wilderness Evening: Husky, Dinner & Aurora Borealis, swaps the horse for a kennel of more than 40 huskies and Arctic stew in a Sámi-style gamme. It includes no dog sledding. It was $235 on 4 November and has only 3 reviews; our husky experiences page explains how it differs from a real sled ride.

For livelier nights, see our snowmobile tours page, and for planning, the guide to which Alta tour to book and our where to stay page. With three nights in Alta, I would chase the aurora on the first clear evening and save the sleigh for a relaxed evening by the fire, with the aurora as a possible bonus.