Go with a professional guide like Tony for your first night of aurora viewing. The guide can give you the inside tips and background and you can see the northern lights on the following nights on your own. We went out on snowy cloudy night. Our guide Tony told us right away that there were slim chances of seeing the Aurora and due to road conditions we werenāt going to murphyās dome. Then the magic beganā¦Tony drove and told us history, folklore and stories of his own exciting experiences of a lifetime in Alaska. We got to a couple of pretty spots ā¦After hours of waiting we were walking through the woods and heard Tonyās call The LIGHTS ARE HERE! For a brief 4 minutes the clouds cleared and the aurora appeared. We would have totally missed them if he hadnāt been alert and watching. So even on a less than perfect night we strongly recommend- talk to Tony