We’re not the kind of family that does the typical holidays. No Goa trips every December, no rushed hill station visits over long weekends. But there was one dream that lingered in our home for years — the Northern Lights. My father, a retired physics professor, had read about the aurora borealis since his IIT days. My teen daughter had noticed it going viral on Instagram and declared it her “bucket list number one.” For my part, I simply craved a memory that we could all hold onto beyond the phone gallery.

So, three generations filled our thermals, homemade snacks (can’t live without khakra and achaar!), and hearts full of anticipation, and flew across continents — to Norway.

I’ll be frank, planning this wasn’t simple. We didn’t want to fret about booking or language issues. And that’s how I stumbled upon Catch A Trip’s personalized Norway tour packages, and everything automatically fell into place. Their Norway trip packages were more than mere tourist-stop checklists. They were tales awaiting living.

We embarked from Oslo. Clean, tidy, and abuzz with Nordic magic. As Papa admired the Nobel Peace Center and Viking Ship Museum, my daughter tried every vegan café and second-hand store we came across. I delighted in being the bridge — observing the two of them connect over snowball fights and strolls along cobbled roads. Norway was already working on us.

Then came the legendary train to Bergen. It’s commonly referred to as one of the world’s most scenic train journeys — and believe me, it’s no understatement. Occasionally, no words are necessary when the world is so pretty.

But then it was Tromsø — the capital of the Arctic — that really transformed us.

We were picked up that night by our guide, a local woman who’d spent her entire life in the area. She gave us thermal suits and spoke softly, “Tonight is a good aurora prediction.” We drove for two hours along lonely, untouched landscapes — pine forests, icy lakes, and not one light in sight.

And then it occurred.

The sky gently swayed.

It began with a soft green glow, as though the air had been painted with a light brush. Then there were the waves — green, pink, and even the faintest hint of violet. My daughter cried out, “This is crazy!” My scientist father simply stood there, hand to heart, eyes wide with feeling. And I? I wept uncontrollably. It was more than lovely — it was spiritual.

This wasn’t simply a check on a list. It was like something ancestral, where one felt they were viewing something their great-grandparents would have admired too, if only they had ever heard of such magic existing.

The following days were replete with warmth — ironically, in icy temperatures. From husky sledding along Arctic trails to exploring indigenous Sami camps, each moment was infused with awe. Our Norway adventure holiday was turning into a journey of culture, tradition, and bonding with the family. Even Papa, who is typically a loner, surprised us by joining on a snowshoe hike, giggling like a schoolboy.

What made it smooth was the extent to which everything had been planned. The Norway adventure tours that we had booked with Catch A Trip were not hurried or commercialized. They left us alone — to sense, to discover, and to bond. Our vegetarian food was planned in advance, the guides were friendly and empathetic, and we never felt like foreigners even once.

On our last night, sitting by the fire inside a wooden cabin, Papa said something I’ll never forget: “This trip wasn’t just for her, or for me. It was for all of us — to remember that the sky is vast, and our time is short.”

That’s the beauty of trips to Norway packages — they don’t just transport you somewhere; they transport you inwards. My daughter still shares reels from the tour. Papa now has the aurora picture as his WhatsApp DP. And me? I go through those memories whenever life gets too loud.If you’re an Indian family thinking about taking the plunge — do it. These Norway vacation packages are not simply vacations. They’re time capsules. And one day, when your children ask, “Remember that night under the lights?” — you’ll be grateful you said yes.