Saudi takes his Toyota Hilux 4x4, leaves Riyadh, crosses 23 countries, and drives about 6,000 kilometers for almost three weeks to northern Norway to fulfill the dream of seeing the northern lights.

Saudi takes his Toyota Hilux 4×4, leaves Riyadh, crosses 23 countries, and drives about 6,000 kilometers for almost three weeks to northern Norway to fulfill the dream of seeing the northern lights.

Written by Fabio Lucas Carvalho

Published on 22/06/2026 at 09:14

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Malik Al-Sultan departed from Riyadh in a 2020 Toyota Hilux 4×4, crossed countries like Turkey, Austria, Switzerland, France, Germany, and Sweden, and arrived in Rana, in northern Norway, where he finally observed the aurora borealis for over 30 minutes

A Hilux left Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, in early January 2026, and crossed 23 countries to northern Norway. At the wheel, Malik Al-Sultan sought to fulfill an old dream: to personally observe the aurora borealis.

The journey lasted almost three weeks and covered 6,000 kilometers. Instead of buying a plane ticket, the adventurer decided to travel the route by land in his 2020 Toyota Hilux 4×4, crossing different regions of Europe.

Hilux and aurora borealis in a journey planned since 2017

The idea arose in 2017, during a visit by Malik to Switzerland with his family. Upon finding a vehicle with Gulf plates far from home, he began to imagine how far he could drive.

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From desert climate to the icy roads of the Arctic

The Hilux left the hot environment of Saudi Arabia and advanced to snow-covered regions. The extreme climate change required preparation for the final stretches, especially on Norwegian roads near the Arctic Circle.

Malik made few adaptations to the vehicle before departure. The main one was installing winter tires with metal studs, used to improve grip on frozen roads during the passage through northern Norway.

The Toyota Hilux completed the route without reported difficulties. For Malik, traveling by driving was an indispensable part of the dream because it allowed him to follow the landscape transformations and experience each stage of the journey.

Aurora borealis appeared in the first half of January

After reaching northern Norway through the Bodø area, Malik continued to the vicinity of Rana. It was in this region that he saw the aurora borealis during the first half of January 2026.

The exact day of arrival and observation was not disclosed. The Arab News report, published on January 25, 2026, stated that the phenomenon had been seen by Malik at the beginning of that month.

In the night sky, the aurora appeared in shades of green and red and remained visible for more than 30 minutes. After years of planning and thousands of kilometers, Malik described the moment as something that “felt like a dream.”

The journey connected Riyadh to the Arctic and brought together very different landscapes, borders, and climatic conditions. The goal was the aurora borealis, but the long Hilux journey also became a decisive part of the story.

Would you take a nearly three-week trip, crossing 23 countries and facing frozen roads to fulfill a dream? Tell us in the comments if you would take on the Hilux route to northern Norway or if you would choose a plane trip to observe the aurora borealis.

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Saudi takes his Toyota Hilux 4×4, leaves Riyadh, crosses 23 countries, and drives about 6,000 kilometers for almost three weeks to northern Norway to fulfill the dream of seeing the northern lights.

Malik Al-Sultan departed from Riyadh in a 2020 Toyota Hilux 4×4, crossed countries like Turkey, Austria, Switzerland, France, Germany, and Sweden, and arrived in Rana, in northern Norway, where he finally observed the aurora borealis for over 30 minutes

Hilux and aurora borealis in a journey planned since 2017

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Aurora borealis appeared in the first half of January

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Saudi takes his Toyota Hilux 4×4, leaves Riyadh, crosses 23 countries, and drives about 6,000 kilometers for almost three weeks to northern Norway to fulfill the dream of seeing the northern lights.

Malik Al-Sultan departed from Riyadh in a 2020 Toyota Hilux 4×4, crossed countries like Turkey, Austria, Switzerland, France, Germany, and Sweden, and arrived in Rana, in northern Norway, where he finally observed the aurora borealis for over 30 minutes

Hilux and aurora borealis in a journey planned since 2017

From desert climate to the icy roads of the Arctic

Aurora borealis appeared in the first half of January

In the cold desert of Ladakh, where it hardly rains, engineer Sonam Wangchuk created the ice stupa, a tower that freezes winter water and stores it for irrigating crops in the spring, a simple engineering feat that mimics nature.

Almost 6,000 residents live concentrated along a single street nearly 9 km long in the interior of Poland. Houses form a continuous row, and behind them, narrow agricultural strips emerge, creating one of the most unusual rural patterns in Europe.

Libya built over 4,000 kilometers of underground pipelines to bring water from the Sahara to coastal cities in a project that the government itself called the Eighth Wonder of the World.

Chinese woman planted trees for decades while sand buried part of her house, received $5,000 from an American in 1999, and helped transform the desert into a forest of 8 million trees in China.

Desert sand, previously discarded for being too smooth for concrete, becomes an ecological brick in the United Arab Emirates, dispensing with Portland cement, curing at room temperature, and attempting to transform dunes useless for construction into raw material for a new arid engineering.

They planted a sea of eucalyptus to produce cellulose, but the monoculture turned into a green desert, dried up springs and rivers, and pushed families out of regions in Minas Gerais and Bahia.

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