The aurora borealis have captured many of our imaginations over the years as the dancing lights in the sky create some of the most beautiful scenes imaginable. If you want to witness them for yourself, then here are the best places to see the Northern Lights.

Reykjavik, Iceland

As well as being filled with culture and natural wonders, the capital of Iceland is also one of the best places to see the Northern Lights. Thankfully, they are best visible from September to April.

Yukon, Canada

Out in the wonderful wilderness of Canada lies one of the best places to see them. That’s right; Yukon is almost entirely isolated from the modern world, with the Northern Lights sometimes being visible from as early as late August.

Ilulissat, Greenland

Greenland has some of the best places to spot the Northern Lights thanks to the low population living across the nation. Ilulissat is the third largest city, yet it’s home to just 5,000 people. Anywhere from September to April is sure to give the best views.

Swedish Lapland

Swedish Lapland is home to just 18,000 people. A trip here means that you’ll get to see the Northern Lights without the crowds. Be sure to head here between October and March for the best shows.

Tromso, Norway

Amazingly, Tromso is thought to be the best city in the world to see the Northern Lights. They are usually in full force from September to April, but there is plenty to do in Tromso when they are hidden away.

The Northern Lights have been great inspiration for many over the years. Now, it could be time to witness them for yourself. All you need to do is head to one of the best places in the world and wait for Mother Nature to show off her beauty.

There are times when we order something and are blown away by how it arrives to us. This not only includes damaged or broken items but items that are excessively packaged as well. These items leave us scratching our heads and wondering why these companies went to these lengths. Here are some examples of excessive packaging that are pure evil.

When you order something off of Amazon, especially a food item, it might not be the only item you order. You’d probably at least expect the same item to be packaged together.

This person bought five cans of Campbell’s soup which sounds easy enough. Yet, Amazon took the extra step to package all the cans in individual boxes and, since a soup can isn’t that big, even took the time to add additional packaging to keep them safe until they arrived.

It’s always a shame when you have to have something in plastic because it has no other protection. However, fruit, vegetables, and other natural foods usually have some sort of natural protection.

That concept stands unless someone were to remove that natural covering. Of course, pre-peeled garlic is easier but it also requires additional packaging. Even aside from this, individual blister plastic for each clove seems a little evil. It seems like they shouldn’t need to be kept apart from each other at least!

As the seasons change, it seems to bring back everyone’s seasonal allergies too! That’s why allergy medication is in such high demand – people need it to feel better.

Sadly, with packaging like this, the unavoidable rise in demand also means the creation of a lot of waste. We aren’t sure exactly what they’re going for here. It seems like a lot of extra work to package each pill individually and wrap those packs in plastic too rather than use a medicine bottle.

There are certain small things that people order because they have to. For example, how would someone charge their phone without a charging block?

When this person ordered a charging block for their electronics, they probably didn’t expect this. Not only does this cube come in a box that’s much too large but it’s also kept snug with plenty of foam packaging which seems like a little bit much for an item that isn’t very fragile.

Buying things online sometimes means that extra packaging is necessary to keep it safe. This is especially true when it comes to fragile items.

For non-fragile items, this is probably a bit overkill. There’s no way that two boxes of tea need a large box with more than 30 feet of bubble wrap to keep them safe. On top of that, why use a box this large at all? It seems like a whole plan devised to use as much packaging as possible.

The downside to packages that are too big comes in many forms. It would be easier to do away with them all by simply shipping things that fit in the package the company uses.

Instead of opting for a smaller box, Amazon decided to send this tiny electronic in a box big enough for a large array of them. On the bright side, the box wasn’t full of paper or plastic made to keep the item in place. Unfortunately, it still causes a waste of cardboard.

HelloFresh is a useful service if you don’t have the time to shop, meal plan, or just want to learn how to cook new recipes since they send you a guide and the ingredients.

The promise the company issues doesn’t necessarily include sustainable packaging, sadly. In this person’s order, the recipe called for four carrots. HelloFresh decided to go to great lengths and ensure that each carrot was safe in a plastic bag each. The bags are much too big for them too.

It’s hard to wrap our heads around why anything would need to be wrapped more than once. After all, if it’s safe in one package, why would you need so many extras?

When this company sold a large bag of miniature sausages, it probably seemed like a good deal. Yet, it wasn’t the best deal when you’re trying to be environmentally kind. Once the large bag was open, it became clear that the sausages were individually packaged as well.

In today’s world, many people try to make choices that will match up with their ideas on saving the planet. Even still, it seems that some companies make that choice as difficult as possible.

This person was trying to reduce waste when they bought sponges made from recycled materials that were also biodegradable. What wasn’t so great for the planet was the company’s decision to wrap each one of these sponges individually in plastic for seemingly no reason at all.

This time, Amazon went above and beyond with ridiculous packaging for a product. This person only bought a broom and received something big enough to cater to several.

In fact, they even included some friends to demonstrate just how much extra space was available in the box. Not only could the broom and all the paper they put in to keep the broom secure fit, this person and their friend fit in the box as well!

Bulk ordering pens is a handy idea. Not only does it give you spares if you run out, but it’s also a great idea if you want to hand those pens out to customers, clients, or organization members.

If you expected these pens to just come in a box, though, you might be thinking too reasonably. The pens that this company ordered definitely weren’t sent in packaging that will contribute to saving the planet. Exactly the opposite, they came in their own plastic packaging each.

Imagine how surprised you would be if you ordered something tiny and a large box showed up on your doorstep. The idea that the packaging would commit to this much overkill might not be your first thought.

When this person ordered such a tiny electronic, they surely didn’t expect this. In the photo of the item next to the box, the electronic had to be circled just so people would notice it! Not to worry – they made sure to add plenty of styrofoam packing peanuts for it too.

Everyone wants things to be neatly wrapped up for their birthday or the holidays. However, some gifts take this idea and go a little overboard.

All this person got for their gift was a card holder. It seems like the person wrapping it, though, though that a gift holder on its own was a little lackluster. So, they wrapped the cardholder in a bag, three boxes, and a gift bag. Not to mention all the tissue paper included!

If these cotton swabs were going to be used for medical purposes across many different people, this might make sense. For a single household, it isn’t quite necessary.

When you buy cotton swabs for your own home, you’re probably used to them coming in a larger box that they’re all packed into. This person ordered cotton swabs and got a different result. Rather than being packed in together, each one came in its own plastic wrap.

Sometimes the things we order are so small, they would have plenty of room even if they were sent in a standard envelope. That doesn’t stop companies from adding their own evil packaging.

When these people just needed to order a tiny label, Amazon went a little bit overboard in how they sent it. Rather than sending a small package, they sent a full-sized box meant for a much larger item and wrapped the label in both paper and plastic – how eco-friendly.

There are certain foods that don’t lend themselves to eating on the go very well. For one, you probably don’t want to eat a slice of watermelon on the way to work.

Well, what if there was an option to eat only a small slice of watermelon at a time? While it might provide a tasty snack, the idea also apparently generates a lot of waste as well in trying to keep the pieces properly packaged. It’d probably be more sustainable to put the sliced watermelon in a reusable container.

Finding the right size box for shipping is important for a few different reasons. For one, it prevents the item from sliding around too much and risking unnecessary damage.

On the other hand, it’s also better to use fewer materials when possible – something Amazon seemingly forgot about here. Instead of using a box that fits a bottle of sunscreen this small, they decided to go with a large one and just add paper to fill the space.

It’s often astounding to see how brands can say they’re saving the planet but undo their own work in a single step. In this case, it was the packaging for these cups.

Each cup is labeled with a familiar slogan: “Save our planet.” What might save the planet more effectively, though, is to make the choice not to put these planet-saving disposable cups in plastic bags. It’s great for sanitation but not so great for saving the planet.

If you love makeup, there isn’t much more exciting than buying a custom palette. After all, it’s designed to suit your individual tastes and includes everything that you love.

As this person learned, that might not mean getting an eyeshadow palette that’s already assembled. When they received their custom palette, they found every color packaged individually with bubble wrap to keep them safe until they were assembled upon arrival. The pile of trash in this photo is alarming.

There are certain things that every pet owner needs to buy. For instance, cat owners are hard-pressed to avoid buying kitty litter for their pets unless they want quite a mess.

Chewy is a reliable brand that is usually focused on reducing its carbon footprint. It seems they missed the mark for this customer’s order, though. Despite only ordering a single bag of kitty litter, they were given the free bonus of more than 50 feet of paper to protect it in transit.

Instruments are often expensive and fragile. That being said, the accessories that go with those instruments don’t necessarily need excessive packaging to keep them safe on their way to you.

Take these drumsticks as an example. While they would be just fine in a box that fits them or even just a box together, Amazon took a different approach. More in the vein of evil and excessive packaging, they sent all of these drumsticks in separate boxes that were much too big for them complete with plastic and paper filling.

Sometimes, when you’re out picking up grocery items, you don’t need as much as you normally do. Maybe you’re just short on what you need for lunch.

That’s when individual items come in handy. However, these individual plastic packages for single slices of bread definitely don’t help the planet as much as they help individual convenience. Plus, how many people are buying single slices of bread to necessitate this? Wouldn’t at least two slices be better?

Ordering similar products usually come with the expectation that they will arrive together. That is, not only on the same day but in the same box as well.

That isn’t what happened to this person. Rather than simply receiving one box with five rolls of masking tape, they received them in individual packaging including four in boxes and one in a shipping envelope. Each of the boxes even featured an assortment of paper and plastic to keep the tape safe.

When you buy Tic Tacs, you probably recognize them by their iconic packaging. On their own, these little plastic boxes aren’t too concerning as far as excessive packaging goes.

This time, though, they definitely caught our attention. Why did all of these boxes of Tic Tacs need a larger Tic Tac box of their own? From a marketing approach, it makes sense. Yet, if you’re looking at this from an environmentalist perspective, it’s a little bit more alarming.

There is a heavy focus on how too much packaging can hurt the planet and that’s important. It’s also worth noting that excessive packaging can make things inconvenient for the user as well.

Take this person’s experience as an example. While this much packaging is already excessive for a phone charger, it seems to have directly caused some rage in the person trying to open it. So much so that they eventually just cut the cord in half.

When this author wrote a book on the dangers of plastic, they probably didn’t think that anyone would sell his book like this.

Despite the clear subject of the book – even if you just look at the title and cover art alone – each copy was shrink-wrapped in plastic. Not only is it excessive and unnecessary but it also goes directly against what the person who made this product wanted – something that they weren’t afraid to call out themselves.

Having a can of tuna as a lunch or midday snack isn’t uncommon. They even have small lunch packs made to be easy to carry around for this exact purpose.

It seems like they can create more waste than you might want as a downside. This person only at some tuna and crackers but ended up with packaging for each individual item which created a range of waste from metal to foil to plastic and paper.

When something is organic, it means that there was a lower use of chemical pesticides and fertilizers during production. This is better for you and lowers the environmental impact of what you’re consuming.

At least, it’s supposed to lower the environmental impact but that concept is thrown out of the window when the packaging is this excessive. While the box alone probably would have been enough, this manufacturer decided to add an individual plastic wrapper around each bag of tea not exactly ideal for the environment.

There are times when keeping different screws apart is important. It can make things clearer and prevent any accidental mix-ups.

When this person opened their latest package, they were upset to notice how much waste was involved. Instead of screws that were alike being packaged together, the company went ahead and wrapped each individual screw-in plastic, creating quite a bit of unneeded waste. At least they didn’t send them all in separate boxes as well!

If you order a single battery, you probably aren’t expecting much in the way of packaging. In fact, something the size of a watch battery can probably ship in a shipping envelope.

This time, the company took a more intense packaging approach. While the initial packaging for the battery is no bigger than a credit card, they made up for it by choosing a massive box and stuffing it with enough bubble wrap to fill up the rest of the space.

Disposable straws, particularly the more popular plastic variety, are responsible for a lot of the harmful waste that we generate. As such, it’s no wonder alternatives are cropping up.

This company aimed to solve this problem of plastic waste by offering a reusable metal alternative to these plastic straws. However, they may have overlooked an important note: if you want to reduce the plastic waste in the world, maybe packaging the alternative in plastic isn’t a great move.

One of the most upsetting things when it comes to packaging is shipment measures that are supposed to be for security but actually don’t serve much of a purpose at all.

If this packaging was protecting an expensive electronic, this much bubble wrap might be necessary even if the large box is not. Yet, for a few packs of gum, these shipping measures make us scratch our head and wonder why they bothered to do this at all.

There are a variety of things that need to be kept safe from bumping around and getting damaged on their way to a consumer-like electronics and glass items.

One thing that you definitely don’t have to worry about breaking is something designed to keep other things from breaking. For instance, this bubble wrap. It’s pretty comfortable on its own, so you don’t need to include more bubble wrap to keep it safe while it’s being shipped.

When you order certain things, they have to be shipped on a pallet. Otherwise, you worry about them breaking or getting disorganized during shipping.

One thing that doesn’t necessarily need a pallet to ship is, well, a pallet itself. After all, no one would ship a cardboard box in another cardboard box. We could maybe see this one if it was multiple pallets but not just for one alone like this. It just seems like an unnecessary step.

Straws have become a hot topic in recent years. After all, individual disposable straw use can create quite a bit of waste considering how frequently they’re used.

That’s why many companies have started to offer other options such as reusable straws or paper straws that don’t produce as much lasting waste. This company, on the other hand, decided to double down on their waste creation by individually wrapping each of these straws in plastic as well as putting them in a plastic bag.

There are some things that absolutely need additional packaging to ensure that they’re safe for consumption. For example, raw meat can’t be sold without packaging to ensure its freshness.

Fruit with peel, however, can be and is often sold as-is. This company decided to take a different approach. While pre-peeled oranges do make life easier by taking out some of the hassles, it comes with the trade-off of having to package the oranges in plastic.

Keeping your snacks safely wrapped up is important. It helps to keep them fresh and to keep them safe from tampering. This isn’t the best way to do it.

Instead of simply keeping these jelly beans in one large bag as most people and manufacturers do, Jelly Belly took a new approach with this package of jelly beans and wrapped them all individually. On the other hand, it might be perfect in the rare instance where the right snack is a single jelly bean.

There are times when a large box is so ridiculous that it seems like it would be easier for an item to get lost in the mess than to stay safe during shipping.

This SD card is the perfect example of that. The excessive packaging included a large box filled with paper and plastic. We’re surprised that they didn’t just think that the box was empty but we’re happy that the small electronic component wasn’t lost in shipping or even accidentally thrown away with the box.

Drinks obviously need some sort of packaging before they’re sold. It makes sense – otherwise, they would be a bit messy and definitely not safe to drink.

That being said, most companies answer this question with a bottle or can. In fact, Coca-Cola went ahead and put their soft drink in a can, as they often do. When this company decided to sell it, they seemed to have thought the can alone wasn’t enough and opted to add additional packaging.

There are certain things that already have a cover and don’t necessarily need extra wrapping. For example, a bunch of bananas doesn’t need to be wrapped because they already have a peel.

The idea of putting something in a can at all is a way to keep it contained and protect from either accidentally or intentional tampering. This company decided that one can just wasn’t enough. Instead, they also put their can on a styrofoam tray and wrapped it in plastic – perfect!

We just mentioned that bananas have their own packaging thus meaning that they don’t need as much artificial packaging that will create waste. Apparently, not everyone got the memo.

This company seems to have completely disregarded the fact that bananas already have a peel that we don’t eat to keep them safe. Despite the existence of the peel already, this company made the decision to wrap each banana in plastic for the ultimate evil packaging.

Proof that food hasn’t been tampered with is important. It’s a way to assure quality and to make sure nothing harmful accidentally or purposefully got into the food.

Yet, most companies ensure this by warning that if the seal is tampered with, you might want to buy a different box. As if they were trying to add another layer of security, this company opted to wrap the whole container of gourmet treats only to wrap each one individually inside it.

There are times when packaging is added to help with shipping but sometimes companies just want to have a marketing gimmick. This person experienced the latter with their new laptop.

While the laptop itself wasn’t necessarily involved in problematic packaging, the anti-virus program included with it chose to get creative with their marketing rather than consider the waste they were creating. They went as far as to include an empty disc holder to prove their point.

Sephora is a titan when it comes to the makeup industry. They have a little something for everyone and have turned themselves into an iconic brand.

It would seem that this brand isn’t necessarily associated with environmentally-friendly shipping, unfortunately. All this person ordered was a .05-ounce container of concealer which came in a comically large box protected with both bubble wrap and paper. To us, it seems like it would have been better to just package this tiny item more appropriately.

The great thing about eggs is that they come in their own packaging. Of course, it isn’t the strongest packaging that’s available.

This company had a brilliant idea: why take the time to crack an egg when they can offer one with an absolutely evil amount of packaging? There are so many questions this packaging raises as well. How do you open it? Why is “finally” misspelled? Why is the child’s neck so long? There are plenty of questions but so few answers.