Top 10 Countries With the Best Views of the Rare August 2026 Total Solar Eclipse, According to Experts

MADRID — The moon’s shadow is about to make a rare loop over the top of the world, and when it comes down, it will bring the first total solar eclipse to mainland Europe in nearly three decades.

The eclipse, set for Wednesday, Aug. 12, will trace a narrow band of totality that begins over Russia’s remote Taymyr Peninsula, arcs across the North Pole, sweeps down through Greenland and Iceland, and finally curves into northern Spain before exiting over the Balearic Islands, according to eclipse-tracking site Mappr. Only a handful of countries will fall directly inside that path, but tens of millions more across three continents will get a partial view. Here are the 10 countries best positioned to witness the spectacle.

1. Spain

Spain is shaping up to be the marquee destination for this eclipse, and for good reason. According to Time Out, Spain is expected to be the best place to watch largely because the eclipse occurs right around sunset there, paired with more reliably clear weather conditions than the rest of the path. The path of totality crosses northern and eastern Spain, and cities like León and Burgos, though not directly on the centerline, are still positioned to see totality lasting close to two minutes. For Spain, this marks the country’s first total solar eclipse in more than a hundred years.

Dr. Doug Duncan, an astronomer at the University of Colorado and former director of the Fiske Planetarium, is leading a sold-out trip to Zaragoza for the event. Duncan cautioned that “the biggest wrong idea about eclipses is that if you’ve seen a 90% eclipse, you’ve seen most of the show,” underscoring how different a brush with totality is from a merely partial view.

2. Iceland

Iceland offers eclipse-chasers a dramatic Arctic backdrop, with the best views expected around western Iceland, particularly in Reykjavík, Reykjanes, Snæfellsnes and the Westfjords, according to Time Out. Timeanddate.com estimates the eclipse there will begin around 4:42 p.m. local time, reach totality at 5:43 p.m., and last roughly three minutes from start to finish, with totality itself lasting close to a minute in Reykjavík. Iceland’s sparse population also means low light pollution, which should sharpen the view. A four-day Iceland Eclipse music festival is being held in the country to mark the occasion.

3. Greenland

Greenland sits squarely in the path of totality, with the eclipse crossing its remote eastern reaches in the late afternoon or early evening, according to NASA. Along with Russia and the North Atlantic, the area near Greenland’s centerline is expected to see some of the longest totality of the entire event — up to roughly 2 minutes and 18 seconds, the maximum duration anywhere along the path, according to eclipse-mapping site Mappr.

4. Portugal

A small corner of northwestern Portugal falls within the path of totality, giving the country a brief but genuine shot at full darkness before sunset. NASA notes the sun won’t be completely eclipsed there until late evening, just before it dips below the horizon — creating what several outlets have described as the potential for a striking “sunset eclipse.”

5. Russia

The eclipse technically begins over Russian territory, specifically the remote and largely uninhabited Taymyr Peninsula in Siberia. According to eclipse-guide site NationalEclipse.com, totality begins there at an unusual local time near midnight, since the sun never fully sets in that region during summer months near the Arctic Circle. While population in the immediate path is minimal, it remains one of only a handful of nations where totality is technically visible from land.

6. Morocco

Northwestern Africa is positioned to catch a deep partial eclipse as the moon’s shadow exits toward the Atlantic. NASA lists northwestern Africa among the regions that will experience a substantial partial eclipse, giving Morocco some of the best non-totality views on the African continent.

7. United Kingdom

Much of the United Kingdom will see a large partial eclipse, according to Mappr, with the depth of the eclipse increasing the closer viewers are to the path of totality passing just to the south. Skywatchers across England, Scotland and Wales are expected to see the moon take a significant bite out of the sun during the afternoon hours.

8. France

France sits close enough to the path to see a substantial partial eclipse as well, with Mappr noting that France, the British Isles and the rest of Iberia will see a large partial eclipse that tapers off further south and east across the continent.

9. Canada

On the North American side of the Atlantic, NASA notes that most of Canada will experience a partial solar eclipse that day, making it one of the best-positioned countries in the Western Hemisphere to catch a glimpse, even without reaching totality.

10. United States

Parts of the northern United States, stretching from Alaska to North Carolina, are expected to see a partial solar eclipse as well, according to NASA — giving American skywatchers a reason to look up, even though the path of full totality remains firmly on the other side of the Atlantic.

A rare and narrow window

Regardless of location, experts stress the path of totality itself is remarkably thin — only about 290 kilometers wide, according to Mappr — meaning travelers hoping to experience full darkness need to be precisely positioned within that band, not simply in a country the path technically touches. Everywhere outside the path, and during the partial phases even within it, eclipse safety experts emphasize that certified eclipse glasses meeting the ISO 12312-2 standard are required; ordinary sunglasses, no matter how dark, do not provide adequate protection. Only during the brief seconds or minutes of full totality is it safe to look at the eclipsed sun without protective eyewear.

For those weighing where to plant themselves this August, meteorologists at Eclipsophile note that roughly two-thirds of the eclipse’s path runs over open ocean, making land-based viewing sites in Spain and its islands, along with Iceland, the most weather-reliable bets for anyone chasing a clear view of totality.