Majestic and elusive, the Light Dragon circles high above Hyrule, carrying one of the game’s greatest rewards. Tracking its luminous path across the skies is no small feat-but with the right clues, you can follow its trail and claim what it guards.
Read on to find out the Light Dragon’s location and flight path, so you can grab some of the best Fuse materials and one of the best weapons in Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom.
Light Dragon path and location
The Light Dragon circles the entire kingdom at high altitude, following a long route that passes over the Great Hyrule Forest, Lanayru, Gerudo Desert, and Faron regions. Its full loop takes several hours of real time, and it can often be seen from the ground as a glowing white figure in the sky. To reach it, players should equip stamina-boosting food or elixirs, use Skyview Towers or floating islands to glide close, and aim for its back to safely land and collect materials while it flies.
There are multiple ways of finding the Light Dragon. If you’ve been focusing on the main story, you can pinpoint the Master Sword’s location by finding all 12 Dragon Tear memory locations. That method requires a lot of legwork, but thankfully, there are other, less time-consuming ways.
One is to get through the Lost Woods and reach the Korok Forest. Once there, you need to help the Deku Tree by defeating Gloom Hands and Phantom Ganon. Emerge victorious, and after talking with the Deku Tree, you’ll have access to the “Recovering the Hero’s Sword” main quest.
This is the quest for the Master Sword, and thankfully, the Deku Tree will mark the location of the Light Dragon on your map. As long as you select the quest in your Adventure Log, you’ll see where the dragon is at all times, which is of great help.
Keep in mind that once you’ve recovered the Master Sword and the quest is complete, the marker will dissipate. If you want to be able to easily locate the Light Dragon to farm materials from it (more on this later), you might want to hold off on getting Link’s emblem weapon.
The other way is, plain and simple, to stumble upon the dragon as you’re roaming around the map. The Light Dragon flies a circumferential route around Hyrule; you don’t need to have the related quest in order to find it. The Light Dragon’s flight circuit takes it through areas including Zora’s Domain, Hateno Village, Goronbi Lake, Lindor’s Brow, and the Thyphlo Ruins.
Our map above shows an estimated route based on findings from a fewcommunitysources, but we have not been able to confirm the exact route independently. AELGAMES has reached out to Nintendo for comment.
That said, it’s recommended you complete the Korok Forest quest, as this will mean the Light Dragon will fly lower to the ground. As such, you’ll be able to get to it just by using a nearby Skyview Tower to lift Link up to the sky. Until you complete the quest, there’s a chance that the dragon will be flying at the same height as the Sky Islands, for example, which will make the task significantly harder.
How to jump on the Light Dragon
The Light Dragon flies high above Hyrule in a looping path, so reaching it requires patience and precise timing. Use towers or sky islands to gain height, then glide toward the dragon as it passes nearby. Aim for its back and deploy your paraglider just before landing to avoid taking damage. Landing near its glowing stones allows you to safely move along its body and collect valuable materials once aboard.
Unlike in Breath of the Wild, Link is able to ride on the back of dragons in Tears of the Kingdom. This is done simply by landing on their bodies, from where you can easily move on top of them. (For dragons that have a specific element, you’ll be wise to have the proper elemental resistance. You do not need any such resistance for the Light Dragon.)
If you spot the dragon out in the wild, either by chance or because you have the quest marker active, I recommend fast traveling to the nearest Skyview Tower. Taking this travel shortcut won’t affect the dragon’s position, resulting in a great method to get closer. Then, activate the tower to lift Link up to the air, and paraglide toward the Light Dragon.
As said, if you want to make the process even easier, then make sure you clear out the Deku Forest first. This will see the dragon fly closer to the surface, and thus be more accessible from the height of a tower.
In the case that any nearby towers are quite far from the dragon you’re attempting to reach, you can always attempt to get to a Sky Island. If you happen to see any sky rocks falling to the ground, use your Recall ability and hop on them to gain altitude. Then, you can jump off the island and bust out your paraglider to get close to the dragon.
The dragon’s movement is quite slow, but if at any point you fall off from its back, quickly opening your paraglider will lift you upwards again, as there are wind currents surrounding the dragon’s body.
Once you’ve made it to the Light Dragon’s back, the next step is to get the Master Sword from it. For a step-by-step breakdown of how to do this, head over to our dedicated Master Sword page.
Farming Light Dragon parts
Light Dragon parts are valuable materials used for powerful upgrades and elixirs. To farm them, glide onto the dragon’s back as it circles Hyrule and use arrows or melee attacks to strike its glowing scales, claws, or horns. Each hit drops a part nearby, which can be collected quickly before the dragon moves on. After a part is taken, wait about ten real-time minutes for the next item to appear, or travel between sky towers to rejoin the dragon’s flight path faster.
Akin to the rest of the dragons in Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom, you can farm dragon parts from the Light Dragon. When using Light Dragon parts for Fuse combinations, the part will imbue the Fused weapon with a healing effect and will restore a quarter of a heart per hit.
At a glance, here are the parts you can get from the Light Dragon:
- Shard of Light Dragon’s spike
- Light Dragon’s scale
- Shard of Light Dragon’s fang
- Light Dragon’s talon
- Light Dragon’s horn
Best spots to mount the Light Dragon quickly
The best spots to mount the Light Dragon quickly involve using Skyview Towers along its clockwise loop around Hyrule’s perimeter, where you can launch and glide directly to it once spotted.
Top Skyview Tower Spots
These allow fast travel, a quick launch for height, and a short glide (with 2+ stamina wheels) to the dragon, often in under 2 minutes if it’s nearby.
| Tower | Region | Direction to Look | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Gerudo Highlands | Southwest | North/Northeast | Excellent early access; dragon often low enough post-quest. |
| Mount Lanayru | East | West/Northwest | Reliable high vantage; pairs well with sky islands nearby. |
| Ulri Mountain | North | South/Southeast | Great for Hebra leg; dragon passes close after quests. |
| Thyphlo Ruins | Northeast | South | Covers Akkala/Eldin; quick if looping from Pikida Stonegrove. |
Quick Pre-Quest Access
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Southeast glide suit challenge (near Zonaite Forge Tower): Paraglide from tutorial sky island or Room of Awakening for easy height; dragon flies below at ~2300m.
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Korok Forest post-Deku Tree cure: Tree tracks it with a map marker for instant location.
Fast-Mount Tips
Spot the white body from a tower, launch, paraglide/dive (aim for back spikes), and use Tulin’s Gust if available to close distance. Hoverbike from sky islands like Tabantha or South Lanayru archipelagos speeds up interc
Best Skyview Towers to mount the Light Dragon quickly
Gerudo Highlands Skyview Tower, Mount Lanayru Skyview Tower, and Hebra/Ulri Mountain Skyview Tower stand out as the best for quickly mounting the Light Dragon due to their proximity to its clockwise flight path and sufficient launch height for gliding.
Optimal Towers Ranked
Prioritize these based on player reports and route maps for minimal travel time post-launch (under 1-2 minutes with 2 stamina wheels).
| Tower | Why Best for Quick Mount | Look Direction |
|---|---|---|
| Gerudo Highlands | Dragon flies low nearby post-quest; short glide southwest leg | North/Northeast |
| Mount Lanayru | High vantage over eastern route; sky islands aid if needed | West/Northwest |
| Ulri Mountain | Covers northern Hebra pass closely; reliable after Korok quest | South/Southeast |
Quick Strategy
Fast travel to one, launch immediately, scan horizon for the white body (it stays fixed during warps), then paraglide to its back spikes. Thyphlo Ruins or Pikida Stonegrove work as backups for the northeast segment.
