Iceland attractions

Eldfell

Eldfell volcano is a cone on Heimaey, the main island of the Westman Islands off Iceland's south coast, that rose from open ground at the edge of town in January 1973. Its name means Fire Mountain, and before that winter there was no hill there at all. The Eldfell eruption of 1973 began when a fissure opened on the night of January 23, and by morning nearly the whole population of the islands, around 5,000 people, had been taken to the mainland by boat. It lasted over five months and buried around 400 houses under lava and ash. Crews pumped seawater onto the advancing lava to keep it from sealing the harbor, and the new lava now shelters the entrance instead. For about 15 years afterward, heat from the cooling flow warmed homes in town. Eldfell has not erupted since 1973, though it belongs to the active Vestmannaeyjar volcanic system. The Eldfell volcano hike is short but steep. Paths lead up from town across the newer lava, and the last stretch climbs loose volcanic gravel to the crater rim, where you look down over the harbor, the lava field and the rest of the island. Wear boots with good grip and pick a calm day, since wind on Heimaey can be fierce. Back in town, Eldheimar is a museum built around a house dug out of the ash, and adult admission was ISK 3,550 in 2026. Allow half a day on Heimaey for the climb and the museum together. Herjólfur ferries sail to Heimaey several times a day from Landeyjahöfn, about two hours' drive from Reykjavík. In rough weather or winter some sailings move to Þorlákshöfn, a much longer crossing, so check the ferry schedule before you set out.

Peningagjá

Peningagjá, the "money fissure," is a water-filled crack in Þingvellir National Park, under the little bridge by Þingvellir church, where you can see coins glinting on the bottom. Officially it is part of Nikulásargjá, the eastern branch of a fault that splits opposite the old assembly site. The coins started arriving after the fissure was bridged in 1907, the year King Frederik VIII of Denmark visited Þingvellir. There is no folk tale behind the habit, and the national park presents the coins as a sign of how much the clear groundwater is worth. Please keep yours in your pocket, since metal and litter in the water do the fissure no good. Peningagjá is a five-minute stop rather than an outing in itself. It sits a few steps from Þingvallakirkja, so pair it with the church, Lögberg and the walk up to Almannagjá and Öxarárfoss. Silfra, where the snorkeling and diving tours go in, is also close to the same parking area. Þingvellir is about 45 minutes' drive northeast of Reykjavík on Route 36. The nearest parking lot is P5 at Valhöll, and the park charges 1,000 ISK per day for a car with up to five seats, valid in P1, P2 and P5. Seeing the fissure itself is free at any time of year, though the bridge and paths can be icy in winter.

Old Harbour Souvenirs

Old Harbour Souvenirs is a small souvenir shop on Geirsgata at Reykjavík's Old Harbour, a few steps from the whale-watching ticket booths and boat check-ins on the waterfront northwest of downtown. If you have twenty minutes to kill before a boat leaves, this is where a lot of people end up spending them. The shop publishes no stock list or prices, so treat it as a place to browse on your way past rather than a reason to cross town. If you're after an expensive hand-knit lopapeysa, compare prices and labels in a couple of shops on Laugavegur first, since many cheaper sweaters are machine-made. The location is what makes it useful. Whale-watching and puffin boats into Faxaflói Bay leave from the piers right outside, and the Reykjavík Maritime Museum and the Grandi area are a short walk west. Heading east, you reach Kolaportið flea market and Harpa concert hall in about five to ten minutes on foot. Old Harbour Souvenirs doesn't publish its opening hours, and they can shift with the season, so don't plan a special trip around it. Most visitors spend 10 to 20 minutes inside, and walking the harbor front around it is free at any hour.

Selfoss

Selfoss waterfall is a broad, horseshoe-shaped waterfall on the glacial river Jökulsá á Fjöllum, about a kilometer upstream of Dettifoss in the Jökulsárgljúfur area of Vatnajökull National Park, Northeast Iceland. The national park puts the drop at about 10 meters, but the river spreads across a long, curved ledge, so the water spills along a wide edge instead of falling in one column. Many people walk to Dettifoss for the roar, then carry on and find Selfoss the prettier of the two. The name causes plenty of confusion, though. Selfoss is also a large town in South Iceland on the way to the Golden Circle, roughly a seven-hour drive away, and it has nothing to do with this waterfall. Getting from Dettifoss to Selfoss waterfall is easy. From the west parking lot, the park's D2 trail runs 2.5 kilometers in about an hour, graded easy, first to the Dettifoss viewpoints and then south along the riverbank to Selfoss before looping back on a more westerly path. Wear sturdy shoes, since the path crosses rocky ground and the spray can make it slippery. The west parking lot is reached by paved Route 862, about an hour's drive from Lake Mývatn and closer to two from Akureyri. That road has limited winter service, and gravel Route 864 on the east bank closes once the first snow arrives, so the easiest time to visit is roughly June to September. Outside summer, check the official road-conditions map before setting out, and leave the steep Hafragil trail nearby to confident hikers because of the risk of falling rocks.

Tjaldsvæði Bolungarvíkur

Bolungarvík campsite is the town campsite of Bolungarvík, a fishing town at the mouth of Ísafjarðardjúp in the Westfjords, next to the town swimming pool at Höfðastígur 1. Known locally as Tjaldsvæði Bolungarvíkur, it is about 15 kilometers from Ísafjörður, a 15-minute drive through the Bolungarvík tunnel. It works well as a quieter alternative to camping in Ísafjörður itself, with mountains rising almost straight out of the sea behind town. The pool staff run the site, so that is where you check in and pay. A service house has a dining room with cooking facilities, a washing machine and dryer, and showers. Outside there are electric hook-ups, a grill, a playground and a waste disposal point for motorhomes. Dogs are welcome on a leash, while open fires are not allowed. For 2026 the town charges per unit rather than per person: 2,500 ISK for a tent and 4,500 ISK for a campervan, motorhome or caravan. Electricity and a laundry load cost 1,700 ISK each, and a shower is 750 ISK. Pay for three nights in a row and the fourth is free, campers get 25% off at the pool, and the Camping Card is accepted. Bolungarvík camping season starts in mid-May and runs into September, so call the pool to confirm the closing date if you plan to arrive late. Two nights is about right. Use them for the Ósvör Maritime Museum, a reconstructed fishing station with turf huts, and for the drive up Bolafjall, whose summit platform looks across to Hornstrandir when the mountain road is open, usually from mid-June to mid-September.

Hraunborgir Campsite

Hraunborgir Campsite is a family campsite in a holiday-home area in Grímsnes, South Iceland, about an hour's drive from Reykjavík and only a few kilometers from Kerið crater. A heated pool and hot tubs a short walk from your tent are rare at Icelandic campsites, and they're the main reason families book here. The service area has a warm swimming pool with hot tubs and a sauna, plus a sun deck where drinks are served. Þorpbarinn, the on-site restaurant and bar, makes homemade pizzas and light meals, and a small shop stocks basics, gas and ice cream. Kids get a trampoline, climbing net and swings, a playroom for wet days, and basketball and soccer areas, while adults can play a round at the Hraunborgir golf course next door for 3,500 ISK. Camping rates in 2026 are 3,500 ISK per adult (14 and over) and 1,750 ISK for children aged 7 to 14, with under-7s free. Add 1,800 ISK for electricity and the 400 ISK accommodation tax per unit per night. Booking for Hraunborgir camping is through the Parka app, with separate zones for tents and for motorhomes and caravans, and pitches are unassigned, so you pick your spot on arrival. With Þingvellir, Geysir and Gullfoss all within reach for day trips, Hraunborgir makes an easy base for a slow Golden Circle trip. The campsite is set up for summer, though. From September 1 to May 15 it rents out long-term winter spaces for caravans and the service center opens only Friday to Sunday, so check with the campsite (661 7000) before planning an off-season stay.

Tjarnarbíó Theater

Tjarnarbíó is Reykjavík's independent theater, a nonprofit venue in a 1913 ice house at Tjarnargata 12, on the edge of the Tjörnin pond next to City Hall. It is where the city's independent theater companies stage their work, with support from the City of Reykjavík. The building first stored ice cut from the pond for Iceland's iced-fish exports, and it was one of three ice houses by Tjörnin (another now holds the National Gallery of Iceland). In 1942 the University of Iceland turned it into a cinema with almost 400 seats, which explains the name, since bíó means cinema. Iceland's association of independent theater groups has run the house since 1995. After a major rebuild that added a café on the north side, it reopened in 2010 as their permanent stage. The season runs from late August to the end of June, with four to seven events a week on a main stage that seats 180 and a small café stage for around 60. Expect new Icelandic plays, dance, circus, opera, stand-up and children's shows. Most work is in Icelandic, but the venue keeps a list of English-language and wordless events on its own site, and that list is worth checking before you buy. Most main-stage shows start at 8:30 pm, while small-stage events usually begin at 5:30 pm. Tickets are sold online, and the box office answers the phone on weekdays from 1 to 5 pm and for an hour before each event. Prices vary by show. Tjarnarbarinn, the café-bar, opens an hour before performances and lets you carry your drink into the hall. The building is wheelchair accessible, and staff ask you to mention it when booking so they can prepare. Because the theater sits right on the pond, a show here pairs well with an evening walk around Tjörnin or dinner in the old town.

Hörgsland Campsite

Hörgsland Campsite is a family-run farm campsite on the Ring Road in South Iceland, about a 10-minute drive east of Kirkjubæjarklaustur. Lava fields and mossy slopes surround it on all sides, and there's very little light at night. The farm, Hörgsland 1, has been run by Ragnar Johansen and his family since 2000. Next to the tent field there are 13 cottages that sleep up to six and a guesthouse with 14 rooms, so the Hörgsland cottages and guesthouse are a fallback when the weather turns and you'd rather have a roof. Campers get toilets, showers, Wi-Fi, walking paths and a playground, and dogs are welcome on a leash. Camping runs from May to September. For 2026 the farm lists 2,500 ISK per adult per night, 2,000 ISK for seniors and disabled guests, and free stays for children 12 and under, with electricity at 1,500 ISK a night. There's no online booking for tent and camper pitches, so call the campsite (the number is on its official website) or just turn up. As a base for the Síða district, Hörgsland is hard to beat. Fjaðrárgljúfur canyon is about 15 minutes west, and Skaftafell is roughly 50 minutes east across the Skeiðarársandur outwash plain, where strong crosswinds are common. The farm also runs guided horse tours and sells fishing permits for sea trout and salmon on nearby rivers such as the Skaftá and Hörgsá.

Bakkaflöt Campsite

Bakkaflöt Campsite is a riverside campsite on the banks of the Svartá river in Skagafjörður, North Iceland, beside the family-run rafting center and guesthouse that has been taking guests down the local rivers since 1993. Pitch a tent here and the rafting trip starts a few steps from your sleeping bag. The site is about 12 kilometers from Varmahlíð and roughly an hour's drive from Akureyri, in a quiet valley with mountain views. It has hot and cold water and electricity, and the toilets were renewed in 2021 along with upgrades to the indoor hall and cooking area. The hall seats about 20 people, which matters on a wet evening. Dogs are welcome on a leash. Next to the main building is a small swimming pool with two hot tubs, open 9:00 to 21:00, which campers can use for 800 ISK. Camping costs 2,300 ISK per person per night, free for children aged 12 and under, plus a 400 ISK accommodation tax per unit. Electricity adds 1,500 ISK a night and a shower is 500 ISK. The real draw is Bakkaflöt river rafting, from gentle family trips to the more demanding Austari-Jökulsá, plus kayak tours. The restaurant and bar in the main building open only from June 20 to August 31, and the campsite does not publish its season, so call ahead outside midsummer. If the weather turns, the same owners run the Bakkaflöt guesthouse, cottages and summer houses.

Videy

Viðey Island (Videy) is a 1.6-square-kilometer island of meadows, bird life and old stone buildings in Kollafjörður bay, a five-minute ferry ride from Reykjavík's Skarfabakki pier. It is the easiest half-day escape from the capital, and from October to early December it is the place to see the Imagine Peace Tower up close. Archaeological research suggests people lived on Viðey as early as the 10th century. A monastery consecrated in 1226 belonged for centuries to the Augustinian order and became one of the wealthiest in Iceland, owning over 100 farms, until it closed in 1537 with the Reformation. Viðey House (Viðeyjarstofa), completed in 1755 for royal treasurer Skúli Magnússon, is the oldest stone house in Iceland, and the stone church beside it was consecrated in 1774. Two artworks draw most visitors. On Vesturey, the island's northern half, Richard Serra's Áfangar is nine pairs of basalt columns installed in 1990. Yoko Ono's Imagine Peace Tower, inaugurated in 2007, sends a column of light into the sky every year from October 9, John Lennon's birthday, to December 8, the anniversary of his death, and again on a few dates such as Christmas and the spring equinox. Trails loop around both halves of the island, which meet at a narrow isthmus, and the high point is only about 32 meters above sea level, so the walking is easy. Eiders nest all over Viðey, and Arctic terns turn up in summer. Allow two to four hours, and plan lunch at the café in Viðeyjarstofa, which opens while the ferry is running. From May 15 to August 31, the Viðey ferry leaves Skarfabakki every hour from 10:15 to 17:15, with two extra daily departures from the Old Harbour (a 20-minute crossing) from June 1. From September 1 to May 14 it sails only on Saturdays and Sundays at 13:15, 14:15 and 15:15. A return ticket costs 2,500 ISK for adults, 1,250 ISK for ages 7 to 17 and 2,250 ISK for students, seniors and disabled passengers, while under-7s ride free and the Reykjavík City Card covers the trip.

Berserkjahraun

Berserkjahraun is a moss-covered lava field on the north side of the Snæfellsnes peninsula in West Iceland, between Stykkishólmur and Grundarfjörður. Few lava fields in Iceland come with a murder story attached, and this one takes its name from two berserkers killed here in Eyrbyggja saga. The Berserkjahraun lava field formed roughly 4,000 years ago, when four scoria craters erupted in quick succession and sent lava down from the mountains to the sea at Hraunsfjörður. What's left is a jagged field of black and gray rock under thick green and gray moss, with the reddish crater cones still rising along its inland edge. The saga explains the name. The farmer Víga-Styr of Hraun had two Swedish berserkers, Halli and Leiknir, in his household, and when Halli asked to marry Styr's daughter, Styr set him an impossible task: cut a path through the lava to the neighboring farm of Bjarnarhöfn. The brothers finished it, and Styr had them killed and buried beside it. That track, Berserkjagata, can still be followed on foot today, and a cairn by the path is said to mark their grave. Route 54 skirts the field, while gravel Route 558 loops through the lava for a closer look at the craters. The gravel road is fine in a regular car in summer but can be rough or slippery in winter, so check the official road-conditions map first. Allow 20 minutes for a photo stop or an hour with a short walk, and pair it with the shark museum at Bjarnarhöfn nearby. Expect about 2.5 hours of driving from Reykjavík, and no fee or facilities in the lava field itself.

Urdartindur Guesthouse And Cottages

Urðartindur is a family-run guesthouse, cottage rental and campsite at the head of Norðurfjörður on the Strandir coast of the Westfjords, about as far up the coast as the road goes. Its fields run down to a black sand beach, and the Kálfatindar ridge (646 meters) fills the view to the east. People come here for the quiet, and few places in Iceland that you can reach by car feel this far from everything else. Urðartindur guesthouse rooms look out over the fjord and the mountains. Two small cottages built in 2010 each have a kitchen, a private bathroom with shower and a veranda with its own barbecue. The campsite covers three zones totaling more than 10,000 square meters, two with electric hookups and a third left without power for anyone who wants the calmest corner. Campers get bathrooms with hot water, dishwashing sinks and a shared kitchen with an oven, stove, fridge and coffee machine, plus gas barbecues and a washing machine. There are no showers at the campsite and no dryer. The 2026 rate is 2,200 ISK per adult with children 15 and under free and lodging tax included, while electricity is 1,200 ISK a night and the EV charger 2,500 ISK per use. The campsite is open from May 15 to September 30, takes drop-in guests and allows dogs on a leash. Krossneslaug, the geothermal pool on the shore beyond the village, is about 3 km away, and Kaffi Norðurfjörður serves food less than 1 km from the guesthouse. On the way in you pass Trékyllisvík, where the Kört heritage and craft house in Árnes displays local artifacts and sells handicrafts. Getting here is part of the trip. Norðurfjörður sits at the end of Route 643, a long, narrow gravel road north from Hólmavík past Djúpavík, so allow around 2 hours for that stretch and fill up with gas and groceries in Hólmavík. Check the official road-conditions map before you set out, especially early or late in the season.

Camping Súðavík

Camping Súðavík is the village campsite in Súðavík, on Álftafjörður in the Westfjords, about 15 minutes east of Ísafjörður on Route 61. It sits in the old part of the village at Túngata 20, with the steep slopes of Kofri rising behind, and it is a quieter place to pitch a tent than the bigger town down the road. Tents, campervans and caravans all use the same grassy ground. The service house has toilets, an accessible shower, a sink with hot and cold water, a washing machine and a drying cabinet. Electric hook-ups take both standard and three-pin plugs, and there is a waste tank discharge point for motorhomes. No guest kitchen is listed, so plan to cook on your own stove. Dogs are allowed, and the site is checked every day. Raggagarður, a free family park built by local volunteers, is a few meters away with playground equipment and outdoor barbecues. Hiking trails start from the Súðavík campsite, including the climb up Kofri. In summer the Arctic Fox Center in Súðavík is a short walk away, and the village also has a grocery store. The season runs from June 1 to September 15. Nightly rates are not posted, so call or email the municipality before you arrive. If you are driving the long Ísafjarðardjúp road from Hólmavík, Súðavík is the first village you reach, which makes it a sensible last stop before Ísafjörður.

Holar Campground

Holar Campground is a forest campsite at Hólar in Hjaltadalur, a side valley of Skagafjörður in North Iceland. It sits among the trees just below the old village, which was a bishop's seat from 1106 until around 1800. The trees are the practical draw. After a few nights on open, exposed sites along the coast, you'll appreciate how well the woodland shelters the Hólar campsite from the wind. Dogs are allowed, and the facilities are public toilets and marked walking paths. Hólar Cathedral is a short walk from your tent. Consecrated in 1763, the red sandstone church is the oldest stone church in Iceland, and the village around it also has the Icelandic Horse History Center, a restaurant and a swimming pool. Trails of different lengths start near the campsite and climb into the forest and up the valley sides. The season runs from May 13 to September 15. Camping prices at Hólar aren't published, and showers and electric hookups aren't listed, so call the operator on +354 899 3231 before you arrive if you need either. Hólar sits up Hjaltadalur off Route 76, about 45 minutes' drive from Sauðárkrókur and roughly half an hour from Hofsós. With the Hofsós pool and the Glaumbær turf farm within easy reach, it works well as a quiet base for two or three nights in Skagafjörður.

Artun Guesthouse

Ártún Guesthouse is a working farm on the eastern shore of Eyjafjörður in North Iceland, with farmhouse rooms, two cottages and a summer campsite a short walk from the old turf farm at Laufás. It sits off Road 83 in the Grýtubakkahreppur district, about 30 km from Akureyri and 8 km before the village of Grenivík, so the drive into town takes about half an hour. The Ártún campsite opens in summer only, with room for tents, tent trailers, caravans and campervans. Campers get toilets, showers, electricity, Wi-Fi, a shared dining hall and a waste disposal point for motorhomes, and beer and wine are sold on site. Outside summer, ask the owners first, since off-season stays depend on the weather. If you'd rather sleep under a roof, the farmhouse runs a bed and breakfast with five rooms and shared bathrooms, and two cottages with kitchenettes stand next to the farmer's house. Both are open all year. Prices are not published online, so contact the hosts for current rates before you arrive. Most guests use Ártún as a base for Akureyri and the fjord rather than a destination in itself. Laufás, a 19th-century turf farmhouse and church run as a museum, is about 2 km away, and horse riding at Grýtubakki is 4 km down the road. On long summer evenings, the light falls across the water onto the mountains of Tröllaskagi on the far side of the fjord.

Borgarfjörður

Borgarfjörður is a shallow fjord in West Iceland and the farming district that spreads inland from it, about an hour's drive north of Reykjavík through the Hvalfjörður tunnel. Borgarnes, on a narrow point in the fjord, is the main town and the usual first stop. Don't confuse it with Borgarfjörður eystri, a small village on the far side of the country in East Iceland. Most of what is worth seeing in Borgarfjörður lies up the valleys rather than on the water. Deildartunguhver, Europe's most powerful hot spring, pours out about 180 liters of near-boiling water per second, and pipelines carry it 34 km to heat Borgarnes and 64 km to Akranes. Right next to it, the Krauma baths mix that water with cold glacial meltwater for a soak. Farther up the valley, Hraunfossar is a long row of springs spilling out of a lava field into the milky Hvítá river, and Barnafoss is a short walk upstream. Reykholt, between the two, was the home of the medieval writer and chieftain Snorri Sturluson, and Snorralaug, the old stone bathing pool named after him, is still there. Out in the Hallmundarhraun lava field, guided tours go underground into Víðgelmir, one of the largest lava tubes in Iceland. Deildartunguhver, Reykholt and Hraunfossar fit comfortably into a day trip from Reykjavík, and the district also makes an easy first stop on the way to Snæfellsnes or the north. Summer gives you long days for a side trip toward Langjökull glacier. In winter, daylight is short, so plan fewer stops and check the official road-conditions map before heading inland in snow.

Sigöldugljúfur

Sigöldugljúfur is a short canyon on the southern edge of Iceland's Central Highlands, just off F208 near the Sigalda hydropower station on the way to Landmannalaugar. Dozens of thin waterfalls pour out of its mossy green walls into a turquoise river, which is where the nickname Valley of Tears comes from. What makes it worth the stop is how many falls you can take in from one spot. You can't climb down into Sigöldugljúfur, so the visit happens along the rim, looking down both walls toward the river. Overcast days and soft evening light tend to show the green moss and blue water best against the dark volcanic slopes. From Reykjavík, the drive is about three hours on Route 1 and Route 26, then a short way onto F208 past the Sigalda station. There is no sign for the canyon on the road, so watch for a small dirt pull-off after the power station and walk the short, easy stretch to the edge. Thirty to 45 minutes is enough for the whole stop, and there are no toilets or other facilities. F208 is a mountain road, and Icelandic law allows only 4x4 vehicles on F-roads. The Sigalda to Landmannalaugar section usually opens in early June, though it has opened as early as late May and as late as late June, and it stays closed through winter and spring. Check the official road-conditions map before you go, then carry on about 20 kilometers to Landmannalaugar for the rest of the day.

Perlan Parking

Perlan parking is the free lot right outside Perlan, the glass-domed museum on top of Öskjuhlíð hill in Reykjavík, with disabled spaces close to the entrance. After the paid zones of downtown, that is a welcome change. From the city center it's about a 5-minute drive up the hill. If you'd rather leave the car at your hotel, buses 13 and 18 stop closest to Perlan, and the walk up from downtown takes about 30 minutes. The parking lot also works as a trailhead for the Öskjuhlíð woods. Paths lead down through the trees to Nauthólsvík geothermal beach and the Fossvogur coastal path, so you can park once and spend a few hours on foot. On clear winter nights the hilltop is higher and darker than the streets below, which makes it a decent place in the city to watch for the northern lights. If you're heading inside, the Perlan museum exhibitions are open 9:00 to 21:00. The observation deck that circles the dome is included with every ticket and can't be bought on its own, so allow a couple of hours to see the exhibitions and the view together.

Camping Langafit

Camping Langafit is a small campsite in Laugarbakki, a hamlet in Miðfjörður, Northwest Iceland, just off the Ring Road about 190 km from Reykjavík and about 200 km from Akureyri, roughly halfway between the two. It has hot tubs, which is exactly what you want at the end of a long day on Route 1. The campsite is run alongside Langafit, a handcraft market and guesthouse, and it also goes by the name Ásbyrgi Campsite. Tents and caravans have access to showers, hot tubs and a dining room, while the guesthouse side adds a kitchen plus a washing machine and dryer. If the weather turns, the guesthouse sleeps up to 13 people. Opening dates and prices for the Laugarbakki campsite are not published. Call +354 892 8487 or +354 451 2987 before you arrive, especially early or late in the summer. The road in is paved, so any car will do. For an evening or a spare morning, Hvammstangi is about 8 km away, with the Icelandic Seal Center, a swimming pool and a shop. The gravel loop around the Vatnsnes peninsula passes seal colonies and Hvítserkur, the basalt sea stack, and makes a good half-day drive from Laugarbakki. Spend one night at Camping Langafit if you are passing through, or two if you want that loop.

Breiðamerkurjökull

Breiðamerkurjökull is an outlet glacier of Vatnajökull in Southeast Iceland, inside Vatnajökull National Park, and every iceberg floating in Jökulsárlón breaks off its tongue. In winter it is also where most travelers go for a Breiðamerkurjökull ice cave tour, walking into tunnels of blue ice that meltwater carved the summer before. The glacier spills off the ice cap onto the Breiðamerkursandur plain. Its tongue ends in Jökulsárlón, which sits beside Route 1 about five hours east of Reykjavík and roughly an hour west of Höfn, while Breiðárlón, a smaller and quieter lagoon, lies at another part of its edge. Breiðamerkurjökull has been shrinking for about a century. As the ice pulled back from the coast in the early 1900s, meltwater filled the hollow it left, and Jökulsárlón began to form in the 1930s. The lagoon is still growing, and from the shore you can see how far back the Breiðamerkurjökull glacier tongue now sits. You can only go into the caves with a licensed guide. After a fatal ice collapse on the glacier in August 2024, the national park closed the caves from May through September. A team of guides now checks each cave every day, and any cave judged unsafe stays off-limits, which leaves an ice cave season of October to April. Even then, tours can be canceled for weather or ice conditions. Most tours meet at the Jökulsárlón parking lot and drive out to the ice in a super jeep, and a cave visit usually takes two to three hours. A longer option adds a Breiðamerkurjökull glacier hike, with crampons and gear supplied by the guide. Book ahead for trips between December and March, then pair the tour with the Diamond Beach and Fjallsárlón, both within about 15 minutes by car.

Þykkvibær Campsite

Þykkvibær campsite is a small, tidy summer campground in Þykkvibær, Iceland's potato village, about 16 kilometers south of the Ring Road at Hella in South Iceland. Very few travelers make the detour, which is the main reason to come: you trade the crowds of the big South Coast campgrounds for flat farmland and a quiet night. The village sits by the Hólsá river, roughly 15 minutes' drive from Hella and about an hour and a half from Reykjavík. Pitches are on grass, with room for tents, campervans and caravans. Facilities are simple: toilets, a dishwashing area with hot and cold water, electricity hook-ups, a waste disposal point for motorhomes and a playground with swings and a bouncy pillow. For 2025 the campsite listed 1,500 ISK per adult per night and 1,000 ISK for seniors and disabled guests, with children free and electricity 1,000 ISK a night. Rates may change, so confirm the current price before you go. The site opens in summer only, so call ahead if you plan to arrive at the very start or end of the season, and dogs are welcome on a leash. Buy food and gas in Hella on the way in, since Þykkvibær has few services. The nearest swimming pools are in Hella and Hvolsvöllur, and Seljalandsfoss is a little under an hour east, close enough for an early start before the tour buses arrive.

Grenivík Camping Site

Grenivík Camping Site is the village campsite in Grenivík, a small fishing village on the eastern shore of Eyjafjörður in North Iceland, at the end of Route 83. It looks straight out the mouth of the fjord toward Hrísey and the peaks of Tröllaskagi, and it is a calm alternative to the busier grounds in Akureyri, about 40 minutes' drive to the south. The site is on Kirkjuvegur, just below the village swimming pool and school. A service building from 2011 has toilets, including an accessible one, plus sinks with hot and cold water for washing dishes, and electricity hookups are available. Kids get swings and a sandbox, with the school playground a short walk away. Check in with the staff at the pool, who look after the campsite during pool hours, or call the site manager if you arrive after closing. The 2026 rate is 1,800 ISK per adult, with children under 16 free, plus the national accommodation tax, and electricity costs 1,200 ISK. The season is not published, so phone ahead if you plan to camp outside the summer months. The pool next door is the obvious place for a hot shower and a soak. Grenivík is also the starting point for hikes up Kaldbakur, the 1,173-meter mountain behind the village, and along the Látraströnd coast to the north. The Laufás turf farm is a short drive back toward Akureyri, and since the village has only a few services, stock up on groceries and gas in Akureyri first.

Hornstrandir

Hornstrandir is a nature reserve at the northern tip of the Westfjords in Iceland, a roadless peninsula of sheer sea cliffs and long-abandoned farm valleys. For a few weeks each summer, it offers some of the best multi-day hiking in Iceland, with Arctic foxes for company and almost nobody else. The Hornstrandir cliffs are the big draw. Hornbjarg and Hælavíkurbjarg rise straight out of the Greenland Sea and hold huge seabird colonies in early summer, while the valleys between them have been empty since the last farmers left in the mid-20th century. Arctic foxes are protected in the Hornstrandir nature reserve and often come close, so keep at least 40 meters from dens, never feed them and leave them undisturbed. Getting in takes planning, because no road reaches the reserve. Most hikers arrive by boat from Ísafjörður or Bolungarvík to landing points on the western side, or from Norðurfjörður on the Strandir coast to the eastern side, and those services run mainly in summer. Ísafjörður itself is about six hours' drive from Reykjavík, and day trips by boat leave from there if you only want a taste. Rules are strict for a fragile place. Camping is allowed only at designated campsites, which have dry latrines or water toilets, and you have to carry out all your trash. Dogs are banned apart from landowners' dogs on a leash, and drones need a permit. Between March 1 and June 15, and again from September 1 to November 1, every visit must be registered online with the nature conservation authority in advance. Treat hiking Hornstrandir as a real wilderness trip. Mobile coverage is patchy or absent, fog makes trails hard to follow, rivers can rise after rain and snow can linger on high ground into summer. Pack a map, GPS and extra food in case the boat is delayed, leave a travel plan with Iceland's search-and-rescue association, and stop at the Hornstrandir visitor center in Ísafjörður for current route advice.

Fimmvörðuháls

Fimmvörðuháls is a mountain pass between the Eyjafjallajökull and Mýrdalsjökull ice caps in South Iceland, crossed by a 25 km trail from Skógar to Þórsmörk. Few day hikes in the country pack in as much: a gorge full of waterfalls, a climb to roughly 1,000 meters, craters from the 2010 eruption and a steep descent into the green valleys of Þórsmörk. The first 8 km are the reason many people come. From Skógafoss the path follows the Skógá river upstream through a gorge lined with waterfalls, each one different from the last, until a footbridge marks the end of the green and the start of the real climb. Above it, gravel and lingering snowfields lead up toward the pass. Near the top, the Fimmvörðuháls trail crosses ground younger than many of the people walking it. A fissure eruption opened on the pass in March 2010, weeks before the larger summit eruption of Eyjafjallajökull, and left two new craters, Magni and Móði, along with a lava field the trail now crosses. From there the route descends the exposed Heljarkambur ridge, where a chain helps on the steepest section, and the narrow Kattarhryggir before reaching Goðaland and Þórsmörk. Ferðafélag Íslands splits the route into two legs: Skógar to its Baldvinsskáli hut (12 km, 4 to 5 hours, about 1,000 meters of ascent) and Baldvinsskáli to Þórsmörk (13 km, 4 to 6 hours). Fit hikers do the whole crossing in one long day. Others spend a night at Baldvinsskáli, which has 16 beds, or at Útivist's Fimmvörðuskáli near the top of the pass, and both huts must be booked in advance. On average the trail is open from about June 25 to September 15, though snow cover shifts the dates every year. Even in July, fog, strong wind or snow can close in on the pass within hours, and the Brattafönn snow slope can stay slippery all summer. Outside the season, the crossing is winter mountaineering for experienced, well-equipped parties only. The Fimmvörðuháls hike is free, but it runs one way, so sort out transport before you start. Skógar is on Route 1, about 2 hours' drive from Reykjavík, while Þórsmörk can only be reached by highland bus or a suitable 4x4 because the road has unbridged river crossings. Before you set out, leave a travel plan with ICE-SAR and check the weather warnings for the pass.