Latest update: 20 December 2024
Giant ice chunks on the beach and ice caves in glaciers. There is a clear reason why around 1 million people visit Jökulsárlón in Iceland every year. The Glacier Lagoon and Diamond Beach are must-dos, but don’t forget the Múlagljúfur Canyon!
Jökulsárlón Glacier Lagoon
Jökulsárlón is the famous glacier lagoon between Höfn and Skaftafell. It is super easy to reach because it is on the Ring Road. Jökulsárlón is about 200 to 250 meters deep and strewn with ice chunks. They come from the Vatnajökull glacier and get stuck here on the bottom. As soon as they melt or break into smaller pieces, they float towards the sea. Towards Diamond Beach. The ice blocks you see are just the tips; most is underwater.
The lake is getting bigger and bigger due to climate change. The glacier keeps melting, on average, by about 500 meters per year. The Jökulsárlón glacier lagoon is about 80 years old. Before that time, the glacier reached the Ring Road.
By the way, you can do all kinds of incredible tours at the Glacier Lagoon. Such as glacier walks, boat trips, and ice cave visits. Of course, depending on the season and the weather. View your options here.
Tip! At the parking lot next to the glacier lake you will find several food trucks and a public toilet (which had a long queue when I was there). At Heimahumar “Local Langoustine” Truck (Google Maps location), you can get a langoustine sandwich (ISK 2700) or a great hotdog with fresh onions, fried onions, and sauce (ISK 700).
Jökulsárlón Glacier Trail
Fancy a short walk? Then head to the Jökulsárlón Glacier Trail. This is a two-kilometer walk, less than an hour. It is a well-trodden path with a few information signs. Certainly not a must, but we had some time to kill before our ice cave tour started, so this was a welcome walk.
Ice cave tour at Jökulsárlón: Vatnajökull glacier
You can do an ice cave tour at various locations in Iceland. I think they are pretty much the same all over the country, so you only have to do one. Considering the price, that sounds like sensible advice to me. Icelandic prices are pretty stiff. I don’t really want to pay so much money for a tour of a few hours. But hey, you only live once… or something.
I visit an ice cave in the Vatnajökull glacier on this tour and I definitely recommend it. We get into a huge super jeep that takes us to the glacier in half an hour from the Glacier Lagoon. First, we drive on the Ring Road and then continue on the unpaved road. The guide lets the tires deflate a bit so we don’t feel every hole in the road.
Once at the glacier, we get crampons (buy your own at Amazon) for our shoes so that we can walk on the ice with more grip. We walk, sometimes shuffle, over the glacier to the ice cave. At the cave, we look back at where we came from: less than a year ago, the glacier reached all the way to the road where the cars are now. The landscape is constantly changing; that’s why there are new ice caves every year.
The ice in the ice cave is 600 to 800 years old. What a strange realization! We are in the cave for about half an hour. That is honestly more than enough. The cave is not that big. So a lot of time is spent taking pictures. Because of standing still for quite a while, everyone gets very cold, but when do you see this, right? Just persevere. In the pictures, the ice is even bluer than in real life.
Diamond Beach
The piece of black beach at Jökulsárlón has been given the name Diamond Beach but is actually called Breiðamerkursandur. When I walk onto the beach, I immediately understand the nickname. The chunks of ice from both the glacier and the glacier lake are sparkling on the black beach. Ice blue and ice cold.
On both sides of the river Jökulsá á Breiðamerkursandi (the smallest river in Iceland) you can admire the ice diamonds. Some people can’t resist pressing their tongue against one of these ice floes. I don’t think that’s very nice, but do your thing! Be careful with the seawater when taking photos. Before you know it, the ice-cold water will roll over and into your shoe – not nice, my travel partner can tell you.
Tip! One of the best excursions in Iceland is the Þórsmörk super jeep tour. Please put it on your bucket list!
Parking at Jökulsárlón and Diamond Beach
There are several parking options at Jökulsárlón and Diamond Beach. The first is the Jökulsárlón parking lot (here). In addition, there are two more spots at Diamond Beach: this one and this one. The glacier lagoon and Diamond Beach are within walking distance of each other.
Make sure to pay close attention to whether or not you need to pay for parking – that goes for the whole of Iceland. And there are more things you need to take into account when driving. Read all about renting and driving a car in Iceland.
Fjallsjökull glacier lagoon
A little under a twenty-minute drive from Jökulsárlón Glacier Lagoon is a somewhat smaller glacier lagoon: Fjallsjökull . The Fjallsjökull is picture-perfect. From the lookout point, you look straight at the glacier, which is extra impressive thanks to the hard, icy wind. I feel so small in front of all that force of nature.
We also planned a boat trip along the ice floes and the glacier here. But unfortunately, that was canceled due to the wind. So, I have to make do with the lookout point, and I can only very much agree with the cancellation. The winds are so strong!
Fantastic hike: Múlagljúfur Canyon
Also about a twenty-minute drive from Jökulsárlón is the Múlagljúfur Canyon. Most people unjustly skip this canyon. Or maybe that’s not so bad. Because now I have the Múlagljúfur Canyon almost to myself.
From the parking lot, you hike up to the viewpoint of the canyon in about 45 minutes to an hour. You can go even higher, but if we look at the photos online, this actually seems to be the most beautiful place. No need to climb further. From the stone on the ‘plateau’, the Múlagljúfur Canyon is truly breathtakingly beautiful. Waterfalls flow here in the summer; in April, everything is still frozen.
On the way back, we discover we did not follow the official trail. We already thought it was strange we had to cross a small river with ice – that did not go so smoothly. Secretly, the wrong trail was more beautiful. Closer to the ravine, so also scarier. I thought several times that the trail wasn’t suitable for people with a fear of heights (me!) and have regularly doubted whether it was a good idea to continue the hike in so much wind. So the path is marked for a reason – poorly marked, admittedly.
The black waterfall Svartifoss
If you have some more time, you can drive to the Svartifoss waterfall. It is about a 45-minute drive from Jökulsárlón. Hopefully, you are not yet waterfall-tired after a few days in Iceland. And if you are, then go anyway. Because Svartifoss is unique.
We walk steadily and arrive at the waterfall in about 25 minutes. Quite tough with the headwind and also because it is quite steep. Incidentally, there are more hiking trails here, but we only come for Svartifoss. The waterfall is about 20 meters high and has columns of black basalt. The shape (hexagonal) comes when lava cools very slowly so that the molten rock crystallizes. In early April, the basalt columns are accompanied by enormous icicles.
More Iceland inspiration?
Useful links for your Iceland trip
- Accommodation. Favorite remains Booking.com. Would you rather stay in a hostel? Check Hostelworld.
- Activities. Book the best tours and activities at GetYourGuide, Klook and Viator. ‘Free’ walking tours can be booked at Freetour.com or GuruWalk.
- Car rental. If you want to compare more prices, try Discover Cars and Rentalcars.com.
- Guidebooks. I like paper travel guides to flip through, available for sale Amazon and others.
- SIM card. Beware of unexpectedly high phone and internet costs. Buy a local SIM card when you arrive, or arrange one online via Airalo.
- Flights. Compare all your options! Be sure to check out Trip, Skyscanner, and Kiwi.
- Package deals. Rather go on a catered trip? See what Expedia or CheapOair has on offer.
- Yoga retreat or horseback riding vacation. Or treat yourself to a yoga retreat in Iceland or a horseback riding vacation.
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First published: August 2024 The article has been updated since.
