Glacier Hiking At Vatnajokull National Park

If hiking in a glacier is on your bucket list, you have arrived at the right place. In this guide, I will share with you everything you need to know to plan and spend a perfect day while Glacier Hiking at Vatnajokull National Park.

IMPORTANT: It is very dangerous to go on a glacier hike on your own. If you are planning on hiking on a glacier during your next trip to Iceland, please book a tour with an expert guide.

GLACIER HIKING IN ICELAND

Iceland has two main glaciers where you can go hiking: Vatnajökull Glacier and Sólheimajökull Glacier.

SÓLHEIMAJÖKULL GLACIER

Sólheimajökull is one of the “tongues” or outlets of Mýrdalsjökull Glacier just 158 km away from Reykjavík. Due to its close location to Reykjavík, it is the most popular glacier for a day trip from the capital.

VATNAJÖKULL GLACIER

Vatnajökull is the largest glacier in Europe, covering approximately 10 % of Iceland’s surface. It has a total of 30 outlets or tongues of ice but these days the glacier hikes are done in the Falljökull outlet.

We chose to do our hike in Vatnajökull because it suited best our itinerary in Iceland but the experience will be the same whichever you choose.

GETTING TO VATNAJÖKULL NATIONAL PARK

All glacier hike tours begin next to Skaftafell National Park parking lot and visitors center.

Skaftafell National Park is located in the south of Iceland, next to Route 1 (aka the ring road).

Driving from Reykjavík is 325 km (~4 hours and 30 minutes).
Driving from Hofn is 135 km (~1 hour and 40 minutes).

The best way to reach Skaftafell Visitors Center is by renting a car and driving there yourself. This will allow you to plan your own schedule and you might even decide to make it a road trip with some other stops along the way.

If driving is not your thing, it is best that you book you hike in Sólheimajökull Glacier. There are several day tours from Reykjavik that include transportation to and from the glacier. Most hikes in Vatnajökull do not include transportation.

PRACTICAL INFORMATION ABOUT THE HIKE

BOOK YOUR ACTIVITY

It is possible to go glacier hiking all year round, and there are many options and possibilities to book your activity.

Half a day glacier hike. The activity lasts 3.5 – 4 hours in total, with around 1.5 hours on the ice.
Day glacier hike. The activity is around 6 hours in total, with 3 – 4 hours on the ice.
Ice cave hike. Hiking on the glacier and visiting the interior of an ice cave (only possible in the winter months).

We chose to do our activity with Icelandic Mountain Guides, but they canceled our reservation with no explanation 1 week in advance. We had to rebook it with Arctic Adventures last minute.

EQUIPMENT NEEDED

The following equipment is included when booking your activity:

Crampons
Helmet
Ice pick
Harness

On top of that, you will need to bring the following:

Sturdy hiking boots: If you don’t have these, you will be forced to rent proper hiking boots for an additional fee.
Warm layers, gloves and a hat

MY EXPERIENCE GLACIER HIKING AT VATNAJÖKULL NATIONAL PARK

GETTING GEARED UP & DRIVING TO THE GLACIER

The tour begins next to Skaftafell Visitor Center. You will have to be there more or less 20 minutes in advance to get all the necessary equipment. Our group was quite big but they divided us into 2 smaller groups of 15 people.

We arrived at the meeting point and the first thing we had to do is get our shoes checked to see if they were suitable for the crampons. Luckily our boots were ok and we didn’t have to rent hiking boots.

The next step was to get all geared up. We all got crampons, a helmet, an ice pick, and a harness. The harness we had to put it on immediately. We also had to give some emergency contact in case something happened during the activity.

Once this was done, we got into a huge bus and drove approximately 20 minutes to the Falljökull glacier outlet, where the hike was going to take place. In the past, the hikes were done in the closer Skaftafell Glacier and Svínafellsjökull Glacier. However, due to global warming, these glaciers have retreated and it is not safe anymore.

WALKING TO THE GLACIER & PUTTING THE EQUIPMENT ON

The bus dropped us in the Falljökull Parking Lot. From there, there was a 30-minute walk to the base of the Glacier. The walk was not very difficult but it gets a bit boring as there is not much to see.

Once we were at the bottom of the glacier, our guide explained how to put on the crampons. She also double checked everyone had done this correctly.

HIKING ON THE GLACIER

Once everyone was wearing the crampons, we started our hike in the glacier. At first, I was feeling a little bit insecure and worried I would slip on the ice. Thankfully, this didn’t last long, and I started to feel more comfortable on the ice.

The guide took us further up the glacier and explained some interesting facts about it. She also showed us, where to get fresh drinking water. It was amazing to be walking on a glacier!

Unfortunately, the excitement didn’t last long as a small kid in our group kept falling to the ground. Because of this, we could not go as far up the glacier as other groups did. It was a bit of a disappointment, and the activity felt really short.

CONCLUSION & PERSONAL OPINION

Looking back, it was a nice experience to be able to walk on a glacier and I think everyone should try it at least once in their life. However, if I were to do this again, I would book a complete day hike instead of a half-day one.

An hour and a half on the ice felt very short. It felt like we had just started walking when the guide said it was time to turn around and return.

I also got the feeling that the higher up you went, the more amazing it got. It would have been nice to be able to explore the glacier more.

OTHER THINGS TO DO NEAR VATNAJÖKULL

Here are some other things you can do while in the area of Skaftafell / Vatnajökull National Park.

Go for a hike in Skaftafell National Park. If after hiking on the glacier you still feel like walking some more, Skaftafell has some really nice hiking trails. I did the S3 Skaftafellsheidi trail and it was amazing!
Hike to Svartifoss Waterfall. This beautiful waterfall with basalt columns behind it is something else!
Admire the glacier from Fjallsarlon Glacier Lagoon. Most people visit Jokulsarlon Glacier Lagoon (I did too) but there is another beautiful less known glacier lagoon in Iceland.

ACCOMMODATION NEAR VATNAJÖKULL NATIONAL PARK

The area around Skaftafell is not very populated, and you will certainly need to drive a little bit to reach it. Here are some places to stay near Skaftafell, depending on your budget.

Skaftafell Campground (€)

If you are visiting Iceland on a low budget, consider renting a camper and spending the night at one of the many campsites throughout the country, such as Skaftafell Campground.

Litla Hof Guesthouse (€€)

If camping is not for you, then I recommend sleeping in a guesthouse with a private bedroom but a shared bathroom. We spent two nights at Litla-Hof Guesthouse, and we were very happy.

Photos from Booking.com

Fosshotel Glacier Lagoon (€€€)

If you have some extra money to splurge, then why not treat yourself to a stay at this hotel with a spa? We didn’t actually stay here, but we did have dinner at its restaurant. The food was delicious and the hotel looked quite nice.