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By Monika

Best glacier hikes in Iceland – top tours + tips for a great experience.

Glacier hiking is one of the most popular activities on Iceland’s glaciers and one of the best ways to see them up close. Walking on top of these massive natural wonders is likely a bucket list activity for many travelers to Iceland, so in this article I’ll share our glacier hiking and ice climbing experience on two different glaciers. 

I hope it will give you a sense of what you can expect and enough information to decide if this is something you’d like to try. I definitely highly recommend a glacier hike – it was one of the highlights of our first trip to Iceland!

I will also share some of the best glacier hikes in Iceland and the best tours to book, including the tours we took.

So read on to see how we did!

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Glacier hikes in Iceland

Glacier hikes are offered on many glaciers in Iceland, the most popular being Solheimajökull – the most accessible and the closest glacier to Reykjavik, located on the South Coast of Iceland, and Vatnajökull – the largest ice cap in Iceland and also Europe’s largest glacier with its various outlet glaciers.

The tours are usually organized in small groups so that everyone has the full attention of the glacier guide.

Here is a map of the two most popular glacier hike tours locations:

Tours on Solheimajökull glacier depart from the glacier’s parking lot and tours on Vatnajökull glacier usually have a meeting point either at the Skaftafel Visitor’s Center (Skaftafellsstofa) or at the Tröll Expeditions Skaftafell base parking lot.

You typically have to drive to the meeting point, but there are some tours from Reykjavik that incorporate glacier hikes in their itinerary. More on tours at the end of this article.

For more information about the glaciers in Iceland and how to get to them plus essential safety tips, read THIS COMPLETE GUIDE!

Best time of year for glacier hikes

Glacier tours are usually available all year unless poor weather conditions cause cancellations to keep everyone safe. 

Helpful hint: if you’re new to using and wearing crampons and other glacier hiking gear, you may want to book your tour in the summer, or at least not in the dead of winter. I was told by our guide that the glacier can be like a sheet of ice in the winter so it’s a lot easier to get some traction during your hike in warmer months, when the snow is a little softer. 

What to wear on a glacier hike in Iceland?

To be comfortable during your hike you need warm waterproof and windproof clothing, worn in layers.

If your tour is in the warmer months, you most likely will not need snow pants, but you definitely do not want to have jeans on either.

You want a waterproof flexible pair of pants or leggings, in which you can move freely, and which will also keep you dry if you fall or in case of a rainy day. You can also wear a lightweight pair of rain pants over the pair you have on.

It is also possible to rent the waterproof gear from the tour company.

The temperature on the glacier is about the same as at its base, which was for some reason a surprise to us! Somehow, we expected it to be much colder at the top. It is usually not the case, so you don’t need to wear any more layers than what you’d wear at the base.

As you will see from the photos of our hike, we had a beautiful day and were shedding layers as we went – we didn’t even need our jackets!

Don’t forget your gloves! Holding an ice pick in your bare hands if not fun…

You also want to bring a day backpack to keep some extra layers in (or for the layers you will remove!) and it’s a really good idea to bring snacks and water.

Important! You need a pair of sturdy ankle high hiking boots for this hike. If you don’t have your own, you can rent them from the tour company. If you have them, the guides will check them and make sure they are acceptable for putting the crampons over them before you start the hike. If they aren’t, for safety reasons you’ll have to rent them from your tour operator for a small extra fee.

You can also just plan to rent them while booking your tour if you’re not going to bring a pair of your own. That’s what we did – we didn’t have any big hikes planned during our first trip, so we just packed our trail sneakers. It’s a convenient option if you want to pack light.

For more help with packing for Iceland check out my practical, budget-friendly packing list that I use each time I travel there!

Our glacier hiking experience

We booked our glacier hike tour on Sólheimajökull glacier as we mostly explored South Iceland during our first trip. On the day of our tour the weather was gorgeous with glorious sunshine, clear skies, and warm temperatures.

As we drove from our apartment in Kópavogur, we passed lush green hills with sheep roaming free and stopped to greet some Icelandic horses on the way. Just that was a real treat!

As we were getting closer, we could also see the glacier from the road.

Getting to the meeting point was very easy, we just followed rt. 1 until we saw a sign for a left turn to Solheimajökull.

And of course, we couldn’t resist taking more photos with the glacier!

After a few minutes more of driving on the winding road, we got to the parking lot. 

At the time of us taking this tour in 2022, it was just a big patch of gravel with a couple of school buses converted into the check-in points for Arctic Adventures and Tröll Expeditions tour companies and a row of portable toilets. The school buses are still there but the lot is now paved, and it also has a very nice Icelandic Mountain Guides base building with real, clean restrooms. 

There is a 1000 ISK parking fee that you can pay with the Parka.is app.

Once there, we checked in with the guides from the big yellow school bus marked with our tour company’s name (we used Arctic Adventures). 

We were given all the necessary equipment: harnesses, helmets, ice axes, and crampons, and then followed our guide to the trail for the glacier. 

We stopped by the glacier lagoon where we got instructions on how to properly lace up the crampons on our boots. 

Then we started our glacier adventure. The guides prepare the “stairs” for the tours ahead of time, so that it’s easier for us to hike to the top. 

It was an awesome, magical experience. The views were incredible, and the walk fast enough to make progress but at the same time easy enough to stop for photos and enjoy the fact that we were actually on top of this magnificent natural wonder.

Our guide shared a lot of information about the glacier, its formation and – sadly – why it’s retreating.

We saw different ice formations and even some deep crevasses.  That is also one of the reasons while you need a knowledgeable guide with you, familiar with the area – you do not want to fall into one of them!

The hike lasted about two hours, and it went by really fast. Once we got back to the parking lot, we returned the equipment, changed out of our waterproof clothes and were ready to continue our day! 

Check out our “6 days in Iceland itinerary” to see what else we did that day, and my “Guide to Iceland’s South Coast” for other amazing things to see and do near the glacier!

A glacier hike is a great introduction to this dazzling landscape. It’s not too physically demanding and also good for families with children. The age minimum requirement is usually 8 or 10 years old, depending on the tour company. You can also choose the length and difficulty level of your hike, specified in the tour’s description.

Sólheimajökull glacier hike tours

Here are some options of Sólheimajökull glacier hike tours, both as separate tours and combined with some other incredible sights on Iceland’s south coast.

Because of this glacier’s convenient location, you can book your tour with pick-up from Reykjavik or meet your guide on location.

• Sólheimajökull: Guided Glacier Hike
• Guided Sólheimajökull Glacier Hike – both of these tours are about 3 hours long, but they have slightly different start times so you can choose which one fits your travel schedule better. They both also start from the glacier’s parking lot.

• Reykjavík: Iconic Glacier Hike, South Coast & Waterfalls – this tour offers pick up from Reykjavik and also includes stops at other beautiful attractions of the South Coast.
• Reykjavik: Glacier Hike, South Coast Waterfalls & Black Sand Beach – similar tour to the one above, with different South Coast stops.
• Private Glacier Hike Experience – a great option if you are looking for a solo hiking experience.

Vatnajökull glacier hike tours

Below, you’ll find your options for Vatnajökull glacier hike tours (often just named “Skaftafell glacier hike”).

Due to its location on the Ring Road, day tours from Reykjavik are not possible. You’ll have to drive to the meeting point, usually also located along the Ring Road and always clearly stated in the tour description.

• Skaftafell National Park: Falljokull Glacier Easy Hike – a 3-hour easy glacier walk suitable even for children over 8 years old.
• Skaftafell: Half-Day Vatnajökull National Park Glacier Hike – a 4-hour glacier hike.
• Skaftafell National Park: Falljokull Glacier Advanced Hike – a 5-hour tour with more time spent hiking on the glacier.
• Skaftafell: Vatnajökull Glacier Explorer Tour – a more advanced 5.5-hour hike, with a minimum age of 14 years old.

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Ice Climbing

If you’re ready for more, try ice climbing! 

It’s another fun, unique experience – a step above the glacier hike, as far as excitement level. You do not need any prior climbing experience, and it can be a great family adventure. Most tours have the minimum age requirement of 12 years old.

Our ice climbing experience:

We booked the ice climbing tour specifically per our teenage son’s request as it was on his Iceland wish list since we stepped on a glacier for the first time the year before. 

We chose the Skaftafel ice climbing tour with Tröll Expeditions because it worked the best with our Ring Road itinerary and also because we wanted to see a different glacier.

Plus – who wouldn’t want to climb on the biggest Icelandic glacier and the main attraction of the Vatnajökull National Park, right?

The meeting point for the tour was Tröll Expeditions Skaftafel – a large parking lot, located about 20 minutes (18 km) from Skaftafel Visitor Center.

It is easily accessible from the Ring Road, about 1.5 hours (120 km) from Höfn and 4.5 hours (340 km) from Reykjavik.

Once we checked in, we got our equipment – helmets, harnesses, ice picks and crampons. We were also given special ice-climbing boots. Unlike the hiking tours, for this activity, they were included and simply a part of the proper equipment required for your safety.

Then we got on the bus and drove to the glacier base. It took about 15 minutes. In the parking area we were split into appropriate groups and took off with our guides.

The hike to the base was a little longer than on Solheimajökull, but finally, we reached the spot where we put our crampons on and started the hike to the top of the glacier.

After a short uphill hike, we reached our climbing spot. 

There was another guide already there with a rope all set and ready for the first brave soul to climb! After a tutorial on the basics of ice climbing and a demonstration, we all took turns. 

In the meantime, the second guide secured a second rope so that two people could go at the same time.

I was wondering if we were going to have enough time to climb and enough chances to try it but let me tell you – there were plenty of opportunities and we all had our fill of it! As I mentioned earlier, you don’t need any prior experience – this was our first ice-climbing adventure, and it was so much fun! A bit challenging at the beginning but so rewarding! 

And even waiting for your turn was enjoyable – we had a fun group and together we watched others go while exchanging our Iceland experiences. Time went by fast and even a little bit of rain that started to fall didn’t spoil the experience.

After we all declared we were done climbing, we hiked a little higher up the glacier and were able to admire incredible views of the area.

At one of the crevasses, some of us did “glacier push-ups” and we were all able to drink some of the purest water straight from the glacial stream!

Then we hiked back down, got on the bus, and headed back to the base.

We realized that 4 hours had passed, and we barely even noticed! This was a really great experience and I highly recommend trying it!

Vatnajökull glacier ice climbing tours:

Here are some great Skaftafel ice climbing tour choices:

• Skaftafell National Park: Falljokull Ice Climb and Hike – this is the tour we did and we loved it!
• Glacier Xtreme – Glacier Hike & Ice Climbing Tour – a longer tour with more climbing time.

Sólheimajökull glacier ice-climbing tours:

Below you’ll find tour options for ice climbing on Sólheimajökull glacier:

• Reykjavik/Sólheimajökull: Glacier Hiking & Ice Climbing Trip – this tour departs from Reykjavik or you can meet your guide in the glacier parking lot.
• Sólheimajökull Ice Climbing Tour – this is a similar tour, with a “meet on location” option.

Is it worth it to take a glacier tour in Iceland?

In my opinion – 100%. Yes, they can be expensive but the opportunity to walk on an Icelandic glacier is a bucket list item for most visitors. So if it fits your travel budget, I consider glacier hikes an experience definitely worth splurging on.

For more details about THE GLACIERS OF ICELAND, including essential safety tips PLUS other fun glacier experiences, read this detailed guide!

Hopefully I inspired you to try at least one of those activities during your next trip to Iceland.

And don’t forget to visit a glacier lagoon!

FAQ:

👉 Don’t forget TRAVEL INSURANCE! I don’t travel without it. Get a quote from my personal #1 choice – Travel Guard – or check more options here!

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