7 Must See Waterfalls In Iceland
I love waterfalls, there’s something so powerful yet calming about them I think, and Iceland has an abundance of INCREDIBLE waterfalls, and I’m a strong believer that you need to stop and marvel at as many as possible. We visited 7 amazing waterfalls in our week long road trip and they’re ones I recommend you don’t skip out on.
Because of the recent rainfall and the snow melting, the waterfalls we’re much more powerful than I had seen in pictures and YouTube videos, but this I think added to the experience.
Seljalandsfoss
What sets this waterfall apart from the rest we visited is the fact that you can walk behind it. It’s so worth walking behind, as long as you’re prepared to get absolutely drenched, I’d definitely recommend bringing spare clothes, all the way down to undies, especially if you plan to go to the next waterfall as well! The path behind is very slippery and fairly unstable in some places, definitely a walk requiring walking boots and concentration, on the left hand side of the waterfall is a rocky slope you have to climb, which when wet is almost impossible, I would say you need to climb up this as opposed to down.
The car park here is 500 ISK (about £3), however, it’s not a number plate system and lasts all day, so what seemed to be the norm is people giving out their tickets to people arriving as they left, or at least this is what happened to us. There’s also toilet facilities and some food trucks.
In my 17 year old sister’s words: “Waterfall good”
I would also recommend walking along from Seljalandsfoss to the next waterfall:
Gljufrabui
This was one of my favourite waterfalls. It’s hidden in a cavern just along from Seljalandsfoss, You have to scramble through a stream over some questionable stepping stones whilst gripping to the walls. For this, I’d almost suggest wellies, however, waterproof shoes/boots are plenty sufficient. You’re able to get closer to this fall than any of the others on this list so it’s worth getting a sock wet if you ask me. When we got there, there was a pretty unruly ‘queue’, if I can really call it that, you just sort of have to wait around for a moment when people are unsure about who’s next or what to do and jump in first. We both got soaked but the photos and experience were worth it, and I’d recommend climbing the big rock on the right hand side for an even better view.
Svartifoss
We walked to Svartifoss as part of a trip to the Skaftafell Glacier, the route we had initially planned to do was closed due to a crazy amount of rainfall the few days prior. Instead we did two separate walks, the routes s1 and s2, the latter being the waterfall walk. We saw three waterfalls on this hike, which is a 5.5km round trip (around 1.5hrs); Svartifoss, Magnúsarfoss and Hundafoss. Although it absolutely chucked it down, I really liked this waterfall hike, and I was very happy as I got to fill up my Grayl Geopress for the first time as the water was so refreshing. We definitely should’ve packed spare clothes for this walk too due to the rain, however you’re not guaranteed to get soaked unlike Seljalandsfoss.
Parking here is done by number plates so make sure you know your rental’s plate and costs 750 ISK (around £4.50). From the car park you can do glacial hikes (sadly this wasn’t in the budget this time but hopefully on a return trip we can); there’s a toilet block and there’s a visitors centre where you could learn about the glacier and buy some souvenirs.
Stjornafoss
This was probably my favourite waterfall we visited almost solely because we had it all to ourselves despite it being Easter Sunday and everywhere else we visited this day was packed. Due to the recent rainfall, the falls were so loud and powerful, it was amazing. Despite it being visible from the road, it seems like very few people stop off here as there were no signs really; the car park wasn’t marked however another visitor parked in it as we started to leave so maybe it was because of the bank holiday it wasn’t busy.
There was a small island in the stream that Reilly and I managed to scramble onto to take some closer photos and I’d recommend it if you don’t mind the possibility of getting a sock wet. I’d also say this would be the perfect picnic spot as there’s a large grassy area overlooking the falls without the chance of getting sprayed.
Skogafoss
I wish we’d done the walk from the top of Skogafoss that carried on to more waterfalls upstream, however, we were very tired and hungry from the previous walk we’d done that day and wanted our lunch! There are two main things I’d note about this waterfall: it’s INCREDIBLY crowded and this makes the already sketchy steps to the top even more precarious!
The climb to the top up a steep, rickety metal stairway was pretty unnerving at points as it was swaying side to side with the weight of people passing, going both ways even though it wasn’t much wider than a regular staircase you’d find in your own homes. There was also only a railing on one side but it changed sides halfway up, just as it was staring to get slippery from the waterfall spray which wasn’t ideal, however, the view from the top was incredible!
When we were planning our trip to Iceland, I was desperate to visit Skogafoss and get a ‘Renee Roaming’ inspired Instagram picture, sadly it was not possible, mostly due to the fact that I’m very definitely not a professional photographer (not yet at least, fingers crossed that one day I’ll be even as half as good); there were SO many people and the waterfall had a really fast flow on it. The fast flow did however, mean I got some BEAUTIFUL live action shots which are too funny not to share!
There are toilet facilities here and a restaurant. The toilets have an honesty box system of a 200 ISK donation, however, we didn’t have any cash during our entire stay as everywhere takes card so I did feel cheeky using the toilets but sometimes, you can’t avoid it! I also would like to mention that I didn’t see a single person out of the 10 person queue put money in the honesty box either, and it was the same for the male side apparently. If I’m to visit Skogafoss again however, I’m making sure I bring cash as it’s good to contribute to the upkeep of these places.
Gullfoss
Gullfoss, meaning ‘Golden Falls’, was by far the biggest waterfall we saw, in fact it has the largest volume of water of any waterfall in Europe.
Unfortunately, the lower footpath was closed due to it being icy, and from what I could gather, it’s closed most of the winter. I’ve already made plans to come back when that path is open.
Unlike the other waterfalls, Gullfoss offers a unique perspective, it can only be viewed from above. This creates a great atmosphere as you can only peer at the water tumbling into a narrow abyss, as you can’t see the bottom of the falls from the higher viewpoints.
Parking is free here, and there are two car parks. The upper car park has a large visitors centre and cafe/restaurant which we unfortunately didn’t have time to stop at for food.
Oxararfoss
This was the perfect spot to stop for some snacks, or even a whole picnic. We stopped and ate chocolate chip cookies, and of course I couldn’t miss the opportunity to fill up my water bottle again. The small deck offers a unique viewing platform and it allows you to stand above the stream of water flowing to the second stage of the falls. Although this waterfall isn’t as big as all the others, it’s slightly more tucked away from the Thingvellir National Park car park and most people seemed to only stop by the fall’s lower level, possibly because they didn’t know about the upper.
It was much more calming here than the other waterfalls and definitely a spot to recommend if you’re going to the National Park, which is too beautiful to miss in my opinion.
Parking here was free and there’s a small shop and cafe which we enjoyed some ice creams at, even if it was less than 10℃!
I still have so many more waterfalls on my list of things to visit and do in Iceland, this is just a list of the ones we managed to fit in to a weeks road trip along the South West coast of Iceland.
DISCLAIMER: This post is not sponsored, these are my honest opinions and product recommendations
