Snaefellsnes Peninsula / West Iceland

West Iceland, and more specifically the Snaefellsnes Peninsula, is an underrated area in Iceland. Rick Steves, who I consider the undisputed godfather of European trip planning, barely mentions this area. Other guidebooks do but don’t seem too thrilled by it. I think people are missing the boat. Snaefellsnes is essentially Iceland in miniature: mountains, waterfalls, an icecap, a Highlands style F-Road, black sand beaches, and unique rock formations. However, this area is small so you can see a lot in a short period of time. This makes Snaefellsnes an ideal place to explore for families because you don’t have to commit to long drives in the car.

To give you a sense of what is in the area, I am going to give brief descriptions of every place we visited as well as a quick overview of landing at KEF airport.

Route Overview

Below you will find a Google Maps view of the sites I will discuss in this post. This should give you a sense of where everything is located. Additionally, this should illustrate just how much you’re able to see in a small time in this area.

Landing at KEF

The Keflavik airport is surprisingly small. Particularly given the sheer number of American tourists who descend upon the island. Fun fact, there are more yearly American tourists to Iceland than its population. Despite that fact, getting through immigration was quick and painless. Once we had our bags, we headed for the rental car area.

If you follow the signs to the rental car area, you actually walk in the opposite direction. For whatever reason, the airport directs you to walk a long way to grab a bus that backtracks to the rental car counters. Therefore, I would recommend just grabbing your bags and walking to the counters instead.

Kornid Bakari

All flights to Iceland from North America land pretty early in the morning. Ours landed at 7am. The airline does give you a very, very light breakfast prior to landing (read: yogurt and fruit), but it wasn’t enough to keep my stomach from growling. So I thought I’d share about this little bakery we found close to the airport. They have a full breakfast that was very similar to a “full English breakfast” that had eggs, bacon, bread, and baked beans. All the things a growing boy needs. Once our bellies were full, we began our vacation in earnest.

Bridge Between Two Continents

Everyone who visits Iceland lands at KEF airport on the Reykjanes Peninsula. Therefore, while this area isn’t the most exciting in the country, you should likely see a few sights once you land since you’re there. The first stop is the Bridge between Two Continents. This is a minor site that is close to the airport. This site marks the rift between the two plates with a bridge over the miniature rift valley. The site is free and there’s no restriction to where you can walk. So the boys had a blast running and climbing around the dried lava and black sand. It makes a great first stop, allowing you to stretch your legs after such a long time in a tube. About 15 to 20 minutes is all you need here.

Blue Lagoon

The most famous site in the Reykjanes Peninsula is the Blue Lagoon. My family didn’t go, but I wanted to address why we didn’t go. First, the Blue Lagoon requires prebooking. This means you must select a day and time when you are going to go ahead of time. So that’s hard to commit to, especially if you aren’t planning on staying close to the area. Another turn off is it’s really, really flippin’ expensive. For a family of four, its about $160 to $200 for a single visit, depending on what package you select. That was too much for me to swallow, especially given the final problem. This admission probably makes me a terrible parent, but my kids have never been in a hot tub before. So I was not willing to gamble up to $200 just to find out they wanted to leave after 5 minutes.

Graenavatn

This is a little lake right off the side of the road about a 40 minute drive from the Bridge site. The name literally means “Green Water” in Icelandic. I’ll let you figured out why it’s called that. There is a small parking lot area where you can pull off and take a photo. The view is pretty, but there’s not much else to keep you here longer than a couple of minutes.

Kleifarvatn

Another pretty lake view, about 5 minutes from the prior stop. I like this view slightly better. And there are a few sandy beaches around the shoreline if you wanted to walk around. For us, just snapping a few photos was enough time.

Deildartunguhver

Leaving the roadside lakes, we decided to start heading towards the general direction of Snaefellsnes, our ultimate destination for the evening. But we decided to detour to see a couple of West Iceland sites, beginning with the Deildartunguhver hot springs. These are the most powerful hot springs in Europe, pumping around 50 gallons/second of boiling hot water out of the earth. With a description like that, you’d expect this place to be huge. It was not. Nonetheless, it was still worth a quick stop. The boiling water throws off a massive steam cloud. You can feel the heat of the water as you stand next to the protective railing around the site. 5 to 10 minutes is all you need here and the site is free.

Barnafossar and Hraunfossar

These two waterfalls are right next to each other, about a 20 minute drive east of the hot springs. You’ll see Hraunfossar first. The name means “Lava Waterfalls.” The falls look like a collection of tiny bridal veils. These are actually several small streams flowing out of the dried lava and into the river. About 100 yards upstream you’ll find Barnafossar, or “Children’s Waterfall.” According to local legend, two children died here, hence the name. I’m happy to report my two boys made it out of our visit alive. Barnafossar is a more traditional waterfall, but it is harder to get a clean view of it as it is tucked away in the surrounding rock.

Both are free to see with a large parking lot adjoining them. There are also pay toilets there. Be aware, though, that like most sights close to Reykjavik, it was mobbed with tour groups. They were still worth about a 20 minute or so stop.

Snaefellsnes AirBnB

After the falls, we decided to drive to our AirBnB in Stykkisholmur on the Snaefellsnes Peninsula (SP), about a 2 hour drive. On the way, we did stop at a gas station in Borgarnes that had a Quiznos at it. Whoa! I can’t remember the last time I ate at Quiznos in the US, but it was amazing. But I digress.

I linked to the AirBnB we stayed at above (I don’t get a commission). This place was great, I can’t recommend it enough. Perfectly clean, plenty of room (3 bedrooms), a fully stocked kitchen, and a nice bathroom. Everything you would want from an amazing AirBnB stay. Additionally, I’ll add that the deck was completely finished with a grill and a hot tub on it. I could not have been happier with the fully detached house. And Stykkisholmur made the perfect base for exploring the SP. There’s a pizza joint and a Bonus grocery store right down the street.

Berserkjahraun

We began our Day 2 sites with a bang, going to a dried, moss covered lava field named Berserkjahraun. I honestly don’t remember why we decided to go here. It was only listed in 1 guidebook for about a sentence. But we loved it! You turn off the main road 55 onto a lightly signed dirt road, road 558. From the primary highway, it looks like you’re driving into a dead end. But the road curves around into the middle of a vast lava field. About 5 minutes in, I was able to find a pull off where we could stop and get out of the car.

As you can see from the photos above, the boys had the time of their lives running around on the dried lava. It’s moments like these that make the time, effort, and money to travel the world with young children completely worth it. The lava rocks made natural peaks and valleys creating a maze-like feel. And with the lava covered in a thick layer of moss, when the boys fell, they didn’t get hurt. Seriously, I can’t recommend this site enough. The boys would have stayed out there for hours. Best of all, we were alone. In total, a visit here takes up about an hour between driving on the slow-to-drive dirt road and roaming the rocks. Oh, one last thing. The rest of the trip, the boys were able to pick out dried lava by sight, even my 4 year old.

Grundarfoss

Upon leaving the lava fields, we decided to stop about 15 minutes down the road. Located there was a little car park that marked the trail head of the hike to Grundarfoss waterfall. This waterfall is not listed in any guidebook. But it is listed on Google Maps, which is how I learned of its existence. Once again, I highly recommend this site.

To get to the waterfall, it’s about a one mile hike from the car park (2 miles round trip). And let me tell you, it’s a great hike. The hike takes you through an Icelandic horse farm with at least a dozen horses. Additionally, the hike is in a treeless valley, affording you unobstructed views the whole time. Finally, it even requires you to use stepping stones to ford a couple of very shallow streams. Needless to say, the boys absolutely loved this hike. And since the hike was basically flat the majority of the way, they were able to run ahead without any danger.

Are there better sites on the SP? Absolutely! But this was a great family adventure that the boys loved. That’s why I recommend staying 3 nights in the SP so that you can see a minor, deserted site like this as well as the big ticket items I’ll address later in this post.

Kirkjufell

After the falls, we stopped in a little town named Grundarfjordour for gas, food, and snacks at the grocery store Samkaup. With full bellies and a full tank, we drove about 2 to 3 minutes to the next site: Kirkjufell. Its name means “church mountain.” If you’ve even done a cursory image search for Iceland, you’ve seen a photo of this mountain. I read that it is the most photographed mountain in the country. And for good reason! It’s easily accessible, comes with a bonus waterfall in front, and is such an unusual shape.

I would recommend parking on the east side of the bridge (the side closest to the town). This is further away from the waterfalls, but the lot is far less crowded and you get a bonus, unobstructed view of the mountain. Remember, this is the most photographed mountain in Iceland. You will not be alone. So the main parking lot may be full anyway with cars and buses, as it was with us.

Once you’re at the falls, named Kirkjufellfoss, what you can do. The waterfall itself is not that impressive, it’s location is. But you can walk down onto a little island that’s in the middle of the falls and get some good photos, as you’ll see above. To get “THE SHOT” of the waterfalls in front of the mountain, simply walk to the top of the falls and get to the southern edge. Finally, if you parked where I did, I’d walk back to your car via a path that takes you around the southern shore of the lake. This gives you more great views of the mountain and gets you away from the crowds. In all, I’d estimate about 45 minutes here at this must see stop.

F570 / Snaefellsjokull

Leading away from the mountain, road 54 turns into road 574. Once on 574 you are quickly presented with a decision: stay on 574 and circle around the “fist” of the peninsula or take F570 up the mountain. We chose the road less traveled.

For the uninitiated, an F road is a 4×4 mandatory, unpaved road in Iceland. These roads are typically in the Highlands, but others can be found all over the country. You absolutely need to have a 4×4, it’s actually the law. All F roads are really rough, but they can lead to some amazing places. F570 was no exception. The road takes you close to the top of the mountain named Snaefellsjokull, the entire peninsula’s namesake.

On the day we went, it was really cloudy and misty at the top of the mountain. But that didn’t ruin our time. There were still expansive, desolate views to be seen below the cloud line. And then once we got to the top, there were several pockets of ice. Of course we called them glaciers for the kids, but I doubt they would qualify. Regardless, it was deserted at the top so we just pulled over and walked around on one of the icecaps. Of course the kids absolutely loved this. In all, we spent about an hour on this detour. You cannot go very fast on these roads (maybe 20 to 25mph tops), so the going will be slow. But 100% worth it and a good appetizer for the F roads all over the Highlands.

Songhellir Cave

F570 tumbles down from the peak of Snaefellsjokull back toward the shore. Before it reaches flat ground and pavement, it passes what’s called Songhellir Cave, or “singing cave.” The cave is supposed to have an intense echo…i guess more so than every other cave on earth? In actuality, its about 5 or 6 caves all in a line. To be totally honest, I couldn’t figure out which cave had the amazing echo as it’s not labeled. But the boys had a blast going into each cave and screaming into them. Certainly not a must see site. But F570 literally drives over the caves, so if you have a few minutes to spare you can stop and see them. Additionally, the views from the car park down the coastline might actually be better than the caves.

Djupalonssandur

With our descent of the mountain complete, we turned right (west) onto road 574. This stretch of the peninsula is loaded with sites. You almost can’t go wrong here. We decided to start with the farthest one away and backtrack to the others. So we drove about 20 minutes to the black sand beach named Djupalonssandur.

From the free car park (with toilets), it is about a 10 minute walk through pretty, jagged formations of dried lava to reach the beach. This is a very pretty black sand beach essentially walled in by jagged rock formations on all sides. Admittedly, it is more of a black rock beach as the beach is primarily comprised of large, smooth pebbles. But man is it pretty. And if you look away from the water, you see Snaefellsjokull, the mountain you conquered earlier in the day, staring down at you imposingly. Also of note, there was a boat that crashed here some years ago whose wreckage is still strewn all over the place. This definitely adds some ambiance to the proceedings.

In all, I’d allow about 45 minutes here, give or take, and I’d definitely recommend adding it to your itinerary. There are other, more touted black sand beaches on the island. But this was our favorite. And boys were blissfully unaware of the beauty around them as they threw rocks into the ocean.

Londranger

The last three sites we saw were all variations on a theme: SP’s beautiful coastline. The first was a view of the sea stack Londranger. As with most sites in the area, there was a large, free car park. From the car park, if you walk to the top of the hill you are rewarded with fine views of the rock formation to the West. After you’ve had your fill with picture taking, it’s time to reload the family truckster and hit the next site.

Arnarstapi Cliffs & Gatklettur

The last two sites can be visited from the same, free parking lot. Both are minor sites that will only require about 5 minutes each, but I’d still say worth it.

The Cliffs’ viewpoint is a wooden platform that allows you to get great view east and west along the shoreline. Here, the shoreline is defined by short cliffs and a sprinkling of basalt columns. The boys loved posing for photos on the railings. To the east is Gatklettur, a pretty sea arch showing off shades of yellow and green. Neither site is a show stopper, but if the weather is perfect (which it was for us) and the setting sun is hitting the cliffs (which it was for us), these are easy sites to hit on your way back to the AirBnB.

Missed Sites

I’m just going to come right out and say it: we missed a ton of sites on the Snaefellsnes peninsula. I’ve marked them on the Google Map embedded at the beginning of this post. This is why I would highly recommend spending 3 nights in the area. The sites I regretted missing the most were: Vatnshellir Cave, Rauðfeldsgjá Gorge, and Saxhóll Crater. Obviously, do you own research on any of my missed sights and come up with an itinerary. The peninsula is such a beautiful corner of Iceland and the sites are so close together that you almost can’t go wrong.

In my next post, I am going to cover my time in North Iceland / Myvatn area. I hope you enjoyed this post.