Our top pick447 reviews
13 hSólheimajökull Glacier Hike & Ice Climbing Intro
★ 4.8 · 447 reviews
- 13 hours, Crevasses and ice formations
- Optional intro to ice climbing
- Longest walk here
- Free cancellation
$209
Check availability→ 
Glacier walk Iceland
A glacier walk Iceland tour gives you crampons, a helmet and a certified guide. We compared 16 tours, from $101, with free cancellation and a top tour rated 4.8 across 447 reviews. Day trips from Reykjavík reach Sólheimajökull and its crevasses and ridges.
Price from
Guided walk$101
Today's lowest glacier walk across all 16 walks
Average rating
All 16 walks47
11,888 verified reviews across 16 walks
Your day
Shortest to longest25–13h
Shortest: Short Glacier Encounter
Longest: Sólheimajökull Glacier
Free cancellation 24 h
Small groups
Mobile voucher
Crampons and helmet supplied
Instant confirmation
Certified glacier guides
Everything you can book here
Every guided glacier walk in south Iceland
Sixteen walks on four tongues of ice — Sólheimajökull within reach of Reykjavík, Falljökull and Vatnajökull at Skaftafell, and the ice above Jökulsárlón. Crampons, helmet and harness come with every one of them. Prices from $101, private walks at the end.
1,962 reviewsWalk and cave
4 hIce Cave Tour and Glacier Hike
★ 4.5 · 1 962 reviews
- Four hours, Natural ice cave on Falljökull
- Licensed guide and glacier gear
- Bestseller
- Free cancellation
$162
Check availability→ 
1,655 reviewsFrom Reykjavík
11 hGlacier Hike, Waterfall and Black Sand Beach
★ 4.8 · 1 655 reviews
- 11 hours, Seljalandsfoss and Reynisfjara on route
- Minibus from Reykjavík
- Likely to sell out
- Free cancellation
$188
Check availability→ 
Easiest walk here1,622 reviews
3 hFalljokull Glacier Easy Group Hike
★ 4.6 · 1 622 reviews
- Three hours, Frozen fractures of Vatnajökull
- Coffee and Icelandic chocolate after
- Day trip
- Free cancellation
$106
Check availability→ 
Blue ice1,357 reviews
4 hBlue Ice Glacier Hike on Vatnajökull
★ 4.7 · 1 357 reviews
- Four hours, Beginner friendly, no experience required
- 4x4 bus to the ice edge
- Guided tour
- Free cancellation
$106
Check availability→ 
Goes further in1,154 reviews
5 hFalljokull Glacier Advanced Hike
★ 4.8 · 1 154 reviews
- Five hours, Hike across the Vatnajökull ice cap
- How glaciers form, from the guide
- Day trip
- Free cancellation
$164
Check availability→ 
Starts at the lagoon1,008 reviews
4.5 hVatnajökull Glacier Guided Hiking Tour
★ 4.7 · 1 008 reviews
- 4.5 hours, Super jeep from the lagoon
- Crampons and helmet provided
- Guided tour
- Free cancellation
$134
Check availability→ 
Walk and cave848 reviews
4 hBlue Ice Cave & Glacier Hike on Vatnajökull
★ 4.6 · 848 reviews
- Four hours, Blue ice cave inside the glacier
- Twelve guests per guide maximum
- Day trip
- Free cancellation
$167
Check availability→ 
Rated 4.9Up to 8 people
3 hExtra-Small Group Glacier Hike
★ 4.9 · 526 reviews
- Three hours, Outlets of Europe's largest glacier
- Extra-small group on the ice
- Guided tour
- Free cancellation
$162
Check availability→ 
Lowest price at Skaftafell432 reviews
4.5 hSmall Group Blue Ice Glacier Hike on Vatnajökull
★ 4.7 · 432 reviews
- 4.5 hours, Striking blue ice on Vatnajökull
- Small group from Skaftafell
- Day trip
- Free cancellation
$105
Check availability→ 
Rated 5.0Goes furthest
6 hGlacier Hike to a Remote Ice Cave
★ 5.0 · 264 reviews
- Six hours, 4x4 to a remote ice cave
- Iceland's largest glacier on foot
- Guided tour
- Free cancellation
$285
Check availability→ 
Starts near Vík248 reviews
3 hGuided Sólheimajökull Glacier Hike
★ 4.7 · 248 reviews
- Three hours, Ice formations on Sólheimajökull
- Meet at the glacier car park
- Guided tour
- Free cancellation
$120
Check availability→ 
Shortest here4x4 transfer
2.5 hShort Glacier Encounter Walk with 4x4 Transfer
★ 4.8 · 219 reviews
- 2.5 hours, Easy walk onto the ice
- 4x4 transfer to the glacier
- Day trip
- Free cancellation
$121
Check availability→ 
Lowest price hereRated 4.8
5.5 hGuided Glacier Hike
★ 4.8 · 146 reviews
- 5.5 hours, Family walk, classic hike or longer
- Base camp by the car park
- Cheapest here
- Free cancellation
$101
Check availability→ 
Private groupYour party only
3 hSólheimajökull Private Glacier Walk with Guide
- Three hours, Crevasses, moulins and volcanic ash
- Private guide from the toll gate
- Private tour
- Free cancellation
$806
Check availability→ 
Private, south coastYour party only
3 hPrivate Sólheimajökull Glacier Hike
- Three hours, Crystal-blue ice with a private guide
- Trek across Sólheimajökull
- Private tour
- Free cancellation
$1,100
Check availability→ Two questions
Which Iceland glacier walk is yours?
Seen the sixteen above and still torn? There are really only four answers in south Iceland. Take the longest day and put an ice axe in your hand as well as crampons on your feet. Keep the price down and walk Sólheimajökull on its own. Add a blue ice cave, so the day goes inside the glacier as well as across it. Or let a minibus do the driving out of Reykjavík and back. Pick what matters and we will point at one.
See it before you pay for it
What the ice actually looks like under your boots
Two tongues, filmed. Sólheimajökull runs down off Mýrdalsjökull to a car park at the end of road 221, with ridges, moulins and layers of volcanic ash in the ice. Falljökull, above Skaftafell, is the blue-ice side: a 4x4 takes you to the edge and the crampons go on there.
Side by side
Sólheimajökull, Skaftafell blue ice, and the walks that add an ice cave
Three different days, and most people book before they know the difference. Sólheimajökull is the tongue you can reach and return from in one day out of Reykjavík. Skaftafell sits 320 km east, which is why its walks suit a night on the road. The cave walks put you inside the ice as well as on top of it.
Swipe the table sideways →
| Skaftafell blue ice | TOP PICKSólheimajökull Glacier Hike & Ice Climbing Intro | Blue Ice Cave & Glacier Hike on Vatnajökull | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Price per person | $106 | $209 | $167 |
| What it is | A guided walk on the blue ice of Vatnajökull | A day from Reykjavík with a walk and an ice climb | A guided walk plus a natural blue ice cave |
| Time it takes | 4 hours | 13 hours | 4 hours |
| Where you start | Skaftafell, 320 km east of Reykjavík | Reykjavík, the minibus does the driving | Skaftafell, 320 km east of Reykjavík |
| Where you end up | On the blue ice above the Skaftafell valley | On Sólheimajökull, with an axe in your hand | Inside the glacier as well as on top of it |
| Guide | Certified glacier guide | Certified glacier guide | Certified glacier guide |
| Gear supplied | Crampons, helmet, harness | Crampons, helmet, harness, axe, ropes | Crampons, helmet, harness |
| Getting there | Your own car, or a night on the road | Pick-up in Reykjavík, back the same night | Your own car, or a night on the road |
| Cancellation | Free up to 24 hours | Free up to 24 hours | Free up to 24 hours |
Verdict
Start on Sólheimajökull
It is the tongue almost everyone here should walk first, because it is the only one you can reach, walk and return from in a single day out of Reykjavík. Crampons, helmet, harness and a guide are in the price from $101. Only once that morning is booked does the four-hour drive east to Skaftafell and its blue ice become worth planning, and then the answer is usually yes.
Check dates and availability→Before you book
The ice is opened with a guide
An Icelandic outlet glacier is a moving surface: crevasses open, meltwater cuts moulins through it and snow bridges thin from one week to the next. That is why all sixteen walks on this page go with a certified glacier guide, and why crampons, a helmet and a harness are fitted at the ice edge and included in the fare rather than hired. The longest day adds an ice axe and ropes for the climbing introduction. What differs between the walks is the tongue, the length and whether the day also goes inside the ice.
Two-minute check
Which glacier walk fits your day in Iceland?
Three things decide it: where you sleep the night before, how long you want to be on the ice, and whether a blue ice cave is part of the plan. Answer three questions and find out before you pay rather than at the meeting point.
Where do you sleep the night before?Skaftafell is 320 km east of Reykjavík, Sólheimajökull about two and a half hours
How are you on your feet?Glacier ice is uneven under crampons, and the approach is loose moraine
How much of the day do you want on the ice?This is the only real variable here
Answer the three questions above
You'll get a straight yes or no, the flight that fits your day, and the specific thing that would trip you up at check-in.
Six ways onto the ice
11,888 reviews across sixteen Iceland glacier walks
Ratings are the operators’ own numbers on GetYourGuide, shown as published. We do not write reviews and we do not average other people’s into a score of our own.
4.7
★★★★★
Based on 11,888
verified reviews
5 ★88%
4 ★9%
3 ★2%
2 ★1%
1 ★0%
All sixteen Iceland glacier walks on this page, rated on GetYourGuide.
Read all 11,888→🧊
Sólheimajökull Glacier Hike & Ice Climbing Intro
From $209 · 447 reviews
★★★★★
The longest day, and the only one with an axe in it
Thirteen hours out of Reykjavík, built around a guided walk on Sólheimajökull and an introduction to ice climbing on the same tongue. Crampons, helmet, harness, ice axe and ropes are supplied, the group is capped at eight, and the waterfalls of the south coast are part of the drive. Rated 4.8 across 447 reviews.
🏔
Falljokull Glacier Easy Group Hike
From $106 · 1,622 reviews
★★★★★
The gentlest way onto a glacier here
Three hours on Falljökull at Skaftafell, at a pace people who never walk hills can hold, with the shortest approach of any walk on this page. Crampons, helmet and harness are fitted at the ice edge. Rated 4.6 across 1,622 reviews, which makes it the most reassuring first walk in the country.
❄
Ice Cave Tour and Glacier Hike
From $162 · 1,962 reviews
★★★★★
The one more people have booked than any other
Four hours at Skaftafell that put you inside the glacier as well as on it: the guided walk and a natural blue ice cave in the same trip. It carries more reviews than anything else on this page — 1,962 of them at 4.5 — because it answers the two things most visitors want in one day.
🚌
Glacier Hike, Waterfall and Black Sand Beach
From $188 · 1,655 reviews
★★★★★
The day that drives itself
Eleven hours from Reykjavík with the glacier walk in the middle of it, Seljalandsfoss on the way out and the black sand at Reynisfjara on the way back. The minibus does the driving both ways, which is the point of it if you have not hired a car. Rated 4.8 across 1,655 reviews.
🗺
Glacier Hike to a Remote Ice Cave
From $285 · 264 reviews
★★★★★
The highest rating on the page
Six hours out of Jökulsárlón, with a 4x4 leg to a part of Vatnajökull the short tours do not reach and an ice cave at the end of it. Rated 5.0 across 264 reviews. It is the longest walk here after the Reykjavík day, and the one people describe in most detail afterwards.
🛣
Short Glacier Encounter Walk with 4x4 Transfer
From $121 · 219 reviews
★★★★☆
Two and a half hours, start to finish
The shortest walk on this page. A 4x4 carries you from Freysnes to the edge of Vatnajökull, the crampons go on there, and you are back before the afternoon has gone. Rated 4.8 across 219 reviews, and it suits a day that already has a long drive in it.
What it really costs
What a glacier walk in Iceland costs, line by line
Prices here are per person and every one of them already includes the crampons, helmet and harness, and a certified glacier guide. What changes the number is how long you stand on the ice, how small the group is, and whether the day adds a blue ice cave, a 4x4 transfer or the drive out of Reykjavík.
Swipe sideways →
| What you do | Price | What that buys | Cancellation |
|---|---|---|---|
| Guided walk on Sólheimajökull | $101 | Up to 5.5 hours, glacier gear, guide, coffee and water | Free cancellation |
| Small group blue ice walk at Skaftafell | $105 | 4.5 hours on Vatnajökull, small group, 4x4 to the glacier edge | Free cancellation |
| Walk plus a blue ice cave | $162 | 4 hours on Falljökull with a natural ice cave inside it | Free cancellation |
| Day trip from Reykjavík with the south coast | $188 | 11 hours: the walk, Seljalandsfoss and Reynisfjara, minibus both ways | Free cancellation |
| Private walk with a guide of your own | $806 | Three hours on Sólheimajökull at your own pace, your party only | Free cancellation |
Costs the listing doesn't show you
- The drive east. Skaftafell is “320 km, at least a 4 hour drive East of Reykjavík”, so its short, low-priced walks assume a car and usually a night on the road.
- The quoted hours are not all on the ice. A three-hour walk covers the approach, the briefing and the gear fitting as well as the time in crampons.
- Your own layers. Crampons, helmet and harness come with the walk; the waterproofs, gloves and stiff-soled shoes are yours to bring.
- Weather decides. Walks run on the day the ice allows, so a spare morning is worth more here than anywhere else on the trip.
What is genuinely included
- Crampons, a helmet and a harness, fitted at the edge of the ice
- A certified glacier guide, cutting the route as the surface changes
- The 4x4 leg to the glacier edge on the Skaftafell and Jökulsárlón walks
- Round-trip transport from Reykjavík on the eleven and thirteen-hour days
- Free cancellation up to 24 hours before, with a full refund
The honest answer
Is a glacier walk in Iceland worth it?
A hundred dollars and up, for a few hours on ice you can see from the car park — so the question is fair. What the ticket buys is the part of the glacier that opens only in crampons: the crevasses, the moulins, the ash layers, and a guide who reads the surface as it changes week by week.
What makes it worth it
- Crampons, helmet and harness are in the price of every walk on this page
- A certified glacier guide, reading a surface that shifts week by week
- Crevasses, moulins and ash layers you only reach once the crampons are on
- Walks from 2.5 to 13 hours, so the day can be built around what you have
- Free cancellation up to 24 hours, so booking early costs you nothing
Keep in mind
- Skaftafell is 320 km east of Reykjavík, at least a four-hour drive each way
- The quoted hours include the briefing, the gear fitting and the approach
- Weather closes walks, so keep a spare morning if the ice is the point of the trip
- Sólheimajökull is the tongue within reach of a single day out of the city
- Morning departures fill first in summer, when the meeting points are busiest
The trip, hour by hour
Meeting point to the ice and back
Look at the forecast, then book anyway
Free cancellation runs to 24 hours, so holding a morning costs you nothing. Weather decides on the day, and the earlier departures have the best odds of going.
Meet at the glacier, or at the pick-up
Sólheimajökull and Skaftafell walks meet at the car park; the Reykjavík days pick you up in the city. You bring warm layers, waterproofs and shoes you can walk a moraine in.
The approach
A walk in across black sand and loose moraine, or a 4x4 leg to the ice edge on the Skaftafell and Jökulsárlón tours. This is where the glacier first fills the view.
Crampons, helmet, harness
The guide fits the gear at the edge of the ice and shows you how to walk in crampons. Short, flat, deliberate steps, and the first few minutes feel strange to everyone.
On the ice
Ridges, meltwater channels, moulins and layers of volcanic ash in the ice. The route is cut fresh, because the surface moves from one week to the next.
The cave, if the walk has one
Five of the sixteen walks go inside the glacier as well as across it, and this is where that happens — a natural blue ice cave, entered in the same gear.
Back at the meeting point
Gear handed back, and the rest of the light still yours: the waterfalls of the south coast from Sólheimajökull, or Jökulsárlón and the black sand if you are already east.
Best time of day
Walk in the morning, keep the coast for the afternoon
These two work in opposite directions, which is why the day holds together. Morning departures are the ones least likely to be stood down by weather, the meeting points are quietest before the coaches arrive, and the guides are working ice they checked at first light. The south coast is the reverse: late light lands on Reynisfjara and Seljalandsfoss, and the car parks empty as the day tours turn for home. Put the crampons on at nine and stand on black sand at seven, and the day has done what you came for.
On the ground
What the ice actually looks like
Sólheimajökull
The tongue within reach of Reykjavík, with ash layers running through the ice.
The blue ice
Falljökull, an outlet of Vatnajökull above Skaftafell, reached by 4x4.
The caves
Five of the sixteen walks go inside the glacier as well as across it.
The gear
Crampons, helmet and harness come with every walk on this page.
What it's like
Four tongues of ice, and the drive that decides which one is yours
Most people arrive in Iceland with one picture in their head: themselves, on a glacier, in crampons. Then they look at a map, see ice across a third of the country, and assume they can simply drive to the edge of it and walk on. It is worth knowing the shape of the place before you book anything.
The ice you can walk on here comes down in tongues — outlet glaciers that spill off the big ice caps and end in black sand and moraine. Sólheimajökull runs off Mýrdalsjökull to a car park at the end of road 221. Falljökull comes off Vatnajökull above Skaftafell. The ice above Jökulsárlón is the same cap, further east. Those four points are where all sixteen walks on this page start.
Every one of them goes with a guide, and that is not a marketing rule. A glacier surface is full of crevasses, moulins and thin bridges that move from one week to the next, and the operators open it in crampons, helmet and harness with someone in front who was on it this morning. That gear is in the price of every walk here.
The first thing to settle is which tongue. Sólheimajökull is about two and a half hours from Reykjavík, which makes it the only one you can reach, walk and return from in a single day out of the city. Skaftafell, in the listings’ own words, sits “320 km, at least a 4 hour drive East of Reykjavík” — a distance that decides your whole itinerary, not just your morning.
That distance is why the Skaftafell walks look the way they do. They are short — two and a half to five hours — and they are the least expensive on this page, because they assume you are already east, in your own car or with a night on the road behind you. A 4x4 usually takes you from the visitor centre or Freysnes to the edge of the ice, and the crampons go on there.
The Reykjavík days work in the opposite direction. They are eleven and thirteen hours long, the minibus does the driving, and the glacier walk sits in the middle of a day that also takes in Seljalandsfoss, Skógafoss and the black sand at Reynisfjara. The longest of them adds an introduction to ice climbing on Sólheimajökull with the group capped at eight.
The other decision is whether you want to go inside the ice as well as across it. Five of the sixteen walks pair the hike with a natural blue ice cave, and one of those — the Skaftafell ice cave and glacier hike — carries more reviews than anything else on this page. The caves are seasonal and the guides choose which one is stable that week, so what you book is the format rather than a specific chamber.
So the plan that works is usually built around where you sleep. One night in Reykjavík points you at Sólheimajökull and a day tour that comes back. A night on the south coast or at Skaftafell opens the blue ice and the cave walks, and makes the drive worth the fuel. Either way, book the ice for the first morning you have: the weather decides, and free cancellation runs to 24 hours, so an early booking costs nothing.
While you're on the south coast
The three walks people book when the glacier is only half the day
You want a spare morning here for the weather, and the south coast is a good place to keep one. A walk that ends inside a blue ice cave, the gentlest hike on Falljökull, and the walk that starts from Jökulsárlón itself — all three short enough to leave the rest of the light for the coast.
Practical
Plan the walk
Five things decide how it goes: which glacier you pick, what you wear and put on your feet, when you book, how you get to the meeting point, and whether you want an ice cave in the same day.
Sólheimajökull
The tongue within reach of Reykjavík, about two and a half hours away. Walks from 3 to 5.5 hours, and the day tours that come back the same night.
Skaftafell and Falljökull
Eight of the sixteen. Short walks, the lowest prices here, and a 4x4 leg to the ice edge — but 320 km east of the city.
The blue ice walks
Vatnajökull ice with the crevasses and ridges at their bluest, in groups small enough to move at one pace.
The walks with an ice cave
Five of the sixteen go inside the glacier as well as across it. Seasonal, and the guide picks the chamber.
Jökulsárlón
Two walks starting from the lagoon, including the six-hour trip to a remote ice cave rated 5.0.
Private walks
Sólheimajökull with a guide of your own, your party only, at whatever pace suits it.
Warm layers, every month
You are standing on ice with wind coming off it. It is colder on the glacier than in the car park, in July as much as January.
Waterproof jacket and trousers
Rain comes sideways on the south coast, and a shell is the difference between a good walk and a long one.
Sturdy shoes above the ankle
Operators fit crampons over your own boots on most walks, and they need a stiff sole and an ankle to hold them.
The glacier gear is supplied
Crampons, helmet and harness come with every walk on this page, and the longest day adds an ice axe and ropes.
Gloves, hat, sunglasses
Ice throws the light back at you, and bare hands on a rope in wind is the thing people regret.
Something for your camera
Cold drains batteries faster than you expect. A spare in an inside pocket earns its place.
Book the ice for your first morning
If the weather closes the walk you still have a day in hand to try again.
Free cancellation to 24 hours
Booking early costs nothing, so hold a slot as soon as your dates are firm.
Morning departures fill first
Summer mornings go first, and every meeting point is working the same weather window.
One price everywhere
Operator office, platform or hotel desk — the fare is the same. Booking ahead buys the slot, not a discount.
Check what the hours include
Quoted durations cover the briefing, the gear fitting and the approach as well as time on the ice.
Check the minimum age
The cave and advanced walks set it higher than the easy group hikes. It is on each listing.
Sólheimajökull
Road 221 off the Ring Road, ending at the car park by the lagoon in front of the glacier. About two and a half hours from Reykjavík.
Skaftafell
“320 km, at least a 4 hour drive East of Reykjavík” in the operator’s own words. Meeting points at the visitor centre, Freysnes and Hof.
Jökulsárlón
The main car park by the cafeteria at the lagoon, further east again along the Ring Road.
From Reykjavík without a car
The eleven and thirteen-hour day tours pick up in the city and bring you back the same night.
Fuel and food
The south coast is thin on both east of Vík. Fill up before the long stretch and do not count on late kitchens.
Winter driving
Short daylight and wind on the Ring Road. Give yourself far more time than the map says between November and March.
Best time
When to come
Guided walks run all year on both tongues, and the weather decides the morning. What changes month to month is daylight, how busy the meeting points are, and which parts of the ice the guides are working that week.
May – Sep
The long light
Daylight from early morning to late evening, which is what makes an 11-hour day trip out of Reykjavík and back comfortable. Every walk on this page runs, and morning departures fill first.
Mar – Apr
Spring, blue ice
Days long enough for the drive east to Skaftafell, quieter meeting points than midsummer, and the blue-ice walks on Falljökull at their best-looking.
Oct – Nov
Autumn, and the caves
The shoulder weeks: fewer people on the ice, and the walks that pair a glacier hike with a blue ice cave come into their own. Book a few weeks ahead — cancellation is free to 24 hours.
Dec – Feb
Winter days on the ice
Short daylight, so walks start late morning and the shorter 2.5 to 3 hour options suit the day best. Sólheimajökull stays the easy one to reach from Reykjavík.
Worth knowing
Six things that aren't in the listing
01
Nobody walks out onto Icelandic ice alone. Every one of the sixteen walks here is guided, in crampons, with a helmet and harness, and that gear is already in the price. The surface changes week to week, which is the whole reason the guide goes first.
02
The drive decides more than the price does. Skaftafell is “320 km, at least a 4 hour drive East of Reykjavík” in the operator’s own words. Sólheimajökull is about two and a half hours. That gap is why the cheapest walks are the ones furthest away.
03
The quoted hours are not all on the ice. A three-hour walk covers the approach, the briefing and the gear fitting as well as the time in crampons. The 4x4 transfers exist to shorten the first part of it.
04
Five of the sixteen go inside the glacier. Those pair the walk with a natural blue ice cave, and which chamber you see is the guide’s call on the day — you book the format, not a specific cave.
05
Book the ice for your first morning. Weather closes walks, mornings give the best odds, and a cancelled walk still leaves you a day in hand. Free cancellation runs to 24 hours.
06
Walks run all year on both tongues. What changes is daylight: in December the short two-and-a-half to three-hour options fit the day, and in June an eleven-hour trip out of Reykjavík still gets you back in the light.
Round out the trip
Booked alongside
Go deeper
More on walking the glaciers of Iceland
Common questions
Iceland glacier walks, answered
Can you walk on a glacier in Iceland?
You can, and it is done with a guide. Every one of the sixteen walks on this page is led by a certified glacier guide, and crampons, a helmet and a harness come with the ticket. Walks run on Sólheimajökull, on Falljökull above Skaftafell and on the Vatnajökull ice above Jökulsárlón, from $101.
Can you do a glacier walk in Iceland without a guide?
The walks sold here are all guided, and that is what the operators offer: the surface is full of crevasses and moulins that move week to week, so the route is cut fresh each time by someone who was on the ice that morning. The gear that makes it possible — crampons, helmet, harness — comes with the walk rather than being hired separately.
Which glacier walk is closest to Reykjavík?
Sólheimajökull. It sits about two and a half hours from the city at the end of road 221, which makes it the tongue you can reach, walk and return from in one day. Skaftafell, by contrast, is “320 km, at least a 4 hour drive East of Reykjavík” in the operator’s own words.
How long is a glacier walk in Iceland?
On the ice itself, most walks run two and a half to five hours door to door, including the approach, the briefing and the gear fitting. The day tours out of Reykjavík are longer because of the driving: eleven hours with the south coast waterfalls, thirteen for the walk that adds an introduction to ice climbing.
How much does a glacier walk in Iceland cost?
From $101 for a guided walk on Sólheimajökull, and from $105 for the small-group blue ice walk at Skaftafell. A walk that also takes you into a blue ice cave starts at $162, and the day trip from Reykjavík with the south coast is $188.
Is a glacier walk hard?
The easy group walks are built for people who do not walk hills: three hours at a steady pace, with the shortest approach of any walk here, rated 4.6 across 1,622 reviews. The advanced and cave walks go further onto uneven ice and set a higher minimum age, which each listing states.
What is the difference between a glacier walk and an ice cave tour?
A walk takes you across the surface in crampons — ridges, meltwater channels, moulins and ash layers. A cave tour takes you inside the ice. Five of the sixteen walks here do both in one trip, from $162, which is why the Skaftafell ice cave and glacier hike carries more reviews than anything else on this page.
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Two days on the south coast — the plan we'd follow
Which morning to book the ice, which tongue to walk depending on where you sleep, and how to fit Skaftafell’s 320 km into a trip that starts in Reykjavík. Built from the operators’ own listings and the same live prices as this page.
- All sixteen walks, with times and meeting points from the listings
- The order to do them in, so the weather works for you rather than against
- Sólheimajökull against Skaftafell, decided, with both sets of numbers
- What to wear on the ice, month by month
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Why trust this page
How we put this together
Checked, not guessed
Durations, inclusions and operator names come from the live GetYourGuide listings for each walk. Prices and ratings are read off the same listings and updated with the page.
How we pick
Every guided glacier walk bookable in south Iceland is on this page, from the three-hour group hikes to the private days. Nobody pays to be featured.
We state the distances
Skaftafell is 320 km east of Reykjavík and Sólheimajökull about two and a half hours. We lead with that, because it decides more of your trip than the price does.
The ice, stated plainly
Icelandic glaciers are opened with a guide, in crampons, helmet and harness, and that gear is in the price of every walk here. We say so rather than leave people to work it out at the meeting point.
The answer
Walk Sólheimajökull first. Go east for the blue ice.
Sólheimajökull is the tongue you can reach, walk and return from in a single day out of Reykjavík, from $101 with crampons, helmet, harness and a guide in the price. Keep Skaftafell and its blue ice caves for the day you are already east, and book the ice for your first morning.
Check dates and availability→ Free cancellation up to 24 hours · Reserve now, pay later