Want to experience Iceland’s bluest ice cave in years? Then step into a crystal ice cave at Vatnajokull, Europe’s largest glacier, to explore the country’s best shades of icy blue from the inside out. A certified guide will pick you up from the world-famous Jokulsarlon Glacier Lagoon as you begin your special ice cave adventure. This crystal ice cave is a natural phenomenon that only few get to witness, making it a top spot to capture one-of-a-kind nature photos.
This tour starts from Jökulsárlón Glacier Lagoon, one of Iceland's amazing natural wonders. There you'll meet your friendly tour guide, and hop into a super jeep for a ride to the foot of one of Vatnajokull's outlet glaciers! Once there, we embark on a short walk to the ice cave.
After a short hike (approx. 20-30 minutes), we'll step into the magical ice world to admire the dazzling crystal ice cave. The cave glints with many wondrous colors, from sapphire blue to brilliant white. Your guide will tell you all about Iceland's ice caves and their majestic structures.
The crystal ice cave of Vatnajokull Glacier changes with each passing winter. So every year you join our tour, you'll see an entirely different ice cave!
We'll stay inside the ice cave for up to 30- 45 minutes (depending on the conditions). Make sure to wear warm winter clothing, a hat that fits under a helmet and last but not least, don't forget your camera.
After this blue ice experience, we head back to the location where you were picked up, hoping that this tour will bring you memories that you treasure for a lifetime. A truly unique experience that should not be missed on your visit to Iceland!
Customer reviews on TripAdvisor
Awesome experience!
My sister and I went on this tour as a surprise substitution for the crystal ice cave. We were so glad that we did! Our guide was Mira, and he made for an unforgettable experience! Safety of the group was the priority, and even though it was a first for both of us, we never felt in danger. The guides made sure that each small group was the only one in the cave at a time. Our guide was informative, friendly, helpful, and made for an incredible experience!
Reviewed by vgtrdc
From
Find out more details about the tour and its highlights.
It's not always safe to enter ice caves in spring or summer, the season when the ice begins to melt and glaciers move faster. Ice caves or part of them can collapse during that time. New caves are found in the beginning of autumn. The only exception to this is the Katla Ice Cave, which we can visit all year.
The color and transparency of the ice caves has everything to do with time, pressure, and secrecy. The weather and sun with its damaging ultra violet rays transforms the outer surface of glacial ice into whitish ice. As the glacier travels and winds ...)
The color and transparency of the ice caves has everything to do with time, pressure, and secrecy. The weather and sun with its damaging ultra violet rays transforms the outer surface of glacial ice into whitish ice.
As the glacier travels and winds its way down the slopes of mountain ridges, the air bubbles trapped in the ice are squeezed out, and the size of the ice crystals increases, making it clear. The real beauty of the centuries old compressed ice of a glacier lies underneath the damaged outer surface.
This intense blue color can be seen for example in ice caves and on floating icebergs that reveal their lower side when they have recently rolled over or split in two.
Your tour guide is a highly qualified mountain guide expert, and ice cave expert. It's in his hands to decide each time which cave is best to visit depending on weather conditions and other issues. New caves are searched for and discovered each autum...)
Your tour guide is a highly qualified mountain guide expert, and ice cave expert. It's in his hands to decide each time which cave is best to visit depending on weather conditions and other issues.
New caves are searched for and discovered each autumn, to be visited in the winter. They are normally found in various different locations on the south side of glacier Vatnajokull and its outlets.
Sometimes the caves are very special, sometimes not as special, but become very special in the right light and conditions. Some caves we find are very stable and we can go in there in any weather, but others are less safe and we might not even go there at all, even if they are very beautiful.
Some of the caves are only accessible in temperatures below zero, such as when there is water on the ground that needs to be frozen all over in order for us to walk into the cave.
We’ll collect you at Jökulsárlón Glacier Lagoon, which is around a 5 hours’ drive from Reykjavik. We do not offer pick-up from Reykjavik on this tour. We will drop you back in the same place that we collected you from, Jokulsarlon Glacier Lagoon. We...)
Ice caves are located inside glaciers and are usually well below freezing. We strongly recommend wearing warm and water-resistant clothing, along with sturdy hiking shoes. A helmet is required for the tour (provided by us), thus we recommend that yo...)
We recommend that you arrange accommodation somewhere close to Vatnajökull, because the road conditions in Iceland can be unpredictable during the winter in Iceland. It will take you around 5 hours to drive back to Reykjavik, but the roads might be ...)
