Katla Ice Cave & South Coast Waterfalls From Reykjavik

The Glacier Guide Straps You Into Crampons at 3 Hours Into Your Day

You travel from Reykjavik to a glacier, switch to a super-jeep, and spend three hours on Kötlujökull with a guide, crampons, and safety gear exploring the Katla Ice Cave and blue ice formations. You stop in Vík for lunch and the black beach, then return via two major waterfalls—Skógafoss and Seljalandsfoss—where you can walk behind the falls. The tour includes all fees and takes about nine hours total, with 4–5 hours of driving.

Step-by-step itinerary

Explore Katla Ice Cave and South Coast

• Depart Reykjavík for Vík by bus
• Switch to super-jeep for glacier journey
• Explore Katla Ice Cave with guides
• Wear crampons, harness, and helmet
• Visit Vík village and black beach
• Have lunch in Vík
• Travel to Skógafoss waterfall
• View Skógafoss from staircase platform
• Stop at Seljalandsfoss waterfall
• Walk behind Seljalandsfoss falls
• Return to Reykjavík

The Experience

You board a bus in Reykjavik and drive south toward Vík. The landscape shifts as you go—the vegetation thins, the light changes, and by the time you reach the base of Kötlujökull glacier, you've traded the coach for a super-jeep. The 4x4 is not optional here; the terrain won't allow anything else. Your guide, someone with decades of glacier experience, hands you crampons, a harness, and a safety helmet. The ice cave itself sits inside the glacier, and what you see depends on the season, the light that day, the time you arrive—it's never the same twice, which is why the photos online can only hint at what you'll actually find.

The glacier portion takes around three hours. You're walking on blue ice, stepping into formations that look almost sculptural, and the cave itself is the kind of place that photographs don't quite capture—the color is too strange, too vivid. After that, you descend back to Vík, a small village on the southern coast with a black sand beach and basalt sea stacks rising offshore. Lunch happens here, and you have time to walk the beach or just stand and look at the church on the hill. The village is small enough that you can see the whole thing in an hour.

On the drive back to Reykjavik, the bus stops at Skógafoss first—a waterfall that drops 60 meters and spans 25 meters across, with enough mist around it that rainbows appear on clear days. There's a staircase up to a viewing platform if you want the higher angle. Then comes Seljalandsfoss, the one you can walk behind. The trail loops around the back of the falls, so you get the strange experience of standing in the spray with the water in front of you instead of across from you. That stop is about 45 minutes. The drive back to the city takes another couple of hours, and you arrive in the evening.

The whole day is 9 hours including driving time. Wear warm clothes and sturdy shoes—the glacier is cold and the footing matters. Children need an adult with them. After you book, contact the operator to confirm exactly where you're meeting the bus in Reykjavik.

What’s included

• Your day includes hotel or meeting-point pickup in Reykjavik, transport by bus to Vík and by super-jeep onto Kötlujökull glacier, crampons, harness and safety helmet for the ice cave exploration, a guide with glacier expertise, stops at Skógafoss and Seljalandsfoss waterfalls on the return journey, and all fees and taxes.
• Lunch in Vík is your own arrangement.
• The operator will confirm your exact pickup location after you book.

Good to know

Easy physical levelPublic transport nearby

Operated by BusTravel Iceland

Is this one for you?Book this if you want to see Iceland's south coast in one day without renting a car or arranging glacier transport yourself—the super-jeep and expert guide handle the difficult terrain, and the fixed itinerary gets you to three major sites and back to the city by evening.

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Top questions

What's included in the tour price?

All fees and taxes, the super-jeep transport to the glacier, crampons, harness, safety helmet, and guide services. Lunch in Vík is not mentioned as included, so confirm with the operator.

How long is the ice cave part?

Around three hours on the glacier itself, including the walk to and inside the Katla Ice Cave.

Can I walk behind Seljalandsfoss?

Yes. The waterfall has a trail that loops behind it, so you can walk through the mist with the water in front of you.

What should I wear?

Warm clothes and sturdy shoes. The glacier is cold and the footing on ice and rock requires grip.

How long is the total day?

About nine hours, including 4–5 hours of driving time in the bus and super-jeep combined.

Do I need to be fit?

The tour is suitable for all physical fitness levels, though the glacier walk and waterfall trails involve some walking and uneven ground.

Can children go?

Yes, but they must be accompanied by an adult at all times.

Where do I meet the bus?

Contact the operator after booking to confirm your exact meeting point in Reykjavik.