Jökulsárlón Lagoon and Fjallsárlón Lagoon are two of the most popular stops along the Ring Road and a popular day trip destination in Iceland. But which one is best? Or how do you visit them both? Continue reading and we’ll tell you why a glacier lagoon in Iceland is one of the best things to do in Iceland. Plus, we’ll give tips to visit them both and the bonus stop at Diamond Beach.
About Glacier Lagoons In Iceland
Jökulsárlón Lagoon and Fjallsárlón Lagoon are both located in Vatnajökull National Park. For other things to do in Vatnajökull National Park, check out our post on visiting here.
These two glacier lagoons in Iceland are two of the most popular stops along the popular Ring Road. If you stop at either you’ll see beautiful blue waters with huge chunks of white, clear, and blue floating ice. The nearby Diamond Beach is where some of those icebergs wash up on shore where you can walk amongst the towering clear ice.
Visiting a glacier lagoon is just one way to experience the “ice”part of the Land of Fire and Ice. Glaciers are amazing. And we got to experience them in so many ways in Iceland. Keep reading to learn more about visiting a glacier lagoon in Iceland.
Getting There And Around
You can visit a glacier lagoon in Iceland on your own or with a guided tour.
There are several guided tours that leave from Reykjavík daily during the summer season. If you are planning on staying in Reykjavík and not renting a car, taking a guided tour makes the most sense.
However, if you are traveling the Ring Road or driving along the coast of Southern Iceland, it makes more sense to visit a glacier lagoon in Iceland on your own. This allows you to visit on your own timeline and saves you hundreds of dollars.
What Is A Glacier Lagoon?
The Vatnajökull National Park is home to the Vatnajökull glacier, the second largest glacier in Europe. Both Jökulsárlón Lagoon and Fjallsárlón Lagoon are created by the melting glacier. There are glacial tongues extending from this glacier. Glacial tongues are finger-like extensions from the larger Vatnajökull glacier. At the tip of the tongue the glacier melts every spring and summer. This runoff forms the glacial lagoons. Larger sections of ice also break off as they melt leaving icebergs floating in the glacier lagoons.
Fjallsárlón Lagoon
Cost: FREE
Fjallsárlón Lagoon is less grand than Jökulsárlón Lagoon. However, it’s easy to access and much quieter than Jökulsárlón Lagoon. At this glacier lagoon in Iceland, you’ll see clear waters with white and clear icebergs. It’s not as you may have imagined, especially if you’re looking at the highly edited photos on the gram, but it’s still beautiful. This is popular spot in summer for migrating birds and you will likely see several of them in the lagoon.
From the ample and free parking lot, you can explore a walking loop that takes you along the water of the glacier lagoon. There is a small structure here with toilets, that you must pay to enter, and vendors selling food and Iceland glacier lagoon tours.
Time: 30 minutes
Jökulsárlón Lagoon
Cost: FREE
Jökulsárlón Lagoon is the most picturesque place. It is the glacier lagoon in Iceland that you see in a majority of pictures. The water here is blue and the ice is clear or blue. It makes for perfect pictures. Plus, you’ll likely see seals feeding in the river. We spotted several!
This is one of the most popular places in Iceland. However, we found ourselves completely alone when we were here. So we really enjoyed this lagoon as well, though I’m not sure it would have been as enjoyable if the ample parking lots had been full as there isn’t a lot of room to spread out.
There is a large parking lot at the glacier lagoon, which is free. Once here, you can walk along the river that connects the glacier lagoon to the ocean and Diamond Beach. There are also some food trucks and vendors here as well.
Time: 30 minutes
Diamond Beach
Cost: FREE
Diamond Beach is a black sand beach covered in crystal clear icebergs. They look like giant sea diamonds. That is where the beach gets its name. While visiting Diamond Beach, you can stroll up and down the beach taking pictures of the beautiful icebergs and watching new ones wash ashore.
To visit Diamond Beach, you can either park at the free Diamond Beach parking lot or walk from Jökulsárlón Lagoon. The parking lot here is also very large and is a great alternative if the Jökulsárlón Lagoon parking lot is full.
Time: 15-30 minutes
Jökulsárlón Lagoon and Fjallsárlón Lagoon: Which Glacier Lagoon In Iceland Is Better?
So what do you want to see? Blue glaciers floating in the deep blue waters. Then Jökulsárlón Lagoon really is the better option. Couple that with Diamond beach in walking distance and it makes Jökulsárlón Lagoon the best glacier lagoon in Iceland to visit. Here you’ll get the epic photos you’ve seen online and you’ll be able to visit Diamond Beach.
Both of our photos below have no color editing. Though there is some lighting editing that we did as we were visiting pretty late at night.
However, if you’re looking for a more intimate glacier lagoon in Iceland, Fjallsárlón lagoon is the better option. There are far fewer people who stop here than at the more popular Jökulsárlón Lagoon. There also are more walking trails around Fjallsárlón lagoon to allow you to see the icebergs from all different angles. We liked the experience of Fjallsárlón lagoon better even though the Jökulsárlón Lagoon pictures are prettier.
Other Ways To Explore Glacier Lagoons In Iceland
One very popular way to see a glacier lagoon in Iceland is to boat around and see the icebergs up close. Most of these tours only run in the summer months.
At Jökulsárlón Lagoon you can take a zodiac, kayak, or amphibian boat tour. If you want to take a boat tour with transportation from Reykjavík, booking from this link will earn us a small commission at no extra charge to you.
At Fjallsárlåon Lagoon you can take a zodiac boat tour.
These boat tours typically book up in advance so pre-bookings are recommended. They all take you up close and personal with the glacier and allow you to have a really unique glacier experience.
When to Visit A Glacier Lagoon In Iceland?
First, the best time of year to visit Iceland is in the summer. This is the time of year when a majority of Icelandic tourist destinations are fully open. However, as long as the roads don’t close, you can visit both glacier lagoons in Iceland year round.
If you are visiting during the popular tourist season, this can be one of the most popular stops along the Ring Road. Which can mean large crowds that can decrease your enjoyment of visiting a glacier lagoon in Iceland. However, if you visit in the early morning (before 10 AM) and in the evening (after 6 PM) you may just find you have the lagoon to yourself. That happened to us at both Jökulsárlón Lagoon and Diamond Beach. It was amazing!
We hope this guide has helped you to choose which glacier lagoon in Iceland to visit and helped you to plan your own trip to Jökulsárlón Lagoon and Fjallsárlón Lagoon. If you have any questions, please leave them in the comments section below.
