Is a Glacier Hike in Iceland Worth Spending Time on?

If you ask me, the answer to this question is a big fat yes. A glacier hike in Iceland is truly worth it. If you love hiking in beautiful nature, a glacier hike will give you a whole new twist on that activity. I’ve been told by a guide that glacier hikes in Iceland are unique. The reason being that when you hike on an Icelandic glacier, you are actually hiking directly on ice. In other countries the glaciers are usually covered in snow and therefore the hike doesn’t really feel different from every other hike in snow. 

One of the things that fascinates me most about glacier hikes, is the possibility to explore the different forms, textures, colours and sculptures in the ice. As the glaciers are constantly changing, so is the form of them and the sculptures they create during this changing process.

In my post about my first glacier hike ever I told you that I loved it (which I truly did) but wished we had climbed a little bit higher up. Wished we had been able to get closer to the glacier wall where you really can see all kinds of different shapes and forms in the ice. That was my bad as I chose to go on the shorter hike available. In this shorter version, there wasn’t enough time to reach as high as I would have wanted.

Don’t Let Imperfect Weather Conditions Stop You from Glacier Hiking in Iceland

This time around however, I went on a longer hike on Falljökull Glacier. And what a great decision that was. Even though it was foggy and it rained a little bit at one point, it was totally amazing. Plain gorgeous. This time we reached considerably higher up and got up close to beautiful forms and sculptures in the ice. Absolutely stunning.

I’m not going to lie. It would have been even more incredible if the sky had been blue and thereby given the beautiful contrast to the white ice. But even though it didn’t, it was amazing. I was actually a bit surprised how great of a hike it was in spite of the weather conditions. So my advice to you is, not to let imperfect weather conditions stop you from glacier hiking in Iceland. 

Another Hike – Same Glacier – Different Experience

Even though I was hiking the same glacier as I did last time, the experience was surprisingly different. First of all the weather conditions were quite different. On my hike in August we had partly blue sky and good visibility. In March it was foggy so the visibility was quite poor. It also rained a tiny little bit. Nothing serious though. 

Beforehand I had expected much more “wintery” conditions in March. Considerably colder than in August and possibly a little snow covering the glacier. Which it normally would have been. But no. This year the winter didn’t really arrive in the southern part of Iceland. Instead of snow there had been raining quite a lot which again meant the glacier had been melting faster than it usually does this time of year. There was actually much more water running all over the place on the glacier in March than on my visit in August. It felt like summer. Not like winter. I mean, I didn’t use my gloves the whole time. On a glacier. For hours. In March. In Iceland. This just felt a bit wrong to me.

But the experience was awesome. I don’t know if it was because of the poor visibility or that the glacier actually had changed so much between my visits because of the rain. Either way, I felt like I was hiking on a different glacier. Kind of cool and scary at the same time. 

I had a great time and ended up with very tired but happy feet in my car after hiking for hours on the ice. Our guide was also top notch. She had so much to tell us and was very enthusiastic. Love those kinds of guides. Love when their love for nature shines through and they have so much to give.

As I was very satisfied with my first glacier hike with Tröll Expeditions, I decided to book again with them.

You can book a glacier hike with them here (the longer version) Or book the shorter version here

What Tour to Book when Going on a Glacier Hike in Iceland?

If you’re an experienced hiker I would always recommend the longer version of a glacier hike. When I say experienced, I don’t mean advanced as such. Just that you are used to hiking about 5km/3mi or more at a time and not only on a flat surface.

What I’m trying to say is, don’t book the longer version if you don’t hike on a regular basis. Most likely it will get too hard for you and you might end up messing up the tour for the rest of the group if you get very tired before the hike is over. Then the group won’t be able to cover as much as it otherwise would have. A bit harsh? Maybe, but it’s also very frustrating for those in the group who have lots left on their tank if somebody isn’t up for the task. So please don’t overestimate yourself when booking a glacier hike. There are two different lengths available for a reason 🙂

Is a Glacier Hike/Ice Climbing Combo something for You?

Now when I’ve managed to climb higher up and seen some gorgeous parts of the glacier, I want even more. Next up is to book a tour where there also is a little ice climbing involved. Nothing serious, just the tourist version of it. I’m not going crazy you know. I think ice climbing can add even more to the unique experience that glacier hiking is. Look forward to telling you about if I like it or if I chicken out!

Tröll Expeditions offers a glacier hiking/ice climbing combo tour on Sólheimajökull Glacier. Sólheimajökull Glacier is closer to Reykjavík than Falljökull Glacier so it can easily be done as a day trip from Reykjavík. It takes about 2 hours to drive from Reykjavík to Sólheimajökull Glacier while it takes about 4 hours to drive from Reykjavík to Falljökull Glacier. One way without any stops.

If you are interested in ice climbing/glacier hiking combo tour, you can book it here

Whatever you choose to do, it will be an awesome experience. There is something so magical about glaciers. If you haven’t yet experienced them yourself, I strongly recommend that you do.

Well, that’s it for now. If you liked this post and think some of your friends might be interested in reading it too, please help me spread the word. I’d really appreciate it if you’d share it on social media or just send it directly to a friend.

Until next time!