The Snaefellsnes peninsula is located in the west of Iceland between the capital Reykjavik and the Westfjords, and despite its many attractions and proximity to Reykjavik, it is not that heavily visited. Not many people come here on an Iceland road trip. Why this can be a mistake, we want to describe in our travel report to the peninsula Snaefellsnes. We present you the best things to do of Snaefellsnes together with a possible itinerary and travel tips. Have fun reading.
Car Rental at the Iceland Specialist with Years of Know-How:
Northbound.is
Northbound.is- compares all Icelandic car rental providers
- specialized in Iceland roundtrips and the highlands
- specialized insurances for the rough Iceland available
- free cancellation up to 48h before start of rental period
- normal rental cars, campervans, motorhomes, SUV (also with roof tent) & off-road vehicles available
Find The Best Prices for Iceland Rental Cars at northbound.is*
Snaefellsnes Peninsula in Iceland
The Snaefellsnes Peninsula in western Iceland is a unique region. It has countless different landscapes and natural highlights to offer and is therefore also called “Iceland in miniature”. Nevertheless, it is a region that many tourists skip because they only visit the famous Golden Circle and the south of Iceland. But also if you don’t travel the complete ring road of Iceland you can visit the Snaefellsness Peninsula.
So if you are looking for a slightly less visited region of Iceland that is still easy to reach from Reykjavik and the airport, this is where you should come. Fascinating Icelandic landscapes and still few tourists? What more could you want?
If you dont want to visit the Snaefellsness Peninsula on your own you can also to a day trip from Reykjavik*.
Day Trip tp Snaefellsness Peninsula I Check Availability
Things to do on the Snaefellsnes Peninsula Iceland
The peninsula of Snaefellsnes has wonderful landscapes and great sights to offer. In our opinion, the best things to do on Snaefellsnes are presented below.
Lóndrangar
In the eastern part is the rock formation Lóndrangar. These are old volcanic vents that protrude from the sea coast. The original volcano around it has fallen victim to the surf of the sea and soil erosion over the millennia.
The two rock pillars are 75 and 61 meters high and are located directly in front of the rugged cliff. You can have a wonderful walk along the coast here and watch the birds flying around and the strong Atlantic waves.
Djúpalónssandur Beach
From the large free parking lot at the very tip of the Snaefellsnes Peninsula, you walk past enchanted lava formations and rock holes to the dark beach. Here are conspicuously many rusty ship remains lying around, which form a strong contrast to the black lava rock.
These ship remains come from a fishing cutter stranded here in 1948. On the beach and in the water there are many lava rocks, which invite to climb around and take pictures. You can walk around and enjoy the rugged landscape. For us this place was one of the best things to do in snaefellsnes peninsula.
Snaefellsjökull National Park
Snaefellsjökull National Park is located in the far west of the peninsula. The National Park and offers an amzing view of the snow-covered glacier of the same name, Snaefellsjökull, which lies above a glacier. Unfortunately, you cannot visit it, but only admire it from a distance. The national park was founded in 2001 and includes the two sights mentioned above: The viewpoint Lóndrangar and the beach Djúpalónssandur.
By the way, the volcano gained some fame when Jules Verne used it to drill his way to the center of the earth in his novel “Journey to the Center of the Earth” written in 1864.
Kirkjufellsfoss & Kirkjufell
In the north of the peninsula near Grundarfjörður is the 463-meter high Kirkjufell mountain, which has a very distinctive shape that can be seen from far away. Thanks to its detached and unique shape, it is one of the most famous mountains in Iceland and definitely worth a visit when you visit the Snaefellsnes peninsula.
Gerðuberg Rock Face
Gerduberg is a really great place where you can admire imposing basalt columns. The columns are lined up on a length of over 1000 meters and are up to 14 meters high. Each one is about 1.5 meters wide and all together they form a pretty even pattern. From the free parking lot you only have to walk a few meters and then you can directly look at the basalt columns strung together like on a string.
Overnight Stay
It can be worthwhile to spend more than one day here, because there is a lot to discover on the Snaefellsnes peninsula. If you want to spend the night here, we have picked out a nice little hotel for you.
Hotel Langaholt
Hotel Langaholt* is located on the south coast of the Snaefellsnes Peninsula and is a good stopover on your Iceland road trip.
- large, spacious rooms with private bathroom
- very tasty hotel restaurant
- great location directly at the sea
Hotel Langaholt - Check Availability
Travel Tips for Snaefellsnes
How to get to Snaefellsnes?
If you drive from Reykjavik to the Snaefellsnes peninsula, circle it once and then drive back, it will take 475 kilometers and probably all day. That’s a lot, but doable. The Snaefellsnes peninsula is only a few kilometers away from the ring road. So it’s definitely worth making a small detour and circling the small peninsula once on road 54.
How long to stay?
The Snaefellsnes peninsula definitely offers enough to spend up to 2 days here. Especially if you still have to travel here and are not in the area anyway. But if you don’t have much time, you can do all the highlights of Snaefellsnes in one day. You’ll be in the car a lot and won’t have much time for each sight, but it’s definitely doable.
Day Trip tp Snaefellsness Peninsula I Check Availability
Is it worth it?
The peninsula of Snaefellsnes is very pristine and reminds with its few tourists almost of the Westfjords, which are of course much more pristine and untouristy. There are not many spectacular highlights here, but still enough to come here. The peace and seclusion together with the very Icelandic landscape make the Snaefellsnes peninsula a special region.
So if you have the time to spare you should come here. But if you are short of time on your round trip anyway, you can skip Snaefellsnes with a clear conscience.
Cell Phone Reception
Cell phone reception on the Snaefellsnes Peninsula in Iceland is usually relatively good. There are some places where you don’t have good internet, but in general you have reception everywhere and usually even LTE.
Gas Stations
There are not many gas stations on the Snaefellsnes peninsula. Especially on the north side of the peninsula there are some gas stations, but they are not always open. Especially when you leave Snaefellsnes in the direction of Westfjords, you should refuel when you see a gas station.