Who hasn’t dreamt about being on a glacier? What about going underneath one? Well this is the best opportunity to try both of those things!
We offer a tour to visit the unbelievable natural blue ice cave that you have probably seen on many pictures. This ice cave has many different names. Some call it Treasure Island, Lightroom Ice Cave, Sapphire Ice Cave, Waterfall Cave and some even mistake it for the Crystal Cave. We just call it Blue, because of an obvious reason, its BLUE!
Our Blue Ice Cave Adventure tour is a combination of a glacier hike and cave exploring.
First, let’s get to know the company a little. Glacier Adventure is a small local company owned by a family from the farm called Hali.
Actually, Glacier Adventure has its own meeting point at Hali. It’s newly made up from an old barn that the family owned. Before it became a meeting area for our wonderful guests it was a cowshed where we had 80 milking cows and cattle. At the Hali area there is also the Country Hotel Hali, Skyrhúsið guesthouse, restaurant and a museum, Þórbergsetrið. Enough parking space for everyone coming to visit us.
Glacier Adventure has two daily departures to the cave. The departure time is 09:00 and 09:45. We recommend our guests to be at our meeting point at least 20 minutes before the tour starts. The tour starts with the guides gearing everyone up with equipment needed for the glacier and going over the safety rules. But it’s not enough to trust our equipment will help you, you also have to dress well. No jeans, please and thank you!
Please read over the needed equipment list before going on the tour to make sure you have everything. And if you think you don’t have the right hiking boots, no worry, our team can rent you some for 1000 ISK.
From the meeting point to the starting point of the hike is a short 25min drive with a Super Jeep, to the Breiðarmerkurjökull.
This is not an easy tour. We won’t drive you all the way to the cave, where is the fun in that?
No, this tour is rated medium/hard. You have to be quite fit to do this. On the tour, we walk on glaciated terrain, over rocks and uneven terrain. During the winter the whole path might be covered with snow or slippery ice. Luckily enough we lend all our customers crampons and other glacier equipment that is needed.
The walk to and from the ice cave can reach up to 3 hours and we never know how the weather will be, so again, go over the equipment list and dress according to the weather!
We only bring small groups, max 8 people, to this cave and there are not as many other glacier companies visiting this ice cave because it is more difficult to get there. So, it feels like a private tour!
When we arrive to the cave you have 45-60 minutes inside of it, to explore, have a mini photoshoot and just enjoy the wonders of Iceland.
If the weather allows, we sometimes take you on a detour to see the edge of Jökulsárlón or Glacier Lagoon. Where the ice breaks off the Breiðarmerkurjökull and falls in big chunks into the lagoon. This is like a private diamond beach experience. While on the beach, we use the time to sit, relax and eat the lunch you brought with you.
The ice caves are only accessible in the winter time, from November to March, of course, it all depends on the weather and if the ice caves don’t melt. You should NEVER try to go to the ice caves without a trained guide that knows the glacier by hand. The caves should never be entered without a glacier guide and proper safety gear.
There come times when we are not able to access the ice caves. Usually, it is due to the weather and it is not in our control. If there has been a lot of rain in the previous days, the caves tend to be full of water and impassable. All the rain from the top of the glacier runs through it to be able to merge into the Glacier Lagoon and some of it has to go through the Blue Ice Cave.
Actually, this is how the majority of the caves start to form. When water runs through or under the glacier it creates the cave. In winter, the temperatures become cold enough to strengthen the ice. Meaning it’s safe to explore.
If the ice caves are flooded, the company has a plan B. They try to take you to visit other locations where not too much hiking is involved. We will explore other unbelievable formations that the glacier has made.
If it comes to plan C, that means the weather is so crazy that there is no way to go to the glacier than everyone is fully refunded.
We would recommend booking your place in advance. To ensure you are able to book the time that suits you best. However, we do sometimes have last minute spots. So please contact us and we will endeavor to book you a place.
For easy smartphone photos please find below tutorial material
Blog: Taking good ice cave photos with a smartphone
YouTube: How to take Ice cave photos with mobile phone
