15 Amazing Kid-Friendly Hikes in Iceland

When we planned our three week family trip to Iceland, we knew that hiking would be a big part of our trip. We knew from our previous visit that there are some amazing kid-friendly hikes in Iceland. We were eager to revisit some of our favorite family-friendly hikes and discover new ones as we worked our way around the Ring Road.

Our family camping trip around Iceland took us to every corner of the island. Along the way, we hiked through geothermal wonders, lava fields, beautiful coastlines, incredible waterfalls and more.

We loved these 15 amazing kid-friendly hikes in Iceland and are eager to share them with you. We hope that they will be a big part of your family vacation to Iceland too!

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15 Family-Friendly Hiking Trails in Iceland

1. Fimmvörðuháls Trail

The first time we visited the Skógafoss waterfall, we ‘discovered’ a hike that follows the Skógá river upstream. The Skógá river flows from a lush, green valley with a non-stop series of beautiful waterfalls.

On our first visit, the hiking trail was closed due to spring thaw conditions shortly after we began, and we were bitterly disappointed. Cut short the first time, the next time we came, we were more excited for the Fimmvörðuháls Trail than we were for the Skógafoss visit.

It’s also funny, as we didn’t ‘discover’ anything – the Fimmvörðuháls Trail is one of the most popular hikes in Iceland! And for good reason – it’s an absolutely stunning hiking trail!

The Fimmvörðuháls Trail is a really long 24 km / 15 mile hike (one way), but you can do as much or as little as you’d like. For example, we only hiked about 3 km / 2 miles one-way on our second visit, but we packed in a ton of scenery during our hike.

We passed 9 beautiful waterfalls during our short journey – 10 if you include Skógafoss. Most of these waterfalls would be top attractions anywhere else in the world, but as they have the misfortune of being upstream of Skógafoss, they are largely overlooked.

2. Reykjadalur Hot Spring Thermal River Hike

One of our favorite kid-friendly activities from our first family trip to the Golden Circle was the Reykjadalur Hot Spring Thermal River Hike. This very popular Golden Circle hike is an 8 km / 5 mile hike which ends at a natural hot spring creek which you can swim in.

This kid-friendly Golden Circle hike begins in dramatic fashion the moment you step out of your car. You can smell the sulphur in the air, giving a prelude to the geothermic treats you are about to encounter.

The first 2 km / 1.2 miles of the Reykjadalur Hot Spring Thermal River hike is a little steep, but we barely noticed as there are many interesting steam vents along the side of the trail. They are close enough to go up and get a good look at the boiling water beneath the steam, but we had to make sure our kids didn’t get too close!

At the top of the hill, we were rewarded with a view of a gorgeous, multi-layered cascading waterfall down in the valley below. Pausing to look around, we noticed many sheep grazing in the steep pastures all around.

As we crested another hill, we saw more steam vents ahead. This signaled that we were nearing our destination. At the 4 km / 2.5 mile mark of the hike, we arrived at the Reykjadalur Hot Spring Thermal River.

The Reykjadalur Hot Spring Thermal River is an amazing place and is such a fun thing to do with kids in Iceland. Here, in this shallow stream, the water is warm enough from natural hot springs that you can ‘swim’ in it (it’s only knee deep).

There are wooden boardwalks on both side of the thermal creek, with some privacy stations along the way. Note, that these changing stations (shown above) don’t actually provide much privacy, so you should plan on helping each other change by holding up a towel to block the views from others.

Swimming in the water at the end of the Reykjadalur Hot Spring Thermal River hike was such a fun activity with the kids. With incredible Icelandic scenery all around, the chance to swim in a natural hot spring creek was so much fun!

3. Dalfjall Caldera Hike

One of the most stunning campgrounds in Iceland is in the Westman Islands, in the shadow of the caldera of an ancient volcano. From the campground, there’s a zig-zag hiking trail leading up to the rim that had been calling our name since we set up camp.

The hike begins steep and stays that way right to the top of the volcanic rim. But it doesn’t take long, being only 0.8 km / 0.5 miles to the top.

We were treated to an incredible Atlantic Puffin encounter on our way to the top. There were a few rock outcrops with grassy tops, which were a popular resting spot for the puffins. At any time there were 20-40 puffins just sitting there, so close we could see their beaks and colorful orange webbed feet glowing in the sun.

From this height, we could also see across the island as far as Puffin Lookout (the very best place to see puffins in Iceland), as well as the perfect conical shaped Helgafell volcano.

Once we reached the top of the volcano rim, we could see the Atlantic Ocean, with the main Iceland island in the distance.

From here, we enjoyed an incredible ridgeline hike along the rim of the volcano. We love ridgeline hikes as they allow for views on both sides of the hiking trail. The ridgeline hike snakes its way along the top of the volcano rim, making it a really fun trail to hike on. Our kids were having a great time!

We soon reached another set of stairs as the trail starts to ascend again. Not long after, we reached the top of our Dalfjall hike and could see the town of Vestmannaeyjabær below.

From here, we could see the entirety of the town, along with the Eldfell volcano, which famously erupted in 1973 causing the evacuation of the entire island. You can see the complete path of the Eldfell volcano flow, seeing it dangerously reaching the edge of town.

The Dalfjal volcano hike was one of our favorite family hikes of our entire 3 week vacation in Iceland. It’s very short, at only 3.5 km / 2.2 miles long, but it’s very steep going up and sometimes on the way down. I wouldn’t recommend this hike for beginners, but anyone who hikes regularly with kids should have no issues with it.

4. Laugarfell Loop Hike

The Laugarfell Loop hike begins at an incredibly remote hostel (which has a natural hot spring). The view of the snowcapped Laugarfell mountain from here is breathtaking.

The hike begins by following the Laugara River as it flows downstream. Almost immediately we were greeted by a nice waterfall – foreshadowing of things yet to come.

We followed the Laugarfell Loop trail through a rocky meadow. There were trail markers every now and then, but they were not always obvious, so we were glad to have the AllTrails map on our phones.

Smaller streams flow into the Laugara River – the sun glistening off the still water was so beautiful. It was so peaceful here with barely another human in sight. It was such a nice change of pace vs. some of the more popular hikes we’ve done so far in Iceland.

Along the way, the Laugarfell Loop trail passes a canyon with high rock walls, a large patch of snow and millions of white and purple wildflowers.

The highlight of the Laugarfell Loop hike is where the Laugara River meets up with the Lagarfjot River. The Laugara River becomes an incredibly beautiful waterfall as it enters a gorgeous deep canyon with basalt columns around the top.

The dramatic waterfall is a two-tiered cascading waterfall, which then flows into some raging rapids through a large boulder field at the base. We had a sunny day for our family hike, so the spray from the falls made a nice rainbow.

Meanwhile, the Lagarfjot River flows into the Laugara River in equally dramatic style, with a beautiful waterfall of its own.

There’s a spot you can stand near the confluence of the two rivers where you can soak in this stunning beauty. We’ve been hiking around the world for decades, and this may be one of the most beautiful spots we’ve ever found.

From here, the Laugarfell Loop trail starts to follow Lagarfjot River, walking against the flow of the river. The river is nice and wide with many small rapids as it flows from a wide and tall valley.

We passed a series of waterfalls along the way. The trail was through an open meadow, which was a little boggy in spots, but there were many wooden boardwalks to help keep our hiking shoes dry.

At the 4 km / 2.5 mile mark of the Laugarfell Loop hike, Laugarfell Mountain reappears. A few hundred meters later the valley changes into a dramatic deep canyon. There are even some basalt columns along the canyon walls. The views are amazing from here!

Before long, we encountered yet another incredible waterfall – the beauty on this hike just never stops! The waterfall on the Lagarfjot River was spectacular!

The river splits into two waterfalls – one is a wide, freefalling waterfall which looks like a mini-Skógafoss, while the other one is a large bridal-vail waterfall right next to it. All of this with the stunning, snow covered Laugarfell Mountain in the distance.

The Laugarfell Loop hike was one of the most enjoyable family hikes we have done in Iceland. It’s a little hard to find, but it’s an incredibly scenic hike once you get here.

5. Hverir Geothermal Field Hike

While we were exploring the Hverir Geothermal Field, we could see a hiking trail which goes up the adjacent mountain. The mountain looked like it was from another world, and we wanted an aerial view of the Hverir Geothermal Field, so we gave it a shot.

The hiking trail runs through patches of interesting red soil as it slowly snakes its way uphill. It’s not a very big mountain so it didn’t take us long to get to the top.

What a reward from the top! The views of the Hverir Geothermal Field were as amazing as we had hoped! It was extremely windy and rainy up there, but it couldn’t wipe the smiles off our faces. This was a true Icelandic experience!

As we followed the fun hiking trail along the ridge of the mountain, we came across yet another geothermal field. This one was more yellow and sulphuric than the ones below. What a great surprise! There was even another mud pot with mud bubbles burping from the murky pool.

6. Arnastapi to Hellnar Hike

One of our favourite memories from our first family trip to Iceland was our family hike from Arnastapi to Hellnar. This oceanfront hike is extremely scenic and is easy enough for kids of all ages.

It starts at the beautiful harbor in Arnastapi with many volcanic rocks jutting out of the water. As you begin the hike, you notice that there are continual rock islands just offshore, and many of them are made of basalt columns, which appear to be twisted such that they are horizontal.

The views get even better though as you’ll start to notice the dramatic cliffs which line the seashore. The massive inland volcano is breathtaking too.

There’s a very popular viewpoint which you can visit which offers a view of a double rock arch. This spot is so popular as it’s very close to where the tour buses stop.

Another popular attraction near the tour buses is the Boldur Troll statue. According to an Icelandic saga, Bárður was a settler of the Snæfellsnes Peninsula and is considered its guardian spirit.

Our favourite part of the Arnastapi to Hellnar hike is after you leave the crowds behind, you walk through a mossy lava field created from an eruption of the nearby volcano. The trail winds its way though the field of lava rocks, making it such a fun leg of the family hike.

Beyond the lava field, the final leg of the hike from Arnastapi to Hellnar is along a long wooden boardwalk. Kids always love walking on boardwalks – they are so much fun!

7. Haifoss Waterfall Hike

The Haifoss Waterfall is the third highest waterfall in Iceland! The setting for the Haifoss waterfall is truly breathtaking. It’s actually a collection of 6 very tall waterfalls, falling into a deep ravine below. Haifoss is the tallest and most powerful of the bunch, but the rest are quite beautiful too, including a powerful, cascading waterfall immediately to the right.

You don’t actually need to go on a hike to enjoy the Haifoss waterfall with your family. From the car park, there’s an easy trail to a series of 3 – 4 viewpoints. The view from each viewpoint is slightly different, allowing you to enjoy many angles of this natural wonder.

Most people turn back after the final viewpoint, but if you have the time and energy, we recommend you continue along the Haifoss waterfall trail. It continues downhill in the same direction of the viewpoint trail, taking you further from the Haifoss waterfall.

But, before long, the trail does a 180 degree turn and ventures into the mouth of the canyon where Haifoss and the other incredible waterfalls flow into! The scenery from this point onwards is epic!

The trail can get quite steep downhill in spots, but anyone who hikes regularly should manage ok. The trail seems to go right to the base of the Haifoss waterfall, but the wind was blowing strongly into us, so we had to stop about halfway to avoid being soaked by the spray from this powerful Icelandic waterfall.

Even with stopping short of the end of the hiking trail, the views we got of the Haifoss waterfall from down below were amazing!

8. Skaftafell Glacier & Svartifoss Waterfall Hike

As you enter SouthEast Iceland, the best way to introduce yourself to the iconic Vatnajökull Glacier is this kid-friendly hike to a glacier viewpoint and a unique waterfall.

This family hike is a loop trail and the best way to do it is in a counter-clockwise direction, heading to the Skaftafell Glacier lookout first. The Skaftafell Glacier is a long tongue which protrudes from the main Vatnajökull Glacier.

The trail to the Skaftafell glacier lookout is along a normal hiking trail with some wooden stairs and boardwalks along the way. The trail begins through a forest – a rarity in Iceland, which is normally so barren. There’s a ton of beautiful yellow and purple wildflowers along the hiking trail too.

A decent amount of this hike is on a side-slope, which allows the unique ability to enjoy the flora on one side of the trail, while also enjoying epic views downslope on the other side of the trail.

After the first kilometer (0.6 miles), we saw our first glimpse of the Skaftafell Glacier and the meltwater lake which has formed at its terminus. There are many beautiful icy blue icebergs floating in the water, which is quite an exciting sight.

As you continue to the official lookout, the glacier views just get better and better. Before long, you can see a second glacial tongue in the distance. As you hike above the treeline, you can now see as far as the Atlantic Ocean and the main Vatnajökull Glacier also comes into view – the size of it is indescribable.

After 3 km / 2 miles of moderate uphill climbing to the viewpoint, you’ll be rewarded with an incredible view of the full length of the Skaftafell tongue and the Vatnajökull Glacier beyond. It took my breath away and I’m sure it will yours as well.

I love how you can see the folds in the ice, the patterns the dirt and rock make on the surface as the Skaftafell glacier slowly flows downhill. We came on this family trip to Iceland to show our kids how beautiful nature can be, and this is a perfect example.

From the glacier viewpoint, the hike continues on to the Svartifoss Waterfall through a mostly treeless meadow. The views of the surrounding mountains are beautiful, but I found it hard to take my eyes off the Vatnajökull Glacier, which is also visible in this direction.

The Svartifoss Waterfall is a famous Icelandwic waterfall as it flows over some 6-sided basalt rock formations, which is really quite amazing to look at. We could have gotten closer to the waterfall via a little side trail, but we needed to get going or risk being late for our upcoming iceberg boat tour.

This family-friendly hike is 7 km / 4.4 miles long and takes in two top Iceland attractions. Our family really enjoyed this hike and recommend it to your family as well.

9. Hengifoss Waterfall Hike

The Hengifoss waterfall is the second tallest waterfall in Iceland. It’s a moderately difficult 5 km / 3.1 mile loop hike to visit the Hengifoss waterfall, but they have made it as easy as possible with nice & wide, well-groomed walking trails on both sides of the river valley.

We recommend you walk up one side of the river and down the other as the views of the canyon are much different on each side. We walked up the west trail and enjoyed several waterfall viewpoints along the way. On the way down the east side, there’s a dramatic canyon wall of basalt columns which was hidden on the way up.

At the top of the loop, there is a bridge over the river which gives a good view of the Hengifoss waterfall. But, if you’d like to get closer to the second highest waterfall in Iceland, there is a trail which follows the river upstream a while longer. The views at the Hengifoss waterfall viewing platform are much better, making the short extra walk worthwhile.

10. Látrabjarg Cliffs

One of the main reasons we wanted to travel with our kids to Iceland again was to experience all of its natural beauty with them. The Látrabjarg Cliffs are one of the most beautiful natural attractions in Iceland.

The Látrabjarg Cliffs are located in the extreme northwest corner of the Westfjords. They are so tall and go on for so long, they reminded me of the famous Cliffs of Moher in Ireland.

In addition to being a remarkable natural wonder, the Látrabjarg Cliffs are reputed to be one of the most crowded bird cliffs in the world, with millions of birds calling it home. And true enough, there were birds in the sky everywhere you look as you walk along the cliffs.

Most of the birds at the Látrabjarg Cliffs are gulls, but with over 20,000 nesting pairs, this is another excellent opportunity to see puffins.

There’s a walking trail which goes for several kilometers along the cliffs. Note, there are no handrails, and the cliff edges can be unstable, so watch your kids closely.

11. Stuðlagil Canyon Hike

A few minutes into hiking the Stuðlagil Canyon trail we were immediately rewarded with a beautiful waterfall through basalt columns, it was a great start to our family hike!

The Stuðlagil Canyon Hike is more like a walk as it’s along a wide, well-groomed gravel trail the whole way. After the beautiful waterfall at the beginning, there’s not much to say about the walk to the Stuðlagil Canyon.

The Stuðlagil Canyon trail is along a low, wide valley with the occasional waterfall flowing into the river below. About halfway there, the valley bottom turns into a rocky canyon, which is a nice upgrade to the start.

Although the walk to the Stuðlagil Canyon was pretty non-descript, the payoff at the end is pretty amazing. The Stuðlagil Canyon is one of the best examples of basalt columns anywhere in Iceland. There are well-formed, towering basalt columns all the way up and down the canyon at the end. It’s a stunning location and makes the walk there worthwhile.

12. Hljóðaklettar Circle Hike

Located just north of the Dettifoss waterfall in Jökulsárgljúfur National Park, the Hljóðaklettar Circle hike is a really fun family-friendly hike through a fascinating volcanic fissure.

Roughly 6,000 years ago, lava burst from the ground in this area as a fissure opened in the earth. This lava blocked the river, causing widespread flooding. The combination of hot lava and cool water, resulted in some of the most interesting lava rocks and basalt column formations you’ll see anywhere in Iceland.

This easy 3 km / 2 mile hike takes you through the lava fissure where you’ll walk in the shadow of some massive lava rocks, which tower high overhead the trail. There’s a few spots on one of the early rock formations, where you can see a large circle of the bottom of basalt columns – creating an amazingly beautiful pattern.

At the far end of this fun loop hike is the Kirkjan cave. This is a super-cool cave which practically begs you to come and explore more. The archway over the mouth of the cave is lined with, you guessed it, even more basalt columns!

13. Ásbyrgi Canyon Hike

Just over 1 km / 0.6 miles long, the Ásbyrgi Canyon hike is a loop through a beautiful forest with leafy trees and a carpet of thousands of purple flowers.

Being at the far end of the Ásbyrgi Canyon, the towering canyon walls were on three sides of this short loop hiking trail. At the far end of the loop trail, there’s a small emerald lake with two viewing platforms. The views were nice, but the bugs were not, so we didn’t stay long.

14. Lava Field Dimmuborgir

Formed over 2,000 years ago, the Lava Field Dimmuborgir is renowned for its unique and intricate volcanic rock formations, which have inspired various myths and legends. There are many hiking trails which wind their way through these massive volcanic rocks. As we do, we decided to enjoy the longest hike in the area.

In addition to the many amazing volcanic rocks around the hiking trails, there are a few highlights worth mentioning.

Along the Hallarflot path, there’s a cave with ‘evidence’ that the Yule Lads live there. (In Icelandic folklore, the Yule Lads are a group of 13 mischievous brothers who visit children during the 13 nights leading up to Christmas).

A little further down the main hiking trail there’s an impressive rock arch. There was a good line-up of people, but there’s a good photo opportunity to stand inside the rock arch for a fun picture.

The thing we liked best about the Lava field Dimmuborgir was the lava tunnel. At first it just looked like a big cave, but up close you can see that you can walk right through it. Pretty awesome!

The further away you get from the parking lot, the more rustic the trail comes. The most outer loop was just a basic hiking trail through volcanic sand dunes. We were the only humans in sight, despite the fact it was only 2 km / 1.2 miles from the parking lot.

Keep this in mind if you start to feel like Iceland is too crowded… it doesn’t usually take much effort at all to escape the crowds.

15. Valagil Falls Hike

Standing in the trailhead parking lot looking into the lush green river valley, you can see tall waterfalls in all directions. We were all wondering which one we’d be hiking to.

Most of the first half of the hike is through a beautiful flat meadow along the valley bottom. As usual, there are sheep grazing in the meadow – our daughter especially loved the cute little lambs.

After roughly 2 km / 1.2 miles of easy family hiking, the trail finally starts to go uphill. Watch for a metal box in the side of the trail which contains a book you can sign. This is always fun for kids!

The trail crosses a river on a bridge, and then without warning, the massive, beautiful Valagil Falls appear in a hidden ravine in the right. What an incredible surprise as these towering, multi-tiered falls were not visible until this moment! This was a real “wow!!” moment.

Luckily the family-friendly hiking trail continues even further up into the valley. There’s several spur trails where you can get different angles of Valagil Falls.

The trail now follows the path of a tranquil stream into the belly of the valley towards two waterfalls.

Near the end of the hike, the trail begins to climb up through some rocks towards the waterfalls. The hike culminates with an impressive up-close view of a lower tier of one of the waterfalls we’d been hiking towards.

Looking backwards, the views towards the fjord are also pretty amazing, with towering green mountains in all directions.

The waterfalls in this family-friendly Iceland hike were really beautiful, but the best part is that we barely saw another soul. A rare opportunity to enjoy the beauty of Iceland nature without the crowds!

A Note About AllTrails

As you can see, I recommend you download the AllTrails map for each of the 15 kid-friendly hiking trails in Iceland. A former winner of the App Store App of the Year, I love using AllTrails and have recorded over 700 activities on it and counting. During our 3-week family trip to Iceland, I used it 33 times!

Whenever I hike with my family, I find it reassuring to have the proper trail map on my phone, just in case. In order to download trail maps, you’ll need to subscribe to AllTrails+. Your family trip to Iceland is a great time to take advantage of the free trial of AllTrails+.

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