I couldn’t help but feel excited for the journey ahead as I settled in on the first Icelandair flight from Montreal to Keflavik, enthralled by the captivating aurora light shows above. Get ready to be enthralled by my four-day tour of the magnificent Snaefellsness Peninsula.
With good cause, the Snaefellsness Peninsula is frequently compared as a miniature version of Iceland. It includes all of Iceland’s unique features, including glaciers, waterfalls, lava fields, stunning coastlines, and lunar-like scenery. Traveling to Snaefellsness will give you a small sample of what Iceland as a whole looks like if you’re short on time in Iceland (perhaps you’re just passing through).
Kirkjufell
Many photographers consider Iceland to be their ideal travel destination, so it should come as no surprise that one of its most photographed mountains is also one of the best and most popular places to see the aurora. You will be in awe of the mountain’s unusual shape, which is framed by the magnificent Kirkjufellsfoss on one side and the quaint Grundarfjörður hamlet on the other. This is a place you won’t want to miss if you’re thinking about visiting Iceland in the winter! To get the finest light for photography, I would strongly advise visiting Kirkjufell around sunrise or early in the morning if you’re planning a summer trip.
Hraunfossar
Despite not being as magnificent or breathtaking as the southern waterfalls, Hraunfossar is nonetheless a true jewel. Because, well, Iceland, the spring water that flows through it passes through a massive lava field and descends more than a kilometer underground. It’s a genuinely unique and worthwhile journey.
Langjökull
Prepare yourself, friends—this is going to be an incredible adventure! At 40 meters below the surface, it leads tourists to the second-biggest glacier in Europe and Iceland. It is also the largest artificial ice cave in the world and among the deepest. Together, geologists and glaciologists created Into the Glacier, a 500-meter underground tunnel that genuinely puts “ice” in Iceland. Since you will only be utilizing specially modified four-wheelers that were originally intended to transport missiles during NATO’s Iceland days, you will be able to travel in style. The ice cave at the center of this ice monster is completely man-made, but many of Iceland’s glacier excursions are held in naturally occurring ice caves at the glaciers’ margins.
The Bay of Bridafjordur and Stykkishólmur
The Viking Sushi journey is a fantastic combination of educational value and natural beauty. Enthusiastically, our captain presented his vast knowledge of the varied local fauna and the fascinating science underlying the distinctive basalt islands that are dotted across Breidafjordur Bay. We had the chance to eat fresh seafood on board, as the cruise’s name implies. Even though I don’t typically enjoy seafood, I must admit that those salty scallops were quite wonderful. They were that excellent!
Djúpalónssandur
Last but not least, the very western point of the peninsula is home to the highly picturesque pebbled beach and lava field of Djúpalónssandur. It used to be a bustling fishing hamlet since it is one of the few places in an area that is primarily composed of sheer cliffs to have access to the ocean. Even while there aren’t many remnants of this time period left, you can still see “strength stones,” which weigh between 23 and 154 kg. A potential fisherman’s strength was assessed using these stones. People were considered unfit for a life at sea if they couldn’t lift all of them with ease.
