How to Walk on Glaciers in Iceland

glacier walk iceland

There are endless, and I mean endless things you can spend your time doing when you decide to go on an adventure to the beautiful country of Iceland. But nothing quite beats taking an Icelandic glacier walk or ice caving adventure. Our Life Nomading Iceland trip admittedly does this on our five-day trip and it’s quite a hit. I mean who wouldn’t want to walk on glaciers, right?!

glacier walk iceland and ice cave

But as much fun as glacier walks can be, there are a few key things you should be prepared for when you are going to go on this type of adventure:

Wear the proper attire for a day trek on ice

Depending on when you travel to Iceland, attire will certainly change a bit.

You can count on having to wear a coat, but be sure to wear comfortable pants that allow you to walk and move like an agile cat on the ice.

Additionally, be sure to bring a small, lightweight backpack that you can put all your things in during the day.

Keeping your hands completely free while you walk on glaciers and around ice caves is essential so you can use your hands to anchor yourself on slippery moments or to catch your fall.

Trust me, I slipped once and scratched my camera lens because I had to use it to stop my fall. NO FUN! Learn from my mistakes, people!

Use the restroom beforehand

I know this sounds like common sense, but the last time we took a group ice caving we had a few that found that they needed to use the restroom pretty badly. We are far from the nearest restroom so try to do your best to make sure mother nature won’t call while you’re out adventuring.

Bring a snack

Walking on glaciers and ice can make for a tiring day.

Bring some

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03/19/2024 03:28 am GMT
or granola snacks to give you a boost of energy as you’re spending the day experiencing something pretty magical. The last thing you want is for your hanger to distract you from the moments of epicness currently happening around you.

Make sure to wear crampons and a helmet

ice caving in iceland

Crampons are spiked chain webbing you put on the bottom of your shoes to increase traction while walking on the ice. I’m not sure that there is any other way to do a glacier walk in Iceland without them so if for some reason your tour guide doesn’t give you these, be sure to ask why!

Additionally, it is so crucial to wear a helmet. Especially if you are doing ice caving you want to protect your noggin from any potential melting ice chunks or wipe outs. While not big, I have experienced little chunks that fall from time to time from the caves and I’m sure it would not feel good if you didn’t have a helmet on.

Find a trusted glacier walk operator

Obviously, we’d love if you joined one of our trips to experience this and many other moments in Iceland. But if the stars don’t align, regardless, we urge you to find a local glacier and ice caving guide with positive reviews and a great a safety record. Ice caving and glacier walks can have an element of liability with it being a slippery and sometimes unstable environment. Having someone lead the way that is an expert in Iceland glaciers and educate you on safety procedures is so vital!

I encourage you to try and make sure to find a tour group that includes ice caving or glacier walks in Iceland. It’s a great outdoor activity to do while you are there and it’s a ton of fun! Just remember to take your time when walking, watch where you’re going and try to take any safety precautions to prevent slipping or injury. You’ll do great, and have a ton of fun in the land of fire and ice. 🙂