The Saltvík tour

by Saltvík Holidayfarm · Horse riding · North Iceland

4.80· 129 Google reviews of the operator

Beginners welcome
Fine on your own
Eco-certified

from €88.09 per person

Next departure: Thu 22 Oct

Book Thu 22 Oct · €88.09 Other dates

Duration
1 hour
Difficulty
Easy
Season
All year
Starts in
Húsavík
Pickup
Meet at the start point
Starts at
Saltvík farm horse stable
Saltvík, Húsavík
Guide
Guided in English
Departs
10:00, 14:00, 16:30
Minimum age
8
Cancellation
Free until 2 days before

About this experience

The Saltvík tour is a 1 hour ride through the hillside behind Saltvík farm from where we'll have a beautiful view over Skjálfandi bay with the impressive mountains at the other side. The soft trails give good opportunity to try the tölt (the extra gait of the Icelandic horse), and because we ride away from and do not cross the main road, this experience is suitable for families with children from 8 years of age.

Description from the operator, Saltvík Holidayfarm. Prices and availability in the booking panel are live.

Included

riding helmets will be provided

heavy duty raingear is availalbe

Good to know

Good outdoor (windbreaker / waterproof) clothing and closed shoes (hiking boots/sneakers) are required. bringing gloves (no mittens.) is advisable, as well as a thin hat/earband to cover ears under the helmet in cold/windy weather. Heavy duty raingear is available in case of heavy rains.

The use of a riding helmet is mandatory. Helmets will be provided.

We kindly ask you to respect the weight limit of 110 kg we have set for the well-being of our horses. While you will probably only ride once 1-1,5 hour with us, our horses will walk those tours (almost) every day for several months in a row. We highly care for them and above all we want to do everything to keep them happy and healthy, which also will give you the best of experiences.

We hope you will understand this and not book the ride in case you‘re exceeding this weight limit. Thank you, and we hope you‘ll have a great riding experience with us.

If you have any questions regarding this matter (for example if you‘re right on, or just under 110 kg), please feel free to either call (+354 8479515) or email (info@saltvik.is) us.

Cancellation for this tour

Free cancellation until 2 days before departure; no refund after that. If the operator cancels for weather or safety, you get a full refund or a new date.

If the weather cancels this tour

Iceland's weather is real. What usually stops this one is a forecast the operator judges unsafe. Here is exactly what happens to your booking.

1Saltvík Holidayfarm decides, and tells us. Operators cancel when it is unsafe or pointless, and we back that call every time — we do not ask them to run anyway.
2We contact you by email, and by phone if your tour is the same or next day. You choose: another date if there is one you can make, or a full refund. There is no fee and nothing to argue.
3The refund goes back to the card you paid with, through Stripe, usually visible within a few working days. If this tour was one of several in your booking, the others are untouched.

What you do not get is the day back. If this is the only free day in your plan, put a spare day next to it — the planner leaves days free with the rest-day option. And if you want out because the forecast looks bad, that is your own cancellation: free until 2 days before departure, the operator's policy after that.

Questions on the day: [email protected] · +354 497 1373. How cancellations work in Iceland →

Who this is not for

Children under 8 cannot join this one.

Read off the operator's own conditions. If none of it applies to you, this is a good one.

Why we list it

Saltvík Holidayfarm is one of 204 operators we work with — chosen for reliability, honest descriptions and how they treat guests when weather changes plans. We don't list everything; we list what we'd book ourselves. The six checks every operator passes →

What travellers say about Saltvík Holidayfarm

Read all 129 reviews on Google →

Operator rating 4.8/5 from Google — these are reviews of the company, not this specific tour. Shown as Google returns them, unedited.

Rosalie Wilder
★★★★★ · 8 months ago
We did a private family ride with Saltvik Horse Rental, and it was a lovely experience overall. The route took us through open fields, down to the beach, and along the cliffs rather than the hillside, which made for beautiful, varied scenery. The views were peaceful and expansive with the rolling countryside meeting the sea and the rugged coastline adding a dramatic touch. The horses were gentle, calm, and very well trained. They followed commands easily and stayed in line, only doing what the lead horse did, which made the ride feel very safe, especially for the kids. The pace was mostly slow and relaxed, with quiet walking throughout and two short sections in tölt. Personally, I would have enjoyed a bit more active riding and maybe a chance to gallop, but for our children, who have less riding experience, it was a comfortable and enjoyable introduction. Our guide, Merritt, was incredibly kind and patient with the kids and clearly very knowledgeable about horse care. Our daughter needed to practice several skills for her horsemanship class, and Merritt took extra time to teach and explain each requirement, which we truly appreciated. While it wasn’t a high-adrenaline ride, we still had a great time as a family. It’s an excellent option for families, beginners, or anyone looking for a calm, scenic horseback ride in a beautiful setting.
Zoe Pickford
★★★★★ · 2 months ago
Went twice to Saltvik and loved my experience. Very scenic and peaceful route with beautiful and easy going horses. Instructor was great too and let us experience the famous tölt - unique to the icelandic horses. Highly reccomend!
Alexandra Polisevschi
★★★★ · 3 months ago
This was a very interesting experience for beginners. The horses are very well trained, they know to walk behind the leader horse at a slow pace, and everything feels super safe. This is important, because riding the horse is not easy at all! When the horse descends, it actually gets difficult to maintain balance! You get to see amazing landscape and many birds. The trail is well picked by the guides. It's obvious they have some options for advanced riders (you see splitting paths), however for beginners they avoid steep or difficult slopes. Why I rated this 4 stars: While a great experience, I really would have loved a more detailed riding tutorial (we got only a very brief summary of start/turn/stop commands). There was no explanation about how to stay in the saddle, how to maintain balance, what to do when the horse goes down a slope, etc. At the end, we got a few minutes to offer the horse a snack, and that was it. It felt quite expeditive.
Giulia Grifo
★★★★★ · a month ago
Highly recommended tour guide in the area of Husavik/Akureyri. We took the seaside tour and our guide Lou was professional and kind. I am a horse lover and even if I haven’t horse riding in a while that was easy and smooth. I absolutely loved the experience!!

Reviews from Google · updated 21 Oct 2026

Read before you book

Icelandic farm visits: sheep, horses and lambsThe real farm visits are small and short: a family farm with sheep and horses at Mývatn, a dairy with its own ice cream, a horse stable. Lambs are born in May.
Skagafjörður: horses and rafting on the Ring RoadSkagafjörður is the best place to break the Reykjavík–Akureyri drive: a 30- or 90-minute ride from Varmahlíð all year, and family rafting in summer.

Reviews from our travellers

Only people who booked this tour through us can write here. We publish every review in full — good or bad.

Reviews arrive the day after each trip — none yet for this one. After your tour we send one email asking how it was, and what you write goes here, unedited.

Horse riding — questions people ask

Can complete beginners ride Icelandic horses?

Yes, and most people on the tours are beginners. Icelandic horses are small, calm and used to novices, and the one- to two-hour rides on the farm tours (/experience/164615/, /experience/170834/) move at a walk with a taste of tölt, the smooth fifth gait the breed is known for. You get a helmet and a short briefing. If you have ridden before, tell the guide; they will match you to a livelier horse.

Why can't I call it a pony?

Because Icelanders will correct you, politely. The Icelandic horse stands around 13 to 14 hands, pony height elsewhere, but it has been bred as a horse for a thousand years with no outside blood since the settlement. It has five gaits, including tölt and the flying pace. Once a horse leaves Iceland it cannot come back, to protect the herd from disease. Call it a horse; the guides will like you more.

Can I bring my own riding gear to Iceland?

Only if it has been disinfected. Iceland has strict rules to protect its horses from foreign disease: used riding clothing, gloves and boots must be disinfected before entering the country, and used leather tack, saddles and bridles are not allowed at all. The stables provide helmets and rain overalls, so most people bring nothing. Wear long trousers and closed shoes with a small heel if you have them.

Is there a weight limit for horse riding in Iceland?

Yes. Icelandic horses are small, and most stables set a rider weight limit somewhere around 100 to 110 kilograms, sometimes lower for longer rides. The tour page states the exact limit, and stables do enforce it on the day. If you are close to the limit, email us before booking and we will check with the operator. Minimum ages also apply, usually six to eight for a farm ride.

Hotels

Where to stay for this tour

From the cheapest to the top end of what is near Húsavík, from our hotel partners. Rooms are booked on our hotels site.

All hotels in North Iceland →

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from

€88.09 per person

Saltvík Holidayfarm's own price. 3% off the whole trip when you book two or more tours together, in one checkout.

Your date

The next departure we can see — change it if this tour is for another day.

Pick a date to check departures.

Departs10:0014:0016:30

Húsavík: light 08:26–17:21, 8 h 55 min of daylight.

✓ Free cancellation until 2 days before
✓ Instant confirmation by email
✓ If Saltvík Holidayfarm cancels for weather or safety: a full refund, or another date
✓ Card — Apple Pay or Google Pay where your device offers it — through Stripe; the charge is made in Icelandic krónur
✓ Price promise: Saltvík Holidayfarm's own price, or we refund the difference
✓ One checkout, even with tours from several operators
✓ Vetted operator — the six checks every operator passes

Pairs well with

Add any of these to this tour and 3 % comes off both at checkout — about €5 on the cheapest pair. One basket, one payment, however many operators they come from.