Reykjanes by car: Krýsuvík, Gunnuhver and Brimketill
Drive it yourself if you have a car: Seltún first, then the coast road west to Brimketill, Gunnuhver and the bridge. Half a day, ending near Keflavík airport.
The short version
- Do the loop east to west: Kleifarvatn and Seltún first, then the south coast, then Brimketill, Gunnuhver and the Bridge Between Continents.
- Allow four to five hours including stops. It ends about 20 minutes from Keflavík airport, which makes it a good departure-day drive.
- Every stop is a short walk from the car park. None needs a guide, and none charges entry, though some car parks charge.
- A tour only earns its price if you have no car or want the Grindavík story told by someone who lived through it.
If you have a rental car, drive Reykjanes yourself. The geothermal stops are all a short walk from a car park, the roads are sealed, and the loop fits into half a day. Start at Krýsuvík, finish at the Bridge Between Continents, and you end up about 20 minutes from Keflavík airport. A tour is only worth it if you have no car, or if the thing you really want is the volcano story around Grindavík.
We’ve written separately about whether Reykjanes is worth a whole day. This page is for people who have already decided to go, and want to know the order.
The order that works
Go east to west. It keeps the airport at the end, and it puts the best stop first while you are fresh.
- Kleifarvatn. From Reykjavík take the road towards Hafnarfjörður and turn south onto Road 42. The lake comes up after about half an hour: black sand, dark water, steep ridges.
- Seltún (Krýsuvík). A few minutes further on. A boardwalk loops over a hillside of boiling mud, steam vents and orange and yellow clay. Give it 30 to 45 minutes. It smells of sulphur, strongly. Stay on the boards; the ground beside them can be scalding.
- The south coast road. Road 427 runs west along the coast towards Grindavík through lava fields, with a gravel track off it to the Krýsuvíkurberg sea cliffs. Access around Grindavík has changed repeatedly since the eruptions began in late 2023, so check umferdin.is or safetravel.is on the morning.
- Brimketill. West of Grindavík on Road 425. It’s a round pool worn into the lava shelf by the sea, with a viewing platform above it. On a calm day it’s a quiet, slightly odd little basin. In a big swell the waves break right over it, which is the better show. Keep to the platform. The rocks are slippery and the surf is dangerous.
- Gunnuhver. Near the tip of the peninsula. A field of steam vents and a big grey mud pool, loud enough that you raise your voice. The boardwalks have been moved more than once because the hot ground keeps spreading. Twenty minutes is plenty.
- Reykjanesviti and Valahnúkur. The lighthouse and the sea cliffs beside it are a two-minute detour. Expect the strongest wind of the day.
- The Bridge Between Continents. A short footbridge over a sand-filled rift on the way north towards Hafnir. A photo stop, nothing more.
From there it’s roughly 20 minutes to Keflavík airport.
How long it takes
Driving alone is perhaps two and a half hours for the whole loop. With stops, allow four to five hours. Add the Blue Lagoon and it becomes a full day, and the lagoon needs booking ahead.
In winter the daylight is short. From November to January you may have five hours or less, so start early and do Seltún in the light. Road 42 past Kleifarvatn can be icy and is not always cleared first; check the road map before you leave.
What it costs
Nothing, apart from fuel and parking. None of these stops charges entry. Some car parks on the peninsula charge a fee paid by app or machine; have a card ready. There are few toilets and fewer cafés between Hafnarfjörður and the Grindavík area, so plan around that.
When a tour is better
If you don’t have a car, a shared bus is the cheap way round. Grindavík, Krýsuvík & Eruption Site Half Day Tour, from €109, is five and a half hours from Reykjavík with a 12:00 departure. It takes in Kleifarvatn, Seltún and Grænavatn, then the Grindavík area and the lava fields at Sundhnúkagígar. It doesn’t cover the western tip, so no Gunnuhver or Brimketill.
If you’d rather walk than drive, Day Trek beyond Seltún, from €135, is a 15 km guided hike from the geothermal area into the hills and lakes behind it. Around 560 m of climbing, age 16 and over, groups of up to 12. That’s a proper day out, not a sightseeing loop.
Two more for people who want a twist. Geothermal Sprint Through Krýsuvík, from €405, is a private three-hour drive round Seltún, Kleifarvatn, the black church and the cliffs, in a modified rally car. The price is for the car, not per seat. And Trip to the Moon ATV tour, from €262, rides the western tip near the lighthouse. The driver needs a licence; passengers from age six.
Our honest take
Drive it. Reykjanes is the easiest self-drive day in Iceland: short distances, sealed roads, car parks at every stop. Go east to west, give Seltún the most time, and look at Brimketill properly rather than from the car.
The downside is that on a grey, flat day the lava fields all look the same, and the peninsula can feel like a long drive between steam vents. Fine on the way to a flight; not the best day of a short trip.
If you have no car, the half-day bus tour does the eastern half well and throws in Grindavík. You’ll miss the western tip. For most people that’s the right trade.
