Iceland in August. Goodbye summer!
The month of August is the last month of proper summer here in Iceland. The daylight is decreasing considerably so that by the end of the month, the northern lights can be seen again in the late-night sky.
Also, there are some summer activities that are still available by the end of the month and you should take advantage of puffin watching, boat tours, hiking in the Icelandic highlands, paragliding, kayaking, zip-line, and snow-cat tours.
Many festivals and national days are also happening in Iceland in August and if you come this month you should check them.
Commerce day – Fridagur verslunarmanna
1st of August
On this day everyone gets a day off, especially the commercial workers. This idea of a Commerce day came from Denmark and in Iceland happened for the first time in September 1984.
Commerce day was established to happen on the first Monday of August so Icelanders are enjoying a long weekend with family and friends. Icelanders are going camping, travelling and attending concerts and different fun activities.
This day has a big celebration on Westman Islands. Þjóðhátíð is a National Festival and is happening every year on Commerce day on Vestmannaeyjar. The festival was held for the first time in 1874, one day before the first Commerce day and the people from the Vestmannaeyjar could not make it to the mainland due to the bad weather so they decided to make their own celebration. Nowadays the festival is very popular and hosts almost 13 000 people.
For more info about the festival you can find it on their website dalurinn.is.
Reykjavik Pride – Hinsegin dagar
8-13 August
This is a festival that brings all the nation together. “Six-day festival filled with exciting events, lectures, queer cruise, gay walks, a family festival, concerts, gallery openings, parties, big queer dance on Saturday after the parade and of course the Pride parade.” (Gaytravel4u.com)
Celebrate and enjoy being and living as you are at the Reykjavik Pride festival. More info can be found on the official website.
Reykjavik Jazz Festival
August
“The annual Reykjavík Jazz festival is an increasingly prestigious event on the international jazz scene. Founded in 1990 it is the second longest-running music festival in Iceland.
The festival hosts performances in a variety of styles, from contemporary jazz and the avant-garde to Latin jazz, gospel and big bands. It features many acclaimed international jazz players as well as Iceland’s leading jazz musicians. Against a backdrop of imposing volcanoes and mountains this small, clean coastal town is an unusual and inspiring location for live jazz.” (Reykjavikjazz.is)
Culture Night, Reykjavik
August
“The event is both created and enjoyed by city residents and takes place all across central Reykjavik, with celebrations in the streets and squares, in museums, businesses and residential gardens! The event’s slogan ‘come on in!’ is a reference to the good old-fashioned customs of Icelandic hospitality. Reykjavik Culture Night marks the start of the city’s cultural year when museums and theatres and other cultural institutions launch their annual programme of events. The main objective of Reykjavik Culture Night is to deliver a diverse and rich offering of cultural events from 1-11 pm, ending with a magnificent firework show by the harbour. All events are free of charge for everyone to enjoy.” (Culturenight.is)
Check their official website for more information.
The Reykjavik Marathon
19th of August
This event is for sports lovers of all ages. “The atmosphere surrounding a race is also a hugely important factor for most runners, and the atmosphere at the Reykjavík race is electric. While the Icelanders would enthusiastically support the race anyway, it is actually planned to coincide with ‘Culture Night’ (Menningarnótt), a national event that brings up to a third of the entire population of Iceland onto the streets of the capital.”
“The race offers an atmosphere which is both relaxed and welcoming. Around 1,000 runners participate in the marathon and 2,000 in the half marathon, making both races less crowded than is generally the case in larger events. Since the Reykjavik Marathon also includes 10k, fun run and children’s run distances, it’s also a family event.” (rmi.is)
Fireworks at Jökulsárlón
Middle of August
Imagine the glacier lagoon lighten up by the colourful fireworks lights. Every year in the middle of August, a firework show is hosted at Jökulsárlón by the volunteers in the search and rescue (SAR) team in Höfn, Björgunarfélag Hornafjarðar.
“Tickets can be bought at the entrance at Jökulsárlón the night of the event, but we recommend to buy tickets in advance if possible, just to make things faster. It is also better to have cash, but it is possible to pay with card if needed. All fee goes to support the SAR team and their volunteer work.” (Visitvatnajokull.is)
The activities you can enjoy during August are some of the most beautiful. So if you are in Iceland in August, try them.
Is the last month when hiking in the Highlands is possible. After August the weather and the temperatures are making this dangerous to do and all the tours in the Icelandic Highlands are unavailable.
Laugavegur – Iceland’s most famous trek from Landmannalaugar to Þórsmörk lives up to the hype. The magical and diverse landscape combined with the long and bright Icelandic summer days will capture your nature-loving heart.
This trail takes adventurers from the geothermal valley of Landmannalaugar and the southern highlands, over the southern highlands to the Þórsmörk valley, at the foot of the world-famous Eyjafjallajökull volcano. The trail crosses many spectacles, including the third biggest geothermal zone in the world, through yellow rhyolite mountains, over black deserts, past incredible canyons and finally into the verdurous valley of Þórsmörk. It is no coincidence that the “Laugavegur” hike each year attracts travellers worldwide and is an excellent favourite amongst locals.
These hikes are long hikes, for about five days, and include camping and many hours of continuous hikes. Some tours will take you hiking in Landmannalaugar.
Snorkelling at Silfra should be on your bucketlist. Described as one of the top dive sites globally by National Geographic, Silfra is located in the historically rich Thingvellir National Park – part of the famous Golden Circle route. Snorkelling in Silfra is a once-in-a-lifetime transcontinental experience.
The guides will show you what National Geographic has described as one of the top dive sites in the world. As you glide between tectonic plates floating on pure, filtered glacial meltwater, you’ll find out for yourself and tick off your bucket list for the ultimate tour on breathtaking underwater views only available in Iceland in the world’s most transparent waters.
The warm weather in the summer is melting the ice on the glacier lagoons, and the boat tours can operate again. The most famous glacier lagoon of Vatnajökull is Jökulsárlón Glacier Lagoon, full of icebergs broken from Breiðamerkurjökull tongue. All the icebergs from this lagoon are taken by the ocean currents and brought back to land at Diamond Beach, right next to the lagoon.
Jökulsárlón Glacier Lagoon is one of the most visited places in Iceland, and for an excellent reason. Also called the Crown Jewel of Iceland, Jökulsárlón Glacier Lagoon will impress you with its beauty and unicity. The landscape is fantastic.
The glacier lagoon is not frozen during the summertime, so there are almost everyday boat trips on the lagoon. There are two options for boat tours on the Jökulsárlón Glacier Lagoon.
Amphibian boat tour. This trip takes about 30-40. During the excursion, you sail among the huge icebergs in the picturesque scenery of Jökulsárlón. You get to taste the 1000-year-old ice on the boat, and if you are lucky, you might even see some seals. There is also a guide to the ship who will explain to you the geology of the glacier lagoon. More details and prices for this tour you will find here.
Zodiac Tour. During this trip, you sail among the huge icebergs in the picturesque scenery of Jökulsárlón. You have to check in 30 minutes before departure for this boat tour, and the whole tour duration is 1 hour.
On the Zodiac tour, we can cover large lagoon areas and get closer to the icebergs than on the amphibian. The Zodiac goes almost up to the glacier (as close as safe).
As this tour approach more of the icebergs, all passengers are provided with flotation suits and a life jacket. If this tour has aroused your curiosity already, check our zodiac tour for more details.
Not far away from Jökulsárlón glacier lagoon is Fjallsárlón lagoon. And there can also be two types of boat tours.
Fjallsárlón is an isolated glacial lagoon in the realm of Vatnajökull. Iceland’s tallest volcano, the Öræfajökull glacier, looms above the lagoon and reaches the water where icebergs break off into the lake and drift serenely around before melting.
Photography Private Boat Tours. Even if you are a pro or an amateur photographer, you can choose a photography private boat tour on the Fjallsárlón lagoon. Take all your camera gear since you have a lot of space in the boat; you will be able to take the best shots here.
There are two options for this tour: the classic tour or the luxury tour.
The classic tour takes about one hour and thirty minutes, and you will be taken to the edge of the glacier. At the same time, your guide explains the formation of the glacier, the surrounding landscape, and the community of people around it.
The luxury tour takes about two hours, and a picnic follows it in Fjallsey. The island is right by the glacier’s edge, perfect for a picnic. So after you take your best shots, you can relax and enjoy some champagne and the food you will find in the picnic basket. Have you decided which one you choose? Take a look here for more details.
Fjallsárlón – Iceberg boat tour. This tour takes one hour and thirty minutes, and you will be sailing to the edge of the glacier. During this tour, you will find out more information about how the local farmers were struggling with the forces of nature back in the day and how they created a communion with nature. Take a look at our boat tours and join us in this adventure.
You probably have seen photos of the “Elephant Rock” and pictures of an island with only a building. Those are some of the most famous images from Iceland that you will see online, but where were they taken? Westman Islands!
Located in the South of Iceland, Vestmannaeyjar is an archipelago that has 15 islands and 30 rock stacks around them. It is one of the most exciting places in Iceland as it has a rich and not-so-happy history but rich geology. Also, Westman Islands have rich wildlife that includes many species of birds and the largest population of puffins, the first beluga whale sanctuary in the world, and many other species of whales on the ocean waters near the islands.
You can experience all those natural wonders from a boat tour around the Westman Islands. We recommend three boat tours on Westman Islands operated by our friends from RIB Safari.
The South Coast of Iceland is a geological masterpiece of past volcanic activity. South Coast has some of the most beautiful black sand beaches and an impressive volcanic and glacial relief. Exploring the South Coast is such an exciting experience, and it can become unforgettable if you choose to explore it on an ATV tour.
Our friends from Arcanum are organising some ATV tours on the South Coast of Iceland during summertime, and you have to try one.
Every summer, we have some cute visitors here in Iceland, and they stay with us from mid-May to mid-August. I am talking about puffins. The little birds are unofficially the national bird of Iceland.
Although you can find the largest colony of puffins in south Iceland in Westman Islands, there are also other places where you will see puffins during summer, and those places are Látrabjarg, Ingólfshöfði, Flatey Island, Borgarfjörður Eystri, Breiðafjörður. They usually stay on the cliffs along the coast to see them in other areas such as Dyrholaey, Grimsey island or Akurey, Engey or Lundey islands. Still, the larger colonies can be found in the places mentioned above.
Try a puffin watching tour and admire these cute birds closer in their natural habitat.
For adrenaline lovers, kayaking tours are perfect. You can go kayaking on the Icelandic rivers or the glacier lagoons. To sail along the immense glaciers is something you have to try.
The summer season is great for whale watching, as the wildlife in the bay is at its highest peak. This is when the minke whales are at their most abundant, along with the white-beaked dolphins, harbour porpoises and humpback whales.
The best part of travelling to Iceland during summer is that you can do some excellent activities there. And mainly speaking of whale watching, the summer season is the best because whales can be seen in many parts of Iceland.
Before going on a tour, you must understand that bad weather conditions can reschedule or cancel the tour. Also, as you watch marine life, you have to realise that everything happens in the whales’ natural environment, and it is not guaranteed that you will see many whales. Sometimes happens not to see any whales, but those cases are rare.
See Iceland from above on a tandem paragliding tour. Iceland is beautiful on the ground, but from above is astonishing. You need no prior knowledge to do this tour; you just have to bring courage, and then you will fill up with adrenaline.
A zipline ride is a great adventure for all those who love the thrill of doing something challenging but at the same time very safe. See the stunning Black Sand Beach from above on a zip-line adventure.
Geothermal baths and hot springs
There is no right time for a geothermal bath. And it is a must-do in Iceland. Check our blog to see the best places to relax like a true Viking and where you can find natural hot springs in Westfjords.
Also, if you plan to come to Iceland in August, book your ticket now.
Depending on the temperatures outside, there might be changes in the operation of the Katla Ice Cave tour.
The temperatures are rising, and the ice caves at Vatnajökull glacier have become dangerous to explore. However, some ice caves are available for exploration all year.
One ice cave is the Katla ice cave in South Iceland. It is located in the Kötlujökull glacier, part of the Mýrdalsjökull glacier.
And the other one is the ice cave at Langjökull glacier. The ice cave at Langjökull is artificial, so there has been an entire process to carve into the glacier and form the tunnel. Local authorities opened the ice cave to the public in 2015, and the tunnel inside the glacier is 550m long and goes 30 meters into the glacier.
If you want to explore some ice caves, these are some excellent options.
As closer we get to the end of August, many of these activities will not be available anymore. But the winter season is coming with other exciting activities that can be done in Iceland. Enjoy your stay in Iceland and make some unforgettable memories here.
