Things to do in  East Iceland

Located in southern Iceland, Vatnajokull National Park is renowned for its incredibly diverse and dramatic scenery, including glacial plateaus, active volcanoes, towering ice caps, black-sand beaches, and terrain that is bubbling with geothermal activity. Vatnajokull glacier, the continent’s largest glacier, dominates the UNESCO World Heritage Site, which also contains Iceland’s highest mountain (Oraefajokull) and its deepest lake (Jokulsarlon).

Perched on the edge of Vatnajökull, Europe’s largest glacier, and separated from the Atlantic Ocean by just a narrow isthmus, the Jokulsarlon Glacier Lagoon is one of Iceland’s most spectacular natural wonders. Here, framed by jagged peaks and rugged lava fields, glittering, milky-white icebergs that have broken off from the Vatnajökull glacier bob in ice-blue water and drift toward the open sea.

A strip of black sand littered with chunks of translucent ice, Diamond Beach is a must-see attraction on Iceland’s southern coast. It lies next to the Jökulsárlón glacial lagoon, filled with ice splitting off from sections of Europe’s largest icecap. The “diamonds” range from fist-sized turquoise spheres to white blocks large as humans.

While at just 66 feet high (20 meters) Svartifoss Waterfall isn’t Iceland’s largest or most powerful, you could argue it’s one of the country’s most dramatic, thanks to its backdrop of striking dark basalt columns. Its name—meaning “Black Falls”—comes from the color of the hexagonal formations that create the waterfall’s amphitheater–shaped cliff.

With its ripples of ice flowing down a wide valley, Skaftafellsjökull is a glacier tongue, which extends from the Vatnajökull ice cap that covers much of southeast Iceland. The rugged ridges of Skaftafellsjökull glacier have become a playground for visitors to experience what it’s like walking on a glacier, while the black and green hills nearby serve as viewpoints to this slowly-melting natural phenomenon.