Skógafoss Waterfall
The 60-metre curtain that anchors every South Coast itinerary. Skógafoss is the first truly postcard-scale waterfall you hit driving east from Reykjavík, and the reason most photographers stop twice — once from the base, once from the staircase above. The falls drop a clean 60 metres over the edge of Iceland's old sea cliffs, so the spray carries for a hundred metres and the frame shifts dramatically between morning, midday, and the low golden hours.
Access restriction
Skógafoss is one of the protected areas where flying a drone requires a permit.
- a drone flight needs a permit from Náttúruverndarstofnun
- permits are issued only for commercial work — research, monitoring, construction, film, news and professional photography — and never for recreational or educational flying
- commercial permits may be granted year-round
Best window: .
Overview
Skógafoss is a waterfall situated on the Skógá River in the south of Iceland at the cliffs of the former coastline
Skógafoss Waterfall is one waypoint of many — you can load all 43 waterfall locations before you leave signal.
The 60-metre curtain that anchors every South Coast itinerary.
Skógafoss is the first truly postcard-scale waterfall you hit driving east from Reykjavík, and the reason most photographers stop twice — once from the base, once from the staircase above. The falls drop a clean 60 metres over the edge of Iceland's old sea cliffs, so the spray carries for a hundred metres and the frame shifts dramatically between morning, midday, and the low golden hours. Budget more time here than you think — this is a one-hour stop that turns into three.
Best time to shoot
Early morning (05:30–08:00 summer) for sidelight and empty frames. Late afternoon in winter for warm light on the cliff face.
- Summer: arrive before 08:00 — the parking fills by 09:30 and the foreground fills with tourists by 10:00.
- Winter: aim for 14:00–15:30 to catch the low angle of the sun striking the cliff to the east of the falls.
- Rainbow window: a clear midday with sun behind you produces the famous double rainbow from the base, roughly 11:00–13:00 in summer.
- Aurora: the staircase viewpoint works as a foreground on KP 3+ nights, but the spray will coat your lens — bring a cloth and a lens hood.
Light & aurora at this spot
Calculated from this location’s coordinates (63.532, -19.514). Iceland stays on UTC year-round, so these are local times.
- Summer
- June: sun up 03:01–23:36 (20.6 h). Evening golden hour 21:49–23:36, light coming from the NNW.
- Winter
- December: only 4.5 h of daylight (10:57–15:29), but the sun never climbs above 3.2° — the entire day is golden hour. Sunrise bears SSE, sunset SSW.
- Aurora
- Aurora-grade darkness Sep–Mar, peaking at 12.8 h a night in December. Not possible Apr, May, Jun, Jul, Aug — the sky never gets dark enough.
Bar height is daylight hours. Months marked • have enough astronomical darkness for aurora; the rest do not.
Gear
- Lens
- 16–35 mm for base shots; 24–70 mm for framed compositions with the staircase or rainbow
- Tripod
- Required — spray makes handheld shots risky at slower shutter speeds
- Filter
- 3–6 stop ND for silky water; polarizer to cut glare on the cliff face
- Protection
- Bring a lens cloth or two and a rain cover — the spray reaches much further than it looks
Difficulty
Easy to the base, moderate to the top (527 steps)
Wheelchair-accessible at the base. The staircase to the clifftop is exposed and steep — allow 15 minutes up.
Parking & access
Free gravel lot directly south of the falls. 2–3 min walk to the base, 8–10 min up the staircase.
- Overflow lot across the bridge if the main lot is full.
- Campervans welcome but no overnight stays in the lot — the official campsite is 300m south.
Keep walking. A 20-minute hike up the Skógá river from the top of the staircase reveals at least five more waterfalls that almost nobody photographs.
Questions & answers
Yes. Skógafoss is one of the protected areas where flying a drone requires a permit. A drone flight needs a permit from Náttúruverndarstofnun; permits are issued only for commercial work — research, monitoring, construction, film, news and professional photography — and never for recreational or educational flying; and 1 further restriction listed on the page.
Plan on 90 minutes minimum if you want both the base and the clifftop viewpoint. Add another hour if you hike upriver for the series of lesser-known falls above.
No. The parking lot sits directly off Route 1 (the Ring Road). Any rental car — including low-clearance economy cars — can reach it year-round.
Yes. The surrounding cliffs ice over in deep winter, the crowds thin dramatically, and the low-angle sun gives warmer light than you'll ever see in summer. Watch footing near the base — spray ices the rocks.
The double rainbow appears most reliably between 11:00 and 13:00 on clear summer days when you're positioned with the sun behind you at the base. It's weaker but still visible in the shoulder seasons.