Vatnshellir Cave
Vatnshellir Cave is a landscape in West Iceland, Iceland — about 201 km from Reykjavik and reached by a drive to the trailhead and a short walk in (footwear and weather check). Shoot it year-round, though winter wind, ice, and short daylight rework the shot list, then use the GPS coordinates, parking notes, and nearby waypoints below to fold this stop into a longer photography route.
Overview
Tour guides lead visitors down a subterranean, spiral staircase to explore this ancient lava tube.
As a photography stop, Vatnshellir Cave is a landscape in West Iceland, roughly 201 km from Reykjavik, reached by a drive to the trailhead and a short walk in (footwear and weather check). Plan the shoot year-round, though winter wind, ice, and short daylight rework the shot list. The downloadable Landscape map pins exact GPS coordinates, parking, and nearby waypoints so you can fold it into a wider route instead of hunting for the pull-off on arrival.
Vatnshellir Cave sits inside all 62 landscape viewpoints, alongside the other spots worth routing a day around.
Notes on this location
Compiled from published sources rather than a visit. Sources are listed below.
An 8,000-year-old lava tube on Snæfellsnes, over 200 m long and reaching 35 m below the surface. Entry is by guided tour only, with helmets and torches provided.
- Size
- Over 200 m long, 35 m below the surface
- Age
- About 8,000 years
- Formation
- A lava tube — molten lava ran downhill and cooled into a solid crust over the flow
- Access
- Guided tours only: summer 10:00–18:00, two tours a day in winter. Flashlights and helmets provided; hiking shoes and warm clothes recommended
- Where
- On Road 574, ten minutes west of Arnarstapi and 25 minutes south of Hellissandur
Guided-tour-only access is the whole planning constraint: there is no wandering in at blue hour, and the shoot happens on someone else’s schedule with a group moving through. Fixed departure times matter more here than light does, and 35 m down there is no daylight at all — everything is lit by what the group is carrying.
Light & aurora at this spot
Calculated from this location’s coordinates (64.748, -23.818). Iceland stays on UTC year-round, so these are local times.
- Summer
- 21.6 h of daylight in June and the sun barely sets, dipping only 1.9° below the horizon — effectively continuous golden light through the small hours.
- Winter
- December: only 3.9 h of daylight (11:35–15:26), but the sun never climbs above 2° — the entire day is golden hour. Sunrise bears SSE, sunset SSW.
- Aurora
- Aurora-grade darkness Sep–Mar, peaking at 12.9 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.
Questions & answers
Vatnshellir Cave is a landscape in West Iceland, Iceland, approximately 201 km from Reykjavik. Exact GPS coordinates are included in the downloadable Landscape map.
The recommended season for Vatnshellir Cave is All. For light, plan around blue hour and the first hour after sunrise; Iceland's long shoulder-season twilight extends usable conditions on either side.
Drive/Hike access. Bring weather-appropriate footwear and check conditions before setting out. The downloadable GPS map puts the waypoint on your phone; your own app routes you to it from wherever you are.
Yes — Vatnshellir Cave can be visited year-round, though winter conditions may require a 4x4 or storm-tolerant plans.