Tour info
- 5 riding days
- 2025: 30 June / 7 July / 14 July / 21 July
- 2690 EUR (incl. 11% VAT)
- Domestic flights included
- Riding level: Advanced beginner / Intermediate / Advanced
- Herd: Yes ✔︎
Diamond Circle
The North of Iceland is best known for its great natural sights and beautiful landscape. Our tour leaves from Saltvík Farm near Húsavík and leads to the Lake Mývatn area, known for its volcanic features and countless numbers of wild breeding ducks. An optional whale watching tour concludes the circle of natural highlights on and off shore. A visit to the picturesque and mighty waterfall Goðafoss will be something to remember.
We ride on mainly soft riding tracks, ideal for riding “tölt”, the unique gait of the Icelandic horse. The first two days we will ride along the shore and over Hvammsheiði heath and cross the river Laxá. The next day will take us from the forested hillsides in Laxárdalur via the black sand deserts of Hólasandur to lake Mývatn, where boiling mud pools and eerie lava formations remind you of the active volcanic energy hidden beneath the surface. After a long day in the saddle, it is ideal to take a relaxing soak in the outdoor bathing facility with hot geothermal water at “Jarðböð”. From there we will ride the next day towards the Gæsafjöll Mountains. Through an area covered with cracks and fissures from countless earthquakes and volcanic activity, the route leads towards the mountain cabin at Þeistareykir, a place with bubbling hot water and white clouds rising to the sky from the steam vents. We will spend the night at this magical place. On the last day we ride home to Saltvík, enjoying the terrific view over Skjálfandi bay!
On this tour we will ride with the herd; please check the FAQ – horses and riding before you book.
The accommodation on this tour is in 2-4 pers. rooms with made-up beds at Saltvík holiday farm and one night in a cosy mountain hut at Þeistareykir (sleeping bags). At Saltvík farm our guests have access to hot tubs every evening to relax after long days in the saddle! Free wifi connection is also offered at Saltvík farm.
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Itinerary
In the morning you’ll fly from the domestic airport in Reykjavík to Akureyri in the north, where we will pick you up from the airport for a 1 hour busride to our farm Saltvík. At Saltvik, we start our ride after a short introduction to the Icelandic horses and their special gaits. We ride along the seaside of the arctic ocean north of Iceland enjoying a fantastic view out towards the arctic circle. A relaxing bath in a warm outdoor tub before dinner at Saltvik farm is well deserved after this first day of our journey!
Optional in the afternoon (80 euros which includes transport from/to Saltvík): A whale watching tour starting from the harbor in Húsavík can be offered. Húsavík and the bay of Skjálfandi is known to be one of the best places in the world to find and see some of the gentle giants of the ocean. Humpbacks, Minky Whales, Dolphins and even Blue Whales are some of the creatures you can expect to see!
We ride across Hvammsheiði heathlands following excellent soft “tölttrails” and riverbanks of Mýrarhvísl river towards the big Laxá river which we cross at a passing were the river spreads out over 100 m wide riverpath! During the ride we enjoy great view over the green valleys of the north, Aðaldalur and Reykjadalur.
We saddle up at Aðalból farm and ride up along Laxárdalur before we leave the countryside and head up to the higher grounds of Hólasandur desert and the lava fields of Þeistareykjahraun. If lucky with the weather we enjoy amazing view to the Volcanoes all around. We ride through huge lupine fields and trough the lava on great riding tracks towards Þeistareykir geothermal area with hot springs all around. After the ride we head back with our little bus to Saltvík farm for staying overnight.
We start with a sightseeing tour by bus and visit some nice places around like the waterfall Goðafoss and the lavaformations Dimmuborgir at lake Mývatn. Then we drive up to Þeistareykir where our horses are waiting and ride for a day in the wilderness. We ride to the craters Litla Víti and Stóra Víti which are huge craters in the mountains with lava fields all around.
This night we stay over at Þeistareykir mountain cabin and enjoy the evening at this amazing place in the highlands with our horses grazing outside.
The last day of our journey we ride home to Saltvík farm crossing the lavafields of Bóndhólshraun. Then following nice riding trails through the valley Geldingadalur and along Skarðaháls with a great view over the bay of Skjálfandi north of Iceland. The last track leads across Reykjaheiði back home to our farm Saltvík where we celebrate our adventures in the evening with a cheerful farewell party!
After breakfast we’ll drive you back to Akureyri airport for the flight back to Reykjavík.