Volcano Tours in Iceland
Seventy experiences across Reykjavík, the south coast and the Westman Islands. Nothing has erupted here since August 2025, and that changes what you should book.
Iceland sits on the Mid-Atlantic Ridge, the seam where the North American and Eurasian plates pull apart, and also on top of a mantle plume that keeps pushing melt into that seam. The combination is the only reason there is an island here rather than open water. It gives the country roughly thirty active volcanic systems in an area the size of Ireland, and it gave the Reykjanes peninsula twelve eruptions between March 2021 and August 2025. It has given it none since. That last fact governs most of what follows.
Three areas carry the whole catalogue, and they are not variations on one another. Reykjavík is a base: 54 listings, every one of them a day trip, covering the Golden Circle, the lava tubes, the Reykjanes eruption sites and an indoor show that melts rock in front of an audience. Vík, on the south coast, sells glacier ice and black sand sitting on top of the volcano that Icelandic geologists actually watch. The Westman Islands sell a single town that was half buried in 1973. Each has its own page below with the operational detail. This one is for working out which.
Choose a destination in Iceland
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Reykjavík
Volcano tours from Reykjavík: lava caves, the Golden Circle crater, eruption sites and the Lava Show. The world's most reviewed volcanic destination.
54 experiences in 5 destinations -
Vík & the South Coast
Tours of Iceland's south coast from Vík: the Katla ice cave under the glacier that caps the volcano, black sand beaches and super jeep runs.
13 experiences in 1 destination -
Westman Islands
Heimaey and the Westman Islands: the 1973 Eldfell eruption that buried a third of the town, and the Surtsey coast.
3 experiences
Volcano Travel Experiences in Iceland
Golden Circle, Kerid and the Blue Lagoon by Minibus: Back at 19:00
Twenty-four seats at most, five stops, and a fixed departure from the Blue Lagoon at about 19:00. Strokkur throws water 20 metres up; Kerid is 6,500 years old.
Golden Circle, Kerid's Iron-Red Slopes and Two Hours at the Sky Lagoon
Two hours at the Sky Lagoon with the ticket included, seven-step ritual and the bar inside a cave. Kerid's red slopes come from the iron in the rock itself.
Golden Circle Small Group: Kerid at 270 m Wide, and Iceland's Newest Geyser
Eight hours with the full Kerid crater, 270 metres wide with a lake in it, and an optional stop at Eilifur, the newest geyser in Iceland, plus its bakery.
Golden Circle with an Hour of Snowmobiling on Langjokull
An hour on a snowmobile across Iceland's second largest ice cap, with instructors, dropped into the middle of the usual three stops. Gullfoss comes last.
Golden Circle with a Tomato Farm and a Dairy: Kerid's Intact Caldera
Ice cream at a working dairy, a greenhouse talk and Icelandic horses at Fridheimar, and the one crater in the Western Volcanic Zone that kept its caldera.
Golden Circle with the Secret Lagoon: Iceland's Oldest Swimming Pool
The Secret Lagoon is the oldest swimming pool in Iceland, fed from a hot spring. Plus Kerid crater, Gullfoss, and the plates pulling apart at Thingvellir.
Heimaey in 2.5 Hours: Eldfell, the Stórhöfði Puffins and Elephant Rock
Two and a half hours cut to cruise timings: Stórhöfði, where a fifth of the world's Atlantic puffins nest, the 1973 lava field, and a black stave church.
Helicopter over the Reykjanes Eruption Site, Minimum Four to Fly
A 5 to 6 seat helicopter over the lava fields and craters left by the Reykjanes eruptions. The volcano is not active, and four passengers are needed to fly.
Katla Ice Cave from Reykjavík, with a 40-Minute Off-Road Leg
Seljalandsfoss, Skógafoss and the black sand beach by minibus, then a 40-minute off-road jeep from Vík to the ice cave under Katla. Gear is provided.
Katla Ice Cave from Vik: the Fastest Ice Cave in Iceland
For trips with no spare day: a short walk to the glacier and 45 to 60 minutes inside the ice. Check-in shares a building with the Black Crust Pizzeria.
Kayaking Among the Icebergs on the Solheimajokull Lagoon
A quieter glacier lagoon than the ones on every itinerary, paddled between icebergs. Flat water, no experience needed, and the ice is what you hear.
Lakagígar by Super Jeep, and the Walk up Mount Laki
Twelve passengers maximum in a jeep modified for the highlands, with the climb up Mount Laki in the middle of the crater row and Fjaðrárgljúfur canyon after.
Lava Show Reykjavik: Real Molten Lava Poured into the Room
Real lava is superheated and poured into the room while you sit in it, close enough to feel the heat. Classic and Premium tickets, the latter from age 13.
Lava Show Vik: Watch It Flow, Hear It Sizzle, Feel the Heat
The Vik venue of the only live lava show there is: molten rock poured out in front of you, close enough to hear it sizzle and feel the heat it throws.
Perlan: an Indoor Ice Cave and Áróra in 8K
A real indoor ice cave, the volcano show, and the Áróra aurora film in 8K in the planetarium. The 360-degree deck is included; there is no pick-up service.
Private Golden Circle Platinum: Lunch Among the Tomato Plants, Sky Lagoon
Lunch is served inside the greenhouse, at a table among the tomato plants. Private only now, with the Sky Lagoon's seven-step ritual to finish the day.
Private Reykjanes Day: a 50-Minute Volcano Film First, Then the Craters
It starts with a documentary at the Volcano House, then a private minivan to the craters half an hour away. Trolls and Norse gods come with the geology.
Raufarhólshellir in an Hour, Self-Drive Only
An hour underground in the channel the Leitahraun eruption left about 5,200 years ago, on platforms with lighting. No pick-up: this one is for self-drivers.
Raufarhólshellir Lava Tunnel and Silfra Snorkelling, Self-Drive from 9:30
The self-drive pairing: the 9:30 tunnel tour at Raufarhólshellir, then Silfra in Þingvellir, where the snorkelling route runs between two continental plates.
Raufarhólshellir Lava Tunnel with the Bus from BSÍ
The bus goes from BSÍ two or three times a day, 30 to 40 minutes each way, and helmets and headlamps are handed out at one of Iceland's longest lava tunnels.
Raufarhólshellir Standard Tour, and the Ice at the Entrance
Ice sculptures form inside the entrance before the lava formations begin, in one of the longest tubes in Iceland. Transport is not part of this ticket.
Raufarhólshellir, the Fourth-Longest Lava Tube in Iceland
One hour underground on wooden walkways, 350 metres into a tube that runs 1,360, and a section used as a location in the film Noah. Three hours in total.
Reykjanes and Grindavík by Minibus, the Town the Lava Emptied
Half a day from Reykjavík over the Reykjanes peninsula: the 97-metre-deep Kleifarvatn, the mud pools at Seltún, and Grindavík after the 2023 eruptions.
Reykjanes Geopark in Seven Hours, with Drop-Off at the Airport or Blue Lagoon
Seven hours round the peninsula, ending at Keflavik airport or the Blue Lagoon if you want. The green lake, the oldest lighthouse, and Grindavik's new lava.
Ratings collected by Viator, Tripadvisor, Tiqets and Civitatis