Iceland Travel GuideLOCAL TRAVEL AGENCY IN ICELAND
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Iceland Travel GuideLOCAL TRAVEL AGENCY IN ICELAND
My trip
Talk to a local
Deildartunguhver is a hot spring in the Reykholtsdalur valley of West Iceland, about 100 km (around 1 hour 30 minutes) from Reykjavík. It is the highest-flow hot spring in Europe, pumping out roughly 180 litres of near-boiling water every second, is free to visit, open all year, and takes 20–30 minutes to see from the boardwalk.
Deildartunguhver doesn't look dramatic from a distance, but stand on the boardwalk and the sheer volume of water is startling: about 180 litres a second boiling up out of the ground at close to 100°C, sending clouds of steam into the air. It is the most powerful hot spring in Europe by flow rate, and the water is put to work rather than left to run to waste, piped through Iceland's oldest hot water pipeline to heat homes in Borgarnes, 34 km away, and Akranes, 64 km away.
A wooden boardwalk runs along the edge of the spring, close enough to feel the heat and hear the water. The spring also supports Struthiopteris fallax, a fern found nowhere else in the world, which grows in the warm, humid ground nearby. Right next door is Krauma, a geothermal spa that mixes the spring's boiling water with cold water from the nearby glacial river to fill its bathing pools.
The water comes out of a low rocky bank covered in bright green algae and moss, bubbling and spitting along a line of vents with steam hanging above it. The spring is by the small village of Kleppjárnsreykir, west of Reykholt, where greenhouses use the same heat to grow vegetables.
Deildartunguhver's water has been put to practical use for decades. It feeds Iceland's oldest hot water pipeline, laid to carry heat to nearby towns, and is still doing so today, supplying Borgarnes and Akranes with hot water piped over tens of kilometres. That combination of raw natural power and everyday usefulness is part of what makes the spring notable beyond its size.
The pipeline to Akranes is about 64 km long. In practice this means that if you take a hot shower almost anywhere within 65 km of the spring, the water has come from Deildartunguhver.
The spring itself is a short stop. These places nearby turn it into a full day in Borgarfjörður.
Horse riding is also offered on farms in the valley.
There is a car park at the spring itself. Krauma spa next door has changing rooms, a restaurant and a shop.
Krauma and the surrounding Reykholtsdalur valley have guesthouses and hotels, and Borgarnes, a larger town on the ring road, is a convenient base with more options.
No. The water is close to boiling, so bathing is not possible at the spring itself. Krauma spa next door mixes the water with cold river water to make it safe for bathing.
About 100 km, around 1 hour 30 minutes by car.
Yes, viewing the spring from the boardwalk is free. Krauma spa next door charges admission.
It has the highest flow rate of any hot spring on the continent, at around 180 litres of near-boiling water per second.
In Reykholtsdalur in West Iceland, on Route 50 by the village of Kleppjárnsreykir, a few kilometres west of Reykholt.
Tours and trips that include Deildartunguhver, booked directly with a local travel agency in Iceland.
PACKAGE5 Day Iceland TourFrom 212,289 ISK per person
MULTI-DAYBest of Iceland in 5 DaysFrom 195,990 ISK per person
DAY TOURSilver Circle & Víðgelmir lava caveFrom 25,990 ISK per person
TICKETKrauma Geothermal Baths AdmissionFrom 7,900 ISK per person
TICKETSilver Circle & Husafell Canyon BathsFrom 27,990 ISK per person
MULTI-DAY2 Day Snæfellsnes Peninsula TourFrom 69,990 ISK per person
