Private Snæfellsnes Shore Excursion from Grundarfjörður

Grundarfjörður sits right under Kirkjufell on the north side of the Snæfellsnes Peninsula, a fishing village of about 900 people. Your guide meets you as you come off the ship at the cruise terminal.

Kirkjufell, 'Church Mountain', is a 463-metre cone that rises straight from the shore just west of Grundarfjörður, next to the small waterfall Kirkjufellsfoss. Its shape, wide at the base and narrowing to a point, comes from layers of basalt and softer sedimentary rock that have eroded at different rates. The viewpoint by the falls is the classic place to see it. The climb itself is steep and dangerous, for experienced hikers only. The classic photo is from the small waterfall across the road.

Djúpalónssandur is an arched bay of black pebbles at the foot of Snæfellsjökull, reached by a path of about 300 metres through black lava formations. The pebbles are lava, broken up and polished by the surf of the open Atlantic. Four lifting stones, weighing 23, 54, 100 and 154 kg, were once used to test the strength of fishermen, and the rusted iron on the beach is from the trawler Epine GY7, wrecked in 1948.

Lóndrangar is a pair of basalt pinnacles, about 75 and 61 metres tall, standing against the sea on the south coast of the Snæfellsnes Peninsula. They are the eroded remains of an old volcanic crater, worn down over thousands of years until only the harder plugs at its centre were left. The viewpoints are inside Snæfellsjökull National Park and free to visit.

Arnarstapi, also called Stapi, is a small fishing village and harbour on the south coast of the Snæfellsnes Peninsula, at the foot of Mt Stapafell. It is known for its basalt sea cliffs, the Gatklettur arch and a coastal path of about 2.5 kilometres to the neighbouring village of Hellnar. It is free to visit and open all year.

From the road, Rauðfeldsgjá looks like nothing more than a dark crack in the mountainside. A short path of about 500 metres leads uphill from the small car park to the mouth of the gorge, where the rock walls close in and a stream runs along the narrow floor. Going further inside means wading through shallow water and stepping carefully over wet rock, so most people go just far enough to see daylight narrow to a strip overhead. You can step a little way inside to see the light and the falling water, and your guide tells the saga behind the name.

Búðakirkja, the black church at Búðir, stands alone on a stretch of grassy coastline, with the Búðahraun lava field on one side and a beach of pale sand scattered with black lava rock on the other. The current building dates from 1848, though a church has stood here since 1703, and it is still a working parish church with room for around 50 people. Búðahraun has been a nature reserve since 1977. The church interior is not always open to visitors.

Ytri Tunga is a stretch of pale golden sand on the south coast of the Snæfellsnes Peninsula, unusual in a country of black volcanic beaches. It is best known for its seals: harbour and grey seals rest on the rocks just offshore, less than a kilometre from the car park across sand, grass and stones. Keep your distance so you do not disturb them.