South Coast & Sólheimasandur Plane Wreck Private Tour

Seljalandsfoss drops 60 metres from what was once the edge of the coastline, before sea levels fell after the last ice age. The Seljalandsá river is fed by meltwater from Eyjafjallajökull, the volcano that erupted in 2010 and grounded flights across Europe. It is one of the few waterfalls in Iceland with a path behind the falling water, so expect to get wet and bring a waterproof jacket.

From the outside you only see the top of the falls, because most of Gljúfrabúi, about 40 metres high, hides inside a narrow, moss-covered canyon. To see it all you step on stones along a shallow stream into the gap. It is a flat walk of about ten minutes from Seljalandsfoss, and far quieter.

On 21 November 1973 a US Navy Douglas Super DC-3 made an emergency landing on this flat black sand plain after icing caused engine trouble. All seven crew walked away unhurt, and the plane was stripped of anything of value and left where it landed. Wind, salt air and visitors have left the rusted hull you see today. The walk from the car park on Route 1 is about 4 kilometres each way across flat, exposed ground, so bring layers. Climbing on the wreck is not allowed.

Skógafoss falls in one broad curtain about 60 metres high and 25 metres wide, right beside the village of Skógar. On sunny days the spray usually throws a rainbow, sometimes a double one, across the pool at its base. A staircase of 527 steps leads to a viewpoint at the top, where you can see the river before it drops.

Kvernufoss, 'mill waterfall', drops 30 to 40 metres over a basalt ledge into a narrow green gorge just east of Skógafoss. Because it is a short walk off the road, it stays much quieter than its famous neighbour. A path leads around the side and behind the curtain of water into a shallow cave, and the walk is about 1.5 kilometres there and back. A short hike from the Skógar area leads into a green gorge and a waterfall you can walk behind, with far fewer visitors than Skógafoss.

Reynisfjara is a black sand beach with the sea stacks of Reynisdrangar rising out of the water offshore. At the western end, a cliff of hexagonal basalt columns, stacked like organ pipes, stands beside the cave Hálsanefshellir. It is also one of the most dangerous beaches in Iceland, because of sudden, powerful waves that run far up the sand. Keep well back from the water and follow the warning signs.