Blue Ice - Ice Climbing Adventure

My afternoon with Arctic Adventures provided a lifetime of memories in a 4-hour tour. My guide, Nikol, was fantastic! She was extremely knowledgeable as a guide, demonstrating expertise the technical part of the climb, safety practices, Solheimajokull's history, and glacial science. Every part of the tour was seamless and the highlight of my Iceland trip. This exact tour with Arctic Adventures had been recommended to me by a friend and I see why, it's unrivaled!

As part of my tour we hiked from the meeting point to the base of Solheimajokull before we put on our technical gear (crampons, helmet) and was given a tutorial on how to properly walk on the ice. Again I want to reiterate the professionalism of both Arctic Adventures and Nikol's service, who ensured proper safety the entire time.

From the base we hiked to the glacial wall I would be climbing, where I was given instruction on proper climbing techniques. I was lucky enough to get multiple climbs in and it was the experience of a lifetime! I also got to do some "viking pushups" and experience the raw natural beauty of the glacier. And don't worry, there's plenty of opportunities for photos!

I want to thank Nikol and the entire Arctic Adventures team again for an unforgettable afternoon that created memories to last a lifetime. This tour was the highlight of my Iceland trip and is a must-do when visiting!

An overall great experience on the Blue Ice adventure. We managed to walk all of what was expected (around 1.8 miles on the glacier) and complete an ice climbing taster. It is only a taster and you only get 1 shot. I expected this though and it was good fun. Guide was very knowledgable and everything seemed organised well enough.

Of note, if someone in the group is a litle unfit, you wont go as far on the glacier, simple as that. This cannot be accounted for by the company but could be very frustrating. If you have the money, try do something private to work at your own fitness level.

What you do and see seems to be down to luck a little. There was a new blue cave opened up when we were there which was an added bonus for our group. I am certainly not complaining but these cool blue caves are not guaranteed.

Definitely book a glacier tour whilst you are in Iceland if you can and fingers crossed nature is on your side with some blue caves and good weather.

The landscape is surreal, being on top of the glacier and doing the hike with the trusty guides, Olly and Meg, was an awesome experience. Both the guides so professional, friendly and funny :)

I booked with Extreme Iceland, but Artic Adventures seemed to be our tour operator - so I am not sure how that worked. However, we did the Blue Ice Tour and Black and Blue Tours on back-to-back days on short stay in Iceland and found it to be amazing! These are adventure tours that include some higher risk, more physical activities like Ice Climbing and Snorkeling. Meg and Louis on the Blue tour were the best guides I've ever had - fun, focused on safety, and demonstrated a passion for their country and these adventures alike. Halli, the guide on the snorkeling (black and blue tour) established rapport with me and made me feel comfortable in my discomfort. ;-) .

The buses were on-time, comfortable, and clean. Note, these are long days, esp blue ice tour, and you need to either bring your own food or buy at a gas station at the only convenience stop of the day.

We had the best time ever! It was time and money well spent. Our guide Adrien showed us few great spots, told us some great stories and was very patient with us taking photos. Also it was his birthday, so he treated us with some extra time on the glacier. All in all, it was awesome, and Adrien, if you see this, thank you for a greaf time!

One of the best activities I’ve done in Iceland. The tour guide, Meg, was an absolute legend and was professional and friendly to all of us, she made the whole experience amazing. It’s challenging but rewarding with great views from the glacier. They let you hire boots (which were comfortable) and supply you with the gear you need. The two stops on the way are also incredible. Highly recommend this tour!

I had an incredible experience at the glacier hike today! Everything from pickup to drop off was enjoyable. Our bus driver was fantastic- conversational when he was telling the bus (which only had about 15-20 people in it!) about the areas we were going through. We stopped at Skogafoss waterfall on the way to the hike and had about 20 minutes to take photos. We also stopped at a gas station about half way to pick up some lunch. The bus had 3 different groups on it- the glacier hike, horse riding, and the volcanic cave tour. The glacier hike was dropped off first, and we were split into two groups. My group had two couples, me, and another solo traveler in it. It was extremely manageable and let everyone really hear and talk to our excellent guide, Bart. He was knowledgeable, helpful, funny, and just generally an excellent person to take us on this hike and ice climbing experience. I felt in good hands!

We got kitted out at the parking lot- everyone ended up needing to rent boots and I am SO GLAD I did, the ones I thought would be great would not have worked at all and it would have been unpleasant at worst and unsafe at best to try to even hike in them, much less attach crampons! We also put on climbing harnesses and got our ice picks and crampons.

After that, our group went up the glacier. It’s a bit of a walk- probably 45 minutes from the parking lot until we actually reached the area where we were going to climb! We put on our crampons and learned how to use the ice picks on the way up. A lot of it was uphill on slick ice and rock and slush. It wasn’t rushed at all, but it would not be a good experience for someone without some cardio strength. Once we got to the ice climbing wall Bart chose (it was in a crevasse where everyone could fit and was a good height) we learned how to use the ice picks in the ice and practiced using our crampons in the wall. Much more difficult than I expected!

After that, Bart went to attach the climbing anchor to the top of the wall and one by one we climbed the wall. Whoah is it hard- but everyone made it up the wall, and Bart was incredibly helpful and patient!

After everyone finished, we took a long walk onto the top of the glacier. Again, this was not for people without any endurance. Some hiking experience would also help, or at least enough endurance to get up and down hills or rocky areas. The walk was about 90 minutes and it was a loop around the top of the glacier and back down. We learned a ton about the glacier, got some amazing photos, and really just had a great time.

In terms of clothing: dress warm! I run cold and I wore: two layers of high-quality base layer pants, fleece lined pants from Eddie Bauer, crewneck long sleeve silk base layer, a good quality base layer turtleneck, a looser base layer top with a good, a fleece quarter zip, and a ski coat and rain pants. I would NOT wear pants that can’t sustain possibly being caught on crampons- mine got caught and the
crampons ripped the interior of both legs down by my ankle! I also had a balaclava, which was a pain because it didn’t fit right under the helmet- something more form fitting that still allows you to pull it up over your mouth and covers your ears would be helpful.

Overall, it was an incredible experience and I recommend it! Extreme Iceland/Arctic Adventures is clearly a great tour company. I loved that the tours were small, including on the tour bus!

We went on the blue ice tour with Meg and she was absolutely great! We did some glacier climbing and had a great experience exploring through the snow. She was very knowledgeable and explained a lot about the glacier and the environment. We had an awesome day would definitely book this tour again.

Hello, I will give a very big recommend to your tour, blue ice with the glacier hiking and climbing. It was extremely amazing and I had very much fun with my tour guide. I don‘t remember her name in full, I think it was Marelin? (From England) I had the tour on 7th, of February, and it was my luck to get I private single tour with her. The best expirience was the climbing and hiking. I loved it. She made the tour excellent. It was the top of my holiday. Thank You.

We booked three tours with Arctic Adventures -- the two day South Coast tour, Horseback Riding + Golden Circle tour, and Blue Ice (glacier hiking + ice climbing). The first two we booked through Extreme Iceland but were operated by Arctic Adventures. All three trips were amazing!!! Everything was seamless including pick-up and drop-off. The drivers were both great and let us know what we should expect. We had enough time at each stop. During the 2 day tour we stayed overnight at Hof at Hof Adventure Hotel. The Northern Lights can be seen from just outside the hotel there, the guide showed us where to look. I think his name was Hyalti? We got photos of the lights but they were not bright enough to be seen with the naked eye that night. That tour included an ice cave excursion which was really cool!! We got some amazing photos.

The horseback riding was at Laxnes Horse Farm and was a true highlight for us, even though it was freezing cold that day! We liked that Extreme Iceland lets you combine horseback riding with the Golden Circle (which was a bit touristy for our taste).

The Blue Ice tour was probably our favorite out of everything. An active day spent on the glacier and trying ice climbing was probably our favorite trip we have ever taken. The guide for this was amazing! He made sure everyone in the group was comfortable and would hold our hand on steep and slippery inclines during the hike to make sure you made it safely. It was definitely not an "easy" hike and we enjoyed the challenge!
10/10 would recommend.

The tour is a long day but totally worth it if you don't have the luxury of more time on the south coast. Our driver was great and your bus is 4wd so it takes you to the cave car park. (Some other tours have to change buses at glacier bay) On our way to the cave our driver added a couple of nice detours which helped to break up the trip.One the way home we stopped for some great star viewing and later we were fortunate enough to see the northern lights. A great day, the cave didn't disappoint

What could be better than walking on the glacier on a sunny day? There are many answers to this question, but if you choose to walk on the glacier in Iceland-book the tour w Arctic Adventures! This company was very easy to book, they were prompt to send confirmations, meeting point instructions and also they are very responsive if you have a questions. We booked two tours w them, one of the tours had to be cancelled due to extreme weather-notification about that was send in time and refund was offered immediately.
On our tour on Solheimajokull glacier we had a privilege to meet Vjeran, who was our guide. To walk on the glaciers can be very dangerous if you don't know what you are doing. Vjeran tough us how to put crampons, how to walk w them, how n where to walk on the ice-all of it he did w wonderful ease and grace. In no time we all were stomping hard on the glacier and soaking in the unbelievable scenery. Vjeran educated us all about the glaciers, we learned glacier lingo and we drank glacier water on the top of the glacier. It was a wonderful experience.
If you are planing a visit to Iceland-glacier walk should be very high on your to do list

Absolutely Fantastic Day. We booked this trip via Artic Adventures and were taken by Oli from Reykjavik in a nice little bus (which included wifi!). We stopped at a waterfalls for some photos, and a break to buy a snacks and a packed lunch as there are no facilities on the glacier. Next we arrived at the glacier (big yellow school bus), and were kitted out with ice climbing boots, crampons, over clothes etc. We had booked in advanced but you can pay for them on the day. Then we were off walking towards the glacier. We were a large group broken down into a smaller one led by Lewis, then as we got to the edge our group was further reduced to just 6 and our new guide Arthos (excuse spelling). He led us onto the ice teaching us about how to walk with crampons. Then we were taken to a slope to be taught the basics of ice climbing. A little further on we were taken to a large crevasse and the groups came together. The guides fitted the equipment and were taken through a descent into the crevasse and the climb out after. Exhilarating! Later to warm up we went for a short explore of the glacier. All of the guides were excellent and very well informed teaching us about how glaciers are formed and the effect of global warming and the risks of volcanic activity. An absolutely fantastic day, very highly recommended!

We did the Blue Ice Glacier hike with Arctic adventures in May 2019. Our guide ( Alpha if I remember it correct) was amazing, he knew so much about Glaciers and the history. Our hike was almost 5hours and we covered a lot of Area of the Glacier. We also did some Ice climbing and it was Overall a Fun experience.

I would recommend doing the longer hike as you get to experience the Glacier and its surrounding more. It is a bit strenuous, specially with the boots and crampons it was difficult to climb steep parts , but again they give multiple breaks to rest .

We did a Blue Ice Tour today,Zeki was our guide and he was absolutely brilliant.He made us feel at ease and was more than kind and patient if any member of our group battled. We were lucky to get him as he made our experience just amazing,thank you.

The lady who did the blue ice hike and ice climb was really good. The booking process was easy although it states they take amex but they don't.

You can purchase additional equipment when you are there in case you need anything.

They are really friendly and she was really funny on the tour...

She was skilled and ensure that everyone had a good experience.

We did the 9 AM Blue Glacier hike (4 hours) that meets in the Sólheimajökull parking lot. It was about a two our ride from our Airbnb in Reykjavik. They have a similar tour with pickup in Reykjavik in the early am.

There were only two groups there - our group of six and a couple doing a private hike. It was a sunny day with temps in the low 50s and as we climbed we got warmer and shed layers. The guide was knowledgeable and kept us moving at a good pace. No one did any actual ice climbing. A few people practiced it, but once they realized how difficult it was the skipped it. Hiking boots with ankle support are needed. We had our own, but you can rent some from them on the spot along with rain pants and jackets.

The glacier is beautiful and we saw many moulins. On the way down we saw several groups getting ready for their hike, so we were lucky to have had the glacier experience to ourselves.

I wanted to fit in a bit of ice climbing again during this visit and since I needed transfer from Reykjavík to Sólheimajökull I booked the Blue Ice tour for the second time.
We had a group of approximately 20 people and drove from the city to the glacier parking lot where we were outfitted with our glacier gear (harness, helmet, ice axe and crampons).
Some other visitors fell on the icy trail from the parking lot to crampon point, and I was happy that our guide Röggi chose a path that was easier to walk on and less slippery. He gave us time to take pictures and explained about the lagoon and the ways the glacier is changing.
At crampon point we learned how to put on the crampons and how to walk on them. Since there was so much snow on the glacier this time, walking with the crampons was fairly easy.
There were two ice climbing groups from Arctic on the glacier. We checked out the wall where the other group was planning to climb and then decided to hike up a bit further to a crevasse.
Röggi set up the anchors and the belay and explained the climbing technique. Since I had already climbed with him he let me go first, so I was lowered into the crevasse and then climbed up. It wasn't easy to get good swings in with the ice axes, but I managed. Then every member of our group had a go. While the rest of us waited we all shared my two extra pairs of warm gloves/mittens, and I was happy I had brought a warm belay jacket.
Röggi was very patient with every climber and even managed to help one woman overcome her fear of heights and complete the climb after her initial nervousness. He was unflappable and always in a good mood.
On the way back we stopped at Skógafoss and at the N1 station in Hvolsvöllur for a quick snack stop before driving back to Reykjavík.
If you like to combine a glacier hike with a bit more of a challenge, this tour is the right choice for you. Just make sure you have or rent sturdy boots and bring enough warm layers to stay comfortable, even while you are waiting for your turn to climb. Warm gloves and hat and maybe some handwarmers may also come in handy.

Went on two tours: The Black & Blue tour (caving and snorkeling) and the Blue Ice glacier hike\climbing tour.
Both tours were great and well organized. Beautiful views, some outdoor activity, really nice and knowledgeable guides.
The Black & Blue tour in Thingvellir was amazing. As a diver, the snorkeling part was a nice experience but nothing too crazy. For me, the cave and the views were the best parts. After the caving, the guide made a detour on way the snorkeling point and took us to an amazing waterfall, which was a really nice addition to the tour.
The Blue Ice was also a great experience. An interesting place with amazing view. Although it was my first time walking and climbing on ice, with all of the equipment, I felt really safe thanks to the guide who made sure everything went smooth.

I was the only person who had booked transfer from Reykjavík to Sólheimajökull for the combination glacier hike and ice climbing, so I got a private transfer with our guide Röggi which was nice for chatting and asking questions.
We met the rest of our group at the Sólheimajökull parking lot and got our glacier gear (harness, helmet, ice axe and crampons). If you don't have stiff hiking boots rent them from Arctic, because if they are too soft it will make walking and climbing with the crampons much more difficult and if you only have shoes instead of boots, the crampon straps will cut into your ankles. Also wear warm baselayers and good wind- and waterproof outer layers plus warm hat and gloves to keep warm. Bring sunglasses and sunscreen. An extra layer of fleece or down might also be good to have in your backpack, especially for the wait time while the others are climbing
Make sure to use the restrooms at the café (and pay the small fee into the honesty box) before taking off for the tour and bring sandwiches or snacks to have something to refuel during the tour or buy something at the N1 gas station at Hvolsvöllur if you have a transfer from Reykjavík.
For the 15 min hike to the foot of the glacier Röggi chose a path that avoided the main trail which I appreciated. He gave us time to take pictures and explained about the lagoon and the shrinking of the glacier.
At crampon point he explained step by step how to put on the crampons and how to walk on them and checked every person before we set off. The glacier is getting steeper, so the right walking technique, especially for traversing or walking downhill, helps a lot.
If you want to take pictures, ask the guide to stop, since walking and taking pictures at the same time is a sure recipe for getting your crampons tangled up in your pants or the other crampon and taking a fall.
During the hike up Röggi cut steps for us, was ready to help in more difficult sections and was very conscious of the different levels of experience in the group. When two guests didn't feel comfortable climbing the wall of the moulin we would have had to be lowered into he hiked up further towards the waterfall with us and found a spot where we could climb up from a crevasse we could simply walk into.
Turn away from your guide when steps are being cut, since there will be loose ice flying that might hit you otherwise. Sunglasses are also good protection.
Röggi set up the belay and explained the climbing technique and then let us have a go. Each guest managed to make it to the top and he helped us with tips during the climb. He also set up his ice axe to let us have a drink of the purest water ever from a small glacial creek and explained about the different formations and the way glaciers form and move plus he answered all questions we had.
Röggi has a great sense of humour and kept us all safe during the hike and the climb. He had an eye on everyone during the hike and noticed right away when someone's crampon straps were coming loose.
I really enjoyed the tour with him! The drive back felt like coming back after a tour with friends and he even helped me cut and seal the straps of my personal pair of crampons before dropping me off close to my guesthouse.
If you enjoy being physically active in the outdoors, don't mind walking on uneven ground and like a bit of adventure I highly recommend this tour to see the glacier and get a first taste of ice climbing.

I booked the Blue Ice glacier walk and iceclimbing tour through this provider and had a great experience. I got a pick-up from Reykjavik which was very handy, and the time on the ice was brilliant. Our guides Erik and Chris were excellent and very friendly, and getting to try some iceclimbing was a highlight of my trip. Thoroughly recommend it and want to do this again.

Definitely spend the extra 1000Kr on renting the glacier boots though, makes for a much better experience than going with just your regular hiking boots. Harness/crampons/helmet/ice axe provided as part of the tour.

Brilliant tour, Josh was a legendary guide and took us to number of different spots on the glacier he had recently discovered. Saw little ice caves, waterfalls, amazing formations and spent over 3 hours on the ice where Josh was really informative about the history and science.

We went on the "Blue Ice" glacier hike + ice climbing experience. Our guide was great, she was very knowledgeable about the area and greater Iceland history. The guides do a bunch of search and rescue training prior to becoming certified, so I felt very comfortable with her leading the way. There were only 6 people in our group, so it was definitely fun compared to I saw some other groups with 20+ people. The groups merged in order to do the ice climbing portion and everyone who was interested got the option to participate. They'll give you the ice axes and everyone gets crampons and a pick. The weather can be variable, so make sure to dress in layers and bring some sunglasses! Overall, the experience lasted about 4 hours (about 45 min-1 hour of prep and off the ice, 2-2.5 hours on the ice, and another 30 minutes hike back to the parking lot). Would definitely recommend the company.
We did book, but had to cancel the Sea Kayaking experience due to flight delays and AA honored their refund claims and made it pretty easy.

Pick-up was prompt, the drive to the glacier is 2.5 hours - the guides talk about the geology and landscape during the last 30 minutes of the drive.

Our main guide made lots of "Dad jokes" which were hilarious to us, he made the experience very enjoyable.

The ice climbing was fun, too! My partner is experienced with non-ice climbing and was of course a bit of a natural. However, the guides set up 3 climbs that would rank easy-medium-hard.

Very enjoyable experience, I would recommend.

We did the Blue Ice tour which is the glacier hike and ice climb and it was an awesome experience. All specialist equipment was provided. The guides were cool and provided some good bits of info about the glaciers. Plus, they had a nice playlist for the ride to the glacier! So shout out to Saga and Svana (sorry if I've misspelled the names!)

Next day, we went on the golden circle tour with caving. It was fascinating seeing the natural wonders of Iceland and the caving in the lava tube was definitely a highlight of our trip! I'd definitely recommend it. There were some tight bits which required a short belly crawl but nothing too strenuous. Our guide, Bigi, was pretty cool too so shout out to him as well!

We had a great time on the Blue Ice tour, our guide Norris was amazing. Give that man a raise! He took us to some really cool spots on the glacier and we got in some good ice climbing as well. He was very knowledgeable about the area and climbing in general and we enjoyed having him as our tour guide. I highly recommend doing this tour and we have some friends there this week that have already booked it.

1. I'd recommend renting their climbing boots. I thought my normal hiking boots would be ok, but when I got there we tested them out in the crampons and I immediately switched to the boots they had available. Big help.
2. We enjoyed driving ourselves instead of taking the bus from Reykjavik. It was nice to explore a little on the way home instead of just getting in the bus and heading back.

I had booked this tour prior to flying out to Rek after much research online. The "Blue Ice" tour was something that I had wanted to do for around 20 odd years, and Stone and Ravi made for fantastic guides, taking great care of us, and showing us the glacier and taking us to many beautiful areas of Solheimjokull glacier.

Pickup was smooth, although I had to wait 30mins, this was in the small print. The journey through tot he glacier was peppered with a couple of comfort breaks, and arrival at the snout of the glacier was relatively quick despite it being a long drive.

Collection of the hired kit was easy - the kit itself, waterproof jacket, trousers, and boots were fairly tired and perhaps needs updating - I imagine it takes quite a hammering over the year, but it was serviceable, and kept me warm (not dry though as it rained all day). That said, I stayed warm, and thoroughly enjoyed the day.

The ice climbing is a must - I had always wanted to do this - and finally was given the opportunity. My only criticism would be that this could have lasted a little longer; although I fully appreciate that whilst x2 people are climbing, that leaves the remainder of the group doing nothing - I would suggest that this could be made as a designated lunchstop so that the most of this could be made.

Tiny tiny criticisms overall being not enough time ice climbing, and tired hire kit - aside from these things, it was a fantastic day & I would thoroughly recommend this to anyone who wants to go on a glacier walk, or wants to have a go at ice climbing.

Special mention to Ravi & Stone - excellent guides - funny, knowledgeable, and safety conscious at all times.

Overall, I would strongly recommend Arctic Adventures. We went on 3 different tours with Arctic and had a great time. Their tours are interesting and different than other companies, great price point and excellent equipment and guides.

The Northern Lights Explorer tour was totally worth it. Our guide was very knowledgeable, took really good care of us, and spend a lot of time helping us out individually to set up our cameras properly to take photos of the northern lights. It's probably the only tour that leaves from Reykjavik and takes you on a super jeep, off-road so you have a much better chance of seeing the northern lights. We good really lucky on our last day.

We also took the Blue Ice tour, which was amazing! Hiking on the glacier was super cool as was ice climbing. Groups were small, 8 people per guide. Our guide was very knowledgeable, attentive, and spend a lot of time answering our questions. Safety, comport and everyone having a good experience was really important to them. We drove ourselves to the glacier, rather than being picked up from Reykjavik, which gave us a lot of flexibility to stop on the way and take photos. It's an easy drive, but could be miserable depending on the weather.

I was in Iceland and this activity wasn't on my radar at all but it turned out to be the best day of my whole holiday. It is expensive but it is thoroughly worth it.
Our guide Kata knew a huge amount about the geological aspects of the glacier, how it was formed and a lot of the local history surrounding the area and she made it all fun and interesting too. We were 8 in the group of varying ages (25 - 55yrs) and we all came well prepared with good waterproofs and thermals. You can hire boots and waterproof trousers from them at an extra cost. I hired the trousers but had my own boots, but I wish I'd hired their boots. Especially with respect to the ice climbing taster session.
Thank you Kata for getting us all up (and more importantly down) safely. Great adventure and I thoroughly recommend those with an adventurous spirit and a good sense of balance give this a go.

The glacier hike was one of my favorite things I did in Iceland! Hiking up a glacier is unlike anything else I've ever done, and we got to do a bit of ice climbing as well, which was fantastic. The ice cave was nice but not as extreme or active, it was more just a walk through a cave. A really cool cave, but it's not as much an interaction with the environment. If I had to choose just one to do, definitely the Blue Ice glacier hike. Don't forget your sunglasses it's bright out there.

I highly recommend renting a car and driving around Iceland and staying in hotels on the road, rather than staying in Reykjavik and getting day-tours, you'll spend much less time on a bus. The roads are well maintained and easy to navigate.

The guide didn't talk much in the journey to and back from the glacier, which is good to us as we went to see the northern light yesterday and need sleep during the drive journey. He also mentioned that there's nothing much to talk about during that road so it was great!

The instructions before the walk was clear and straight forward, didn't take us long to understand and be equipped. The guide to the glacier is is professional and knowledgeable, he talked about anything you should know about the glacier and allowed some time for you to take pictures. The scenery is magnificent, you have to see it in person to believe it.

The ice climbing experience is interesting, the guide will help you with that so nothing to worry about. It's a short climb but definitely a good try but you won't be exhausted from it!

Just rememberto bring a empty water bottle so you can try drinking the water from the glacier. We didn't have a bottle to hold but still tried with our hands, it taste clean.

A prefect trip that I will definitely recommend to other people!