Horse on the fields near Grundarfjörður

Driving and exploring Iceland on my own for the last 15 days has been nothing but therapeutic. Iceland is a transcontinental island located in Europe and North America, between the North Atlantic and the Arctic Ocean. I managed to explore Iceland’s Ring Road + Westfjords during the 15 days I spent there and had the opportunity to visit the top destinations that Iceland has to offer.

Iceland is a country for nature lovers! It is famous for its gorgeous scenery, amazing nature, endless glaciers, fabulous fjords, cliffs, breathtaking waterfalls, geysers and all kinds of other geothermal phenomena. If you love nature, you definitely have to visit Iceland!

Breiðamerkurjökull Glacier in Iceland

Top 16 Highlights in Iceland

I had a really hard time deciding which are the best places to include in this list. There is so much beauty all around that it can’t really be measured. However, I tried my best to organize and present the top 16 places that I feel you should make a stop in Iceland.

1- Very close contact with puffins in Latrabjarg

Puffins in Látrabjarg

Látrabjarg (Latrabjarg) is Europe’s largest bird cliffs. There are very few opportunities in the world to get into such close contact with the fluffy sea parrots, better known as Puffins. Visiting Látrabjarg will give you such a great opportunity, aren’t they adorable?

2- Visit Europe’s most powerful waterfall – the impressive Dettifoss

Dettifoss waterfall is located at the Jökulsárgljúfur National Park in Northeast Iceland, not far off from Lake Mývatn.

Dettifoss waterfall, Iceland

Dettifoss is Europe’s most powerful waterfall, with an estimated flow rate of between 200 – 500 m3 of water per second. The waterfall itself is 100 meters / 328 feet wide with a vertical drop of 44 meters / 144 feet down the gorge. That is just impressive and so gorgeous when you’re actually standing there!

3- Snaefellsjokull National Park

If you have read the book “Journey to the Center of the Earth” by Jules Verne, then you’ll definitely recognize the landscapes so well described by the writer. Snæfellsjökull Glaciar (Snaefellsjokull) rises to 1446 meters / 4744 feet above sea level, surrounded by a peninsula of stunning landscapes. You could also visit the Laugarbrekka monument within the National Park.

Laugarbrekka is the memorial to Gudridur Þorbjarnardóttir, the first European woman to give birth in the territory of North America. This story dates back to the year 1000 AD, where Laugarbrekka was a farm in which Gudridur was born. She subsequently left for Vinland (America) with her husband and gave birth there.

Read the full article here →

This article first appeared on www.joaoleitao.com, a travel publication by Nomad Revelations.