Reykjadalur Hot Spring Thermal River — Attraction in Iceland

The hike is long (for the moderate hikers) and basically straight uphill, if in poor physical condition (overweight or hard of breathing and don't get much excercise) you could expect this hike to take anywhere from 1 hour to 2 hours. If in physically fit condition with plenty to moderate hiking experience, expect it to take 35-70 minutes depending on how hard you're huffing it (35 minutes is probably if you're non stop jogging it) and expect it to take a little bit longer if you're hiking in a pack.

Definitely worth the hike. It's a super relaxing spot! We went during the day and at night! Going in the day time was just an unreal experience and I would come back to Iceland for this river! Just don't do it at night in cold conditions, the river as a whole cools down about 10-15 degrees, so there still are hotspots, but just keep in mind it's a 2 mile hike back to the car.

We hiked here at 11pm in September, and I got in a spot that during the day was 104 degrees and it had dropped to around 90 degrees. Colder temperature waters, no sunlight, heavy wind and unpredictable rain patterns should tell you absolutely do not try this at night, except MAYBE in the summer. When I was here at night, it got so windy and cold all the moisture on the walkways from the day turned to a sheet of Ice. I had to desperately run towards where I left my clothes and put on every layer because I was so cold I thought I was going to faint and never be heard from again.

I'm telling you this if your looking to do something different and push your luck a little bit by trying this at night. Keep in mind it's a 2 mile hike back to the car. I would definitely recommend sticking to daylight hours!

We did get the experience of seeing the Aurora while there at night though which was a euphoric and epic experience!

The water gets hotter the higher you go so it's possible it would be fine at night if you just went higher than we did and test the water.

Be prepared to expose yourself to nature and any onlookers because there's not much provision wise in regards to changing rooms! There's 3-5 four sided wooden partitions to jump behind to change, so if you are particularly shy, you could change behind a towel or wear your bathing suit under your hiking clothes on the way up, but keep in mind nobody really gives a snowflakes lick wether you strip down or not, it's Iceland! 😂

I would say the water ranges from 90f to 130+f so there's a wide range of temperatures to keep you comfortable.

Just please excercise extreme caution when going further up the river as the water gets to boiling temperatures. No heli...

Beautiful hike on a sunny day in August. Incredible views all around and a fantastic thermal river experience at the end as a reward for the journey. As mentioned by many reviews, the first part is steep, but the gorgeous views are worth it, especially when passing by the waterfall. Recommend wearing shoes with good grip particularly for the return journey (my mother tripped 2 times on the gravel path on the steep path back to the parking lot since she was wearing sneakers).

Prepare for little black gnats that swarm your face at certain points along the hike, but are otherwise harmful (insect repellent does not work on them). Bring tissues as your nose can get runny from either the wind or the exercise. Paid parking cost around 1000 ISK for 3-ish hours; free bathrooms available.

The thermal river itself is crowded even on a weekday, but there was enough space for the two of us along the river. The temperature was perfect - we enjoyed a nice 38 degrees C near the end of the wooden walkway. Note the river is shallow, so you're either sitting with the water up to your chest or just below it, or lying down to submerge your entire body. It was refreshing after the hour-long hike, although a tad noisy with all the visitors.

Hike up took around 1 hour 15 min for my mother and I (we're both non-regular hikers). Return trip took about the same time due to her unsuitable footwear. On the way up, we saw horseback riders, which was fun. Highly...

Ok info on WINTER HIKE!

This is a much longer hike in winter then you’d expect. Most of the entire trail is deep snow. Especially near the end when your close to the geothermal spring.

The hiking trail is NOT that simple. Look out for the red markers when you’re hiking to keep you on track and other people prints in the snow.

This took from 11:30am - 3pm hiking at a fast pace when I could. Which included spending 30minutes inside the spring, getting undressed and dressed and making it back to the car.

It was a fairly tough hike in the snow. So be prepared. Bring crampons/spikes for your hiking boots you’ll need them.

Later up. Don’t bring a huge jacket. Always layers for the cold.

The spring in winter is NOT hot. It’s warm. Because of the winter weather cooling the thermal spring down. The further you hike the warmer it will get but for us. It was simply warm.

The hike 3/4 of the way was good then we got hit by a storm. High wind and snow. It never stopped. We got a spell when we were in the spring but you get cold again when you get out and get dressed.

Be careful hiking here in winter. But it was a cool day out. And an achievement to make it all the way.

Parking there outside of the restaurant area was 900isk for the times I just mentioned. There’s bathrooms there and a place to buy food and coffee but it’s...