Silfra: Snorkeling Between Continents & Geothermal Spa Day

4.95

(293 reviews)

What’s the experience like?

Pulling on the drysuit in the heated van, I kept thinking, “Is this really going to keep me warm?” Our guide—Anna, I think—handed me thick wool socks and grinned when I asked if my hands would freeze. She explained how the Silfra fissure is literally between two continents, which sounded dramatic until I actually put my face in that water. It’s so clear you can see every ripple in the rock below, and the cold isn’t just cold—it’s sharp, almost sweet. My teeth ached for a minute but then it just felt… peaceful. You can hear your own breath echoing inside the snorkel.

I tried to say “Thingvellir” like Anna did (she laughed and said I was close enough). Floating through Silfra Hall and the Cathedral part, it really does look like stained glass under there—blue and green and silver all shifting with the light. The group was small, maybe five of us plus Anna, so it never felt rushed or crowded. When we got out my lips were numb but someone handed me hot chocolate and cookies—I don’t know if it was the sugar or just relief but that snack tasted weirdly perfect right then.

The drive to Laugarvatn Fontana took about half an hour, winding past mossy fields and those little black horses you see everywhere here. At the baths you can move between hot tubs, steam rooms that smell faintly of sulfur (not bad, just… earthy), and even dip into the lake if you’re feeling bold—which I wasn’t this time. Locals sat quietly in the pools; one older man nodded as I slid into the hottest tub. There’s a kind of hush here except for soft voices and water bubbling somewhere nearby. Afterward my skin felt tingly for hours. I still think about that first shock of glacier water sometimes—you know?