The Laugavegur captures the best Iceland has to offer in a 55-kilometre long-distance trail. Over three or four days, you’ll hike through an incredible colour display of mountains, lava fields, glaciers and geothermal activity. Along the way, you can camp in the most photogenic locations. In this blog post, you will find everything you need to know about camping along the Laugavegur.
What is the Laugavegur?
The Laugavegur is a legendary long-distance trail in southern Iceland. The route winds from Landmannalaugar to Thórsmörk, 55 kilometres through a cross-section of what this land of fire and ice has to offer – endless deserts of lava, swirling glacial rivers, snowfields, geysers, fumaroles and stunning panoramas.
Can I go camping along the Laugavegur?
Yes, you can. Six huts dot the route from Landmannalaugar to Thórsmörk. These belong to Ferðafélag Íslands (FI), the Icelandic Travel Association that maintains the trails. In addition, there are two commercially operated huts in Thórsmörk. You can camp at each of these huts. Unlike a bed inside of the huts, you do not have to book a camping spot in advance. Just check in with the hut keeper on arrival and pay.
In 2024, camping around the huts of FI on the Laugavegur cost 2400 Icelandic kroner, just under 16 euros. That amount buys you access to drinking water, toilets, sinks and sometimes a tent for cooking or eating, but not to hut kitchens or showers. For a hot shower, you pay extra – in 2024, 900 kroner (€6) for five minutes of hot water. Camping prices at the commercially operated huts vary a little, see below.
More info on camping at the huts: www.fi.is/en/mountain-huts/camping
What can I expect from the camping pitches on the Laugavegur?
Don’t expect great luxury, but basic facilities that suffice for a short camping trip.
Landmannalaugar
At the official starting point of the Laugavegur, you camp on rough, rocky (but flat) ground. Rock pegs come in handy, although ordinary ones also worked. A decent sleeping mat is no luxury here either. A little further on are lovely hot springs, a nice bonus.
Facilities: toilets, drinking water, washbasins, showers (for a fee), a tent for cooking and eating, a small shop.
Hrafntinnusker
If you leave Landmannalaugar well in time, you will arrive in Hrafntinnusker by midday and avoid an overnight stay here. This is recommended, as this is the highest hut on the trek. At 1100 metres, snow still covers the area when it has already melted elsewhere, the wind makes temperatures plummet even further. If you do want to camp here, make sure you have a tent that can take a beating and a warm (winter) sleeping bag.
Facilities: dry toilets, drinking water, sinks. No hot water or showers.
Álftavatn
Lovely camping spot on the shores of a lake that reflects the surroundings beautifully. In a café, you can buy a cup of coffee or a hot meal. In stormy weather, it pays to hike about four kilometres further, up to Hvanngil hut, where rocks protect you from the wind.
Facilities: toilets, drinking water, sinks, showers (for a fee), shop, café/restaurant. No tent for cooking.
Emstrur
Those who arrive early camp in a valley next to an idyllic stream. Later arrivals have to make do with a spot higher up, on sand and rocks.
Facilities: toilets, drinking water, sinks, showers (for a fee), a small shop, a tent for cooking.
Thórsmörk
In and around Thórsmörk, the town of arrival, three camping sites sit each a few kilometres apart. Be careful not to miss the right turnoff while hiking. Langidalur is FI’s site, a very nice spot next to a riverbed. And above all: with lots of grass, a relief after days of pushing your pegs into stone, gravel and sand.
At the commercially operated Volcano Huts, you pay 2900 kroner (20 euros) as a camper, but that includes the use of showers and sauna. You can also eat and drink in a restaurant there. One and a half kilometres from Langidalur is a third campsite, Básar. The price for campers there in 2023 was 2000 kroner per person (€13.50), the one for 2024 has not yet been announced.
Facilities: toilets, drinking water, sinks, showers, shop, restaurant (Volcano Huts), a tent for cooking.
Charging electrical appliances
Please note: unless you find a socket in one of the cafes/restaurants, as a camper you will not be able to use electricity in the huts. Take the necessary powerbanks with you. Some hut wardens will charge your mobile phone for a fee.
Can you go wild camp on the Laugavegur?
Wild camping is not allowed on the Laugavegur. The route is very popular: by camping at the huts, you limit your impact the most.
When is the best time to camp?
In Iceland, it can blow, freeze, snow and rain in a single day. And that’s just the summer! Unless you have experience with polar expeditions, it is best to only tackle the Laugavegur in the summer – mid-June to early September. That is also the period when the buses run – see below. Conditions tend to be roughest early in the hiking season, from late July onwards you have the best chance of favourable weather. By the end of August, the crowds thin out.
What do you need to camp on the Laugavegur?
Camping in Iceland requires higher-quality equipment than, say, a weekend at a festival. A weatherproof tent (we slept in an MSR Elixir 3), a warm sleeping bag (at least one with a comfort rating of zero degrees, preferably a bit lower) and an adequately insulating sleeping mat (at least an R-value of three to four). If you have no equipment and would rather not invest, consider renting from an outdoor sports shop.
Campers will not have access to the kitchens in the cabins. So bring a gas stove. Packets of freeze-dried food have the advantage that you don’t have to stand washing up in cold evening temperatures. Buy them at home though, along the trail they will cost you an arm and a leg.
Wind- and waterproof clothing is an absolute necessity. Think in layers and don’t forget gloves and hat. You will need water shoes or sandals to cross rivers on the way.
How to get to the Laugavegur hiking trail?
The F roads to and from Landmannalaugar and Thórsmörk are only open in summer. Even then, you need a 4×4 that can drive through rivers. Much easier is to take one of the buses; three companies are offering the route: Reykjavik Excursions, Sterna Travel and TREX.
Can you hike onwards?
Many hikers continue from Thórsmörk to Skogar via the Fimmvorduhals trail. You can also camp there.
This post first appeared in Dutch on Kampeertijd.