Snorkeling Between the Continents
This is a small-group snorkel tour inside the Silfra fissure in Þingvellir National Park, where the North American and Eurasian tectonic plates meet beneath the surface. The difference from standard Silfra tours is the equipment: a cold-water freediving wetsuit instead of a drysuit, giving you genuine mobility in water with over 100 metres of visibility.
The Fissure
Silfra is not a river or a lake. It is a crack in the earth's crust inside Þingvellir National Park, formed by the slow separation of two tectonic plates. The water filling it has been filtered through underground lava fields for decades before surfacing, which is why the visibility exceeds 100 metres (328 feet) and the colour shifts from deep blue to pale green as you move through it. There is nowhere else in Iceland where you can float directly above a geological boundary of this scale.
The Surface
The tour begins with a briefing and gear-up in a heated changing van, which removes the usual misery of pulling on a wetsuit in an Icelandic car park. In the water, the freediving wetsuit fits close to the body rather than trapping air like a drysuit, which means you sit lower in the fissure and move through it rather than being pushed along the top. The route follows the main channel from the entry point through the widening lagoon section known as Little Silfra, where the walls drop away and the full width of the rift becomes visible beneath you. The water temperature is around two degrees Celsius (35 ℉) year-round. Your face will feel it. The rest of you will not.
The Local Difference
Most Silfra operators use drysuits because they are faster to manage with large groups. The wetsuit setup here puts you closer to the water, and the heated van means you arrive at the fissure warm rather than already fighting the cold before you get in. Birgir has been running small-group tours in Silfra longer than most operators in this space and designed the setup around one principle: that the quality of the experience matters more than the throughput of the group. This is for travellers who want the full Silfra experience without a dive course. It is not for those who want a quick surface float and a photo.
Included
- All snorkeling equipment (7mm premium wetsuit, fins, mask, etc)
- Access to a heated changing van
- Hot beverages after the dive
- Warm overcoats before and after dive
- Professional local guide
What to Bring
- towel
- swimsuit (for underneath wetsuit)
- GoPro or underwater camera (optional)
Optional Add-Ons & Rentals
Exclusions
Meeting Point
Þingvellir National Park Golden Circle
Meet on Location
Meet the guides at the Silfra Parking Lot (P5) in Þingvellir National Park.
Reviews(369)
This was a great tour! Extremely cold and enjoyable! Biggi was great as our guide. Everything was clear and easy! And we got some great pictures from our snorkel tour
Experience was brilliant, guide was very knowledgeable and very laid back so gave you plenty of freedom to enjoy it as you wanted whether you wanted to just snorkel or have a go at free diving. Very fun and not cold at all in the suits provided!
Birgir was great, super knowledgeable and so fun! The snorkel was amazing and we loved our tour. Such an incredible place. Thank you so much :)
Silfra is of course one of the wonders of the world. Our second time in Silfra. Visibility and clarity of the water can not be described. Snorkeling over the canyon between the tectonic plates, 10 to 40 meters deep, is a once in a lifetime experience. The guide, Biggi, is a professional free-diver and makes the snorkeling a great experience by his lively attitude and knowledge. Recommended.
Amazing experience, mostly did snorkeling, but also got to do a little bit of diving. Silfra is beautiful, I could stare at and float in that turquoise water all day! Also now I have a new hobby I want to pursue ;) small group is always the best way to go for tours and I couldn't have asked for a better guide 😊
This was AMAZING!!! Birgir, our guide, was funny and kind, and put us at ease, as we were unsure of what to expect snorkeling in cold water. The scenery was other worldly and amazingly enough, we were totally warm the entire time! I can not stress enough how fantastic this experience was, and it was made 1000x better by Birgir!
Could not have asked for a better start to our Iceland adventure! The location is super easy and accessible, just a short walk from the car park. We met Birgir and he put our nerves at ease by talking us through the dive from start to finish. His sense of humor is unparalleled and really created the right atmosphere for our dive. We had our own private tour of Silfra which we felt was better than the larger dry suit groups who were unable to dive beneath the surface (despite their great efforts!) If you are trying to decide between snorkel or free-diving, we would recommend the diving 1000%, even with no experience you can feel the freedom and the depth of the fissure. We weren’t expecting photos but were amazed when we received them back - he was able to capture the perfect shots of such a beautiful experience. Much love - free thinking Dane + colorful Aussie!
FAQs
Why does this tour use wetsuits instead of drysuits?
Will I get Cold?
What is the difference between snorkeling and free diving gear?
Can our group do both snorkeling and freediving?
Do I need any certificates or prior experience to snorkel in Silfra?
Do I need to know how to swim?
Are photos included?
Can I wear glasses?
Where is the meeting point?
How big is the group size?
What is the cancellation policy for this tour?
