From Akureyri Port: Diamond Circle Guided Day Trip w/ Lunch
Lunch includedCruise pier80 minutes at the falls
From $209 per person
Dettifoss in One Day from Akureyri
Short answer. A Dettifoss day from Akureyri is seven to ten hours, of which four are driving. Leave between eight and nine, reach the falls around midday, and be back by late afternoon. Guided departures give the waterfall between thirty and ninety minutes; driving yourself, you decide.
Akureyri is where a Dettifoss day starts, whether you drive it or book it. This guide sets out the shape of that day using the operators' own published timings rather than an estimate, so you can see where the hours actually go.
Why does it take all day?
Because the falls are about two hours away and there is no shorter route. Published distances vary between roughly 133 and 150 kilometres depending on which way you leave the Ring Road, which is why time is the useful number rather than kilometres. Four hours of that day is driving before you have stopped anywhere, and the stops on the way are what turn a there-and-back into a day out.
The shape of a guided day, hour by hour
Taken from the published itineraries of the departures listed. Times are typical rather than promised.
- 08:00–09:00 — pickup. From your hotel, a central point, or the cruise pier. One departure lists forty pickup points; another arranges it with you individually after booking.
- 09:30–10:15 — Goðafoss. Forty minutes out of town, then thirty-five to forty-five minutes on the walking trails. Almost every departure opens here.
- 10:45–11:15 — the geothermal ground. Hverir at Námafjall, twenty to thirty minutes of fumaroles and boiling mud. Some days take the Skútustaðagígar craters or Dimmuborgir instead.
- 12:00–13:30 — Dettifoss. The far point. Thirty to ninety minutes depending on the departure, and the single number that most changes the day.
- 14:00–15:00 — Ásbyrgi, on the circle days. Forty-five minutes to an hour in the horseshoe canyon.
- 15:30–16:00 — Húsavík, if the day is running to time. Twenty minutes to an hour and a half, and the first stop cut when it is not.
- 17:00–18:00 — back in Akureyri. Or at the pier, at least forty minutes before your ship sails.
What changes between departures
| Departure | Hours | At the falls | Shape of the day |
|---|---|---|---|
| Diamond Circle with lunch | 8 | 80 min | All five circle stops, coach, from the pier |
| Lake Mývatn and Dettifoss | 8–9 | 90 min | Mývatn side only, 4x4, max 12 |
| Waterfalls and nature baths | 9–10 | not stated | Adds Selfoss and a hot lagoon |
| Diamond Circle with waterfalls | 8 | 60 min | Circle with Ásbyrgi, pickup included |
| Mývatn, Dettifoss and Goðafoss | 7–9 | 40 min | Forty pickup points, max 17 |
| Private Diamond Circle | 10 | 45 min | Your running order, priced per group |
Read that table as two families rather than six products. The circle days attempt all five Diamond Circle stops and give the waterfall forty to eighty minutes. The Mývatn-side days drop Ásbyrgi and Húsavík and give it ninety.
The shape of a self-drive day
- 08:00 — leave Akureyri. Earlier is better; the coaches converge on the west viewpoint around midday.
- 08:40 — Goðafoss. Half an hour. It is on the way and it costs you nothing to stop.
- 10:00 — Dettifoss. Arrive before the coaches. Walk the lower path first, then the upper, then Selfoss.
- 12:00 — back toward Mývatn. Hverir, Dimmuborgir or the craters, whichever appeals, plus lunch in Reykjahlíð.
- 15:00 — Akureyri. Home by mid-afternoon with the day intact.
That is six to seven hours and it puts you at the falls before the traffic. It is the strongest argument for driving, and the honest guide to doing it without a tour covers where the argument breaks down.
💡 Useful tip. Whichever way you go, buy lunch in Akureyri before you leave. Two of the guided departures include a packed lunch; the rest do not, and there is no café, shop or vending machine at Dettifoss on either side.
How much time do you actually need at the falls?
An hour covers it properly: ten to fifteen minutes' walk in from the car park, twenty at the viewpoint, and the rest for the lower path and getting back. Add forty minutes if you want Selfoss, which the signpost puts at 0.6 kilometres and the park rates as an easy circuit of about 2.5 kilometres.
Thirty minutes gets you the viewpoint and a rushed walk back. Ninety gets you both falls without hurrying. That range is the reason to read the minutes on a card before the price.
What if the day runs late?
Húsavík goes first, then Ásbyrgi. Both sit on the return leg and both are easier to cut than the far point of the route. On a cruise departure the compression is sharper, because your sailing time is fixed — one traveller on the private departure fitted a ten-hour itinerary into the seven hours their ship allowed and chose which stops survived.
Can you add whale watching?
Not in the same day. A Húsavík sailing is about three hours on its own, and a Dettifoss day already runs to seven or more. If you want both, give Húsavík its own day — what is near Dettifoss has the detail.
What does the day look like in winter?
Shorter, and organised around the light rather than around the stops. In December there are about three hours of daylight at the falls and a two-hour drive at each end of them, which leaves no margin at all — which is why almost nothing runs. February gives eight hours and March eleven, and that is where a winter Dettifoss day becomes possible again.
A February departure typically leaves earlier, cuts a stop, and spends less time at each. It also depends entirely on Route 862, which is not in winter service between January and early April. The compensating pleasure is that you may well have the viewpoint to yourself, with ice along the canyon walls and the water running black.
Where do you eat?
Two of the departures include a packed lunch with a sandwich and a bottle of water. On the rest, and if you are driving, the answer is Reykjahlíð at Lake Mývatn, about forty minutes from the falls and the only real cluster of shops and cafes on the route. There is nothing at Dettifoss itself on either side.
The practical version: buy lunch in Akureyri before you leave. Every traveller account that mentions food on these days says the same thing, and one whole complaint about a nine-hour departure was that no water was provided. It is stated on the listing, it is easily solved, and it is the commonest small regret of the day.
What is the latest you can leave and still make it?
If you are driving in June or July, surprisingly late: with twenty-plus hours of daylight, a two o'clock departure from Akureyri still gives you the falls in good light and an empty car park. In September that same start puts you driving back in the dark. Outside high summer, treat nine in the morning as the last sensible departure and earlier as better.
Guided departures do not offer the choice. They leave between eight and nine because the itinerary needs the hours, and the cruise departures work backwards from your sailing time instead.
Two days instead of one
If you have the time, the best version of this is not a longer day but two shorter ones. Day one: a guided Diamond Circle for Goðafoss, Ásbyrgi, Húsavík and the shape of the route. Day two: a hire car to Dettifoss alone, arriving early, with as long as you want at the rim and the walk to Selfoss. That is the itinerary we would build with three days in Akureyri.
What does the day cost, all in?
On a guided departure: the fare, plus lunch if it is not included, plus whatever you spend at the Mývatn stop. Nothing else. There is no entry fee at Dettifoss, no parking charge and nothing to buy there. A Dettifoss day trip from Akureyri starts at $209 and the dearest shared seat is about $400.
Driving, it is fuel for roughly 280 kilometres, plus the car if you are hiring for the day, plus lunch. For two people that is comfortably less than two fares. For one person, once a day rate and an insurance excess are counted, the two land close enough that four hours of driving becomes the deciding factor.
Frequently asked questions
How long is a Dettifoss day tour from Akureyri?
Seven to ten hours. The shortest listed is seven and the longest is ten, and about four hours of any of them is driving. Anything advertised as substantially shorter is not reaching the falls.
What time do Dettifoss tours leave Akureyri?
Between eight and nine in the morning for most departures. One states a nine o'clock start; the cruise departures work backwards from your sailing time instead.
Can you do Dettifoss and Lake Mývatn in one day?
Yes — almost every departure does both, because Mývatn is on the way. What you cannot add is whale watching, which is three hours on its own.
Is it worth taking the earliest departure?
If you are driving, yes: the Diamond Circle coaches converge on the west viewpoint around midday. On a guided day you do not get the choice, which is one of the trade-offs for not driving.
How long do you get at Dettifoss?
Between thirty and ninety minutes depending which departure you book. Every card states the figure, taken from the operator's own itinerary, and it is the number that most changes the day.
What to do with the evening
You will be back in Akureyri between five and six, which in summer is still the middle of the afternoon as far as the light is concerned. The town has a botanical garden, a swimming pool locals actually use, and the Forest Lagoon on the fjord if the day has left you wanting hot water. In September and later, the same hours are when the aurora becomes a possibility.
For the departures themselves, Dettifoss tours from Akureyri. For the road, roads and access. For the month you are going in, the month-by-month page. For a full comparison, Dettifoss Tours.
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