Dettifoss was on my list of must-see in Iceland ever since I saw Prometheus and its opening scene. I had to see with my own two eyes the enormous waterfall. The GPS pointed us to this one road that was all gravel and it was closed due to snow. Imagine my disappointment at the sight of the “CLOSED” sign. We got back on the 1 and kept driving toward the hotel. At some point my husband and I see this sign saying Dettifoss and got on the road which for the GPS was nonexistent and it looked brand-new so I am guessing the road is recent and the GPS was not updated. We had no idea how far we had to drive on this road but it was only about 15 minutes or so and we got to the parking lot for Dettifoss. From there it was on foot in the snow. The day was gorgeous so at least we did not have bulky jackets on. It was our hottest day in Iceland, about 20C. Even before we got to the waterfall we could hear the powerful roar of the water, so I was sure it would be a spectacular sight and I was right. This waterfall is beautiful. Unfortunately due to snow the lower platform was not available but we still got to enjoy it and witnessed a beautiful rainbow too. A must see!

More Recommendations

Roaring Waterfall

Dettifoss was on my list of must-see in Iceland ever since I saw Prometheus and its opening scene. I had to see with my own two eyes the enormous waterfall. The GPS pointed us to this one road that was all gravel and it was closed due to snow. Imagine my disappointment at the sight of the “CLOSED” sign. We got back on the 1 and kept driving toward the hotel. At some point my husband and I see this sign saying Dettifoss and got on the road which for the GPS was nonexistent and it looked brand-new so I am guessing the road is recent and the GPS was not updated. We had no idea how far we had to drive on this road but it was only about 15 minutes or so and we got to the parking lot for Dettifoss. From there it was on foot in the snow. The day was gorgeous so at least we did not have bulky jackets on. It was our hottest day in Iceland, about 20C. Even before we got to the waterfall we could hear the powerful roar of the water, so I was sure it would be a spectacular sight and I was right. This waterfall is beautiful. Unfortunately due to snow the lower platform was not available but we still got to enjoy it and witnessed a beautiful rainbow too. A must see!

Rocky landscape near Dettifoss

My husband and I traveled around the periphery of Iceland (on Ring Road) over a 9-day trip this summer. We started our trip from Reykjavik, driving south (anti-clockwise) and by this time on our 5th day in the country we were in Northern Iceland. To say that the landscape near Dettifoss, one of Europe’s largest waterfalls in terms of water volume, was rocky would be an understatement. The falls are about 20 minute drive from the Ring Road and the road looks like it is newly built. This was shot past 9 PM ...thanks to long days of summer there was still plenty of light.

Dettifoss, Iceland

My husband and I traveled around the periphery of Iceland (on Ring Road) over a 9-day trip this summer. We started our trip from Reykjavik, driving south (anti-clockwise) and by this time on our 5th day in the country we were in Northern Iceland. Dettifoss is Europe’s largest waterfall. It flows off the glacial river Jökulsá á Fjöllum which in turn is fed by the massive Vatnajökull glacier. The mist from the waterfalls is refreshing and you can go on the either side of the falls. The falls are about 20 minute drive from the Ring Road and the road to the falls looks like it is newly built.

Dettifoss frozen over

Believe it or not, the “most powerful” water fall in “Europe”, Dettifoss was frozen over when we were there in late November 2012. Still a beautiful site to see.

Information on this page, including website, location, and opening hours, is subject to have changed since this page was last published. If you would like to report anything that’s inaccurate, let us know at notification@afar.com.

Nearby highlights
Sign up for our newsletter
Join more than a million of the world’s best travelers. Subscribe to the Daily Wander newsletter.
More From AFAR