Discipletrek will be taking a team to Iceland to complete the iconic Laugavegur trail. This trek will explore mountains, glaciers, lava fields, and waterfalls. There is literally no place in the world quite like Iceland, and we couldn’t be more exited to bring a team on this incredible adventure. Though this adventure is 8 days, we will complete the actual trek itself in 3 long hiking days (14 miles, 10 miles, and 10 miles) plus a another ~10 mile day hike exploring a series of waterfalls near the village of Skogar.
This will be a very rugged adventure. We will be sleeping in tents and carrying all of our gear from site to site for the entirety of this trip, so each team member will need to keep their clothing/gear to an absolute minimum. We will provide a detailed packing list for this adventure, and if an item is not on the list, you really shouldn’t bring it. We will leave a team bag with a change of clothes and additional toiletries for each team member in a locker in Reykjavik that we will retrieve after the trek, so we will have clean clothes for our nights in Reykjavik and our return travel home. Other than that, everything we bring with us to Iceland we will carry along the trek.
***We are limiting the team size for this trip, so please do not wait to register.***
Dates: July 26-Aug 2nd, 2025
The trip dates and cost include international travel from a major USA airport. We will work with each team member to accommodate their travel needs.
Cost: $3,100 (Including flights from USA to Iceland)
- A non-refundable $725 deposit is required at the time of registration to secure your spot on the team. Please read our Trip Cancellation and Refund policy before registering for your adventure.
- $1,550 is due before April 15th, 2025
- $3,100 is due before June 15th, 2025
What is included:
- All ground transportation within Iceland to and from KEF airport and to and from the start/finish of the trek.
- 6 nights tent camping (3 nights along the trail and 3 nights in Reykjavik).
- Most meals while on the adventure. Meal planning for this trip is very different from all of our other adventures. Food is very expensive in Iceland, so we will be bringing most of our food with us from the States. Discipletrek will provide 5 camp style dinners for each team member and cover one dinner in a restaurant in Reykjavik. Team members will be responsible for their own snacks, lunches, and breakfasts. We will take the team to a grocery store in Reykjavik on our first day in country, which will give team members a chance to purchase fresh food to supplement their meal plans. Don’t worry if this sounds confusing. We will provide a detailed menu and walk each team member through meal planning as the trip approaches. There are also opportunities to purchase more food and snacks at the various huts along the trail.
- We will arrange for bag storage in Reykjavik for any items needed in travel but not on the trek itself. This will allow you to bring extra travel clothes and toiletry items. We will retrieve our bags in Reykjavik on the last day of the trek when we check back in to the Reykjavik Campground.
- We provide tents for the trek (2 people to a tent). Single occupancy tents can be arranged for a modest up-charge, and individuals will have to carry a full tent weight vs only half during the trek.
- Entrance ticket to the Sky Lagoon.
What is NOT included:
- You are required to bring your own trekking gear (sleeping bag and sleeping pad, backpack, clothes, hiking shoes/boots, etc.). We will provide an extensive and detailed packing/gear list for all of our participants.
- As mentioned above, you are responsible for your own trekking snacks, lunches, and breakfasts. There are snacks available for purchase at the huts along the trail, but they are not cheap.
- You are responsible to carry all of your own gear plus half of your shared tent weight. Limiting gear to the absolute necessities is essential.
- Showers are available at the various huts along the trail. If you choose to grab a shower at one of the huts, you are responsible for that cost. Showers are around $5-10.
Trek Difficulty: Difficult
We rate our Iceland adventure as “difficult,” but many people will find it “very difficult.” In addition to the physical challenge of carrying a full pack over 38 miles of rugged terrain and spending 6 nights in tents; you will also be spending a majority of the adventure in chilly to cold conditions. Though we may encounter periods of sunshine, it is very rare to complete the entirety of this trek in good weather conditions…we will be in the arctic circle after all. Icelandic weather is notoriously fickle and can change in an instant. Temperatures will likely be in the 30’s and 40’s for most of the adventure and if it is windy (it will definitely be windy), the conditions can become very challenging very quickly.
In addition, this trek includes a number of river crossings. We think they are mostly fun, but we concede that wading through incredibly cold knee-deep water is not everyone’s idea of a good time. We recommend that team members attempt to acclimate themselves to cold water by taking an occasional ice bath in the midst of their training.
It is possible to complete our Iceland trek without being in top physical condition, but we recommend you take the season of preparation seriously. We suggest that all members of our team devote themselves to a season of physical training that should include a mix of smaller training hikes, strength work, and significant cardiovascular exercise.
Itinerary:
Day 1 (July 26th)
Depart from the USA.
Day 2 (July 27th)
We will arrive in Reykjavik in the morning, make our way into the city and check in to the Reykjavik campground where we will spend our first night. We will visit a local grocery store to finish our meal prep and do a last minute gear check. We will enjoy our first camp style meal and be in bed early. The bus to Landmannalauger will depart early the next morning. It is important to mention that the sun will not fully set throughout the duration of our trek, so you will want to bring a sleeping mask.
Day 3 (July 28th)
We will get a very early start via a special lifted 4-wheel drive bus to the starting point of the trek at Landmannalaugar. The ride to Landmannalaugar will take approximately 5 hours and will arrive around midday. We will setup our camps, eat lunch and and relax in the famous hot springs (bring a swimsuit). This is a very chill day, which we will need because the next day is the toughest we will encounter on trail.
Day 4 (July 29th)
We will be trekking from Landmannalaugar to Álftavatn, which is approximately 14 miles. This is a pretty difficult day of trekking with significant elevation gains in the first half of the day as we climb rhyolite mountains up to the hut at Hrafntinnusker where we will stop for lunch before beginning the long descent into Álftavatn. It is impossible to explain how diverse the landscapes will be on this day, and it is not an exaggeration to say that the views descending into Alftavatn will be unlike any you have ever seen anywhere else in the world.
One of the most difficult elements of this trek is that we will be fjording rivers. Most of them will be around ankle deep, but some may be as deep as mid thigh. You will need to bring an extra pair of shoes/chacos/sandals for the river crossings. Flip flops are no good here…they are likely to be swept off of your feet. The water will be invigorating (very very cold), but this is all part of the Icelandic adventure. We will reach the first of our river crossings just before we arrive at Alftavatn.
Day 5 (July 30th)
We will spend this day trekking 10 miles from Álftavatn to Emstrur. This is a mostly flat hiking day with several river crossings. Shortly after leaving Alftavatn, the landscape will change sharply and we will spend a few hours traversing a black desert of volcanic ash. As we near Emstrur, we will leave the flat terrain and gain a bit of elevation. This won’t be too long of a day on trail, and after we setup camp at Emstrur, we will take a short detour hike to a nearby canyon.
Day 6 (July 31st)
We will finish the Laugavegur trail by trekking 10 miles from Emstrur to Þórsmörk. This day has quite a lot of downhill with incredible scenery and you guessed it…more river crossings. Þórsmörk lies in a dense forrest, which will be a strange site, because you literally will not see a single tree along the trail until we arrive in Þórsmörk. We will get a bit of an early start on this day to make sure that we arrive at Þórsmörk in time to enjoy lunch in the Volcano Huts (lunch in the huts is optional and costs approximately $30) before catching our bus back to Reykjavik.
Day 7 (Aug 1st)
Assuming we finish the trail on Day 6 as planned (this day is a buffer day if we get delayed), we will spend this day on a sightseeing adventure on the south side of the island. Our plan will be to drive approximately 2.5 hours to the village of Skogar and spend a couple of hours on a day hike. We will likely be hiking approximately 10 miles (5 miles up and 5 miles back down) along a river of absolutely unbelievable waterfalls. This isn’t an easy hike, but we will be hiking without our packs, so that will be a welcome treat after 3 long days on trail.
After our waterfall hike, we will make our way back to Reykjavik where a very special treat awaits us. We will enjoy a celebratory dinner together in a restaurant before heading over to the famous Sky Lagoon, where we will receive the 7 step Skjol Ritual (hot lagoon soak, cold plunge, dry sauna, cold mist, salt scrub, steam room, Icelandic elixir). Our time at the Sky Lagoon will definitely be a highlight of the trip. After a few hours of pampering, we will head back to the campground for our last night in a tent.
Day 8 (Aug 2nd)
Depart Iceland for the States. We will arrive back in the States that evening.