Askja
4WD, ATV & Off-Road ToursOther Nature & ParksGeologic FormationsDay Trips
Monday
9:00 AM - 5:00 PM
About
Iceland is known for its spectacular outdoor wonders, but without local knowledge and a specialist vehicle, it can be tricky to know which areas are safe to explore alone. Save yourself the stress, and discover lots of magnificent vistas in a day with this small-group 4WD tour. Along the way, see the Askja caldera, the Viti crater, the Vatnajokull glacier, lava fields, and plenty more noteworthy photo opportunities. Tick off multiple outdoor wonders—including the Askja volcanic area Travel off-road with ease—in an air-conditioned 4WD vehicle No navigation worries: Enjoy having someone else to navigate Small-group experience that’s capped at 11 travelers Read more about Askja Caldera and Viti Crater 4x4 Tour from Akureyri - https://www.viator.com/tours/Akureyri/Askja-Caldera-and-Viti-Crater/d4341-121093P8?mcid=56757
Reykjahlid, Iceland

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4.5
4.5 of 5 bubbles151 reviews
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Emilie T
Burlingame, CA343 contributions
4.0 of 5 bubbles
Sep 2021
So, where else in the world you gonna see that? I recomennd booking a samll tour, but worth it. The raod in is over 100km of F roads, with river fords. However the trip is worth it. It was extreeemly (90+ kph ) windy the day we were ther but still beautiful. New earth all around. Volcanically active right now so bathing in Viti not recommended. Exceptional experience.
Written September 28, 2021
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

AllanSeeToh
Singapore, Singapore394 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Jun 2014 • Couples
This is one of the MUST visit places if you're around Myvatn. The ~4hrs journey (one-way) itself offers some of the best views in iceland. You'll be amazed at the various landscapes along the way (e.g. moon-like landscape, lava fields).

There's 2 routes to access Askja (either F88 or else F905/910). I was there in end Jun2014 and the staffs at Myvatn visitor centre STRONGLY advised me against driving my rental Suzuki Vitara to Askja. As such, i signed up for one of the super jeep tours at the visitor centre (~30,000_ISK per pax). It's not exactly cheap, however i figured that it'll be a pity to miss Askja having flown to iceland half way round the globe.

While on the super jeep journey to Askja (via F88), i quickly realised why the locals advice me not to drive to Askja; there's at least 2x rivers to ford and they look pretty deep to me! Other than the rivers, the rest of the terrain looks manageable in a Vitara. Another factor before deciding on whether to self-drive to Askja might be the weather/snow condition. When i was there (end jun2014), the snow is still thick (especially nearer to Askja) and i suspect the rivers flow are stronger due to the melting snow. MAYBE it'll be better later in the summer.

The views on F88 route is simply magical. The plus point of joining the super jeep tours is that the drivers will point out to you some of the more scenic spots along the way, plus he showed us the "cave" where one of the outlaws used to stay during winter.

After ~4hrs, we reach the ranger station at Askja and stop for lunch at the ranger hut. After lunch, it was a short drive to the end point carpark where we'll have to walk 40mins in the snow to reach Viti crater. At this point, i realised another big plus point of joining guided tours to Askja. For those visitors who self-drive to Viti crater, due to the snow, they have to park their cars a lot further away from the crater and hike longer in the snow to reach Viti. For those taking super jeep tours, the jeeps can reach the end point carpark. While for those taking bus tours, the operators will arrange for snow ploughs to ferry them to the end point carpark if the buses cannot reach it.

At Viti crater, the view was magical and really worth the trip. Words cannot give justice to how beautiful it is. The only pity was that we went too early in the summer (end jun2014) and the snow has not yet melted away to reveal the landscape. We also could not swim in the crater due to the cold. The drive told me that the snow will be totally gone by mid/end july, although this varies year to year.
Written July 19, 2014
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Lorenzo B
Munich, Germany97 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Aug 2014 • Friends
We went there around mid August '14. We left Myvatn lake around 8.30am. We had a Dacia Duster 4 WD which was OK for the F905 river crossing during that period. We couldn't go through the F88 since the road was close due to high water level. Still, the F905 is an amazing road. I absolutely recommend to rent a 4x4 and experience by yourself a "once in a lifetime" experience. We arrived there around 12.30am (including time to take pictures at every corner...). The hike from the car parking to the lake site is very easy to do (30min). Unfortunately part of the lake coast collapsed few days earlier (!), causing a small tsunami (!!!), therefore the access to Viti lake for a bath was closed. Next time ;)
Written August 18, 2014
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

BlueTravels
Jacksonville, FL439 contributions
3.0 of 5 bubbles
Aug 2015
This is, indeed, a beautiful place, but my 'average' rating is based on the fact that Iceland is loaded with gorgeous places. This was nice but really tough to get to and no more beautiful than other places we've been to.
Written August 21, 2015
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Vladimir_Thomson
Prague, Czech Republic56 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Jul 2013 • Family
If you are near Myvatn, take the opportunity to see Askja. A stunning volcano whose eruption in 1875 delivered pieces of ash as far as to Denmark. Had devastating impact on people and agriculture, many farmers emigrated to Canada then.
Two possible ways to reach Askja: F88 (classic) with two "brutal" fords or F905/910, the local say easier one. But I think F88 must be more scenic. Starting with "liquid" lava fields, then changing into moon landscape used by NASA for training in 1960' for lunar landing missions. Pass the Iceland's most beautiful mountain Herdubreid, at Herdubreidarlindin you can see the shelter where the most famous outlaw Eyvindir survived a winter .. Shortly after Herdubreidarlindin you can see a scenic canyon of the same glacier river forming the great Dettifoss waterfall about 80 km down.
Then you end up at the parking place and you have to walk about 4 km on foot up the hill. We (July 2013) enjoyed a relatively deep snow.
On top you reach a huge caldera with a large Öskjuvatn lake and Viti ("The Hell") crater. (Possibility to take a bath after a steep path down).
Due to preceding rains followed by warm days we were afraid of the fords (having a small Suzuki Jimny) and bought a bus trip (special mercedes bus) organized by Myvatn tours (about 20000 ISK per person). Worth doing it. Great guide Artna told us much about Askja, Iceland, local Christmas habbits...
In fact we saw one Jimny overtaking our bus on F88 so it is feasible even with this small but reliable 4x4.
Written September 17, 2013
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Chris S
76 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Jul 2016 • Family
Mile from nearest town: About 80 (130 Km).
At least 2.5 - 3.5 hours one way and then your hiking etc.
Two water crossings (about 2 or 3 feet deep)
No food or gas etc.
Two ranger stations and camping areas.

Note: There is no 'backcountry camping' allowed within their national park areas!
There is NO 4 wheeling off the roads - You can be fined for having two wheels off the marked road(s) if you are caught.

Askja is an awesome place to visit and well worth the time if you plan accordingly.The hike in is very scenic and the view of Oskjuvatn lake from the lip of Viti is postcard perfect, but if you think you're just going to drive up and 'tag' it and drive out you might want to give yourself a little more time : )

Coming out of Reykjahlio (near lake Myvatn) to F88, which is the gravel washboard road in, is about 20 miles (32 Km) the speed limit is the same 90Km/h or about 56MPH (78MPH / 126Km/h will cost you $430 USD or 52,500 ISK - I know this for a fact : ). Once you hit F88 you can only go so fast and it's not for fear of a ticket. It's a washboard gravel most of the way with sections of rocky volcanic areas that you HAVE to traverse slowly. There are two water crossings that depending on the weather / snow melt can at times be problematic (info center near Myvatn) but average around 2.5 - 3 ft or so. There's a ranger station and pay camp site near the second water crossing at the base of Heroubreio. I 'think' camping is about $15 USD and the dorm huts are around $70 USD. It's about 79 Km or 50 miles to F910 where you start in a southerly at the base of Heroubreioartogl Mtn which is a really cool area, and then about 58 Miles (91Km) before you hit the ranger station / camping area at the base of Askja. You can hike in from that point, or you can take F894 up about 8 Km further to a parking area and hike from in from there, which is the closest / fastest way in. If you take that road you might take notice of the difference in the look of the lava fields etc. as they are 'new'. From the 1960's. They DO look different than everything that you might've seen up to that point and are really cool and worth a look.
The hike in is about 1/2 hr to 45 minutes hour or so. You can swim in Viti, but it IS sulfuric and does smell like rotten eggs so bring your OLD suit or just go bare-assed and know that it isn't that warm. The lake is FREEZING and unless you are a member of the Polar Bear Club you'll not be swimming there.
Awesome scenery and hiking. Friendly rangers who are full of information. NASA boys were up there when we were there do some studies. Sort of neat to know.

If you're planning to push through and head out of the park in a Easterly direction to camp outside the park ... it's a haul. Another two or three hours! Bring your charcoal, a leg of lamb, a few select beers and have a blast!
Written August 2, 2016
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

mdmitry
Haifa, Israel24 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Aug 2016 • Family
We've used F901 -> F905 ->F910 and crossed all the rivers with no problem. In spite of investing a lot of time in Web search, I have not been able to find the most useful advice: stop near the tourist information on F901 ( 65.37397°N 15.88330°W) and talk to the park guide.
He gave us detailed instructions, how to cross the most difficult river. I highly recommend talking to him, as IMHO these instructions are not obvious for non-experienced jeep driver (as myself).
Written August 15, 2016
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Mike_Lew_TA
Lodz, Poland56 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Aug 2015 • Couples
Going to Askja was our plan from the begining. And even though our trip to Iceland was short (7 days), it was a must in our itinerary. And it was a great day trip.

Getting there was a challenge and a fresh experience with our little 4x4 car crossing rivers on F910. I'd do it again just for that drive! It tought me a lot about cars, roads, fog, rivers and sand.

Askja was great but pretty short experience. We climbed up, crossed the snow field and had a brief look around (to see people bathing in a crater lake beneath!!). Good photos.

Most of our time in the interior we spent on a hot-water river which a polite, a little trollish ranger told us about. 'The river, he said with a trollish accent, is no more where it's marked on your map. Instead, it was moved by a lava field a few kilometers to the west in February this year.' ??? Well, it was. It flows from the mountains, then goes under the fresh lava field, to finally come back to the surface to the north, heated up just for bathing. A quicksend-like stratch of a road goes to a parking place from which you can walk another hundred of meters through razor-sharp lava rocks (boots prefered over flipflops!) to the bathing spot. It takes some courage to undress in that windy cold place, but the reward is generous.

As I said, a little self-discipline, and it can make a wonderful day tour.

*** REMEMBER TO NEVER GO OFF THE MARKED ROAD - fines for that can be over 500k krones; but most of all, you destroy the landscape that will not regenerate for years. NOT EVEN FOR A PHOTO OR LUNCH! ***
Written August 25, 2015
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

A.B.
Frankfurt, Germany327 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Jul 2014 • Family
An overnight stay (tent) in Askja was part of our plans while visiting Iceland. You have to have 4x4 equipment and you shouldn't be feared to cross one or the other riverbed - then, a perfect experience is guaranteed! Expect to meet not many others while on the way and there and enjoy the surreal landscape - from lava plains to winding pathes, crossing boulder deserts - there's everything - except trees or vegetation. Feel like Armstrong when he set his foot to the moon. I saw a lot on this beautiful planet but THIS place I will hardly ever forget. When on Iceland, GO THERE!!!
Written March 4, 2015
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

sabi_traveller
Stuttgart, Germany79 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Sep 2015
We booked a tour to Askja by super jeep (with Fjallasyn company). The Askja itself, going through deserted landscapes was really a life-time experience.
If you decide to do it on your own, there are some new hot bath streams in the area of Holuhraun. Do not miss it. Bathing in fresh lava fields stream was unique! Better than any spa!
About the river crossings: we took the F88 road and honestly - after having seen some super jeeps and some big jeeps (Grand Cherokee) fording the 2 big rivers, I find it really risky to try it with your Toyota RAV4 or other small 4x4. Our guide told us many cars get stuck in the river. It's important to remember that the insurance companies do not take in charge any damage caused by river fording.
Another point to decide for organized tours: the driving can get really tiring, the road is bumpy. It's around 100 km from the ring road to Askja one way.
And some standard tipps: take warm water proof shoes - you will be walking on snow and waterproof clothes (also pants!), take enough food and water for the whole day.
Written October 9, 2015
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

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