How to choose
Skaftafell is where the Svartifoss trail begins, and it is a long way from anywhere large. The park puts Kirkjubæjarklaustur 70 km to the west and Höfn 130 km to the east. Reykjavík is 4.5 to 5 hours’ driving away, according to the car rental company Höldur.
That distance shapes the choice. A base close to the park lets you walk to the falls early or late, when the light and the crowds are different. A base further away gives you more shops and restaurants, but costs driving time. This page covers areas and campsites, not individual hotels, so you can compare them first. Visit South Iceland and Visit Vatnajökull both publish lists of places to book.
Skaftafell campsite
The Skaftafell campsite is run by Vatnajökull National Park and the Svartifoss path starts through it. The first 250 m of the trail pass through the campground before turning uphill. You can walk to the falls from your tent.
The park says the site has room for about 400 tents. It has eight pitches, lettered A to H. Pitches A to D allow vehicles and have electricity, while E to H are closed to cars. The facilities include flush toilets, showers, washing machines and dryers, but no indoor cooking or dining area for campers. The park says it is open all year, with only zones A and C available in winter, and that frost keeps the outside taps off until mid-May.
You cannot reserve a pitch. Register and pay at the camping reception when you arrive. The fee is 2,800 ISK per person per night for ages 17 to 66, 2,300 ISK for senior citizens and disabled guests, and free for children aged 16 and under with an adult. Electricity costs 1,500 ISK per 24 hours (all checked October 2026 on the park’s price list). The fee includes showers and laundry.
- Suits: campers, campervans, hikers who want the earliest start, anyone doing several Skaftafell walks.
- Watch for: no reservations, a busy site in summer, and exposed weather.
Öræfi and the Skaftafell area
Öræfi is the district around Skaftafell and the Öræfajökull volcano. Wikipedia places it between Breiðamerkursandur and the river Skeiðará, and Visit South Iceland lists hotels, guesthouses, cottages and apartments there. Visit South Iceland also lists a hotel at Skaftafell itself. The park says the area has seasonal tourism services and privately run restaurants, so you can eat close by in the busy months.
Visit Vatnajökull’s accommodation page shows guesthouses, hotels, cottages and a hostel across the wider Vatnajökull region, but no distances. The next bus stop east of Skaftafell, Freysnes, is 20 minutes away on the Strætó timetable.
Some operators also start here. Local Guide of Vatnajökull meets its summer glacier hikes at Freysnes, and Icelandic Mountain Guides runs its Skaftafell tours from a base camp at Skaftafell. Sleeping nearby shortens the morning. See glacier hikes and tours for what runs.
- Suits: people who want a bed rather than a tent, glacier hike or ice cave days, anyone with a short window of daylight.
- Watch for: fewer choices than in a town, and higher demand in summer, which the park calls the most popular season.
Kirkjubæjarklaustur
Kirkjubæjarklaustur, often shortened to Klaustur, is a small village on Route 1 between Vík and Höfn. It is 70 km west of Skaftafell, which is 55 minutes on the Strætó bus. Wikipedia lists a basalt pavement called Kirkjugólf, the Systrafoss waterfall and the site of a medieval convent, and says a Vatnajökull National Park visitor centre opened there in 2024. In 2026 the park’s free ranger walks included one from the Fjaðrárgljúfur car park, daily from 15 June to 15 August.
Visit South Iceland lists accommodation in the area. It makes a sensible halfway stop if you are driving from Reykjavík and want to arrive at Skaftafell fresh the next morning.
- Suits: drivers splitting the journey from Reykjavík, travellers adding Fjaðrárgljúfur, people who prefer a quiet village.
- Watch for: a 70 km drive each way to the trailhead.
Vík
Vík í Mýrdal is on Route 1 about 180 km southeast of Reykjavík by road, according to Wikipedia. It is best known for the black sand beach at Reynisfjara and the Reynisdrangar sea stacks offshore. Visit South Iceland lists accommodation there.
It is not a base for Svartifoss. Icelandic Mountain Guides lists 2.5 hours from Vík to Skaftafell, and the bus takes about 2 hours. That is a long drive twice a day. Use Vík for the first night out of Reykjavík, then move on.
- Suits: a first night on the south coast, travellers combining beaches with waterfalls.
- Watch for: the distance to Skaftafell, and whether you want to repeat it.
Höfn
Höfn is a fishing town with 1,802 residents in 2025, according to Wikipedia. It has a supermarket, pharmacy, health centre, bank, two petrol stations, a swimming pool and several restaurants. Lodging includes hotels, a campground, a youth hostel and guesthouses. An airport 4 km from town has scheduled flights to Reykjavík.
Höfn is 130 km east of Skaftafell, around 1.5 to 2 hours by road according to Icelandic Mountain Guides. It is a better base for the lagoons than for the falls. Jökulsárlón (our guide) lies between the two, and the bus covers Skaftafell to Höfn in a little under two hours.
- Suits: travellers who want shops and a choice of restaurants, people covering Jökulsárlón and the eastern lagoons, anyone arriving by air.
- Watch for: two to four hours of driving if you want a Skaftafell day.
Two simple plans
Driving from Reykjavík, two nights. Spend the first night at Kirkjubæjarklaustur or Vík to break up the 4.5 to 5 hours of driving, then the second near Skaftafell. You arrive at the trailhead rested and can walk Svartifoss before the road home.
Tent or campervan, three nights. Take a pitch at the Skaftafell campsite for the walks and a glacier hike, then finish in Höfn for the lagoons and a proper meal. The campsite cannot be booked, so aim to arrive early in the day.
By bus. The Strætó bus reaches Skaftafell at 19:30 on a running day. Book the first night nearby, and plan to stay until the next bus on the days it runs. See getting there.
Daylight, seasons and booking
In midwinter the daylight window is the real constraint. Timeanddate gives about four hours of daylight in Höfn on 21 December, with the sun up from roughly 11am to 3pm. A base inside Öræfi or the campsite stops that window disappearing into the drive. See best time to visit for the seasons.
Book rooms early for summer. The campsite cannot be reserved, so keep a fallback plan in peak season. Allow for the drive on getting there, and check the safety guidance before you set off in winter.
