Lake Mývatn

Experience the Magic of Mývatn.

Lake Mývatn and the surrounding area is a magnificent and unique natural wonder. In addition to the lake itself you will find wild life, including various duck species, 22 species at most, along with phenomena such as pseudo-craters, the largest explosion crater in Europe and lava fields the like of which you would expect on Mars. Many wonders of nature can be found in the Mývatn area, for example Dettifoss, Europe’s most powerful waterfall, and Jökulsárgljúfur national park within which you will find Ásbyrgi and Hljóðaklettar, Herðubreið mountain, which is considered the queen of all Icelandic mountains and Askja mountain, which has Askja lake and Víti crater.

In Mývatnssveit, you will find Höfði, where one-of-a-kind lava clusters rise out of the lake as well as Dimmuborgir, where the interaction between the magnificent lava formations plays with the imagination. Dimmuborgir sports a lava formation that can be walked into and looks like a church dome. Grjótagjá chasm is yet another wonder; it has an underground flow of hot water and can be explored on foot.

Grjótagjá chasm was once the most popular bathing site in Mývatnssveit, but today it is too hot to bathe in. Hverir are natural clay springs with boiling clay. They are quite a remarkable sight. The volcanic area Leirhnjúkur, which last erupted in 1984, is a breathtaking area where you can explore the lava fields and see how new life emerges in the fresh lava. More of nature’s spectacles can be found in the area, and it would be possible to stay there for weeks and still have new things to explore each day.

Mývatnssveit offers a variety of activities and entertainment. To enjoy and learn about its unique nature, sightseeing tours around Mývatn are ideal. Group or private tours on super jeeps are also available. Moreover, it is possible to enjoy the beautiful nature from above in a sightseeing flight. There are organised sightseeing trips from Mývatnssveit to the national park Jökulsárgljúfur, through Ásbyrgi with a stop in Húsavík town on the way to Mývatnssveit. This route has been called the “diamond route”. Trips to Herðubreiðarlindir and Askja with a stop in the great Drekagil canyon are also available. The astronauts involved in the lunar landings were trained in Drekagil before their historic voyages to the moon. These trips are available either in organised group trips in super jeeps or in a sightseeing flight (only available during the summer time). Horse trips around Mývatnssveit and vicinity are offered. The most popular trip is an hour-long sojourn around the vicinity of the lake. There are many marked hiking tracks in the area. It is a unique experience to walk in the awe-inspiring landscape and breathe the stillness and fresh air. People can choose either a combination of many short walking trips or longer walks that take a few days, for example from Mývatn to Ásbyrgi, which is a four-day walk and from Askja to Mývatn, a three- to four-day walk. In recent years, it has become increasingly popular for tourists to travel around the area on mountain bikes. It is possible to rent a bike at Mývatn. Whale watching is offered from Húsavík and has become extremely popular. Since the whale watching started, 12 whale species have been spotted in Skjálfandaflói bay. There are various reasons for the good whale watching conditions in the bay, one of which is that a deep current runs through the bay, which is 755 feet deep at the most, relatively close to shore. A new bathing site, Jarðböðin við Mývatn, was recently opened at Mývatn. Jarðböðin is a natural bathing site, where tourists can bathe in a lagoon that has many special properties. Its water contains minerals in large amounts and is alkaline and therefore good for bathing. Because of the composition of minerals, harmful bacteria and vegetation cannot survive in the water. No chlorine or other disinfectants are therefore added to it. A hot tub and a natural sauna are also on site.

Lately, winter tourism has greatly increased at Mývatn, and there is a large variety of activities to choose from. As in the summer, sightseeing trips around the area are available, including both bus trips and private trips on super jeeps. A super jeep is a jeep which has been modified by Icelandic specialists especially for Icelandic conditions. These jeeps are very well equipped to drive in all conditions and are well suited to drive in a lot of snow, where ordinary cars cannot. The jeeps have 38- to 44-inch wheels, and when driven in snow, air is let out of the wheels to make them float on the snow. Amazing vehicles. Snowmobile trips are available, both around and on the lake itself. The most popular trips are hour-long trips around Mývatn, where you can enjoy speeding along the snow cover. Longer, customised trips are also available. Guided off-track cross-country ski trips are also offered. This is a unique way to get in touch with nature and release stress. Hour-long guided horse trips are also available in the winter. The horses are shod with special winter horseshoes to ensure stability. You can also go for unique horse sleigh trips. These trips are short and fun, only 5-10 minutes. A winter garden is operated on frozen-over Mývatn. Bowling, cricket, golf, ice limbo and go-cart are among the activities in the winter garden. It is an unforgettable experience to play on the ice in very unusual circumstances. The goal is to find your inner child. Watching the Northern Lights (Aurora Borealis) is a huge part of the winter experience at Mývatn. You can join an excursion by car to hunt them down, so to speak. Mývatn is the perfect place to experience this amazing wonder of nature. A week’s stay at Mývatn will almost guarantee you a Northern Lights sighting. Northern Lights can be seen most nights, but it depends on how clear the sky is. The chances are quite good at Mývatn, however, because of its geographical location.

It is a one-of-a-kind experience to visit Mývatn and enjoy the services the area offers. Sel-Hótel Mývatn can organise your whole trip. Further information can be found at www.myvatn.is, or you can contact us by telephone at +354 464 4164 or by e-mail at myvatn@myvatn.is

Sel-Hótel Mývatn
Skútustaðir
660 Mývatn
Iceland
Tel. 464 4164
Fax. 464 4364
E-mail: myvatn@myvatn.is
Website: www.myvatn.is & www.santaworld.is