Discover South Iceland Highland
Glaciers – Volcanoes – Mountains – Waterfalls – Thermal Pools

Attractions : Gullfoss- The Golden Waterfall

Gullfoss is Iceland's most famous waterfall, and one of the natural wonders of the world. It is in the mighty glacial river Hvitá (White river), just a few kilometers from another natural wonder, the world-famous Geysir. The enormous white glacial cascade drops 32 meters into a narrow canyon which is 70 meters deep and 2.5 kilometers long. Its spectacular two-tiered cataract hangs in the air like fine drizzle, which forms a rainbow in the sunlight. In winter it has an unusual appearance when it is garbed in ice and snow. Geysir, Gullfoss and Thingvellir all together comprise the famous Golden Circle tour.

There is a footpath from the car park which runs alongside the northern edge of the falls to a viewing platform very close to the thundering waterfall. The air is filled with moisture and because of the constant humidity, the entire area around Gullfoss is wet and the surroundings are covered with lush vegetation. At a short distance from Gullfoss, there is a small idyllic birch valley called Pjaxi (Peace) in the canyon. It is possible to raft down the river from here to the south, but the currents are quite turbulent.

Earlier, Gullfoss was part of the nearby farm Brattholt owned by the farmer Tomas Tomasson and his daughter Sigridur Tomasdottir. Foreign investors were close to buying Gullfoss to harness it for electricity and charge a fee for viewing it. The farmer and his daughter took the case to the parliament, and Sigridur even threatened to drown herself in the waterfall if the deal went ahead. The government intervened and purchased the falls. Today, her memorial, a stone polygon depicting her profile in high relief, stands above the falls.

Back