Private Cave Tour & Food Tasting
A private guided tour through historic cave dwellings in the heart of the Golden Circle. Your guide shares firsthand accounts and archival photographs of the families who lived here into the 20th century. The visit closes with a tasting of traditional Icelandic foods including smoked lamb, dried fish, and Brennivín.
Overview
The Dwellings
This is not a replica or a reconstruction. These are real cave dwellings carved into a hillside in the Golden Circle, where Icelandic families raised children, stored food, and endured winters less than a century ago. Most travelers drive past this stretch of road between the major stops without knowing it exists. The caves sit quietly off the route, unmarked by the kind of signage that draws bus traffic.
The Experience
Your group enters the caves alone with a local guide who grew up hearing the stories of the families who lived here. Inside, you walk through the rooms as the guide places archival photographs of the original inhabitants alongside the walls they once slept against. After the tour, you sit down for a tasting of traditional Icelandic food: rúgbrauð flatbread with smoked lamb, harðfiskur with butter, fermented shark, and a shot of Brennivín. By the time you leave, you will have touched a part of Icelandic domestic history that most visitors to the Golden Circle never encounter.
The Local Difference
The guides here are not hired interpreters reading from a script. They carry oral history passed down from the families connected to these caves. Because the experience is private, the pacing follows your curiosity rather than a fixed schedule. This is for travelers who want a quiet, grounded contrast to the geological scale of the Golden Circle, not for those looking for an adrenaline activity or a long day out.
Included
- Private cave access for your group
- Local guide with oral history knowledge
- Traditional Icelandic food and drink tasting
- Parking
What to bring
- Comfortable outdoor clothing
- Light jacket (caves are cool in summer)
Meeting Point
Laugavatn Golden Circle
Meet on Location
The meeting point is 30 minutes from Þingvellir on the main Golden Circle route. Specific location is given upon booking. Please arrive 15 minutes early.
Reviews(201)
With no other affordable housing the young couple made these caves their home. The new owner tells the story of the families that turned rock into home, planted food, and survived Icelandic winters. For family, for community, and for the continued endeavors of teaching people from all walks and ways about Icelandic history, these caves stand as an emblem of strength, survival, and simplicity.
Amazing tour and such an interesting location. The guides were both informative and entertaining. The scenery was spectacular. Short zip off the main road to other golden circle attractions. Highly recommend you add this to your day!
Very cool place. I really understood more about Icelandic people. The guide was nice, told interesting facts and stories and really seems to like what he is doing. Well worth a visit!
A great experience! 2 very friendly brothers run the tour. We showed on a whim and they fit us in right away. Our guide was very knowledgeable and personable, and shared interesting stories about hidden people, the caves’ former inhabitants, the rock formations and design of the caves, and more! Highly recommended.
My friend and I spontaneously dropped by to see the cave. Wonderful Alexander gave us a super friendly tour with many details about the life of the original cave inhabitants.
Just went there and had an amazing time seeing a part of the histoty of the beautiful country we call Iceland. The guides were amazing and i would definitely come again!