Westfjords

A remote, antler-shaped peninsula in northwest Iceland with deep fjords and few people, whose highlights are Dynjandi waterfall, the Látrabjarg bird cliffs and Ísafjörður.

This region is Iceland's Westfjords (Vestfirðir), a large peninsula connected to the mainland by a narrow isthmus, including Ísafjörður, Bolungarvík, Patreksfjörður, Hólmavík and the uninhabited Hornstrandir Nature Reserve in the north; to the south it faces West Iceland across Breiðafjörður, and to the east it borders North Iceland. Highlights: Dynjandi, whose tiers of water cascade like a wedding veil; Látrabjarg, the westernmost point of Europe, whose bird cliffs let you see puffins up close in summer; the red sand beach of Rauðasandur; Ísafjörður, the regional centre, and hiking boats to Hornstrandir; the Museum of Icelandic Sorcery and Witchcraft in Hólmavík; and hot springs such as the small pools at Reykjanes. From Reykjavík to Ísafjörður it is about 6 hours by car, or about 40 minutes by domestic flight. The Westfjords are not on Ring Road 1, so they suit a dedicated 3–5 day self-drive in addition to your round-the-island trip, or you can enter by the Breiðafjörður ferry from the Snæfellsnes peninsula. Roads are mostly winding gravel with few petrol stations; in winter many mountain passes close, and tourist facilities are concentrated in the June–August opening season.

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