Surfing
Þorlákshöfn is Iceland’s best-known surf spot, with Atlantic swells rolling in along the black sand. Local surf schools offer lessons and board hire.
Surfing in Iceland
Around the hotel
The road ends here. The days don’t.
Horses on the black sand, a links course by the sea, a lava tunnel twelve minutes from breakfast and the Golden Circle within the hour. Here is what’s around us, season by season.
12 minRaufarhólshellir lava tunnel
14 minSelfoss
45 minÞingvellir
1 hrKeflavík Airport
On the doorstep
Start at the beach
The black sand runs for kilometres from the hotel, with the North Atlantic on one side and dune grass on the other. At the tip of the peninsula, the Ölfusá, Iceland’s largest river, meets the sea.
Arctic terns nest along the quiet shore in summer and salmon run up the river. From September to April, the beach is a dark viewing platform for the Northern Lights, with no town lights in the way.
Horses and golf
Ride the sand, play the links
Ride the Icelandic horse through the Ölfus countryside and out onto the black sand beach with Alhestar, a local stable in Þorlákshöfn. Short rides and longer tours, helmets and gear included, and the famous tölt along the shoreline.
Þorláksvöllur, in Þorlákshöfn, is an 18-hole links course laid out on the black sand coast. Visitors are welcome, with clubs and carts for hire, and in summer you can tee off under the Midnight Sun.
Out and about
Things to do nearby
Raufarhólshellir
Walk inside one of the longest lava tubes in Iceland, twelve minutes from the hotel. Guided tours all year, whatever the weather.
Lava fields and geothermalWaterfalls
Urriðafoss, the most powerful waterfall in Iceland by volume, is 30 minutes away and often empty. Seljalandsfoss and Skógafoss are a day trip east.
South Iceland waterfallsThe coast road
Drive west along the coast past Strandarkirkja and the lava fields to Krýsuvík and the Reykjanes peninsula.
A day on ReykjanesKayaking
Paddle the canals, lagoons and skerries off Stokkseyri, where seals and seabirds keep you company. From October to March there are evening tours under the Northern Lights.
Kayak Tours StokkseyriZipline
Fly a kilometre over the Svartagljúfur gorge and its waterfalls above Hveragerði, on the longest zipline in Iceland. Fun for the whole family.
Mega Zipline IcelandBuggy tours
Drive a buggy through the geothermal valleys of Hveradalir on Hellisheiði, over lava fields and dirt tracks on the way to Reykjavík.
Buggy toursRiver rafting
Raft the glacial Hvítá river in the heart of the Golden Circle, a good pairing with Geysir and Gullfoss on the same day.
The Golden CircleThe Ghost Centre
Icelandic ghost stories told in a dark old factory in Stokkseyri. A good plan for a rainy afternoon, before dinner by the sea.
A day in Stokkseyri
Birdlife
Terns on the shore, swans in the wetlands
In early summer the sky over the peninsula fills with Arctic terns, back from the far south to nest on the quiet shore. The Ölfusá estuary and its wetlands are rich feeding grounds all year, with waterfowl gathering there in winter and grey herons, whimbrels and black-tailed godwits along the river.
Across the river lies the Flói Bird Reserve, five square kilometres of ponds and marshes on the old Þjórsá lava. Around 70 species have been recorded there and 25 breed regularly, among them red-throated divers, whooper swans, greylag geese, dunlins and red-necked phalaropes. A wheelchair-accessible bird hide at Stakkholt is open from spring to autumn, and May and June are the best months.
Walks and hikes
From a beach stroll to a mountain top
The easiest walk starts at the door: along the black sand and the dune grass, with the ocean on one side and the river mouth ahead. Further afield, steaming valleys, mossy lava and a settler’s mountain are all within half an hour.
Along the black sand beachFrom the door
Flói Bird Reserve pathsAcross the river
Eyrarbakki and Stokkseyri shoreAcross the river
Ingólfsfjall, 551 mBy Selfoss
Reykjadalur hot river25 min
Hengill trailsFrom Hveragerði
Please keep to marked paths, especially from May to July when birds are nesting on the ground.
The villages
Eyrarbakki, Stokkseyri, and Selfoss
Across the river, the old fishing villages of Eyrarbakki and Stokkseyri keep their colourful timber houses, harbour walls and slow pace. Stop for langoustine by the sea, walk the shoreline and visit the museums of village life.
Selfoss, fourteen minutes away, has a new town centre of cafés and small shops, and Hveragerði, the greenhouse town, sits at the foot of the geothermal hills.
Further afield
Lagoons and the Golden Circle
Black Sand Hotel is where the Golden Circle begins. Þingvellir is 45 minutes away, with Geysir and Gullfoss beyond. On the way, stop at the Kerið crater or one of the geothermal lagoons.
The new Laugarás Lagoon, opened in autumn 2025 by the Hvítá river, has two levels of hot pools, a sauna and a restaurant. Laugarvatn Fontana and the Secret Lagoon are close by.
Raufarhólshellir12 min
Knarrarósviti lighthouse14 min
Selfoss14 min
Hveragerði20 min
Strandarkirkja22 min
Reykjadalur25 min
Kerið crater27 min
Urriðafoss30 min
Þingvellir45 min
Laugarvatn Fontana47 min
Laugarás Lagoon48 min
Secret Lagoon52 min
Through the year
What’s on, season by season
Sep to Apr
Northern Lights
Long, dark nights over the beach. Dress warmly, step outside and look up.
May to Aug
Light nights
Midnight Sun on the golf course, terns on the shore, lupines in the fields and horses out on the sand.
All year
Whatever the weather
The lava tunnel, the hot lagoons, the villages and dinner at ÓMUR with the waves outside the window.