Packing for Hvammsvik: swimsuit, towel and shoes for the rocks
What goes in your bag for Hvammsvik depends on the ticket you hold. Some packages include a towel and water shoes, while others give you entry and nothing more. This guide covers what makes a soak on the Hvalfjörður shore comfortable, and which things you can simply rent when you get there.
Start with what your ticket covers
What you pack depends on how you get in. The springs' own admission package comes in two tiers. Classic is entry to the pools and facilities, while Comfort throws in a towel to borrow and shoes for the sea, with a drink at the bar on top.
The ICELANDIA bus from BSÍ includes entry and the changing rooms with their showers. Its listing leaves towel and swimsuit rental to you, at your own cost on site. Nicetravel's Golden Circle day lets you pick the admission type when you book.
So read the line on your booking before you pack. Our Classic or Comfort guide sets the two tiers side by side, and the price guide adds up the extras for each way of getting there.
The swimsuit and the towel
Bring your own swimsuit. You can rent one at the springs, but it costs extra on every ticket we compare, and a suit from home fits better. Pack it at the top of the bag so it comes out first in the changing room.
The towel is the item people most often pay for twice. With a Classic ticket or a seat on the ICELANDIA bus, no towel comes with the entry, so pack one from home or rent it on site. A thin travel towel dries fast and packs small.
Add a plastic bag or a dry bag for the wet swimsuit and towel. The ride back to Reykjavík takes about an hour, and nobody wants a damp backpack on their lap for all of it.
Shoes for the rocks and the sea dip
Comfort includes wading shoes, and that choice tells you something. The pools sit right on the Hvalfjörður shoreline, and you can step from them into the fjord for a cold dip over a rocky bottom.
Light water shoes or pool sandals make that walk into the sea far kinder on bare feet. They also help on the paths between the pools when the ground is cold in winter.
If you hold Classic or come by bus, bring a pair from home or rent them on site. Our guide to the pools and the tide explains why some pools disappear at high tide and come back as the water drops.
A hat, and warm layers for the minutes out of the water
The water is warm, but the air on a winter soak often is not. A woolly hat keeps your head warm while the rest of you sits in the pool, and it costs nothing to pack.
The cold minutes are the walks between the pools and the way back to the changing room. A warm layer you can pull on fast over damp skin matters more than anything fashionable for the bus or car.
Wind off the fjord makes a cool day feel colder, and rain can turn up in any month. Our best time guide covers what the weather does at the pools through the year.
Showers and toiletries, plus your valuables
Showering without a swimsuit before you get into the water is the house rule in Icelandic pools. Reviewers mention private shower stalls in the Hvammsvik changing rooms, which makes the custom easier for anyone shy.
The changing rooms stock shampoo and conditioner from the springs' own range, along with body wash, so you can leave the bottles at home. Bring your own only if you use something specific, and add a hair tie plus a comb.
A safety box takes valuables, and that is the place for a wallet and car keys. Leave rings and necklaces at the hotel, since small things are almost impossible to find again in the sea.
Paying at the bar and the bistro
Drinks at the swim-up bar go on a wristband, so you do not carry anything into the water. Bring a way to pay for the wristband and for a meal at Stormur Bistro. Its seafood and fish soup get the most praise from reviewers.
Food is not part of the bus fare or the entry ticket. On the Golden Circle day, lunch near Strokkur is on your own as well, and our Golden Circle guide lists every stop on the way to the pools.
A waterproof phone pouch on a lanyard is handy if you want a picture of the pools against the mountains. It lets you hold the phone at the edge of the water without much risk.
The bus that leaves you to pack light
ICELANDIA's trip from BSÍ covers the round trip and the entry with changing rooms and showers. Towel and swimsuit are for rent on site, so a small bag is enough.
What to leave behind, and who can come
The GetYourGuide entry ticket lists a few things that are not allowed. Smoking is out. Party groups and speakers are not allowed either, so the pools stay calm and the only sound is the water.
Hvammsvík admits guests from age 10, and anyone under 18 needs an adult with them. The ICELANDIA bus follows the same rule, so younger children need another plan for that day.
For a half day at the springs, this list covers almost everything:
- Swimsuit (or rent one on site)
- Towel, unless you booked Comfort
- Water shoes for the rocky sea bottom, unless you booked Comfort
- Woolly hat for a cold day
- Warm layer that goes on fast over damp skin
- Dry bag or plastic bag for wet things
- Waterproof phone pouch
- A way to pay at the bar and the bistro
All of it fits in a small backpack. Driving yourself? Our bus or self-drive guide covers the road, and the private car guide explains what the two private listings add to the entry.