Visiting some of the geothermal waters in Iceland is a must-do experience on any trip to this incredible country. Just a few years ago, the Blue Lagoon was the main destination for this and nearly all tourists to the country included the Blue Lagoon on their itineraries. But over the past few years, more geothermal bathing experiences have been popping up across the country, ranging from truly wild and basic, to luxurious and indulgent.
The Sky Lagoon falls into the latter, with the experience offering a unique take on Iceland’s popular tradition of geothermal bathing. Having been to Blue Lagoon more than eight times (!), on my most recent trip to Iceland in November 2024, I decided it was time to branch out. Plus it makes for an easy day trip from the centre of Reykjavík. And so here is my Sky Lagoon Iceland Review and my honest guide on the experience! Read on to find out more.
Sky Lagoon Iceland Review: Essential info
Quick facts
- The geothermal waters, fed by hot springs deep underground, stay at a toasty 38-40°C (100-104°F)
- The depths vary through the lagoon, but the deepest part is 120cm so you can walk throughout
- You must be at least 12 years old to enter, and ages 12-14 must be supervised by an adult
- All facilities are wheelchair accessible, including entry into the lagoon
How to Get There
The Sky Lagoon near to Reykjavík in a suburb called Kópavogur. It takes around 15 minutes to drive there from the city centre, or about 45 minutes from Keflavík Airport.
The two main ways to arrive are by organised shuttle bus, or by using your own vehicle. You can also take the public buses but a change is required. If you are renting a car in Iceland, make sure to check out my guide here.
When buying a entrance ticket, whether directly through their website or via GetYourGuide, you’ll have the option of adding a transfer (shuttle bus), for a nominal extra cost.
I was in Iceland alone on this occasion and so I didn’t have a hire car. I added the transfer on, which meant a pick up in town at once of the designated bus stops. From here, I was taken to BSÍ bus station where buses to Sky Lagoon were waiting. Super easy!
You can even walk to Sky Lagoon, which I briefly considered last November, until realising I would probably freeze on the walk. Their website has a guide to the walking route here.
Cost
There are two main packages to pick from: Sér and Saman.
- The first, Sér, literally translates as ‘private’. This package includes a private changing room.
- The Sér package is ISK 15,990 (approx £91/ USD 115)
- The second, Saman, translates to ‘together’ This package includes access to the public changing facilities.
- The Saman package is ISK 12,990 (approx £74/USD 93)
There are no other differences between the packages – both include the signature ‘Skjól’ ritual, and neither include drinks or food.
If you add return transfers onto your booking, the prices increased as follows:
- Sér: ISK 16,189 (approx £92/USD 116) and Saman: ISK 20,189 (approx £120/USD 152)
There are also packages if you’re visiting as a two.
- For the Sér option, this is ISK 41,480 (£235/USD 297)and includes two Sér passes, one drink per guest and one Sky Platter from Smakk Bar.
- For the Saman option, this is ISK 35,480 (£201/USD 254) and includes two Saman passes, one drink per guest and one Sky Platter from Smakk Bar.
I opted for the Saman package with the transfer, which suited my needs perfectly.
Changing Facilities
As you can see above, the main difference in price points are the changing rooms. I opted for the Saman package, and therefore had access to the communal changing rooms.
The first thing I noticed on entry is that everyone has to remove their shoes and go in barefoot/in socks. This meant that the changing room floor was super clean and no mud and dirt was brought in. I have no problem with public changing rooms, and found the space to be warm, roomy and very well maintained.
The lockers were easy to use and I knew I could come back at any point to access the locker if I wanted with my wrist band. If you forget your locker number, they have a machine where you can scan your wristband and it will tell you.
I didn’t use things like the hairdryers etc as I chose to keep my hair dry (under my woolie hat!).
Should you need luggage storage, the Sky Lagoon offers convenient luggage storage that is separate from the changing rooms. Handy!
Best Time to Visit
The great thing about an Icelandic geothermal spa experience, is that it’s wonderful year round. Iceland never really gets that warm, even on its longest summer days, and therefore bathing in the toasty waters is always an appealing option on a trip to Iceland.
In terms of timing, I would of course recommend checking the weather and try to go when the skies are clear and bright. I found the eruption of colours at sunset to be just magical, and it wouldn’t have been the same had it been cloudy.
And then yes, that being said, I decided to go for sunset. I’d seen videos of Sky Lagoon at sunset, and thought it looked just magical. It also meant I got the full spectrum of experiences, as when I arrived, the sun was lowering, but it was still blue skies. After I finished the ‘Skjól Ritual’, the sun was dipping so I was able to enjoy the full sunset. And then I even got to experience the Sky Lagoon in the dark!
It’s worth being aware that if the weather looks really bad for your visit, you can change your booking time up to 24 hours beforehand. You need to email [email protected].
Opening Hours
The Sky Lagoon and Keimur Cafe are open for the following timings, thoughout the year:
November 1 – May 31
- Monday – Friday: 11 a.m. – 10 p.m.
- Saturday – Sunday: 10 a.m. – 10 p.m.
June 1 – June 30
- Every Day: 9 a.m. – 11 p.m.
July 1 – August 31
- Every Day: 8 a.m. – 11 p.m.
September 1 – September 30
- Every Day: 9 a.m. – 11 p.m.
October 1 – October 31
- Every Day: 10 a.m. – 11 p.m.
It’s worth nothing that the Lagoon area closes 30 minutes before, and the Skjól Ritual and Gelmir Bar close an hour before.
How long do I need at the Sky Lagoon?
I went alone after 1.5-2 hours, I was ready to get out. But had I been there with my partner or friends, I think I could have easily spent upwards of 3 hours soaking and drinking in the waters.
I would also point out that in November, it was -10°C or so, and I could barely keep my hand out of the water where I was holding my phone. It would have been the same if I was holding a drink – it was literally too cold to have any body part out. My face was also freezing, so I found a nook near The Turf House to relax in. I couldn’t lean over the infinity pool edge for too long as I was just too cold and exposed.
What to Bring
You of course need swimwear, and then I strongly recommend a woolie hat or similar. As I just mentioned above, my head and ears would have been even colder without having them covered. There are also little lockers in the Ritual area to store your phone and other things, so you don’t damage them.
Otherwise, they provide towels, as well as shampoo, conditioner and body wash. So you don’t need any of these things.
If you forget swimwear though, don’t panic. You can buy or rent one at the lagoon.
You can take your phone into the water, but note it’s really difficult to find anywhere to put your phone down. There aren’t many flat or dry surfaces. In the end, I found a nook near the Turf House so I could put my phone down and warm up my hands!
You can buy plastic phone covers with the neck strap at the swim-up bar, so that’s handy. Although I don’t think phones should be submerged in that toasty water for long.
Sky Lagoon Iceland Review: The Experience
I was really excited to experience the Sky Lagoon’s Skjól Ritual, having done the Blue Lagoon Ritual (within the ultra-luxurious Retreat Spa) several times. Turns out, they’re fairly different. I really enjoyed Sky Lagoon’s full ritual, but some of the steps are so brief, I don’t know if they should count as a step! Either way, the whole experience was lovely and I enjoyed it a lot.
As mentioned, both entry passes include the ritual, but important to know is that you can only do the ritual once whilst at the Sky Lagoon. You’re given a rubber wrist band that you pass over as you enter the Turf House (so they know!).
Skjól – the Seven-Step Ritual
- Step 1: Lagoon (Laug)
Well, the first step of the ritual is the bathing in the mineral-rich geothermal waters for the Sky Lagoon. Not only is this extremely relaxing, but it also serves to open your pores and soften your skin.
- Step 2: The cold plunge (Kuldi)
Brrr! Ok, this one you can do as many times as you wish (or for as long as you can handle!). Just at the entrance to the Turf House is the cold plunge pool. You have to climb a handful of stairs, and then walk over the wooding decking where you can descend into the cold pool (a chilly 5°C (41°F).
- Step 3: Sauna (Ylur)
The first step inside the Iceland Turf House is the sauna. There’s two sides to enjoy, and huge panoramic windows. As mentioned, the weather was gorgeous on the day I went and the views extended way into the distance. Stunning!
Far in the distance, you can see Bessastaðir, which is the official residence of the President of Iceland. You can also see the outline of Mount Keilir– a cone-shaped volcano.
- Step 4: Cold mist (Súld)
This was one of the steps that I felt shouldn’t really be a step. I didn’t find it did too much for me, and most people passed through it quite quickly. But essentially, it’s a cold shower of icy fog.
- Step 5: Body Scrub (Mýkt)
The next step is to go into this large, open room where you’ve given a bowl filled with salt and local herbs. The idea is to exfoliate your skin and scrub away all the dead skin. Unlike at the Blue Lagoon, you don’t sit and let the minerals harden on your skin. I actually found this room quite chilly after a minutes.
- Step 6: Steam room (Gufa)
After this, you head into a steam room where you can barely see a thing. I don’t enjoy steam rooms that much anyway, so I didn’t last in here all that long, maybe 10 mins or so.
- Step 7: Krækiber elixir (Saft)
Again, another step that shouldn’t really be a step. As you exit the steam room and turn the corner, a staff member is waiting with a small refreshing drink made from local berries. It was absolutely delicious and he let me take two :).
Then there are some open showers so you can wash off the salt scrub and sweat, before heading back into the lagoon again. You can’t go back and do any of the steps again, so you must enjoy and appreciate each one in order.
Once you finish in the lagoon, there are private showers at the Blue Lagoon so you can have a full shower, even if you have the Saman pass with public changing rooms.
The Swim-Up Bar
The swim-up bar was extremely popular whilst I was at Sky Lagoon. Called the Gelmir Bar, it offers a variety of alcoholic and non-alcohol drinks to enjoy in the lagoon.
You just order your selection and pay with your wristband, which was connected to your card when you checked in on arrival.
Well, the first thing to know is that the drinks are expensive. I chose not to have one, but the menu during my visit is below. There was also a selection of Icelandic bars, as well as wines and champagnes.
Note: guests are limited to three alcoholic drinks during their visit.
I actually found I got dehydrated in there quite quickly, due to the toasty waters. So I ended up having quite a lot of the icy cold water from the drinking fountains around the lagoon.
After the Sky Lagoon
When I stepped out of the changing rooms and put my shoes back on, I realised I was ravenous! Bathing really does that to you!
There are two options. The first is a restaurant called Smakk Bar, which is more sit down with table service with full sized dishes and platters inspired by traditional Icelandic cuisine. Keimur is more of a coffee shop with its own area and it serves up delicious toasties, soup and hot drinks.
I opted for a ham and cheese toastie, plus a mocha from Keimur. It was absolutely delicious and just what I needed!
Finally, there is a small gift shop between the two restaurants which had a stunning variety of lovely bits and bobs for sale.
The Sky Lagoon vs the Blue Lagoon
- My honest opinion is that Sky Lagoon is a highly enjoyable experience, and one I really enjoyed. It’s on par with the Blue Lagoon experience, but I would say that if the weather is bad, then the Blue Lagoon is always vivid and magical, even in the rain. Sky Lagoon looks significantly better in clear skies.
- Blue Lagoon also has more of a wow factor on arrival, with the dazzling blue waters greeting you alongside the road as you drive in. You really feel like you’re bathing in the middle of the volcanic landscape at the Blue Lagoon.
- Another add-on at the Blue Lagoon is the in-water massages, so you can really rest and relax. Sky Lagoon doesn’t have any massages or similar to add-on. Blue Lagoon’s packages also include flip flops and gowns too, whereas Sky Lagoon doesn’t, although you don’t really need them.
- The water at Sky Lagoon won’t damage your hair, but the milky blue water at Blue Lagoon is silica-rich. There are signs everywhere saying do not dip your head under the water.
- Sky Lagoon’s floor had little lights in it etc and tiles at the edge, so it felt a little more ‘constructed’ and swimming-pool like. Whereas the Blue Lagoon’s walls are completely different to touch and a very unique experience.
- It must also be said that Sky Lagoon’s team did maintain the spaces immaculately, and everything operated very smoothly.
- Sky Lagoon is also more of an adults-only experience, as kids must be 12 and above. Blue Lagoon is open to children above the age of 2, but I have to say, I’ve never seen many kids at Blue Lagoon ever. More groups of friends and couples.
- Entry prices are similar for both, although Blue Lagoon offers more upgrade opportunities.
- Blue Lagoon can be experienced on a layover at the airport, but Sky Lagoon would possibly be too far. Unless your layover is really long.
It’s hard to pick between the two, so I budget and timing allows, I’d do both. I mean, who doesn’t want to spend two afternoons bathing in warm geothermal lagoons, after days of exploring Iceland’s rugged landscape? If I had to pick one? I’d stick to the Blue Lagoon!
If I were to splash out for a bucket-list experience, then I’d opt for the opulent Retreat Spa day visit at The Retreat at Blue Lagoon.
Sky Lagoon Iceland Review
So that wraps up my review and guide of the Sky Lagoon in Iceland. I do hope it proves helpful and gives a bit more insight for your decision on which lagoon experience to prioritise!
Feel free to ask any further questions below if there’s something I haven’t covered. I’d love if you shared this post on any of the below links!
If you are planning a longer trip around Iceland, then make sure to check out my guides to this stunning country here.
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Disclaimer: My visit to Sky Lagoon Iceland was paid for by myself, and there was no involvement from the tourist board or the lagoon. My reviews are entirely honest and my own.
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