Skip to content

10 best locations to fly drones in Iceland

  • by
Fly Drones in Iceland

Without any speck of doubt, One of the best experiences on the face of the Earth to fly drones in Iceland. Idyllic locations and the probability of exploring sensational places that have never been seen by anyone else cater to one’s sense of aesthetics.

You can come across tons of great locations to fly drones in Iceland. It is needless to say that most of the famous ones are slightly overcrowded but if you get there at the right time, you can have an opportunity to capture stunning aerial imagery using your drone. Drone pilots get 24 hours of daylight during summers for their drone flight. So, you will never run short of time for your aerial adventures in the summers. The lighting conditions are the loveliest early on in the day and late in the evening when the locations are not crowded by tourists.

We have been traveling around Iceland for the past three decades and have had the experience to fly drones in Iceland for the past few years. This puts us in an appropriate position to share with you some of the best locations for drone flight and aerial imagery. In this post, we are also going to discuss with you some of the important aspects that you need to take into account while flying your drone in Iceland.

Let’s get going and start discussing the 10 best locations in Iceland to fly your drone in.

Fly drones in Iceland: Kvernufoss

Just beside Skogar is Kvernufoss, a breathtaking waterfall, situated on the east end of the Skogar Museum. The waterfall is surrounded by a magnificent canyon that serves as a wonderful entrance to the waterfall. The canyon is open at the outset but as one approaches the waterfall, it narrows down which needs to be taken into account while flying a drone. During summer, you also need to be careful about the birds in the surroundings especially Fulmar which are of curious nature and can quite easily come in a drone’s path. Despite the space being narrower beside the waterfall, you can get some incredible footage by even going behind the waterfall.

Fly Drones at Nauthúsagil

Situated in Southern Iceland, Nauthúsagil is a scenic venue that offers great opportunities for flying your drone and capturing stunning aerial imagery. However, it is a slightly tricky place when it comes to flying your drone. The ravine is slightly on the narrower side so one needs to have impeccable flying prowess and concentrate hard to fly in the area. But if you succeed, you are guaranteed to get astounding aerial images and video footages with superb moss and tree-clad cliffs, tiny rivers and waterfalls. The magnificent waterfall above the main ravine is also a nice spot to cover with your camera drone.

Fly Drones in Iceland
Fly Drones in Iceland

Brúarfoss

Part of the river Bruara, Brúarfoss is a lovely waterfall that offers brilliant opportunities to capture stunning imagery with your drone. Despite being small in size, the way the water makes its way while boasting amazing colors will blow your mind away. The waterfall is surrounded by low trees with plenty of open space. En-route to the waterfall, you can also stop by some idyllic locations for drone adventures. There are not many obstacles in the location except for the bridge just below the waterfall along with the crowds of people looking at the waterfall. We would suggest that drones should be flown early in the morning or late in the evening during summers in Brúarfoss.

Þórsmörk

If you are one of the drone enthusiasts who would do anything to play around with drones, then Þórsmörk valley is the right spot. Offering unlimited possibilities for drone flight, this valley has tons of attractions so you can stay there for a few days and explore the area. You will find rivers, ravines, trees, mountains, moss and glaciers. You can do well to get a trip reserved to the Þórsmörk valley with a travel guide. This will save you plenty of precious time and get the most out of it as the guide will take you to kind of places you are looking for. Being a far flung area, you won’t come across lots of people around so you can always find a quiet place to fly your drone in. It can be both easy and complicated at the same time to fly drones in Iceland since you need to be vigilant and focused while flying your drone and ensure that the visibility is good and reception is up to mark. Also do not forget to keep additional batteries for extra flight duration. Birds can prove to be a bit of a hurdle as there can be plenty of Fulmar nesting in the area around the ravine. So it is crucial that you fly your drone in a circumspect manner without disrupting the habitat.

Fly Drones in Iceland
Fly Drones in Iceland

Landmannalaugar

Landmannalaugar is another great location for flying a drone. It is a massive location with numerous volcanoes and glaciers in the vicinity. The place it crowded with people during summers but as we said that the place is huge so you can roam around and find a quiet niche to fly your drone and explore the surroundings. As with other places, it is prudent to be accompanied by a local or a travel guide to help you get to the kind of places you are looking to cover.

Fly Drones in Iceland
Fly Drones in Iceland

Eldhraun lava field

Eldhraun lava field differs from the rest of the locations included in this list in numerous ways. The flat landscape offers distinct patterns and green moss there is simply exquisite. The place is not as crowded as some of the other places and you can easily find a nice place to fly your drone in. The lava field can offer interesting patterns owing to varying lighting conditions and hence this offers plenty of meat for your aerial imagery. When planning your itinerary to Eldhraun lava field, you should ensure that you do not park your vehicle on the main road and go down instead to Road 204 and fly from there. If we talk about places where you can fly drones in Iceland, this one of those places.

Fly Drones in Iceland
Fly Drones in Iceland

Vík

Regarded as one of the most popular tourist spots to fly drones in Iceland, Vík is crowded with people all the year round. The place is absolutely exquisite and you will definitely come across lots of spots in the surroundings offering great opportunities for flying your drone in. The region to the east of Vík between the village and Kerlingardalur valley is especially breathtaking. The area is resplendent with lovely cliffs and a black sand beach with rivers and waterfalls. Again birds could be a bit of a hurdle during flights in this region as well. In addition to Fulmars, you are going to come across Oystercatchers and Sterna that are quite belligerent in nature and always ready to protect the habitat. So, it is crucial that you do not make them angry or disrupt their life style. Other than that, if you want to fly drones in Iceland, it is nothing but a piece a cake.

Fly Drones in Iceland
Fly Drones in Iceland

Sólheimajökull glacier

Drones and glaciers just blend incredibly together. Fly your drone over a glacier and you are guaranteed to capture some of the most scintillating video footage you will ever get to record. A pronounced variation in color, patterns, light, crevices and formation can be observed in glaciers with the passage of time. During the winters, a glacier is typically blue in color so you are likely to record the majestic blue colored iceberg in those days of the year. The patterns on the surface and crevices can be shot in the summers. Since the space is wide and open, so it is relatively easy to fly drones in Iceland. There is hardly a risk of birds barging into your machine. The Sólheimajökull glacier is quite crowded during the day so we would recommend you to get out there early in the morning or late in the evening. People tend to get quite frustrated if they see a drone hovering over their heads as they walk past the different sections of the glacier. So it is crucial that you respect their safety and privacy concerns.

Snæfellsnes peninsula

Located in the Western half of Iceland, the Snæfellsnes peninsula offers a mixed bag: idyllic views, rustic villages, serene beaches, mind-blowing snow-clad cliffs, and plenty more. You can drive around the peninsula to explore different places to fly your drone in Iceland. It should be kept in mind the drone flights are prohibited at all National Parks in Iceland at the moment including Snæfellsnes National Park which is situated in the Western Snæfellsnes peninsula. Encompassing an area of 170 square kilometers, the ultimate aim of the national park is to protect its natural habit from biodegradation.

Fly Drones in Iceland
Fly Drones in Iceland

Fly Drones at Westfjords

This is probably one of the best locations to fly drones in Iceland since you will come across charismatic landscapes, stunning waterfalls, astounding beaches, small villages, mighty mountains, and much more. The Westfjords are regarded as far-flung areas and only one in ten of the tourists are able to make their way to these hinterlands. This feature renders this location ideal for flying a drone except for the fact that drone flying is not allowed at Dynjandi waterfall. Also, pilots need to take care of the wildlife residents of the area such as Latrabjarg bird cliffs since these birds seem to get troubled by the noise created by aircraft especially when they are in the middle of mating season or planning about their nests or feeding their young ones.

Fly Drones in Iceland
Fly Drones in Iceland