Thingvellir National Park

"🇮🇸 Þingvellir National Park is a must-visit and one of the big three destinations in the Golden Circle. 📍LOCATION: Þingvellir National Park Visitor Centre is 45 minutes from downtown Reykjavik and 25 minutes from Helgufoss. 🚗 PARKING: Start by parking at P1, the Visitor Centre. There are restrooms and a gift shop here. MUST-SEES: 👉 Viewing Platform at the Visitor's Centre: Overlooks the park and Iceland's largest lake, Þingvallavatn. 🌎 Almannagjá Gorge: Iceland is the only place in the world where the mid-Atlantic ridge is above sea level; at this spot, you’re viewing the edge of the North American tectonic plate. 👉 The upper end of the gorge starts near the visitor centre, so you can walk down the valley between two continents. 💦 Öxarárfoss: A stunning waterfall where the Öxará River flows over the rocky edge of the Almannagjá. 💦 The waterfall is a 25-minute walk from the visitor centre. If it's cold, windy, or rainy, shorten your walk by parking at P2. 🇮🇸 Lögberg: The Icelandic flag is positioned where the Vikings are believed to have held their Alþingi, the Icelandic parliament founded in 930 AD. 🤿 Silfra Fissure: This rift is part of the mid-Atlantic Ridge and a famous snorkelling place where you can swim between the continents. 👉 MORE details on snorkelling in the "Silfra Fissure P5 Section" 🥶 Even if you don't want to brave the chilly waters, it's still an interesting spot to visit. 🚶It's a 20-minute walk from the Visitor Center. Or 4 minutes from the P5 parking lot. Pingvellir National Park: ⏰ VISITOR CENTRE HOURS: May to October, 9 am - 6 pm November to May, 9 am - 5 pm 💰 COSTS: PARKING: There are 4 paid parking lots throughout the national park with pay machines. 🚗 1500 ISK per car. 🌳 National Park (outside): Free 👉 Indoor Park History Exhibt: Adults 1200 ISK. Kids are free. "

"5. stop - the 3rd and at the same time the last mandatory stop of the Golden Circle is the famous Thnigvellir National Park - this park is special because it lies in a rift valley between two tectonic plates (you can go diving between them), the North American and Eurasian tectonic plates - this is where the two plates come apart, creating a unique landscape with visible cracks and geological formations - in short, here you will see, in a relatively small place, a ``summary'' of the nature that you had the opportunity to experience all over Iceland - Thingvellir is also the site of one of the world's first parliaments, the AlÞingi, founded by the Icelanders in 930. - in addition to its geological and historical significance, it is also a popular location, thanks to the filming of famous scenes from the Game of Thrones series - the time spent here can vary depending on how much you want to get to know this park - we decided on individual stops and transfers between them by car - the parking lot at the Vistitor center costs ISk 750 = approx. 5.50 euros and right next to it is Almannagjá – a monumental gorge that is a visible manifestation of the gap between two tectonic plates - walk through it, you can enrich your journey with a virtual tour, by scanning the QR code, which will guide you through the history and geology of this place - don't miss the Legislator's Rock - Lögberg - a historical place where laws were presented and legal disputes were resolved and the picturesque öxarárfoss waterfall, which you can also reach by car and walk approx. from the parking lot- 10 minutes - you can spend 1 hour in the park or 3 if you want to get to know it in more detail"

"Þingvellir (Thingvellir in English) is the birthplace of Iceland. This is where Alþingi, Iceland's parliament, met from 930 until 1798. That's almost 900 years. It also means that Iceland has the oldest operating parliament in the world. Pretty impressive. The area isn't full of old structures or crumbling ruins, though. There are actually very few buildings on this historic land. Instead, Iceland turned the grounds, which sit on the Mid-Atlantic Ridge (the boundary between the tectonic plates of Eurasia and North America), into its first national park. Thingvellir National Park (established in 1928) sits on the north shore of Þingvallavatn (Iceland's largest natural lake). It's part of the Golden Circle (along with Geysir and Gullfoss) and is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. There is a Visitor Centre with a viewing platform, an exhibition about the park's history, and a cafeteria. It has information about hiking trails, as well as fishing, horseback riding, and scuba diving (in Silfra, a fissure with clear spring water). Leave yourself plenty of time to explore, especially on nice days. Note: There isn't a fee to enter the national park, but you do have to pay for parking and the exhibit in the Visitor Centre."