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Road F208 (Iceland): Off road wonders + tips

Last updated on March 14, 2023 by Claire / this article contains affiliate links (Info)

One of the most scenic drives in the world is the 4WD Road F208 Iceland through the Central Highlands.
The variety of landscapes and colors is just mind-blowing.
At every turn you just gasp for air because you discover another stunning valley.
Below is my guide to show you how beautiful it is.

Before all my photos + tips, here are my favorites to plan your Summer Iceland trip:

car rental

My favorite platform to rent a car in Iceland: Discovercars

hotel

My favorite places to stay around Iceland:

  • Reykjavik, the capital, of course:  Reykjavik Konsulat Hotel 
  • Vik to explore the South Coast: Hotel Vik i Myrdal
  • Lake Myvatn, in the north: Hotel Laxa
  • Borgarnes, between Snaefellsnes and Silver Circle: Hotel Hamar
bus

My favorite bus tour from Reykjavik (Summer): Amazing Snaefellsnes Peninsula

boat

My favorite activity around Iceland (Summer): Whale watching from Husavik (best) or Reykjavik or Akureyri

tips key

My favorite platform to book travel-packages in Iceland: guidetoiceland

Travel Guide Iceland : Plan your drive on F208 Iceland through the Central Highlands

Table Of Contents
About road F208 though the Central Highlands
PLANNING TIPS - Road F208 Iceland
Holaskjol: a waterfall along F208
Iceland F208 Road - Southern part
Detour to Landmannalaugar
Lake Frostastadavatn along F208
Northern portion of Road F208 Iceland
Alternative end - F225 Landmannaleid

// In this article, no ads, no sponsored posts. Just some affiliate links.
// If you purchase through them, I get a commission at no extra cost to you (Disclosure).


About road F208 though the Central Highlands

F208, also called Fjallabaksleid Nyrdi, is a 4WD access only road that leaves the Ring Road along the South Coast and drives through the Central highlands reaching the famous Landmannalaugar with its painted mountains and hot springs. From the North it starts at the powerplant and goes through a drier area before reaching Landmannalaugar.

road F208 though the Central Highlands

There is only 20 km of that road that I have not driven.
I discovered the northern part with my photography tour.
After that, as I was alone without any experience in 4W driving, I hired a driver and its superjeep. I was quite expensive but it was well worth the money. Which such a scenic road, I was glad to be able to stop whenever I wanted!

F028 - favorite landscape

F208 Road - my favorite landscape

If you can drive 4WD and cross rivers, this is a fantastic addition to your Iceland road  trip.


PLANNING TIPS - Road F208 Iceland

Road F208 Iceland - location and condition

  • From Road 1, F208 heads North 50km East from the town of Vik
  • From Road 26, F208 heads South East of the Power Plant
  • This is an F-road so it is only open in Summer - opening dates vary based on conditions - check out road F208 condition on Vegagerdin (zoom on the region)

Check out my Travel guide to plan your Iceland itinerary:

Plan your dream road trip in Iceland

Iceland road trip travel guide cover small
  • 8 maps to plan your itinerary easily
  • 100+ pre-selected locations 
  • Tips to make the most of your time
  • 130+ original photos to get inspired
  • GPS coordinates for easy navigation

LEARN MORE

Driving the Icelandic F208 Road

  • Difficulty: From the South all the way to lake Frostadavatn, in September we did not have big river crossings. However this is very dependent on the weather and glacier conditions. The South part of F208 can be very wet.
  • Moreover this is not the most driven road to Landmannalaugar so not many people to help if you are stuck. You should not venture by yourself without 4WD driving experience. To give you an idea there is a video on youtube about the Southern part of F208.
  • If you turn on F224 to reach Landmannalaugar, there are big 'ponds' to cross
  • The Northern part of F208 does not require any river crossingq
  • The road is bumpy but well maintained and clearly marked
  • Regulations forbid you to drive this road with a vehicle that is not 4WD

Need to rent a car in Iceland?

directly see the best deals on my favorite platform

How to rent a car in Iceland 2

or see my 36 practical tips to choose the best car to rent for the roads in Iceland (Summer or Winter) and find the best deals

+ read tips
See available cars + Deals

Superjeep option

If you don't have any 4WD experience like me, splurge for a driver in a Superjeep - it is so worth it - Check out this tour similar to mine

Superjeep on F208

Superjeep on F208


Holaskjol: a waterfall along F208

The beginning for F208 as we turn North from the Ring Road is nice but without anything spectacular. The first stop was at Holaskjol where I went for a short walk and discovered one of my favorite waterfalls in Iceland. I dedicated a full post to Holaskjol if you want more info and planning tips.

F208 waterfall of Holaskjol

F208 waterfall of Holaskjol


Iceland F208 Road - Southern part

Right after Holaskjol we started admiring incredible scenery, and the landscapes became more irregular. At each turn and each valley, I was amazed and thought it could not get prettier than that, but it always did! I especially loved the shapes with dark and green patches. the contrasts were mesmerizing.

The only problem is that it was beautiful in every direction and it was difficult to take it all in!

Road F208 scenery photo 1
Road F208 scenery photo 2

Below is a picture of my favorite point of view on road F208; I asked the driver to stop here for a while and took the time to admire each details of the landscape. The mountains we see here reach 1000 meter to 1100 meter height.

I am not sure exactly where it is on F208 but I think the loop of the road down is at 63.978091, -18.893792; 

It is one of my favorite off the beaten path locations in Iceland. And it even made it to the top of my list of best landscapes in Iceland.

Road F208 scenery central highlands photo 6

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Detour to Landmannalaugar

A little while later we turn into F224 to reach the famous Landmannalaugar and its famous colorful mountains. I will be dedicating a post to this location with many more pictures

Road F208 scenery photo 5
F224 to Landmannalaugar

F224 takes you to Landmannalaugar


Lake Frostastadavatn along F208

The lake of Frotastadavatn was my next stop along F208.
On one side I really enjoyed seeing the flow of lava recovered by moss entering and stopping the lake. It is one of those place where I was able to really imagine the big flow of lava and realise the power of it. The rest was also stunning with patches of red, green and black.

Lake Frostastadavatn along F208

Lake Frostastadavatn along F208

Froststadavatn, F208 central highlands, Iceland photo 2
Froststadavatn, F208 central highlands, Iceland photo 3
View form Froststadavatn, F208 central highlands, Iceland

This smaller lake is Ljotipollur, a bit off Road F208 East of Frostadavatn.

Ljotipollur, Iceland

Plan your trip to Iceland in Summer:

tips key
  • My itineraries : 5 days, 1 week, 10 days, 2 weeks
  • Where to stay in Iceland
  • Where to stay in Reykjavik: best hotels
  • 36 tips to rent a car in Iceland
  • Guide to driving in Iceland
  • How to plan a road trip in Iceland

Northern portion of Road F208 Iceland

On my Superjeep drive I quit road F208 to head to Hekla.
However I covered a portion of the northern part of F208 during my photography tour the week before.
During our lunch break we visited the amazing Sigöldugljúfur canyon for which I have written a dedicated post with many photos and planning tips.

Sigöldugljúfur canyon

Sigöldugljúfur canyon, Norther section of road F208

Sigöldugljúfur canyon

Stopping and walking above road F208


Alternative end - F225 Landmannaleid

If you are short in time, you don't have to to the northern section of F208, you can turn on the Landmannaleid road (F225) towards Hekla. It cuts back to road 26

Landmannaleid

And you can even quit the main track to go really off road in the lava field around the volcano Hekla.

Off road to Hekla

Off road to Hekla


Want to see more of Iceland's beauty?

PREVIOUS LOCATION: 

HOLASKJOL WATERFALL

NEXT LOCATION: 

LANDMANNALAUGAR ICELAND

Iceland destination guide travel planning addict

I know Iceland is beautiful everywhere,

But this drive is the most scenic, don't you think?

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Becky Padmore says

    January 21, 2015 at 10:47 PM

    Wow I love Iceland but we visited in the winter so we didn’t get to see it like this. Love your photos 🙂

    Reply
    • Claire Robinson says

      January 22, 2015 at 4:40 AM

      Thanks Becky

      Reply
  2. Brooke says

    May 18, 2015 at 10:40 PM

    Beautiful photographs!

    How long did it take to drive from when you left the Ring Road in the south to the power plant on the northern end of F208. What vehicle did you take? We are looking at renting a Toyota Rav4 or a Dacia Duster. There are even more expensive heavy duty 4WD cars to take but I was wondering if a smaller SUV can cut it.

    Thanks,
    Brooke

    Reply
    • Claire Robinson says

      May 19, 2015 at 2:09 PM

      Thanks Brooke.
      I am sorry but I cannot really answer your questions. As I wrote in this post, I hired a superjeep and a driver. Plus we took some detours so it is hard to give you inputs. If it was like the day I did it, the Toyota Rav4 would be sufficient and I think you can do the all length without stopping in 3h30min. However with bad weather and/or with bigger rivers (which you cannot plan) then you might need a bigger 4WD (for the South part up to Landmannalaugar) and way more time. You also need to check with the rental company, some do not allow you to drive on difficult roads (including F208) with certain vehicules.

      Reply
  3. Divya says

    May 4, 2017 at 10:00 PM

    Wow! This is such a nice post!
    Would you have the contact information of the company that you used?
    We are planning on going this July and would love to do this route.

    Thanks,

    DS

    Reply
    • Claire Robinson says

      May 5, 2017 at 9:41 AM

      Hi Divya
      I used Discover Iceland – see my review of the tour with them here: https://www.zigzagonearth.com/review-super-jeep-tour-discover-iceland/
      (link to the company website inside)
      Have a great trip!

      Reply
  4. nicola bursi says

    March 27, 2019 at 11:58 AM

    Hi,
    are this information present inside you guide?
    in that case wich one?

    thank you so much
    best regards
    Nicola

    Reply
    • Claire, the Travel Planning Geek says

      March 28, 2019 at 3:41 PM

      Dear Nicola
      I see you have already purchased the Complete guide! Thanks 🙂
      That was the right one. The Central Highlands are included with F208 and more.
      I wish you wonderful travels!

      Reply
      • Nico says

        March 28, 2019 at 3:45 PM

        YUP! could’not wait!
        UBER useful your guide!very nice work!
        thankyou
        wish u the best

        Nico

        Reply
  5. Raven says

    September 27, 2019 at 3:57 AM

    Hello this is Raven , very informative article!
    May I ask , do you think the Toyota RAV4 2018 can drive to this area? It is a 4WD as well.
    And where to check the road is open or not?
    I am in Iceland right now!

    Raven

    Reply
    • Claire, the Travel Planning Geek says

      September 27, 2019 at 7:57 AM

      Hi Raven
      Check on road.is – I already selected the right region where you wan see the road :
      http://www.road.is/travel-info/road-conditions-and-weather/south-iceland-road-conditions-map/
      Enjoy
      Claire

      Reply
  6. nico says

    September 27, 2019 at 7:43 AM

    We used a Dacia Duster for that road…so i think yes!

    Reply

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