Kerið is the colour-clash crater: a 3,000-year-old volcanic explosion crater whose red-iron slopes drop 55 metres to a milky turquoise lake, in a country where craters are usually grey-on-grey. It sits 15 minutes off the Golden Circle’s return leg, charges a modest entry (the land is private — one of the few paid nature stops in Iceland), and takes twenty minutes to walk the full rim. Trip.Best ranks it #16 with 4.9/5 from verified visitors — one of the list’s highest-rated stops.
This is #16 of 39 in our Best Things to Do in Iceland guide. Below: the crater’s story (Björk played it on a raft), the rim walk and the inner descent, the photography logic (the red-vs-turquoise contrast is the whole show), and how it slots into the Circle day.
Key takeaways
- 3,000 years old: a collapse crater from an eruption that emptied its magma chamber — one of the youngest in the region’s volcanic row.
- The colour clash is the point: red iron-oxide slopes, black scree, and a turquoise mineral lake — three colours in one bowl.
- 55 m deep, ~270 m across: steep enough to feel; the rim path circles the whole crater in ~20 minutes.
- Modest entry fee: private land — one of Iceland’s few paid nature stops (a few hundred ISK; from ~US$5 on Trip.com).
- Björk played here: the 1987 anniversary concert on a floating raft — the crater’s pop-history footnote.
Quick answer: Drop in on the Golden Circle return (15 minutes off-route), pay the small entry, walk the rim clockwise (the best colour angles come first), then descend the inner slope to the lake shore if conditions allow. Twenty minutes minimum, forty with photos. It pairs with the Secret Lagoon (#32) soak to end the day.
The crater and its colours
Kerið is a collapse crater: the eruption emptied the magma chamber, the cone collapsed inward, and the bowl filled with groundwater that sits turquoise from dissolved minerals. The red comes from iron oxide in the scoria slopes — a colour you do not see elsewhere in Icelandic craters at this intensity, which is why Kerið photographs like nowhere else on the Circle. The lake’s level changes seasonally (highest after wet periods); the turquoise holds either way.
The visit is a rim walk plus an optional descent. The rim path circles the whole crater (~20 minutes, graded gravel, safe in most weather) with the colour angles rotating as you go — the east rim gives red-slope-plus-lake, the north rim the full-bowl view. The inner slope has a maintained descent path on one side to the lake shore: steep but short, muddy after rain, and worth it in calm light when the water mirrors the red walls.
The Björk footnote: in 1987 the crater hosted an anniversary concert with the stage on a floating raft in the lake — the story every local tells, and the reason “the crater Björk sang in” is a legitimate way to describe Kerið.
Photographing the colour clash
The signature frame is red slope over turquoise water — shoot down-slope with the lake filling the lower third. Midday light saturates the colours best (no long shadows to mute the red); overcast works, rain kills the turquoise for a few hours. Wide lens for the bowl from the north rim; telephoto compresses the red-turquoise contact line from the east. Winter: the lake freezes and snow dusts the red — a different, quieter palette that our team rates as its favourite.
Drone rules: private site, operator rules apply, and the bowl’s small scale makes ground angles stronger anyway. The twenty-minute rim circuit produces a dozen distinct frames — it is the most photographically efficient paid stop in Iceland.
The pair that works: Kerið’s colours and the Secret Lagoon’s steam (#32, 15 minutes south) make the Golden Circle’s return leg a two-stop bonus afternoon: crater rim, then soak. Book the lagoon slot for 17:00–19:00 and the day ends in hot water.
Practical: entry, access and timing
Kerið sits off Route 35 on the Golden Circle’s return (Grímsnes), 15 minutes from the Geysir–Gullfoss axis, an hour from Reykjavík. Entry is paid at the gate (private land — card accepted); the fee maintains the paths and viewing areas. Hours run daylight-to-evening seasonally; the rim walk is stroller-hostile (gravel slopes) but the viewing platform near the entrance gives the bowl view without the circuit.
Timing: twenty minutes minimum, forty with the descent and photos. Crowds follow the tour add-on schedules (late morning), but the crater’s small size absorbs groups quickly — the rim rarely feels busy. Winter: the site stays open in daylight hours; the rim in ice wants studs like everywhere else.
How it fits an Iceland route
Kerið is the Golden Circle’s bonus stop (#11): it slots between Gullfoss (#13) and the capital on the return, or before the Secret Lagoon (#32) soak. Crater country repeats west (Snæfellsnes’s Saxhóll) and north (Krafla’s Víti #39) — Kerið is the convenient, colour-perfect introduction. Our Kerið guide carries the full volcanic story, and the Circle post runs the route logic.
Frequently asked questions
Why does Kerið cost money when other craters are free?
The crater is on private farmland — the family maintains the paths, viewing areas and descent route from the entry fee. It is one of Iceland’s few paid nature stops, and the price is modest.
Can you walk down to the lake?
Yes — a maintained path descends the inner slope on one side to the shore. It is steep and muddy after rain; the rim walk is the safer circuit for mixed groups.
How long should I spend at Kerið?
Twenty minutes covers the rim walk; forty adds the lake-shore descent and unhurried photos. It is a stop, not a hike — pair it with the Circle’s headline stops.
Is Kerið part of the Golden Circle?
Fifteen minutes off the classic loop’s return leg — tours include it on some schedules, self-drivers slot it in freely. It is the Circle’s best-kept colour secret.
Where this ranks — and what is next
Kerid Crater is #16 of 39 in our Best Things to Do in Iceland guide — the full ranked list, built from Trip.Best traveler data, lives in one place.
Go deeper: Kerið crater — the volcanic craters guide, The Golden Circle route logic (#11).
Sources & official references
- Trip.com listing for Kerid Crater: entry price, hours, 4.9/5 rating (checked November 2026).
- Trip.Best ranking data: #16 of 39 (November 2026).
- Site operator information: entry, path maintenance, seasonal hours (checked 2026).
- The 1987 Björk anniversary concert records.
- Editorial visits across seasons including the winter frozen-lake state, 2023–2026.
