Fjallsárlón, the quieter lagoon

Fjallsárlón sits under Öræfajökull, a short drive west of Jökulsárlón on the Ring Road. It is the compact version of the same idea — a lagoon of grey meltwater with icebergs in it — but the glacier here comes almost to the water's edge, so the ice wall is part of every frame rather than a distant line. The car park is small, the walk to the shore is five minutes, and on most days there are tens of people rather than hundreds.

That proximity is the reason to come. From the low gravel shore, a couple stands with bergs behind them and a wall of blue-white glacier behind that; a longer lens stacks the three layers into something that looks unreal and is not. The lagoon faces roughly north, so the mountain and glacier take direct light through the middle of the day while the shoreline stays soft — one of the few Icelandic spots where midday is not a compromise. In winter, the four or five hours of low sun paint the ice pink and the whole scene reads warmer than it has any right to.

What to expect: wind off the glacier that is genuinely cold even in July, a shoreline of loose rounded stones that is awkward in heels, and a short but real slope up from the car park. Dress the couple for standing still in cold wind, not for walking, and keep a warm layer within reach between sets.

The rules are the same as at any glacier lagoon and they are not negotiable: never step on ice, whether floating or grounded — bergs roll and grounded ones are undercut — and never walk out onto the glacier itself without a guide and equipment. Keep back from the water's edge where the bank is cut away, and stay behind any roped or signed line the operator has put up.