Why Choose Hikers of Iceland: Quality, Safety and Sustainability
Certified guides, small groups, and a genuine commitment to Iceland’s wilderness
What We Stand For
At Hikers of Iceland, we believe the best outdoor experiences are built on three things: quality, safety, and sustainability. Not as marketing language, as actual operating principles that shape every decision we make, from how we train our guides to how we choose our routes.
Quality means small groups, expert guidance, and tours designed so that every participant feels genuinely looked after, not just moved from trailhead to summit and back. It means briefings before every hike, emergency equipment carried on every tour, and guides who know when to push and when to stop. It means the hike you booked is the hike you get, regardless of the weather.
Safety means every guide holds international certification: an International Mountain Leader (IML) qualification as their leader and, at minimum, Wilderness First Responder (WFR) training. These are two of the highest standards for mountain guiding available anywhere in the world. Your guide can navigate remote terrain, manage emergencies, and make risk decisions that protect your group in Iceland’s fast-changing conditions.
Sustainability means Iceland is our home, and we treat it accordingly. We operate with strict Leave No Trace principles on every tour. We choose routes that distribute impact responsibly. We avoid overcrowded trails and tourist hotspots: not just because the experience is better, but because Iceland’s fragile ecosystems require it.
Our Guides: Certified, Local, and Genuinely Passionate
Every guide at Hikers of Iceland is certified, locally based, and deeply knowledgeable about Iceland’s terrain, geology, and folklore. Each carries essential safety equipment on every tour – GPS tracker, compass, altimeter, emergency shelter, and first aid kit – and is trained to use all of it. They’re also trained to teach: orienteering skills are a core part of our day treks, and our guides genuinely enjoy passing on the knowledge that makes Iceland’s wilderness navigable.
Our guides speak English, Italian, and Spanish. The stories, the geology, and the folklore of the places you visit land in the language you’re most comfortable in.
Our Clients — Iceland Like a Local
Our guests come from all over the world and have one thing in common: they want more than a tourist experience. They want to feel the landscape, understand it, and earn their place in it. Whether they’re experienced hikers or first-timers who’ve never laced up a pair of boots on a mountain, we design the experience to meet them where they are and take them somewhere genuinely worth going.
We never run bus tours. We never take groups to the same overcrowded viewpoints. We take you to the places locals love, and we make sure you leave with something more than photographs.
Our Relationship with Iceland’s Nature
Iceland’s landscapes are extraordinary precisely because they’re still largely untouched. We intend to keep them that way. Every tour we run follows Leave No Trace principles: we pack out everything we bring in, stay on responsible routes or avoid spots we shouldn’t step on, and actively educate our guests about why these practices matter in Iceland’s fragile ecosystem.
We’re also constantly evolving. As our company grows, we look for new ways to reduce our footprint, support local conservation, and ensure that the trails we hike today are still wild and intact for the hikers who come after us.
Ready to experience Iceland the right way? Browse our guided hikes and treks and find the adventure that’s right for you.