Is the Secret Lagoon Worth It?

Yes, as the warm end of a Golden Circle day: it sits inside the loop, 25.1 km by road from Geysir, costs 4,500 ISK for adults, and the hot springs steam around a pool its operator dates to 1891. As a trip on its own from Reykjavik, 105 km each way, it is harder to justify unless you have a car and love hot springs. The day that gives it the most time is Icelandia’s From Reykjavik: Golden Circle and Secret Lagoon Day Trip, about 2 hours in the water, from $148 a person (checked November 2026).

The calendar above is Icelandia’s day, with 905 reviews (checked November 2026).

What you get

A pool fed by hot springs at 38 to 40 °C all year, with the springs themselves, among them the small geyser Litli Geysir, steaming and spouting beside it behind a fence. A hot paddling pool and a cold plunge. A changing house with lockers and communal showers, and a café with drinks and sandwiches. History: the lagoon’s operator calls it Iceland’s oldest swimming pool, made in 1891, where the country’s first swimming lessons were held from 1909. That is the whole offer, and it is the appeal: simple, warm and plain, for well under half the Blue Lagoon’s Comfort price.

When it is worth it

• On a Golden Circle day. It turns a day of photo stops in the cold into one that ends warm. It is on the way, so it costs time in the water rather than time on the road.
• In winter. The colder the air, the thicker the steam and the better the contrast; the lagoon stays open until 19:00 all winter.
• For a calm soak rather than a spa. No ritual, no treatments, no robes: you come for the water.

Check dates for 2 hours in the lagoon

When to skip it

• If you want a spa. Treatments, a mud mask, a drink at an in-water bar: that is the Blue Lagoon. Secret Lagoon vs Blue Lagoon vs Sky Lagoon sets them side by side.
• If you are based in Reykjavik with one free evening. 105 km each way is a long trip for a soak; the Sky Lagoon is 7.6 km from City Hall.
• If communal showers are a problem. Showering without a swimsuit before going in is mandatory, in shared men’s and women’s showers with no private cubicles. What to bring has the house rules.
• If you hope to see the northern lights from the water. It closes before the late-night hours; the lagoon itself says you will not watch them from the pool.

Pick your day

Prices, ratings and review counts from the listings (GetYourGuide checked November 2026). Operators price by date and season, so treat the figures as the shape of the market, not a quote.