Iceland’s Vatnajökull National Park was announced on 7 July as one of UNESCO’s new World Heritage Sites. Home to Europe’s largest ice cap, the Park has classic Icelandic landscapes, with snow-capped mountains and volcanic landforms, plus the chance to spot the Northern Lights in the skies above.
Vatnajökull is one of the locations visited on Wild Photography Holidays’ new Aurora, Wild Black Beaches and Blue Ice Tour, where photographers spend three nights exploring the Park, from its Diamond Beach to the remote glacial tongues of the ice cap. On the tour expert photographers guide guests to some of the country’s most photogenic locations, helping them return home with a superb portfolio of images.
Wild Photography Holidays is a family-run operator that has offered group departures for lovers of outdoor photography since 2010. With 27 different trips to Europe, Greenland, Iceland, India and the UK, their holidays are renowned for taking guests to little-visited (or photographed) locations and for the quality of their tuition, advising both while in the field and in post-production.
Discover more about all the new Unesco World Heritage Sites.
Aurora, Wild Black Beaches and Blue Ice Tour
On this expert-led photographic tour, guests will visit two of Iceland’s best landscape areas, learning tips and tricks on how to capture the land of fire and ice on camera. The holiday begins on the iconic Snæfellsnes Peninsula. The area is dominated by the snow-covered volcano of Snæfellsjökull, but the North Atlantic coastline is a constant companion too with sea stacks, arches and black beaches providing unusual and dramatic photography locations.
After two nights at Vik, with its hidden waterfalls and coastal landforms, photographers then spend three nights at Jökulsárlón, on the edge of the Vatnajökull National Park. Here guests visit the glacial lagoon, littered with sparkling sea-washed ice. Excursions are made into the mountainous Park, where small lakes offer fantastic reflections. Each day’s itinerary is planned in conjunction with the Aurora forecast to give the best chance of seeing, and learning to photograph, the shimmering light display.
Throughout the holiday the small group stays in scenically located, family-run hotels and receive evening tutorials to refine technique and learn post-production tips.
Price: Wild Photography Holidays (wildphotographyholidays.com, 01630 647828) offers Iceland’s Aurora, Wild Black Beaches and Blue Ice Tour from £3,150pp, including 9 nights’ full board accommodation, transfers, guiding and photography tuition. No single supplement. Depart 20 October 2019 and selected departures 2020.
