The World's Only Glacier Zipline Offers Heart-Racing Thrills And Unbeatable Beauty Through Iceland

If you want to step into a harness and fling yourself into the abyss of a glacier, you'll have to go to Iceland. The land of fire and snow is beloved for its glaciers, which cover 11% of its landmass.  These slow-moving ice behemoths have always been a beacon for adventurous travelers in Iceland. They're a must-see while circling the island nation along Europe's best road trip destination, the Ring Road. The Jökulsárlòn Lagoon and Diamond Beach, two destinations you shouldn't miss on your Iceland vacation, are the most popular places to see the ice breaking off the Vatnajökull Glacier. However, this famous temporary landmark is just one of Iceland's hundreds of glaciers, and there's a lot you can do on a glacier. Hiking, snowmobiling, and ice climbing are all exciting activities, but now there is a new avenue for glacial adventures: ziplining.

Ice Pic Journeys claims to run the world's only glacier zip line on its "Zip Line + Ice Cave Adventure" Tour. In the winter season, the company takes small groups up into Vatnajökull National Park for the unique experience of riding a zipline over an ice cave with the option to take an exhilarating plunge via bungee cord. Here's what you need to know if you're considering adding this major adrenaline spike to your Icelandic itinerary.

The outdoor guiding company Ice Pic Journeys offers this six-hour tour for small groups only between October and April, a maximum of eight people, for roughly $360 per person. However, if you don't want to do the zipline yourself but want to support your travel buddies, you can get a "No-Fly" ticket for a 20% discount. You'll get the same exact tour and can watch the zipliners from the sidelines. On the day of the tour, plan to find the group at the meeting point near the Jökulsárlón Lagoon. You could also arrange a pick-up from your accommodations in Reykjavik for an additional cost, but it's a five-hour drive to get there. Iceland may be a small island, but you shouldn't underestimate the distances between major sites!

The experience begins with a 4x4 drive up to the glacier, followed by a three to five-mile hike on icy and rocky terrain — crampons included — visiting ice caves like the Crystal Cave along the way. The hikes are rated easy to moderate, so you should be in decent shape to take it on. When you reach the zip line site, your guide will help you into the harness, and you will have two chances to fly over the vertical ice cave for a truly exhilarating ride you won't find anywhere else.

For a first-of-its-kind zipline tour like this, we turned to traveler reviews to see how much Ice Pic Journey's zipline excursion lives up to the hype. Google reviewers are emphatic about it with one traveler writing, "The short zip line was a unique and thrilling experience that was the cherry on top of an amazing day."

The guides also get rave reviews with an emphasis on the knowledge they brought to the trip as another happy reviewer describes: "Claudia shared so much knowledge and facts about Iceland and glaciers, including helping us pronounce words in Icelandic that I'm sure I completely butchered, and she made sure everyone in the group was getting the most out of their experience."

Others praise the attention to safety, with one writing: " The experience was not only exciting but also felt very safe and well-managed. Chris, our guide, was very knowledgeable and friendly, enhancing the entire adventure." Ice Pic Journeys has an average score of 4.9/5 stars out of over 300 reviews on Google.