Rauðisandur beach

Red Sand beach, Iceland
Photo: © Fyletto

Rauðisandur beach
Photo: © Johann Dréo

Rauðisandur or Red Sand beach is a huge expanse of sand in the remote Westfjords region of Iceland. Unlike many of this volcanic island's beaches Rauðisandur has what we might consider normal coloured sand - most beaches here have black sand. This is probably where the name comes from as the sand does have a reddish hue to it in certain lights. However, it is also possible it is a historical reference to one of the area's early settlers, Ármóður the Red.

Anyway, back to the beach. Whilst not quite endless, at 10km (6 miles) it certainly feels that way when there is not a single other soul on the beach. Rauðisandur is not a beach for normal beach activities such as sun bathing, snorkelling and all that stuff. It is a place in which to be awe inspired by the immense scale of the breath-taking scenery. Huge cliffs, carved by the elements, rise up from the beach and the ever changing sands vary in colour from white to black with yellows and reds thrown in for good measure.

It is somewhat of an adventure to get to Rauðisandur and we'd recommend using someone else's car as the roads are more like tracks. The drive is pretty hairy in places too with steep drops and not much in the way of barriers. Still, once you get here parking isn't an issue!
A pleasant surprise is that there is a small cafe here, but not a lot else, which is exactly why people come here.

More Westfjords beaches in Iceland

Rauðisandur beach Weather Info

5 Day Rauðisandur beach UV Index

A UV Index reading of 3 or more means some precautions should be taken. For more information visit our guide to the UV Index.

Temperature Averages

Average Water Temp

Rauðisandur beach tide times & sea state

Tue 21/01 »

Surf report for Tue 21/01

	Swell	Period	Swell direction	Wind direction	Wind speed
	Swell			Wind
6:00	16ft	13s			25mph
12:00	12ft	12s			14mph
18:00	9ft	11s			17mph

Tide times
High 6:05am (2.17m)
Low 12:21pm (-0.31m)
High 6:19pm (1.87m)

Daylight
First light	09:54
Sunrise	11:03
Sunset	16:30
Dark	17:40

Wed 22/01 »

Surf report for Wed 22/01

	Swell	Period	Swell direction	Wind direction	Wind speed
	Swell			Wind
6:00	12ft	12s			27mph
12:00	16ft	12s			34mph
18:00	18ft	13s			31mph

Tide times
Low 12:24am (-0.46m)
High 6:46am (2.26m)
Low 1:02pm (-0.36m)
High 7:00pm (1.87m)

Daylight
First light	09:52
Sunrise	11:00
Sunset	16:34
Dark	17:42

Thu 23/01 »

Surf report for Thu 23/01

	Swell	Period	Swell direction	Wind direction	Wind speed
	Swell			Wind
6:00	28ft	14s			49mph
12:00	27ft	14s			45mph
18:00	25ft	14s			45mph

Tide times
Low 1:01am (-0.47m)
High 7:23am (2.30m)
Low 1:41pm (-0.39m)
High 7:37pm (1.85m)

Daylight
First light	09:49
Sunrise	10:57
Sunset	16:37
Dark	17:45

Fri 24/01 »

Surf report for Fri 24/01

	Swell	Period	Swell direction	Wind direction	Wind speed
	Swell			Wind
6:00	18ft	13s			27mph
12:00	13ft	12s			7mph
18:00	12ft	12s			17mph

Tide times
Low 1:37am (-0.45m)
High 7:58am (2.31m)
Low 2:17pm (-0.38m)
High 8:13pm (1.80m)

Daylight
First light	09:47
Sunrise	10:54
Sunset	16:41
Dark	17:48

Sat 25/01 »

Surf report for Sat 25/01

	Swell	Period	Swell direction	Wind direction	Wind speed
	Swell			Wind
6:00	9ft	12s			14mph
12:00	9ft	10s			35mph
18:00	18ft	9s			60mph

Tide times
Low 2:11am (-0.41m)
High 8:33am (2.28m)
Low 2:53pm (-0.34m)
High 8:48pm (1.75m)

Daylight
First light	09:45
Sunrise	10:51
Sunset	16:45
Dark	17:51

Sun 26/01 »

Surf report for Sun 26/01

	Swell	Period	Swell direction	Wind direction	Wind speed
	Swell			Wind
6:00	20ft	11s			55mph
12:00	17ft	13s			36mph
18:00	17ft	10s			46mph

Tide times
Low 2:45am (-0.34m)
High 9:08am (2.20m)
Low 3:29pm (-0.27m)
High 9:25pm (1.68m)

Daylight
First light	09:42
Sunrise	10:48
Sunset	16:48
Dark	17:54

Today's weather

2 °C
(35 °F)

Light breeze, 7.6 km/h from SE

Sea temperature

2.9°C / 37.3°F

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