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 However, it is also possible it is a historical reference to one of the area's early settlers, Ármóður the Red.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

Wed 11/12 »

Surf report for Wed 11/12

	Swell	Period	Swell direction	Wind direction	Wind speed
	Swell			Wind
6:00	12ft	9s			34mph
12:00	8ft	9s			26mph
18:00	7ft	13s			21mph

Tide times
Low 12:31am (-0.58m)
High 6:50am (2.28m)
Low 1:00pm (-0.40m)
High 6:58pm (2.01m)

Daylight
First light	10:11
Sunrise	11:38
Sunset	15:18
Dark	16:45

Thu 12/12 »

Surf report for Thu 12/12

	Swell	Period	Swell direction	Wind direction	Wind speed
	Swell			Wind
6:00	6ft	8s			23mph
12:00	6ft	7s			24mph
18:00	5ft	7s			17mph

Tide times
Low 1:04am (-0.60m)
High 7:24am (2.34m)
Low 1:37pm (-0.42m)
High 7:34pm (1.97m)

Daylight
First light	10:13
Sunrise	11:41
Sunset	15:17
Dark	16:45

Fri 13/12 »

Surf report for Fri 13/12

	Swell	Period	Swell direction	Wind direction	Wind speed
	Swell			Wind
6:00	8ft	15s			17mph
12:00	9ft	16s			18mph
18:00	8ft	15s			18mph

Tide times
Low 1:39am (-0.58m)
High 8:01am (2.34m)
Low 2:17pm (-0.38m)
High 8:13pm (1.89m)

Daylight
First light	10:14
Sunrise	11:43
Sunset	15:15
Dark	16:44

Sat 14/12 »

Surf report for Sat 14/12

	Swell	Period	Swell direction	Wind direction	Wind speed
	Swell			Wind
6:00	6ft	13s			16mph
12:00	5ft	12s			14mph
18:00	5ft	12s			14mph

Tide times
Low 2:17am (-0.50m)
High 8:42am (2.28m)
Low 3:01pm (-0.31m)
High 8:57pm (1.76m)

Daylight
First light	10:16
Sunrise	11:45
Sunset	15:14
Dark	16:44

Sun 15/12 »

Surf report for Sun 15/12

	Swell	Period	Swell direction	Wind direction	Wind speed
	Swell			Wind
6:00	6ft	11s			25mph
12:00	7ft	10s			25mph
18:00	8ft	10s			26mph

Tide times
Low 3:00am (-0.37m)
High 9:27am (2.18m)
Low 3:51pm (-0.20m)
High 9:48pm (1.62m)

Daylight
First light	10:17
Sunrise	11:47
Sunset	15:13
Dark	16:43

Mon 16/12 »

Surf report for Mon 16/12

	Swell	Period	Swell direction	Wind direction	Wind speed
	Swell			Wind
6:00	7ft	8s			23mph
12:00	5ft	11s			15mph
18:00	4ft	11s			14mph

Tide times
Low 3:49am (-0.20m)
High 10:21am (2.04m)
Low 4:51pm (-0.09m)
High 10:51pm (1.48m)

Daylight
First light	10:18
Sunrise	11:49
Sunset	15:12
Dark	16:43

Today's weather

-3 °C
(27 °F)

Strong breeze, 49.7 km/h from N

Sea temperature

5.8°C / 42.4°F

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