Blue Lagoon

Why the Blue Lagoon is special
The large, outdoor Blue Lagoon with its rising steamy clouds and lava-rock walls creates a bizarre aura.

Blue Lagoon tips and insights
Why people come
Visitors fall into two categories:

• The vast majority of visitors bathe in the water to relax and unwind - or to satisfy their curiosity - or for conversation-piece value.
  
• Others come for health, wellness, and spa beauty treatments from the water's reputed curative powers. The site's best-known treatment is for the skin disease psoriasis.

Be aware
Though the Blue Lagoon is an entertaining communal bathing activity, there is a side effect that the promotional brochures don't tell you

Your unprotected hair can remain undesirably straw-like for days if you submerge your head in the mineral-rich water. Tips:

• Before you enter the water
  Conditioner is available free in the showers. Use it generously when taking the mandatory pre-pool shower.
  
• While in the water
  Don't swim or otherwise wet your head unless you have a water tight swimming cap.
  
• After you leave the water
  Free shampoo is also provided in the showers. Use it aggressively during your post-pool shower to rid your hair of the lagoon minerals. And don't forget to generously apply the conditioner.
  
  Hand wash your bathing suit well while you are in the shower. Otherwise, the lagoon water minerals could possibly stiffen and stain your sui

Lagoon is artificial
It didn't exist until the nearby geothermal power plant was constructed.

Blue Lagoon geographical stats
The Blue Lagoon lies 39 kilometers (24 miles) from Reykjavik and only 13 kilometers (8 miles) from the international airport.

Cost
Some visitors complain about the complex's high admission fee.  But for most travelers, the cost is more than worth the experience.

Digital bracelet
You are given one when after you pay the admission fee. The bracelet's chip records your charges for items like massages, food, and beverages. You settle the bill when you exit.

Poor signage
I heard a number of visitors criticizing the lack of sufficient directional signage.

Panorama platform
It's open to both admission and non-admission paying visitors. Don't miss it because it's a great viewing and photo opportunity of the lagoon and bathing activity. Unfortunately, many visitors don't know about it or don't know how to reach it because direction signage is deficient.

Squatting
The water is shallow and the air can be cold or chilly. To keep your upper body warm, you squat, which keeps your body below your shoulders submerged in the warm water. When moving about, you squat-walk instead of walking upright.

Clinic
It gives indoor treatments and has a small hotel for treatment and non-treatment guests. The clinic complex also contains a restaurant, cafeteria, and skin-care product store.

Food and drink
There's a bar in the pool area - and a restaurant and cafeteria on the lobby floor facing the lagoon.

Sauna and steam rooms
They are adjacent to the lagoon. Bathers can easily reach them. Both are free.

Transportation
You can get to the lagoon and back via bus, taxi, and rental car.

Stopover
Many travelers stop over at the Blue Lagoon for several hours when traveling from the international airport to Reykjavik - or the reverse. Iceland Excursions and some other bus tour companies give you this option.

When open
It's open year-around. Hours are 9am to 9pm in the summer. Winter hours are slightly shorter.

Water content
It is rich in silica and blue algae. Other content includes salt and sulphur.

Why the water os b;ie
The water appears pale milky blue because the sediment on the lagoon's floor contains blue-green algae.

Water source
A nearby geothermal power plant pumps up lava-heated water from 2,000 meters (5,000 feet) below the surface. • That scorching hot water is then used via convection to heat cold spring and glacier melt water for central-heating use in residential and commercial buildings (the plant also generates electricity). • The run-off water is then piped into the Blue Lagoon after being blended with cold water to lower its temperature from very hot to warm.

Water freshness
The water in the lagoon is renewed over a 40-hour period.

Water temperature
The lagoon water averages 37°C to 39°C (98°F to 102°F) throughout the year. The air temperature is comfortably warm in the summer, uncomfortably cold in the winter (particularly so when you are in a bathing suit walking from the indoor shower area to the lagoon).

Location in Iceland