Blue Lagoon, Geothermal spa in Grindavíkurbær, Iceland
Blue Lagoon is a geothermal bath in Grindavíkurbær, Iceland, fed by milky blue water from underground sources. The facility spreads across rugged lava fields with shallow pools, steam clouds, and walkways between dark rock formations.
The water emerged in 1976 as a byproduct of the neighboring Svartsengi power plant, which heats seawater for energy production. A patient with skin problems noticed healing effects in 1981 and gradually brought attention to the site.
The name Bláa lónið means "the blue lagoon" in Icelandic. Bathers rub the soft white silica mud from the bottom on their skin, and the site's skin products with silica, algae and salt date from 1995. Showers are required before bathing.
Booking ahead is necessary because only a limited number of guests are admitted each day. The site sits about a 20-minute drive southwest of Reykjavík in open volcanic terrain with no direct public transit.
The silica that clouds the water also settles as soft white mud on the bottom, which bathers rub onto their skin. The lagoon is man-made: runoff from the Svartsengi power station filled hollows in the Illahraun lava field, formed in 1226, and the water renews roughly every two days.
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