World Heritage Photos

Thingvellir National Park one of the three national parks on Iceland. Thingvellir was declared a national park in 1930. Thingvellir is a site of great historical, cultural and geological importance. Thingvellir has a high concentration of volcanic activity. Thingvellir is a rift valley that marks the crest of the Mid-Atlantic Ridge. The continental drift between the North American and Eurasian Plates can be seen in the faults and fissures in Thingvellir. The parliament of Iceland, the Althing, was founded at Thingvellir in 930. The Althing is the oldest parliament in the world. Thingvellir Church is situated in the Almannagjá, the largest canyon in Thingvellir, in this place in the year 1000, the Icelanders accepted Christianity. Thingvallavatn is situated in Thingvellir National Park. Thingvallavatn is the largest natural lake of Iceland, filled with clear and sweet water. Thingvellir was also the site of the proclamation of the Republic of Iceland in 1944. Thingvellir National Park is part of the Golden Circle, a famous tourist route on Iceland, the three major stops are the Gullfoss waterfall, the Haukadalur Valley with the geysirs Strokkur and Geysir, and Thingvellir. Thingvellir National Park gained status as a UNESCO World Heritage in 2004. World Heritage Art: Thingvellir Drekkingarhylur and The Lava Fields of Thingvellir

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   Thingvellir is a location of great historical, cultural and geological importance on Iceland. The continental drift between the North American and Eurasian Plates can be seen in the faults and fissures in Thingvellir. This fissure zone is running through Iceland. Thingvellir is situated at the northern shore of Lake Thingvallavatn, the largest lake of Iceland. Thingvellir National Park was declared a UNESCO World Heritage in 2004.

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   Thingvellir National Park: Thingvellir Church is situated in the Almannagjá, the largest canyon in Thingvellir National Park. Thingvellir Church was built shortly after the acceptance of Christianity on Iceland in 1000 AD. The wood to build the church and the bell tower was a gift of the King of Norway. The present wooden church was built and consecrated in 1859. Next to the church is a small cemetery, two of the most famous poets of Iceland are buried here.

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   Thingvellir National Park: On the right the so called rope lava formations. Thingvellir has a high concentration of volcanic activity. Lava fields can be seen all over. Thingvellir is situated on the tectonic plate boundary of the Mid-Atlantic Ridge. The North American plate and the Eurasian Plate are separating slowly at a rate of about 2 cm each year, forming rift valleys. The largest rift valley is called the Almannagjá, it is about 80 metres wide and 40 metres deep. 

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   Thingvellir National Park: The Nikulásargjá is one of the rifts in Thingvellir, the rifts of Thingvellir are full of clear and icy cold water. A popular activity in Thingvellir is diving into one of the water filled rifts. The Drekkingarhylur is the Drowning Pool, adulterous women were executed here by drowning between 1602 and 1750. Men who had committed serious crimes were hanged on the Gallows Rock, the Gálgaklettur. Thingvellir National Park is a UNESCO World Heritage.

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   Thingvellir National Park was the first national park in Iceland. The park is accessible by car. The gravel roads in Thingvellir National Park are in good condition. Thingvellir is situated about 50 km from the capital city of Reykjavik. Thingvellir is the only place in the world where it is possible to drive between the continents of America and Europe. Thingvellir National Park was declared an UNESCO World Heritage in 2004, it is the first UNESCO World Heritage on Iceland. 

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   Thingvellir National Park: The vantage point at Thingvellir on the North American Plate. Iceland is divided by the Mid-Atlantic Ridge. Iceland is the only place in the world where the Mid-Atlantic Ridge rises above the sea level, the Mid-Atlantic Ridge includes a deep rift valley. Thingvellir is situated in the rift valley. Thingvellir is the only place in the world, where you can walk between the continents of America and Europe.

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   Thingvellir National Park: Sandey Island is a lava formation in Lake Thingvallavatn. There are two tiny volcanic islands in Lake Thingvallavatn called Sandey en Nesjaey. Sandey en Nesjaey are the results of a volcanic eruption of thousands of years ago. Thingvallavatn is frozen over in winter. Despite the cold temperatures, the lake has a rich vegetation. The lake is situated at an altitude of about 100 metres above sea level, the deepest part of the lake measures 114 metres.

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   Thingvellir National Park: Lake Thingvallavatn is the largest natural lake of Iceland, it is filled with crystar clear and sweet water. Thingvallavatn is known for the presence of the brown trout, the three-spined sticklebacks and four species of the Arctic char. Thingvallavatn is a rift valley lake in southwestern Iceland, the lake measures about 84 km². Lake Thingvallavatn lies partially inside Thingvellir National Park.

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   Thingvellir National Park, Iceland: The Öxarárfoss tumbles down from the North American Plate, the Öxarárfoss falls in the Almannagjá, the rift valley between the North American and Eurasian Plates. The Öxará River runs through Thingvellir and is forming the Öxarárfoss, the waterfall is about 20 metres high. The Althing is the national parliament of Iceland, the Althing was founded on the banks of the Öxará River in 930 AD, it is oldest parliament in the world.

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    Thingvellir National Park: The tiny wooden Thingvellir Church in Valhallarvegur, in this spot the Icelanders accepted Christianity by law, There has been a small church in Thingvellir since the acceptance of Christianity in the year 1000 AD. The present Thingvellir Church was constructed in 1859, a new tower was built in 1907, the tower contains three bells, the third bell was added in 1944 when the Republic of Iceland was proclaimed on the Parliamentary Plains at Thingvellir.

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    Thingvellir National Park: The Penningagjá is one of the rifts in Thingvellir, the rifts of Thingvellir are full of crystal clear and cold water. Diving is permitted in two rifts in the park, the Silfra and Davíðsgjá. Davíðsgjá is situated at the bottom of Lake Thingvallavatn. Thingvellir National Park is situated in a rift valley that marks the crest of the Mid-Atlantic Ridge and the boundary between the North American and Eurasian Plates.

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    þingvellir National Park was inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List in 2004. Thingvellir is part of the Golden Circle. The Golden Circle is a famous tourist route on Iceland. The three most important stops are Thingvellir National Park, the Gullfoss waterfall and the Haukadalur Valley with the geysers Strokkur and the Great Geysir. Thingvellir is the most important historic site in Iceland because the parliament of Iceland, the Althing, was founded at Thingvellir in 930.

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    Camping is only permitted in two areas of Thingvellir National Park, at Leirar and Vatnskot. The North American and Eurasian plates are gradually pulling apart, creating no man's land, called the Almannagjá, the camping site is situated in the Almannagjá, so you are camping neither in America or Europe. The Almannagjá is the largest fissure in Thingvellir National Park and looks like a canyon.

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    Thingvellir National ParK, the first national park of Iceland: The Parliamentary Plains. Thingvellir was declared a national park in 1930. The Parliament of Iceland, the Althing or the Alþingi, was founded at Thingvellir in 930. The Althing is the oldest parliament in the world.  Thingvellir was also the site of the proclamation of the Republic of Iceland in 1944. Thingvellir is a national park of historical, cultural and geological importance.

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    Thingvellir National Park: The magnificent lava formations near the Lögberg, the Lögberg means the Law Rock. Until 1118, the laws of Iceland were not written down, they were earned by heart by the Lawspeaker of the Althing, he was chosen for a period of three years to proclaim the laws at the Lögberg. Nowadays, the national flag of Iceland marks the spot where the Lawspeaker of the Althing stood.