Vatnajökull National Park
| Vatnajökull National Park | |
|---|---|
Hikers journey to Hvannadalshnjúkur, the high peak of Öræfajökull. | |
| Location | South, southeast, east and northeast Iceland |
| Coordinates | 64°30′N 17°00′W / 64.500°N 17.000°W |
| Area | 14,967 square kilometres (5,779 sq mi) |
| Established | 7 June 2008 |
| Official name | Vatnajökull National Park - dynamic nature of fire and ice |
| Criteria | Natural: (viii) |
| Designated | 2019 (43rd session) |
| Reference no. | 1604 |
| Region | Northern Europe |
Vatnajökull National Park (Icelandic: Vatnajökulsþjóðgarður pronounced [ˈvahtnaˌjœːkʏlsˌθjouðˌkarðʏr̥] ⓘ) is one of three national parks in Iceland, and is the largest one. It encompasses all of Vatnajökull glacier and extensive surrounding areas. These include the national parks previously existing at Skaftafell in the southwest and Jökulsárgljúfur in the north.
The unique qualities of Vatnajökull National Park are primarily its great variety of landscape features, created by the combined forces of rivers, glacial ice, and volcanic and geothermal activity.
The park spans 14% of the country's area and is Europe's second largest national park in terms of area after Yugyd Va in the Ural Mountains of Russia. The glacier itself is the largest in Europe at 7,700 square kilometres (3,000 sq mi).
In 2019 the park was enlarged to the north.
On 5 July 2019 Vatnajökull National Park was inscribed as a World Heritage Site.