Breidavik Beach

Breiðavík lines a sheltered bay near the south-western tip of the Westfjords in a broad sweep of pale golden sand — a colour and scale that feel unexpected this far north. Dark cliffs frame the shore, the shallows run clear and turquoise, and a small white church and the seasonal Hótel Breiðavík stand on green flats just above the sand. It is one of the largest beaches in the region and the usual stop on the drive out to Látrabjarg, Europe's largest bird cliff and biggest puffin colony, further west along the same gravel road.