Vegan food on the Laugavegur + Fimmvörðuháls (to Skógar)
Carry all main meals from Reykjavík. Every FÍ hut has gas stoves and cooking equipment, while hut shops provide only limited, expensive snacks. Volcano Huts publishes vegan options at Álftavatn and Þórsmörk, but these are welcome booked meals rather than resupply. Iceland permits sealed vegan food for personal use regardless of origin, subject to its published import rules.
Carry all main meals from Reykjavík. Every FÍ hut has gas stoves and cooking equipment, while hut shops provide only limited, expensive snacks. Volcano Huts publishes vegan options at Álftavatn and Þórsmörk, but these are welcome booked meals rather than resupply. Iceland permits sealed vegan food for personal use regardless of origin, subject to its published import rules.
Practical vegan planning
Local food worth trying
For a local carry, look for dried dulse, Icelandic barley products and packaged flatbread whose ingredient list excludes dairy. Traditional rye bread and leaf bread often use buttermilk or other dairy, so check the pack. Local berries and wild-food history do not establish anything available at a hut.
What to buy
Buy every breakfast, lunch and dinner in Reykjavík. Bónus, Krónan, Nettó and Hagkaup carry ordinary staples and vegan products; outdoor shops and the BSÍ terminal sell freeze-dried vegan meals at high prices. Lighter, cheaper hut cooking uses couscous, noodles, lentils, instant mash, nuts and sauces. Bring one extra day and keep sealed imported food in labelled packaging.
Good places on the trail
Landmannalaugar's seasonal Mountain Mall sells basic groceries and soup, not dependable vegan dinners. Every FÍ hut provides a gas kitchen and sells at least snacks, with no operator guarantee of vegan freeze-dried meals. Álftavatn: Volcano Huts publishes vegan options at lunch and dinner during its operating season and accepts advance meal booking; ask separately about a vegan packed lunch. Hvanngil and Emstrur are self-catering hut nights. Þórsmörk: Volcano Huts states that Lava Grill can provide vegan options when reception is notified, and packed lunches are ordered the night before. Guided operators may sell vegan catering as a paid booking extra; independent walkers should not infer that from hut accommodation.
Trail treats
Carry a labelled vegan chocolate or dessert from Reykjavík. Hut leftovers boxes and changing snack shelves are pleasant surprises, not part of the food plan.
Where to restock
There is no meaningful resupply after the Reykjavík shop. The Mountain Mall and hut shelves can replace a forgotten snack, not several days of balanced vegan meals. Pack for the full itinerary plus one spare day before boarding the highland bus. Book the Álftavatn or Þórsmörk meal in advance if you want to reduce one carried dinner.
Things that may not be vegan
Check dairy in Icelandic bread, mash, soup and chocolate, egg in baking and honey in granola. A vegetarian freeze-dried meal may contain milk or cheese. Do not rely on donated leftovers.
Useful words and questions
English works at the huts. Icelandic label words: mjólk, milk; smjör, butter; rjómi, cream; ostur, cheese; egg; hunang, honey; kjöt, meat; fiskur, fish.
Sources and research notes · 26 sources
mast.isOfficial Icelandic food and veterinary authority (MAST) rules on bringing food into Iceland: vegan food permitted regardless of origin, meat and dairy from outside the EEA banned including freeze-dried and dehydrated forms, sealed packaging with an ingredients list requiredChecked 30 Jul 2026
fi.isHut operator's own confirmation that the Laugavegur huts have gas stoves, pots, pans, tableware and washing-up, and that every hut sells at minimum chocolate or snacks with the range depending on hut sizeChecked 30 Jul 2026
volcanotrails.comOperator's own menu and opening detail for the Álftavatn restaurant: vegan option at both lunch and dinner, service hours, season 1 July to 4 September, online meal booking, takeaway lunch packs and snacks soldChecked 30 Jul 2026
volcanotrails.comOperator's own words on vegan provision at Lava Grill, Þórsmörk, plus season 1 April to 31 October, daily 8:00 to 23:00, breakfast times, packed lunches ordered the night before, and the meat-led two-course dinner buffetChecked 30 Jul 2026
kronan.isÍslensk Hollusta söl (dried dulse) sold in 50 g bags across Krónan's Icelandic stores, 949 ISK when checked, roughly 15.3 g protein and 7 g salt per 100 g, Icelandic-madeChecked 30 Jul 2026
yourfriendinreykjavik.comTraditional Icelandic plant ingredients and how they are used: söl eaten dry and worked into flatkökur, soups and stews; fjallagrös (Iceland moss) gathered from heath and mountain and cooked into bread, soup and porridge; angelica and sea greensChecked 30 Jul 2026
hvammsvik.comIcelandic berry season early August to late September, ended by night frost, and the picking rules: free on public land, and on private farmland you may pick wild berries to eat on the spotChecked 30 Jul 2026
icelandcloseup.comSecond source on ripening (late August into early September, must be picked before night frost), the taste of Icelandic wild bilberries and crowberries, and picking etiquetteChecked 30 Jul 2026
world.openfoodfacts.orgIngredient list for HP Kökugerð flatkökur, an Icelandic supermarket brand: wheat flour, water, rye flour, oatmeal, rapeseed oil, salt, raising agents, preservative and coconut oil, with no dairy listedChecked 30 Jul 2026
modirjord.isMóðir Jörð at Vallanes: Icelandic organic barley (pearl barley, flakes, flour), berry and rhubarb jams, chutneys, and burgers the producer itself describes as suitable for vegans, sold in Icelandic shops and supermarketsChecked 30 Jul 2026
modirjord.isCorroborates the Móðir Jörð barley range and preserves and the farm's plant-based focusChecked 30 Jul 2026
veganvstravel.comTraditional Icelandic dishes that are vegan or vegan with the butter left out (pickled beetroot, spiced red cabbage, rófustappa, roasted cauliflower, rhubarb pie), and that rúgbrauð and laufabrauð are conventionally made with buttermilkChecked 30 Jul 2026
sheroamstheglobe.comVegan-specific supermarket detail for Bónus (vegan freezer range, gluten-free schnitzel, pre-made sandwiches), Krónan (cheese and yoghurt alternatives, vegan mayo and sauces), Hagkaup (vegan meats, cheeses, yoghurts, Junkyard sandwiches), and the brands Anamma, Naturli', Linda McCartney, Beyond Meat and OumphChecked 30 Jul 2026
veggiesabroad.comKrónan and Bónus vegan sections nationwide, Vínbúðin marking vegan wines, pre-made vegan sandwiches at Olís and N1 forecourts, vegan chocolate-covered almonds at petrol stations, and the Reykjavík vegan bakery stops Plantan Kaffihús and KattakaffihúsiðChecked 30 Jul 2026
champagne-tastes.comFirst-hand account of walking the Laugavegur on dairy-free, meat-free food because of the import rules, naming the vegan meals carried (Vite Ramen, Pad Thai, red beans and rice, Thai curry); freeze-dried prices at Fjallakofinn (Adventure Menu about 3,495 ISK) and the BSÍ kiosk (Real Turmat 2,195 to 2,995 ISK); vegan brands worth importing (Firepot, Good To-Go, Backpacker's Pantry); and that huts stock little beyond snacksChecked 30 Jul 2026
medium.comFirst-hand August account of this trail: a vegan lentil curry soup seen on the Álftavatn restaurant menu, a vegetarian companion cooking real lentils and rice in a hut kitchen, and the finding that freeze-dried meals alone left the writer permanently hungryChecked 30 Jul 2026
thetravelbug.blogIndependent hiker account confirming Icelandic customs blocks meat imports and that vegetarian meals are the safe thing to fly in with, that all huts sell only a small high-priced selection of snacks and drinks, and that Álftavatn is the one paid meal on the route itselfChecked 30 Jul 2026
lotuseaters.travel2025 hikers' account: leftovers boxes at the huts holding food donated by departing walkers, hut stock of chocolate, freeze-dried meals and soups at steep prices, and the Mountain Mall operating in peak season onlyChecked 30 Jul 2026
talesofatrail.comIndependent confirmation that hut shops sell limited supplies and no hot ready-made meals, and that Reykjavík (Bónus, Nettó) is the resupply pointChecked 30 Jul 2026
tmbtent.comSecond, non-operator source confirming vegetarian and vegan options at the Álftavatn restaurant, its 11:30 to 23:00 service, very high prices, and that hut shops carry only snacks, drinks and hiking essentialsChecked 30 Jul 2026
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