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Every Iceland winter driving guide says the same thing: "check road.is before you go." Good advice. I've said it myself more times than I can count. But opening the map and actually understanding it are two very different skills.
A colored line across a mountain pass, a wind reading of 18 m/s, a timestamp from three hours ago: each one tells you something, but only if you know how to read it. So that's what we're doing today.
I'll show you where road.is sends you now, what the conditions on the map mean, how to read the weather station numbers, when the data is refreshed, and when to call 1777. At the end, I'll give you my 5 minute routine to run every morning of your trip.
If you want the basics of driving on snow and ice (tires, braking, daylight hours), read our general winter driving tips first. This post sticks to the map.
Why "Just Check road.is" Isn't Enough
Iceland's roads can change completely in a few hours. A clear road at breakfast can be closed by lunch when the wind drifts snow across it.
The road authority publishes this information quickly, but it can't make the decision for you. You still have to look at the right road section, at the right time, and understand what you're seeing.
Most visitors make one of three mistakes:
- They only check the start of the route. Reykjavík looks fine, so they assume the whole drive will be too. The trouble is usually up on a pass or along an exposed coast hours away.
- They read the color but ignore the wind. A road can be marked passable and still be dangerous for a tall camper or a small car in strong gusts.
- They check once, the night before. Conditions are updated throughout the day in winter, so last night's picture can be out of date by morning.
Once you can read the map properly, it becomes the most useful planning tool you've got. Honestly, it's more useful than any souvenir you'll buy.
Where road.is Takes You Now: umferdin.is and 1777
road.is is still the address everyone remembers, but these days it works mainly as a gateway. From there, you're pointed to two things:
- Traffic Info (umferdin.is), the interactive road conditions map run by the Icelandic Road and Coastal Administration (IRCA, Vegagerðin). This is where you'll spend most of your time.
- The 1777 traffic service, the IRCA's phone and email information line.
So when someone tells you to "check road.is," what they really mean is "open umferdin.is and look at your route." My advice: bookmark umferdin.is on your phone before you land. It saves you a step every single morning.
Photo by Ed Wingate on Unsplash
How to Read the Legend: Slippery, Icy, Snowy, Impassable, Closed
The map colors each road section by its current condition. Conditions are recorded by IRCA staff and contractors around the country, so each color is a real report from someone on or near that road. Not a guess. A person.
Here's what the main condition types mean in practice:
- Easily passable. The road is generally clear. It's still winter, though, so expect patches of ice in shaded spots and on bridges.
- Spots of ice. There's ice or packed snow on up to about a fifth of the stretch. Drive slowly, leave plenty of distance, and expect it to be worse on hills and bends.
- Slippery / Extremely slippery. Ice covers much of the surface. Only continue if you're comfortable, have good winter tires, and have a real reason to travel.
- Wet snow / Snow, Difficult driving, Difficult conditions. Snow on the road, sometimes with drifting. "Difficult driving" means roughly 10–20 cm of snow, unsafe for anything but four wheel drive; "Difficult conditions" means more than 20 cm, unsafe except for jeeps and larger vehicles. Visibility and grip can both drop fast, especially in wind.
- Impassable / Closed. Snow (or a landslide, flooding and so on) makes the road impassable for normal vehicles. Roads with no winter monitoring are also set to this after the first fall snowfall. Treat this as "do not go."
- Closed / Driving prohibited. The road is shut to traffic. Don't attempt it, and don't drive around barriers. Many highland and mountain roads stay closed all winter.
A few reading tips from me:
- Zoom in on every section of your route. Conditions often change several times along one road, for example clear in a valley and icy on the pass above it.
- Tap or click a section to see any extra detail the map offers for it.
- Look at the timestamp. A report from early morning may not reflect a storm that's arrived since.
- Check notifications. The 1777 team publishes notices on umferdin.is about closures, roadworks and weather. These often explain why a road is marked the way it is.
Reading Wind and Temperature from Weather Stations
The colored lines tell you about the road surface. The weather station readings tell you what's about to happen to it.
The data comes from Vegagerðin's own weather stations and measuring devices along the road network, plus a number of stations run by the Icelandic Met Office (Veðurstofa Íslands).
Photo by Marco De Gregorio on Unsplash
Wind
Wind is the reading visitors most often underestimate. Trust me on this one. Iceland measures wind in meters per second (m/s), not km/h or mph. A rough way to convert: multiply m/s by 3.6 to get km/h.
When you look at a station, check both the average wind and the gusts if they're shown. Gusts are what push a car sideways or tear a door out of your hand when you open it.
Look closely at stations on exposed stretches: mountain passes, coastal roads and open plains. A reading that's fine in town can be very different 50 km down the road.
If you're driving a tall vehicle such as a camper van or a large 4x4, be more cautious with strong winds than you would be in a small hatchback.
Air and road temperature
Temperature tells you whether ice is likely. The danger zone is around 0°C, where melting and refreezing make roads slick and hard to read.
Where a station shows road surface temperature alongside air temperature, pay attention to it. A road can be below freezing even when the air is a degree or two above.
A falling temperature in the late afternoon is a warning sign: wet roads from the day can turn to ice after dark.
When the Data Is Updated
Even the road reports need their beauty sleep.
Knowing the update schedule helps you judge how fresh the map is.
- Winter (1 October to 30 April): road conditions are updated every day from 07:00 to 22:00.
- Summer (1 May to 30 September): updates run from 08:00 to 16:00.
What this means for you in winter:
- Before 07:00, you're looking at the last updates from the previous evening. If you're leaving very early, the map may not yet reflect overnight snow or wind.
- After 22:00, nothing new is added until the morning. If you're driving late, conditions can change with no update on the map.
- During the day, check again before each long leg, not just at breakfast.
The weather station data is gathered from automatic sensors, so check the time on each reading to see how recent it is.
Calling or Emailing 1777
Sometimes the map isn't enough. Maybe a section is marked impassable and you want to know if it's expected to open, or you're not sure which route is safer. That's what 1777 is for.
The 1777 traffic service is run by the IRCA from offices in Ísafjörður. Its staff monitor weather forecasts and road conditions closely, take reports from travelers, and pass information on to the IRCA's service stations. They answer questions by phone and email, and publish notifications on umferdin.is.
Key details:
- Phone: 1777 within Iceland, or +354 1777 from a foreign SIM.
- Hours: 06:30 to 22:00, every day, all year.
Winter is the busiest time. On a busy winter day, the service answers up to 3,000 phone calls and issues around 150 notifications. So if a storm is rolling in, expect to wait, and check the map and notifications first. Your question may already be answered.
When you do call, have this ready: the road number, the towns you're driving between, your vehicle type, and when you plan to leave. You'll get a much more useful answer.
1777 is for road information. In an emergency, call 112.
A 5 Minute Morning Check Routine
Run this every morning before you start the engine. It takes about five minutes. I do it with my coffee, and you should too.
Minute 1: Weather warnings. Open the Icelandic Met Office's weather alerts and see if there's a warning covering your region today. If there's a serious warning on your route, consider changing your plans before you check anything else.
Minute 2: Road conditions along your route. Open umferdin.is and follow your route section by section, from start to finish. Note any slippery, icy, snowy, impassable or closed stretches.
Minute 3: Wind and temperature. Tap the weather stations along the exposed parts of your route, such as passes, coasts and open plains. Look at wind, gusts and temperature, and check how recent the readings are.
Minute 4: Notifications. Read the current notices for your region on umferdin.is. Look for closures, planned snow clearing and roadworks.
Minute 5: Decide and share. Go, wait, or reroute. If anything is unclear, call 1777. Then tell someone your route and expected arrival time. Safetravel has more on planning a safe winter trip.
Repeat minutes 2 to 4 at lunch or before any long leg. It's a small habit that can save you a long, stressful afternoon. Ask me how I know. Actually, don't.
Photo by Grant Ritchie on Unsplash
Plan Your Winter Drive with Fewer Surprises
The best road trip stories are the ones without a tow truck in them.
A good morning check is easier when the rest of your trip is sorted:
- Choose the right car. Our guide to renting a car in Iceland in winter explains what to look for, from 4x4 to winter tires.
- Budget your fuel. Detours and waiting out a closure add kilometers. Use the Northbound fuel calculator to plan your costs.
- Save at the pump. The Northbound discount card can cut what you pay for fuel along the way.
- Book at the right price. Set up Price Watch to get notified when rental prices drop for your dates.
Quick Recap
- road.is now points you to umferdin.is (the map) and 1777 (the information service).
- Read every section of your route, not just the start, and check the timestamps.
- Wind in m/s and temperatures near 0°C matter as much as the road color.
- In winter, conditions are updated 07:00–22:00 daily.
- 1777 is available 06:30–22:00 every day, year round. Call 112 in an emergency.
- Run the 5 minute check every morning and before long legs.
Read the map well and you'll make better calls on the road, and enjoy Iceland's winter far more. Góða ferð!
