The shallow valley is at about 100 m (330 ft) above sea level about 110 km (68 mi) to the north-west of Reykjavík.

There is a north-south orientated geothermal area in the valley, of about 1 km (0.62 mi) in width and about 6 km (3.7 mi) long, mainly on the eastern slopes of the rhyolite dome of Laugarfjau that is 187 m (614 ft) high.

[2] To the west of the valley is Bjarnarfell at 727 m (2,385 ft) which is a hyaloclastite ridge mainly composed of basalt and some rhyolite.

[3] Haukadalur is home to some of the best known sights in Iceland: the geysers and other geothermal features which have developed on the Laugarfjall [ˈlœyːɣarˌfjatl̥] rhyolitic dome.

[1] The water source for the geothermal activity may originate from the southern Langjökull ice sheet, about 50 km (31 mi) to the north.