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My itinerary
Iceland-specific tips:
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My itinerary
I was in Iceland for a 2 day volleyball tournament and then used a rental
car to tour the island clockwise in two weeks: west - north - east - south.
See my Iceland-specific tips here.
- Reykjavík: 2 day volleyball tournament (yearly Easter tournament in a different European city every year); stayed with Icelandic girls
- Soaked in the Blue Lagoon
- Björk performance
- Hvalfjörður (a fjord), Reykholt (small town), Deildartunguhver (Europe's biggest hot spring), Hraunfossar (waterfall straight out of lava rocks without a river above it)
- Húsafell: stayed overnight in a lovely farm guesthouse, had the entire 3 storey farm to myself
- Tried to go all the way around Snæfellsnes peninsula but couldn't because of snowed up road and severe fog
- Up to Hvammstangi, then Ósar
- Ósar: overnight stay in lovely wooden hostel with seals on the beach in front
- Glaumbær old houses with grass roofs
- Akureyri: art museum, cafes, visit to good swimming pool, stayed in comfortable hostel
- Godafoss waterfall, and on to Mývatn area
- Reykjalið in Mývatn area: stayed at practical Eldá guesthouse, soak in hot lagoon
- Toured Mývatn area: Hverir hot springs, Krafla vulcano, Hverfell crater, etc.
- Saw northern lights!
- Seyðisfjörður, cute harbour town in beautiful fjord: stayed at the lovely hostel
- Höfn: stayed overnight at Hvammur guesthouse (not recommended)
- Jökulsárlón lake with icebergs where I spotted 3 seals; ice blocks on the black volcanic sand beach
- Skaftafell national park; Vatnajökull = huge glacier; Svartifoss waterfall
- Skaftafell: stayed overnight at lovely Bölti guesthouse with amazing view
- Núpsstaðir cute church with grass roof
- Vík, cliffs and beach
- Fljótsdalur: stayed overnight at lovely remote hostel with grass roof and amazing views on Eyjaffjallajökull glacier
- Hveragerði: stayed in cabin at Eldhestar Hotel (quite expensive and no kitchen), did a horse ride
- Geysir (Strokkur geyser and various hot springs); Gulfoss big impressive waterfall
- Reyjavík, stayed with Icelandic girls again
- Þingvellir
national park with Inga from Reyjavík
Iceland is a developed country in a very rough natural environment. It's worth knowing these little things about the habits and differences before you go:
General tips
- Icelanders pay almost anything with a debit card, even their beers at the bar and a hamburger or a cup of coffee at a petrol station. So no need to take out huge amounts of cash, just have some for emergencies and pay the rest with debit / credit card. Mastercard / Maestro accepted everywhere.
- At swimming pools, lagoons and hot tubs you need to wash yourself and your hair very thoroughly without swimsuit on and using the soap provided before you go in.
- Many of the ordinary swimming pools rent out towels. Many also have hot tubs, a sauna and Turkish steam bath.
- At the Blue Lagoon and the hot lagoon in Mývatn (and other baths with high sulphur value): take off all your jewelry or it will turn black by oxidation.
- At most places you will need to take your shoes off in the hall. They will not be stolen. A pair of woolen indoor house shoes can come in handy.
- Many places inside are very hot (heating cranked up, it doesn't cost them much since they take it from natural sources), so bring some T-shirts too.
- Try to hog 10-Kronur coins for payphones.
- Accommodation: in summer phone ahead to see if they have space left (ideally book well in advance); in winter phone ahead to see if they're open at all and what the latest arrival time is.
- Bring a sleeping bag; sleeping bag accommodation (unmade beds) are way cheaper than made-up beds. Or bring camping gear.
- Self-cater (cook your own meals) to keep costs down. Bring herbs and spices in small containers from home, as well as plastic sandwich bags and some aluminum foil. Buy the rest (coffee, tea, food) in Icelandic supermarkets. It's about 20-50% more expensive than European supermarkets. All hostels and most guesthouses and camp sites have fully equiped kitchens with pans, plates and cutlery, toaster, sometimes toast iron, microwave, water boiler.
- Bring fleece hat and good scarf and gloves, it's often windy and cold outside.
- Bring good sun lotion, the cold wind might make you forget about the fierce sun.
- Bring hiking shoes that can deal with some water / mud. I can tell you from experience that sneakers with air (water...) holes are not always great!
- Outside the summer months you may
be lucky and spot northern
lights. It needs to be very cold and crisp, and a very clear night.
In the afternoon pay attention to white smears in the sky (almost like
airplane trails), these may be a prelude to northern lights. Ask locals
for their predictions. They say there is more chance of spotting northern
lights in the northern part of the country, i.e. Mývatn area.
But there are no guarantees...
- Tipping is not customary and is sometimes taken as an insult. Simply do not tip in restaurants, taxis etc.
- The tap water is drinkable (although it
tastes a bit of sulphur).
- If you're not planning on driving in the interior, or to Dettifoss or Landmannalaugar, then a normal rental car will do for the Ring Road. Otherwise a 4WD is better.
- Don't try to read all the blue road signs,
they are just the names of farms. The yellow signs indicate towns /
villages.
- An important road sign is the one
stating 'Malbik endar', indicating a transition from paved road to gravel
road. Slow down, do not brake hard on the gravel.
- Pay attention to the road conditions and
the very changeable weather before you start driving. This is a good
website for it: www.vegagerdin.is
- Pay attention to these signs:
they indicate a touristic point of interest like a waterfall, an old farm, church, a hot spring... Often there is not a lot of space to brake / make a turn, so slow down on time.
- When buying petrol, you often need to
pay in advance at a machine (with debit card or credit card), and decide
upon an amount in ISK. Some machines allow you to leave the amount open
and opt for 'fill up'. Some petrol stations have signs for 'Full service':
a guy will fill up your tank for you. Petrol is more expensive in remote
villages. Get it at bigger towns.
- Pay attention when crossing bridges, often the road is damaged before and after the bridge.
- Near most bridges there is some space to park. Comes in handy for photo stops (bridges are often near beautiful waterfalls or streams).
- Do not count on finding restaurants, lunch rooms ar nice cafes along the ring road. Your best bet is having junk food at a petrol station, or checking a guidebook beforehand to find a restaurant in a town (and hoping for it to be open), or self-catering.
- Have enough drinking water with you, and some extra for emergencies.
- Bring CD's with your favourite music; on many radio stations it's 20% music and 80% Icelandic chattering. In the mountains you might hardly receive any station at all.
- You should have your headlights on at all times, so in daylight too.
- Even with a 4WD you are not allowed
to drive outside the roads (be it paved, gravel or dirt roads).
What are you waiting for? Go!
Iceland is unique and so beautiful! And very
easy to travel in. The people are friendly, helpful, most of them speak
fluent English and they generally have a good sense of humour.
I recommend holidaying there to anyone who loves nature and vulcanic activity.
Don't let the weather deter you. Just count on the worst weather you can
imagine, that way you can only be pleasantly surprised on good days. Plus
you can always soak in a hot tub or lagoon when you're cold. :-)
Iceland is not cheap but you can save money by camping or using hostels
(sleeping bag accommodation), self-catering and buying your plane ticket
well in advance.
