Welcome to my first series of posts about Iceland. In October 2024, my husband and I drove around the Ring Road and the Snæfellsnes Peninsula. It was hands down the most magical trip I have ever taken, and I highly recommend that everyone go see this country for yourself. A land of wild nature, delicious food, and delightful people, Iceland also has a reputation for being expensive. I personally found many ways to cut costs, and I will talk about those in my upcoming posts. First, let’s look at our itinerary.
We opted to stay for twelve days in late autumn/early winter. We chose the shoulder season as prices on airfare and lodging were much cheaper at that time of year. As our trip was edging into winter, we opted to drive a car and rent rooms rather than get a camper van. Here is the route we planned and where we stayed each night as we drove counter clockwise on Route 1:
Day 1: Keflavík to Reykjavík: You can watch this portion here and here
Day 2: Reykjavík to Laugarvatn: You can watch this portion here and here
Day 3: Golden Circle sights to Selfoss
Day 4: Kirkjubæjarklauster
Day 5: Höfn
Day 6: Egilsstaðir
Day 7: Mývatn
Day 8: Akuryeri
Day 9: Reykholt
Day 10: Snæfellsbær
Day 11: Hafnarfjörður
Day 12: Keflavík, fly home
Day One: We flew in and arrived at 4:45AM. After an all night flight, we were tired but needed to adjust to the jet lag. We saw the Bridge Between the Continents, walked in Reykjavík, ate a pylsur, visited the Icelandic Phallological Museum, and at long last, got to sleep!
Day Two: We explored a few more places like the Icelandic Punk Museum which was a small (housed in an old public restroom) but thoroughly enjoyable museum on all things punk. We caught the Lava Show which I highly recommend if you want to experience the heat, sounds, and sights real lava. We decided to drive on to the Golden Circle area and begin our explorations there. We hiked þingvellir in the early afternoon, then ended the day at Laugarvatn Fontana with a relaxing soak and some delicious geothermally baked rye bread.
Day Three: We finished out the Golden Circle with tours of Brúarfoss, Geysir, Gulfoss, Faxafoss, and Kerið Crater. I personally had never seen a geysir before, so I really enjoyed watching the water bubble and churn before spraying up in the air. We headed to Selfoss to get a start on the next day’s driving and sight-seeing.
Day Four: Heading to the south coast, we saw numerous waterfalls, caves, the Skógar Museum, glaciers, beaches, ate at Black Crust Pizza, and saw more beauty than I ever I my eyes could behold in a single day. This day was a highlight of the trip for me. While it is a more touristy area, there is a reason why. Each bend of the road leads you to a dramatic landscape of mountains and waterfalls. We stopped in Kirkjubæjarklauster for the day.
Day Five: As we headed towards Höfn, we saw more waterfalls and rock formations. We got close to the Jökulsárlón Glacier area, and we were hit with wind, driving sleet, and the wet and wild weather you expect from Iceland! We had a tour of the lagoon pre-booked, so we warmed up with some hot cocoa and a fun chat with a Canadian couple. As we waited in the car and the wind rocked our vehicle to and fro, I wondered if I was actually prepared to get on a boat in this weather. For safety, the tour company ended up cancelling. Not to fear, we took a short walk in the sleet to see seals frolicking on the beach and huge chunks of aquamarine ice floating in the lagoon. We ended our day with one of the best meals I have ever eaten at Pakkhús.
Day 6: We were blown away again as the scenery changed in the east. Curving roads, snowy mountains, coastal areas, and crashing waves delighted us as we spent most of this day enjoying scenery from the car. We took a break from Route 1 to drive up to Seyðisfjörður. We also visited Vök Baths.This night we saw the Northern Lights right from the front yard of our lodging in Egilsstaðir.
Day 7: We drove into the north and felt as if we’d transported ourselves to Mars. Craters, red dirt, bubbling mud, steamy rocks, the north part of Iceland looked really different than the south! We visited Viti Crater in the Krafla fissure and Hverir Geothermal Area, as well as the Mývatn Nature Baths. We had a lovely stay in Mývatn across from the unique pseudo craters in the area.
Day 8: We took a slower day to explore the Akuryeri area. If you’re driving from Mývatn to Akuryeri, don’t forget to put Goðafoss on your list. A large, powerful waterfall in the north, Goðafoss provides a great backdrop for photos. Once in Akuryeri, we walked around, visited a bookstore, and we got the most decadent cup of cocoa at Lyst in the Akuryeri Botanical Gardens. We stayed at a fun, movie themed hotel in town before a long drive the next day.
Day 9: We drove to Reykholt next, through snow and mountains. The landscape was once again dramatic, awe inspiring, and a little imposing with all the snowy mountains on every side. We stopped in Varmahlíð for a rest, and I bought some reindeer oil soap from a woman named Ásta Búadóttir. We specifically went to Reykholt to visit the Snorrastofa Museum. If you like history, add this destination to your list.
Day 10: From Reykholt, we drove to the Snæfellsnes Peninsula, doing the north side first and circling back around to the south side. An Iceland in miniature, this area was another shockingly gorgeous drive. From Kirkjufell to Ytri Tunga, we saw most of the major landmarks and sights.
Day 11: We headed back toward Reykjavík, stopping in Borgarnes at the Settlement Center, another highlight of our trip. It started to snow, and we decided to find an indoor activity before our lava tunnel tour. This museum was well worth the time and entrance fee if you are wanting to learn more about the Sagas. We went on to the Raufarhólshellir lava tunnel tour before ending the day with a souvenir tattoo in Reykjavík and staying the night at Viking Hotel.
Day 12: We had half a day left, so we explored Keflavík including the our favorite bakery, the Giantess Cave, and a trip through the duty free shop for last minute souvenirs before our plane departed beneath a rainbow as we said goodbye to Iceland…for now.
Our trip did not feel rushed at all, and as you can see, we went to a lot of places! While we couldn’t explore any one place all day, we felt neither deprived nor overwhelmed every night. One limiting factor is the daylight hours, so depending on what time of year you go, you could adjust these days to your own preferences.
In our next part of the series, we will look at the lodging we experienced, what to expect, and what was included. See you then!