What to do in Iceland
Iceland is not known for being cheap, but this particular year when I was trying to decide where to go, the exchange with US dollar was the best it had been in ages. With that knowledge, my sister, our friend and I decided it was the year to visit Iceland.
We had about nine days total for the trip and stayed on the edge of Reykjavik, but still in walking distance. You don’t need much time to explore their capital, but it’s a great place to stay for a first trip to Iceland.
We took this trip the end of August and while there were plenty of tourists, it didn’t feel overwhelming when we were there. However, Iceland has grown in popularity since my trip, so I’m not sure if this would still be considered a good time to go in terms of tourists.
Glacial Lagoon Tour
I don’t tend to prebook many tours, but I did book a tour that included the Glacial Lagoon. In planning, I found it easier to just stick with the one accommodation for the trip. This is not necessary, but worked for this trip. If we had more time Iceland, I’d try to circle the island, but with a limited amount of time I kept it simple (though I had also read about the sudden weather changes, which intimidated this Florida living, island born girl).
This tour for the Glacial Lagoon also included stop along the South coast including Skogafoss waterfall and the black sand beach. This tour was ALL day due to the distance to the Glacial Lagoon from Reykjavik. I did read that most people would drive and overnight near the lagoon. We did this all day tour instead and it was great!
Blue Lagoon
If you’ve seen any hot spring photos of Iceland, you have probably seen the Blue Lagoon. We spent half a day here and enjoyed the warm hot springs. I don’t remember the price we paid, but it was less than what I’m seeing listed now. It looks like the package options are just different overall. While visiting this iconic spot could be worth it, my favorite hot springs memory came the day we rented a car to see the Fjords in the North.
Book the Blue Lagoon Entry Ticket with Optional Private or Shared Transfer
Renting a car – Fjords
At this point in my travels, I had driven in other countries, but I had reservations about driving in Iceland due to the sudden weather changes I read about. Still, I decided driving up to the Fjords would be worth it. Again in keeping with my ease of planning, we didn’t overnight anywhere else. We only stayed in Reykjavik.
While we did stick to the main roads, we found out main roads don’t always mean paved roads.
Similar to the tour, this was a whole day of driving. We rented the car in the morning, and we were told to stay on main roads. They explained what the main roads were and while we did stick to the main roads, we found out main roads don’t always mean paved roads. We drove on one road for a long time when suddenly it became gravel. I was scared we had taken a wrong turn, but after some deliberation, I continued driving and the road eventually was paved again.
We stopped at an info center in this area and asked about natural hot springs. We were given two recommendations. We tried to stop at the first recommendation, which had us going down a one lane gravel road. The hot spring was in a rock somewhere, but we never found it.
Hot Springs with a View
We continued on to the second recommendation. This one had bathrooms and the natural hot springs were put into a man made hot tub that overlooked the ocean. There were only two other people in the hot springs, a Dutch couple, who advised us each of the three options were different temperatures. We chatted with the couple a bit and enjoyed the view. This whole experience was free (aside from the gas and car to get there) and an experience I still remember fondly.
The natural hot springs were put into a man made hot tub that overlooked the ocean. This whole experience was free (aside from the gas and car to get there) and an experience I still remember fondly.
The views on this drive were also breathtaking! It took longer to drive to this area than my original research suggested, so I would recommend staying a night or two, but overall I’d absolutely recommend exploring this area.
Horse Back Riding on Icelandic Horses
One thing you should know about me is I have a fear of animals. I enjoy them. I like learning about them. I like watching them. However, they are animals and unpredictable in my mind. I enjoy them from a safe distance or a cage, if shark diving ever happens (my first attempt failed in Capetown, South Africa). I have ridden horses a few times in my life and I have very vivid memories of all. I guess a little fear can have that effect. During my childhood in Florida, in New Zealand and this tour on Icelandic horses.
This tour was booked in the info center in Reykjavik and not pre meditated, but we chose this tour and a day trip to Greenland. I like to plan but leave a little room for the unexpected.
The weather in Iceland the day of the tour was cold and rainy. This was a rather large tour. I want to say about thirty or so of us. They gave us orange rain suits to wear, which weren’t completely successful at keeping the water out. We mounted these small horses and were taken through the beautiful Icelandic land. I say beautiful, but my memories of the views barely exist. The rain was light but incessant and impeded the expansive views. Food was included in the tour and upon returning, we removed the rain suits and were ushered into a dining room.
Would I recommend this? Yes and no. It was a cool experience and the Icelandic horse is worth seeing and experiencing. Would I choose to do this crowded tour again, no.
Book the Icelandic Horseback Riding Tour from Reykjavik
Golden Circle Tour
The Golden Circle Tour is another tour I pre-booked and is common route to take in Iceland. It had several stops including to the famous Geysir. The tour also includes Gulfoss waterfall and Thingvellir National Park. This is a typical day tour from Reykjavik and you will have plenty of options for tours.
Book the Golden Circle with Kerid Volcanic Crater Day Trip from Reykjavik
Or combine with Blue Lagoon:
Book the Golden Circle, Blue Lagoon with Ticket and Kerid Volcanic Crater
Day trip to Greenland
Looking at our tour option in the Reykjavik info center, we stumbled across a day tour to Greenland. This tour wasn’t cheap, but included round trip flights, and to the opportunity to visit Greenland. So we said “carpe diem” and booked it. This was on the Saturday, our last full day of the trip. We flew to Greenland in the morning and our guide took us to a small village. He showed us these massive poles, which he pointed out were used for directional purposes when snow buried all but the top portion. Even visiting with no snow on the ground, we were able to get a sense of what winter is like in Greenland.
Soon we arrived to the village. First observation was the dead and gutted killer whale on their beach. The Inuit had hunted just the one whale and had begun the process of storing the meat and fat for the winter ahead. The village was small and felt poor. The grocery was tiny and the prices of those items were inflated, due in large part to the shipping costs. There is a strong sense of depression and alcoholism, both of which makes sense in this very harsh and isolating climate. The eery sounds of the sled dogs howling and echoing each other stood out as well. We also saw a tribal dance put on by a local. The scenery didn’t feel as special as what Iceland offers. However, there was a massive glacier on the boat ride back which was stunning.
Would I recommend a day trip to Greenland? Yes! I love experiencing and learning about other cultures. While this culture wasn’t all “happy and prosperous,” their resilience in what is an extremely harsh climate is amazing. During days and days of rain in Florida, I can start to feel some type of way. I can’t imagine navigating the extreme winter of Greenland. They seem to still have some traditions and ways of surviving still in tact, but the world is smaller now and perhaps that has had some negative effects as well. Don’t go to Greenland expecting an Icelandic experience, but I very much enjoyed the day’s worth exploration and learning!
What I’d do in Iceland on a Return Trip
One day I’m sure I will return to Iceland. A return trip will either be in hopes of seeing the Northern Lights or exploring more of Iceland by car, reminiscent of my Faroe Islands trip. We spent time in Reykjavik and did a couple of other tours, but I listed my favorites above. It’s very easy to book tours in the Reykjavik Tourist Center. If you only partially plan your trip like I did, the tourist center is great for adding on extras. We added on the horse back riding tour and Greenland last minute!
The terrain is beautiful and otherworldly and I only saw a small portion of it.
The people of Iceland are kind. The food was delicious, though not cheap. The terrain is beautiful and otherworldly and I only saw a small portion of it. This trip was full but not overwhelming and I wouldn’t change it!
