Iceland Road Trip

Written By C Wang

Booked a last-minute trip to Iceland in attempts to catch the Northern lights, which sadly we only caught a glimpse of. BUT the views did make up for it so all is well. Normally I think 10 days would have been just nice, but we went in Winter so our days were a lil shorter so it did feel a lil rush and we may have spent too many days in Reykjavik too. Generally, I do think 10-12 days for a road trip around Iceland is comfortable, depending on the season you go.

Getting around

Took a flight over to Keflavik airport and rented a car (Iceland Car Rental) for most of our trip. Took the shuttle bus to the car rental place from the airport. We decided to rent a 4x4 SUV (Suzuki Vitara or similar) as we felt it would be sturdy for the winter season. All cars in Iceland are also required to have winter tires which is included for any car rental company that you book. I also highly recommend getting car insurance just cause the weather there can get unpredictable. And in case of any issues, I suggest calling your car rental company first before dialing the emergency no.: 112, in instances like the car getting stuck.

Price breakdown: (6 days) = ISK87,181

  • Car: ISK45,301

  • Premium insurance: ISK35,940

  • Additional driver: ISK5,940

    • Gas: ISK41,805

    • Parking: ISK10,237

Roads:

Day 1 (half day)

Landed in the evening and decided to check out Seljalandsfoss, about a 2.5hr drive, before heading to our accoms (Skammidalur Guesthouse) for the night. Checked out Vik city, mainly for their grocery shop, to get some food. But there are other things you could see too: Vik i Myrdal church, lava show and Smiðjan Brugghús (brewery).

Note: I suggest getting a local SIM card too (bought an e-sim), makes navigating easier.

Day 2 (full day)

The next morning, we headed to Skogafoss bright and early before the crowd came and had the whole waterfall to ourselves. But of course eventually the crowd came just as we were about to leave.

Note: You can walk behind the waterfall, but it was closed when we went in winter.

We then decided to check out Kvernufoss, another waterfall nearby and it was so quiet and underrated, really loved it there. Spotted some Icelandic horses along the way so we had to stop to take some pictures. And we even saw a double rainbow that day!

After that we were suppose to head to Solheimasanur plane crash, but we missed the carpark for it and ended up skipping it. From what I read, the plane site is about an hour walk from the carpark so do set aside a couple of hours if you do check it out!

We went to our next stop: Reynisfjara black sand beach. It was definitely more crowded but wow it was so pretty. It was orange lights when we went, which explained the big waves that we saw. Do be careful as the waves can be strong enough to drag you in.

We booked ourselves a 4hr glacier hike + ice cave with Troll Expeditions Skaftafell at 2pm and mygod was it one long hike. They provided crampons, helmet and a guide to take you through the glacier area. Our guide expertly taught us how to wear our crampons and gave us small nuggets of information along the way. Vatnajokull is the largest glacier in Europe, covering >8% of Iceland, so having the chance to hike just a tiny portion of it was amazing. I think a 3hr hike would have been good enough cause by then my feet and back was aching. But walking on ice through the crevasses was fun! Seeing how blue and being able to touch the glacier ice blew my mind. And making our way down to the ice cave was another challenge but so worth it. I do however suggest checking out other ice caves that look more magical such as Katla ice cave.

After coming down with wobbly knees, we drove towards Diamond beach in an attempt to catch the sunset, which we clearly could not make it in time for just cause the sun sets earlier in winter. I would also suggest checking out Jokulsarlon glacier lake since it’s nearby too, so do set aside some time for these places. (would definitely come back to see them)

Hitting the hay (Rey Stays) early just cause we were well worked out today.

Day 3 (full day)

Starting our day strong with Hvalnes nature reserve beach + lighthouse. Wow it was so beautiful there and oh so windy where the sea was just blowing at you. We easily spent an hour there taking pictures and enjoying nature. We also saw a man heading off into the distance to hike too.

We were back on the roads again heading towards the town of Djupivogur. Along the way, we did stop a couple of times to take in the scenery. We hit up JFS Handcrafts - Steinasafn/Stonegarden, where we met Jon, a friendly retired fisherman who loves collecting rocks and gems from around Iceland and anywhere really. With his proud collection, he really took the time to explain many stories behind each rock. You can get a cute souvenir from here, I bought a button made from reindeer horn. We also hit up Collection nature art craft, another cute local rock place.

Note: Vok Baths is nearby here if you intend to check out a hot spring.

And of course we had to hit up a grocery and gas station in Egilsstadir town before continuing our journey. We ended up at Studlagil Canyon for sunset, but of course the drive there had to be long so we ended up catching the sunset while on the way there. I think it would have been a great hiking area but wow the stairs were filled with snow and ice, we had a hard time heading down. But it was so peaceful when we reached. (would definitely come back to see this) And off to our accoms (Modurudalur Fjalladyrd) we go.

Day 4 (full day)

Made our way to Myvatan area to check out: Namafjall hverir and Grjotagja. The geothermal hverir smelled like many rotting eggs boiling and wow our shoes got so muddy. But it was so cool being so close to these mudspots, it felt like we were walking on Mars. Grjotagja was a small hiking area where you can hike down to see the thermal pool, but without crampons it was not possible for us.

Next, we decided to hike up Hverfjall volcano and wow what a hike it was. Underestimated this “cute 15min hike” that someone reviewed on Google maps cause we were STRUGGLING without crampons. We had to walk on the edge of the incline where there were rocks for our footing. And as we got higher, the wind got stronger and we had to crawl up slowly. I even dropped my phone at one point of time down the side of the incline and had to crawl down. And when we were at the 95% mark, we ran out of rocks to get ourselves up and wow we were stun. But alas a kind-hearted Dutch couple came by with their Timberland boots to save the day! They helped us up the last 5% and down the volcano, which we will forever be grateful for! Was the viewpoint of this volcano worth dying for? No, it was not. But now looking back, it’s definitely a story I love to tell - us struggling for our lives.

So after a 2hr hike, we made it back to our car with jelly legs again and decided no more hiking for the day, we went to see Godafoss. This waterfall is similar to Dettifoss, which was why we skipped that and went here instead. A hidden gem 30mins away was Aldeyjarfoss, which we had no time to see but looks amazing too. However, if you do plan to do whale watching, Akureyri town is the perfect stopover!

Note: Forest Lagoon is nearby the town if you intend to check out a hot spring.

The next waterfall was Kolugljufur canyon, where we wanted to catch the sunset again. This massive canyon was a short walk from the carpark and there weren’t many people when we went. I loved how it made me feel so tiny and there were many trails to explore too. And it was time to retire for the day again (Hofdabraut 46).

Note: Museum of Icelandic Sorcery and Witchcraft seems cool but we had no time to check it out.

Day 5 (full day)

Finally time to check out the west coast of Iceland, with Selvallafoss as our first stop for the day. Just a short walk from the carpark and wow the snowy scenery was pretty! There were people walking behind the waterfall as well but again, do not recommend with no crampons during winter. We wanted to do a loop around the Snaefellsnes peninsula but road conditions told us that the Kirkjufell area was too dangerous to drive so we ended up skipping that whole area: Kirkjufellsfoss + reflection and viewpoint. (would definitely come back to see this)

So instead we drove down to Ytri Tunga to spot them seals. Wow I have never seen so many wild sleepy seals so close before! Had lots of fun here taking many pictures. Headed to Bjarnarfoss next, which sadly did not look as lit during winter time so it was just a quick stopover. We drove over to Budakirkja next where the iconic black church was and wow was it crowded. It seems like Búðaklettur and Londranger would have been a good hiking areas during summer so we only managed to drive to Snæfellsjökull view point before turning back towards our accoms (Vidines Guesthouse) for the night.

Day 6 (full day)

We had a late start and decided to have a chill day at Thingvellir National Park: Almannagja (gorge between 2 tectonic plates), Silfra Fissure (snorkel), Thingvellir church, Thingvallavatn lake and Oxararfoss, where we spent a couple of hours here. (would definitely come back to snorkel)

We continued our day with Geysers at Haukadalur where the air was full of sulfur and Strokkur was frequently bursting. This was probably the most crowded place we’ve been to throughout the trip but it was worth it. Everyone was amazed by the Strokkur, applauding it as if it were a performance. Next, we headed for Gullfoss, a massive cascade of waterfalls that nearly blew me away. There was quite a crowd there to witness Mother Nature at work.

And yes, it was finally time to hit up our hot spring: Laugarvatn Fontana! We chose this as it was more affordable compared to the rest and had a natural outdoor area where you could plunge straight into the lake. We enjoyed our evening here just soaking in the many different thermal pools and sauna room. Once we were satisfied with our wrinkly selves, we headed to our next accoms (Gesthus Selfoss).

Day 7 (full day)

Our last half day with the car and here’s what we managed to see with it. We started our day at Smiley traffic light and grabbed some pastries at GK Bakari, where we got some cinnamon buns. Next, we headed to Kerid Crater, where we did an actual cute hike around the crater. We did see a couple of folks hiking down to the center but we did not want to risk it. After which, we decided to drop our bags at our accoms (Kastali Guesthouse) so that it would be easier for us to come back into town from the car rental place. We also ended up checking Hvaleyri town in attempts to see some whales along the harbour but sadly did not.

If volcanoes are your thing, I suggest Reykholt/Raufarholshellir to see a lava tunnel cave up close. (would definitely come back to see this)

We took the bus from the airport back to the city. We checked out Kolaportio flea market and saw Hallgrimskirkja at night.

Day 8 (half a day is good enough for what we did)

We decided to see Hallgrimskirkja in the day and it was pretty, sadly there was an event so we could not go inside or head up to see the views of the city. We then walked around Rainbow street (main shopping area) to find cute souvenirs. Next, we headed towards the Sun voyager sculpture at the edge of town before walking towards Harpa Concert Hall and Pufa. And then we decided why not check out The Icelandic Phallological Museum. Never seen so many penis in my life but it was an interesting museum. We ended our day at Tjornin lake to see/feed the ducks and swans. The Reyykjavik’s City Hall building is also open to the public to see too.

Note: Blue Lagoon (nearer the airport) and Sky Lagoon (in the city) are hot springs you can check out. If not, Nautholsvik (beach with thermal) and Sundholl (local pool) are other places you can go for a dip.

I would have squeezed day 7’s city things here for a full day instead so that I had more time with the car to explore other areas.

Day 9 (full day)

Our last full day in Iceland and we decided to do whale watching (Sea Trips Reykjavik), 3hrs boat ride out and wow were we freezing our asses. But we did managed to see two whales! After this, we decided to spend our day at Perlan to learn more about Iceland. It was a rather informative and interactive museum - aurora shows, volcano shows and even an ice room! We had lots of fun there.

Note: cheaper to buy the museum tickets online.

Day 10 (morning)

Our flight was at 10.15am so it was just us making our way to the airport.

Other things to note

Aurora:

Food: (total = ISK12,385 for 2 pax)

  • cheapest grocery: Bonus, Netto (we cooked/made sandwiches)

Packing list:

  • waterproof pants/jacket

  • sturdy hiking boots

  • waterproof bag

  • crampons (highly recommend especially during winter)

  • many layers + extra socks/pair of shoe (better to be safe than sorry)

  • empty water bottle

  • ziplock bags (for clothes + food + camera gears)

Accoms: (total = SGD1,228 for 2 pax)

So that is all I have for now!
Here is the link to my vlog too:

https://youtu.be/l51ggSrwkMA?si=ONDh9_mXE2zxYdZC





X,

Chey

C Wang
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