Visiting next week and plan to go to a ton of local pools and hot springs. As an American this part of the travel experience is going to be new!

Do I shower before? If yes, are there stalls for that? Rent towels? Etc. any helpful tips or info is appreciated.

Hi all!! I can't seem find adecent hiking map to buy. Planning on going in August, I'd like to find a map with the trails, elevation contours and magnetic north for orientation. Any leads? I'm in Canada now, if that matters. Google hasn't been any help haha. Thanks in advance!

Going on a 7 day road trip, looking to snorkel in Silfra, camp a couple nights (possibly backpack), hit the golden circle, and hike through fjords. What's the best route to take? Is it worth it to drive the whole ring road in 7 days?

Hi, We’re planning on doing RV/ motorhome in Iceland this coming july instead of camper van. Do you recommend it for first timer? My husband knows how to drive shift stick. And would you get the premium insurance if you go in july which includes SAAP insurance I’m not sure if I need that if we’re only doing the Golden Circle. Appreciate your opinion

I am trying to find a stay that is accommodating for family of 7 that won't break the bank of over $330 a night. Does anyone have recommendations that would be helpful to find anything for this? I'm not really able to find anything and having a really hard time.

Hi all,

Here’s my planned itinerary so far. Would love to get opinions and recs and thoughts! Appreciate it! This is my second time in Iceland (but never been to the west fjords). It’s going to be my partner’s first time in Iceland!

We are not sure if we should go to the golden circle earlier or go later. We also have some gaps of open time and would love some recs! We will have a 4 wheel drive car. We will have camping equipment but definitely want some nights at lodging!

7/20- Get to Keflavik airport at 10:30pm. Get a night’s sleep in Reykjavik hotel.

7/21- Get breakfast in Reykjavik.

Drive to West Fjords and stay overnight in Patreksflojour.

7/22- Drive to Isafjouror and stay overnight there.

7/23- Take the Isafjouror ferry to Hornstrandir. Stay camping/base camp in Hornstrandir.

7/24- Hiking and camping in Hornstrandir area. Stay overnight there by camping/base camp.

7/25- Take ferry back from Hornstrandir to Isafjouror. Drive from Isafjouror to ____??

7/26- Drive to ___??

7/27- Golden circle all day and stay overnight in Golden circle area. See Kerio crater, Thingvellir, Geysir geothermal area, Gulfoss, Fluoir and mushroom farm, Hrunalaug Hot Spring, Frioheimar restaurant.

7/28-Golden circle all day and stay overnight in Golden circle area. See 7/27 itinerary (whatever we don’t finish seeing on 7/27, we’ll see on 7/28 in golden circle).

7/29-Go to Grindavik and grab food and drinks (breakfast). Then go to hike to Fagaradalsfjall Volcano. After that, go to Blue lagoon (which is near grindavik). Then fly out of Keflavik and back home!

Hello doing a 20 Day ring road Van trip!

Flying from San Diego CA and renting a van from September 3-23, plan on spending one full day/night/flight in Reykjavik 23-25 to unwind and prep for a flight to Oktoberfest!!

I know there are guides / tour recommendations, but would love any perspective on people that have done van trips, pros/cons things you wish you knew prior or things you wish you could have skipped, etc: best places to park the van, road tips/ticks and best hikes/pools/waterfalls

I plan on renting with cozy campers (done a lot of research this is the company I feel comfortable with) Thinking of going with the CDW included insurance with a tire protection add on and tunnel pass.

NOAA has now confirmed a G5 geomagnetic storm, which is the largest seen on Planet Earth in at least 21 years.

Hi all,

First of all I love this subreddit with so much information available! Upon going through posts, we thought late August would be a great time for us to visit with a 1.5yr old toddler.

We will be landing at reykjavik and was thinking that 7 days is probably too long for us to just stay in reykjavik. I know a lot of people love Vik - do you guys think it makes sense for us to spend three nights at Vik? We’d go to Fimmvorouhals and maybe Hofn? but was curious if there are other places near Vik we should go.

Or if there are other cities that warrant us to spending couple nights after reykjavik, open to that as well. Thank you!

I'll be in Reykjavik, Iceland from May 31st until June 3rd from Chicago. I love traveling and trying out cool and unique things and was wondering how I can jam pack as many things as possible in these 3 days. I do wanna keep the cost under reasonable terms, but it's not like I wanna be cheap either. I've also heard a lot about golden circle, ice caves, and the volcano which I hope I can hit in these 3 days. Just trying to figure out the logistics of these things, and which/if any tours I should take. Thanks!

Wondering if anyone has stayed at one of the separate cottages of HI Vik Hostel? Have a bunch of questions: Would love to hear if you found it to be good lodging? pleasant staff? breakfast good? CLEAN? (I'm a bit of a germaphobe). Do you recall if it had a fully functioning kitchen? Thanks for sharing any relevant info on your experience there - we may do 4 nights in Vik, so feeling a bit pickier than if it were a one-night driveby

im trying to google this but i cant find it, we’re driving behind a car with a small icelandic flag and a 1 as license plate,

my dad is joking that it’s the president but now we’re curious to what it actually is as i can only find that customised plates have to have a certain amount of symbols and this is just the 1

Hi reddit,

A question regarding renting and driving a car in Iceland. I recent swap my candian license (BC -> ON) so the issue date is less than a year ago. I had my old license for more than a year, but I only have pictures of it. I have my current license's driving record with the old issue date (>1 year). Will my driving record be accepted so that I will not be considered as holding the license for less than a year? Can I still rent a car?

Thanks all

Hi, my wife & I (29M, 29F) are traveling to Iceland from 28 August to 11 September this year. We are planning this trip to be a climax of our carefree traveling days, before we settle down and start a family.

Our goal to explore as much of Iceland as possible (minus F-roads or highlands) counter-clockwise from the Ring Road to Westfjords to Snaefellsnes Peninsula, all whilst camping in a Tesla Model Y 4x4 Long Range rented from Lotus Car Rental.

My wife is an avid wanderlust photographer whilst I am a foodie. We will be cooking most meals at campsites but don’t mind the occasional dine-in at unique spots.

Whilst we have done extensive research on almost all things Iceland, we do want to experience as much of Iceland as possible without rushing too much. Hence, would greatly appreciate all feedback or suggestions regarding our planned itinerary.

https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1P0u2FaJsgrxYNLd5lecMLl9qCmKHtmn4bjc-AUFeKK4/edit?usp=sharing 

Thank you very much in advance!

Flying from Washington DC and renting a car from May 25th - June 1st with a friend to tour the country, hoping for good driving weather.

I know there are plenty of guides that have all of the classic tourist recommendations, but would love any perspective on whether going full ring road would be too much to try to do on a trip this short.

Additionally, I have car rental insurance with CSP, but I’m wondering if I need to purchase additional protection or if the card covers all potential damages even from sand and ash.

I'm Swedish, so I understand that what we call "allemansrätten" ("all mans right", or "freedom to roam") doesn't actually mean we could stay anywhere.

But in iceland are you allowed to stay with a small camper van in nature, or do you have to go to a camping site? I mean the really small ones, not what Americans would call an RV?

Bit nervous to drive in Iceland, but I come from the midwest where the snowstorms are horrific some years. Wondering if any basic car will do or if I should pay (triple the price) for a 4WD SUV...

Any advice? These are the spots we will be going to. They are all mostly on the west or south side of the island and I believe fairly touristy. We will NOT be going to the north.

• Hillgrimskirkja

• Sun voyager

• Laugavergur

• Keri crater

• Gullfoss

• Geysir

• Thingvellar national park

• Glymur

• Stykkisholmur (town)

• Krikjufell

• Arnastapi/Gatklethur Arch

• Raudfeldsgja

• Seljalandsfoss

• Gljufrabui

• Skogafoss

• Reynisfjara black sand beach

• Fjadrarfliiufur

• Svartifoss

• Svinafellsjokall

• Diamond beach

• Stokksness

• Jokulsarlon

• Mulagljufur**

Is there cell service throughout the South Coast up to Fjallsárlón? I am going to Iceland this summer and will be driving along the South Coast all the way up to Fjallsárlón. I am worried about not having cell service and not being able to use Google Maps. My service would be Verizon/Vodafone. Thanks!

Hi!! My best friend and I will be visiting Iceland from July 8 - July 16. We arrive late at night on July 8, so that leaves us just enough time to take a bus to our hotel in Reykjavik.

We’d like to go visit the Blue Lagoon the next day, but I’m debating on whether or not we should rent our car then so we’re able to drive down (but that means also paying for the car while staying a few days in Reykjavik while we will be mainly walking). Would it be better to just take the bus to the Blue Lagoon?

I don’t mind renting the car for our first day, but is it worth it? Our hotel is next to Hallgrimskirkja!

TIA!!!

Halló! I'll (37m) be visiting Iceland at the end of this month to drive the ring road (no F-roads). I've browsed all the rental agencies and narrowed my options down to an electric vehicle and a combination of car camping \ hostels. I know Tesla is well established there, but can anyone confirm the availability of chargers for non-teslas, or if the Tesla superchargers are indeed unlocked for all vehicles still.

Second question. Anyone considering privately renting their campervan or electric vehicle? I'll have my own insurance (0 liability: TP, GP, SCDW, CDW). All I'm looking for is something reliable and affordable.

Cheers!

I am trying to figure out a place I saw in this video of a popular youtuber where he takes this incredible shot of lupines overlooking some kind of river / sea (no idea). This is south coast for sure but wanted to pin this place down to see if I could recreate something like this.

https://preview.redd.it/wgxc7znntrzc1.png?width=880&format=png&auto=webp&s=5ffce5ab478a5be5d3f6335789b188e04129299a

Any idea where this might be?

Is anyone aware of anywhere in Reykjavik likely to be televising the Eurovision final tonight? I thought it could be fun to watch in a public setting, but can't seem to see anything online. Thanks

Hello, I would like to purchase a sweater as a way to remember my 5 months here in Iceland.

I have went through some posts, that talk about where to buy some, some of them talk about the price.

But none talk about how can person identify a good quality sweater, what characteristics to look for, what are some traditional patters, what are important things to notice and not buy something made in china etc.

Can somebody provide some guide to finding a proper sweater?

I will be traveling with my fiancé and 2 of her friends (we’re all 26) from the United States to Spain for their college friend’s wedding. My grandparents were from Iceland, and I visited once when I was young. I would love to go back. So I suggested to the group that we leave a few days early and stop in Iceland on the way, and they loved the idea! They’re planning the Spain stuff, and I’m in charge of Iceland. Unfortunately the longest we can stay is 3.5 days (arriving on a Saturday morning in July and leaving Tuesday afternoon).

I would love to do the Golden Circle and visit Þingvellir, Bruarfoss, Geysir, Gullfoss, Kerid Crater, and Hveragerði. I would also like to do Blue Lagoon soon after arriving on our drive from Keflavik to Reykjavik. And it would be nice to have a night in Reykjavik to go out and explore the city. I don’t think all this is doable on our timeframe (unless we rush everything).

I was thinking of the following schedule:

Saturday: Arrive, get rental car, get to Blue Lagoon around noon, leave for Reykjavik between 4-6pm, check into hotel, and enjoy the city that night.

Sunday: Leave in the morning, drive 45 min to Þingvellir, enjoy the morning/early afternoon, leave around 3pm, drive 35 min to visit Geysir and then Gullfoss, then check into whatever lodging I book in that area.

Monday: Leave in the morning, drive 45 min to Kerid Crater, then Hveragerði for the late afternoon. Not sure where we would stay this night — possibly back in Reykjavik. Would love input.

Tuesday: Flight is at 2pm out of Keflavik. Not sure if we have time for anything before that.

Anything I should add? Subtract? Change? Any input or advice would be appreciated!

I have read a bunch of VisitingIceland credit card posts (and a bunch of other stuff online). Here is what I take away; corrections appreciated:

1. From my banks I learned that myUS credit cards (Visa, AmEx) do not have pins except for cash withdrawals--not purchases. If there is a person, hit cancel and sign for it.
2. If there is no person, use a debit card with pin
3. I read that debit cards are not often used except for getting cash--is this right?
4. Gas stations without people need a card with a pin; if there are attendants, one can pay inside
5. American Express is not widely accepted
6. Pay parking (e.g. national parks) and bus tickets online in advance
7. Iceland is mostly cashless, so I don't need to withdraw from ATM

My takeaway has been: a visa card without a pin is generally fine.

Does this seem right?

THANK YOU

I've never been to Iceland but have always wanted to go. This summer, my significant other and I are taking a trip to the Netherlands, and as a treat, we are taking IcelandAir up on their offer to let us layover in Iceland for a full day both coming and going.
I'm a bit sad that my first trip to Iceland will be just a two-night, one full day layover (twice), but we're planning to come back to circumnavigate the country by car on a future trip.

I would very much appreciate some advice about what to see/do in a 24 hour trip. Since we have never been there, we figured that we'd stay in Reykjavik both times. Our visit dates are 23 July and 5 Aug.

I just learned about Frídagur Verslunarmanna, which I think is on 5 Aug? What should I expect? Are museums open on the holiday?

Thank you so much for advice!

If you're doing (or have done) a glacier hike in the summer, do you wear a winter/snow jacket? We weren't planning on bringing a snow jacket on our trip in June, just a bunch of layers, one is a water resistant shell jacket and another is a waterproof rain suit. Thanks!