Iceland - questions answered

[jpalbny]

IME, the blue lagoon was a fantastic way to relax after a short red eye flight to Keflavik.

 

Yes, the flights arrive "too" early. Here is how we handled it a few yeats ago, in January.

 

We picked up our car, and went out to sightsee for a few minutes at the Garđur lighthouse (just down the road). Crashing ocean, desolate shore... Then we headed into Keflavik for a breakfast (we found a hotel ahead of time serving a buffet).

 

That killed enough time, and should get you close to 9am, so head to the lagoon and be there when they open. We spent at least 2h there and enjoyed it much more than we expected. Best jet lag recovery, ever.

[Nitemare]

KEF has a few places to eat. I haven't been there in almost 2 years, I understand they've improved their food service options (their shopping, especially Duty Free, has always been great!). Here's a link to their current options: http://www.kefairport.is/wheninkef/en/restaurants/

 

Also: If you land at 6:30, it will be closer to 7:30 by the time you leave the airport, so that's some of the time spoken for.

[angeleyes27]

We also liked the Blue Lagoon, pricy but fun. There is a small Viking museum near there. The airport has about 4 places to eat. I know one had sandwiches. I think there is a Viking land near there too

[Talent312]

I bit the bullet and bought a Blue-Lagoon package (on their website) for the morning our flight arrives... before going to the hotel. We bought the one with the robe+slippers... my DW's idea. I'm thinking that bobbing around in an over-sized bathtub is a decent way to work off jet lag.

 

For the Golden Circle, we're leaning toward the van-sized tour by GeoIceland or Iceland Horizon.

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[Nitemare]

We were very happy with Iceland Horizon for the Golden Circle. A warning, though, our 2 day stopover with that tour for Golden Circle turned into an Iceland obsession, so be prepared to be returning over and over again!

[vplsh]

We're only doing a 1 night stopover in Iceland, so I booked Iceland Luxury Tours for pickup at the airport and a Golden Circle Tour, with dropoff in Reykjavik at the end. Hoping to get a food tour in after that and do the Blue Lagoon on the way to the airport.

For those of you who have done this, is 2 hours at the Blue Lagoon enough time? We have a 4:30 flight from KEF to Amsterdam, so figure to need to be at the airport by 2:30. If we get to the Blue Lagoon around 11, do you think that will work?

Thanks in advance!

[Nitemare]

Count on 1/2 hour to get ready for the pool (short line to get in, changing, mandatory shower) and a bit longer (drying off, shower, getting dressed, gift shop) after you're out of the pool.

 

You must have a reservation for the Blue Lagoon made in advance.

[jpalbny]

We were very happy with Iceland Horizon for the Golden Circle. A warning, though, our 2 day stopover with that tour for Golden Circle turned into an Iceland obsession, so be prepared to be returning over and over again!

 

Ha ha, that happened to us too. A few cruise stops in Akureyri and Reykjavik got us out and about, exploring on our own. This has led to several more stops, both by cruise ship, and longer visits. It's such a neat place!

 

We actually talked a few weeks ago about going back for a long weekend this winter, like we did a few years back. Probably not this year, though.

 

BTW, is your statement about needing a reservation for the Blue Lagoon only applicable to the high season? I'm asking because we visited in January (a few years ago) without a reservation, and there was no problem. Wondering if that's changed...thinking ahead to the next trip! :)

Edited January 29, 2016 by jpalbny

[Nitemare]

Reservations are strongly recommended at the Lagoon year 'round.

 

And I fear Iceland will be unvisitable in 2-3 years. Reykjavik can handle the tourists, but there just aren't enough hotels and restaurants outside the city to house visitors. And you could build more hotels out there, but there aren't enough residents of Iceland to staff them.

 

This will be our fourth visit this summer and we expect it could be our last chance.

[ICMDGO]

We will be in Iceland on a cruise in May and one of our stops is in Isafjordur. We have decided to rent a car in this city and head out for the day on our own. We did not get a 4 wheel drive and would like to stay along the coast and not head into any mountains.

 

We just have a couple of questions:

 

How far is the airport from the port?

 

Where all should we drive to?

 

What all should we see?

 

We are planning on staying in just the Westfjords area and we will have 10 hours in port.

 

Any suggestions ??????

 

Thanks so much in advance

[Nitemare]

Here's Google's image of Isafjordur (in winter):

 

https://goo.gl/maps/5NWganDcEFs

 

Note the airport at the bottom. The cruiseships dock on the left side of that peninsula sticking into the harbor

 

I'd check out this website: http://www.westfjords.is/ to figure out which direction to drive once you get your car.

Edited February 10, 2016 by Nitemare

[ICMDGO]

Here's Google's image of Isafjordur (in winter):

 

https://goo.gl/maps/5NWganDcEFs

 

Note the airport at the bottom. The cruiseships dock on the left side of that peninsula sticking into the harbor

 

I'd check out this website: http://www.westfjords.is/ to figure out which direction to drive once you get your car.

 

Thanks !!

[bluebeachbum]

Anyone use Soltice tours? How are their vans? Did you feel that a 9 -11 hr. tour is exhausting? Are the Golden Circle tours & the South Coast tours on winding roads which would make one motion sick if one has that tendency? Thanks in advance.

[Nitemare]

There are no "highways" in Iceland, other than the road from the airport to Reykjavik.

 

I suggest you go to Google Maps and look at the roads that take you to the Golden Circle sites and along the south coast to see how winding they are (note: Some are quite winding). You can even use Street View on many of them to see them really up close.

 

Is a 9-11 hour tour exhausting? It depends on how well rested you are when you start. I assure you you will be seeing something amazing every 5 minutes, and something interesting constantly, so you won't ever be bored in Iceland.

[challahmom]

We need hotel accommodations for July 8 and 9, 2016 in Reykjavik. Many of the hotels are sold out. Do you have any recommendations?

[jpalbny]

That's the busiest season. Try a site that lists many hotels, such as booking.com which will show anything that's available.

 

Edited to add: Just checked your dates and there are lots of apartment accommodations listed with availability. Some hotels are available as well. You should be able to find something.

 

Consider, however, that (from what I've hears) downtown Reykjavik can be a zoo in the summer, all day and what little there is of the night. Nonstop partying. If that doesn't appeal to you, and you jave transportation, consider looking out of the city proper. Hafnarfjordur to the south is nice; we stayed there in August once.

Edited May 6, 2016 by jpalbny

[Nitemare]

I'd use TripAdvisor to see how the hotels rank. You can also use their booking agent similar to Booking.com.

[Bella O]

Just wanted to thank all prior posters for the excellent advice in this thread. I read through all 30 pages and it was so worth it! We will be there for just two days, and I have some great ideas now on how to maximize our time. Still debating whether to base in Reykjavik and not get a car, or to stay outside the city and get a car. More research needed, but this has been one of the most helpful threads on cc. Thanks again!

[TMLAalum]

Just wanted to thank all prior posters for the excellent advice in this thread. I read through all 30 pages and it was so worth it! We will be there for just two days, and I have some great ideas now on how to maximize our time. Still debating whether to base in Reykjavik and not get a car, or to stay outside the city and get a car. More research needed, but this has been one of the most helpful threads on cc. Thanks again!

 

On our way to Europe we spent 2 nights in Iceland. Picked up rental car and spent first night at Hotel Lotus, a bit outside city center but close to Hilton. Drove to Hilton to park & catch HoHo bus, then used car in the evening to find a restaurant. Next day we drove the Golden Circle route and loved having the freedom to spend as much time in each of the 3 main areas that a car allowed. That night we drove to Keflavik and stayed at Hotel Berg since we had an early morning departure.

 

In retrospect, we should have spent both nights in Keflavik rather than change hotels. We could still have spent our arrival day in the capital and kept with our plan for the Golden Circle on day 2 and not have had to deal with the hassle of changing hotels. BTW both hotels were very good.

 

On our return we spent decided to spend another night in Iceland which gave us 24 hours to enjoy. We drove further afield to Borgarnes, stayed at the Eglis Guesthouse, and the following day drove around the Snaefellnes peninsula as far as we could before we needed to get to KEF.

 

If you stay in Reykjavik's city center, you won't need a car and you could take a tour of the Golden Circle. But a car gives you so much more freedom to explore at your own pace and the driving isn't difficult since it's on the same side as the US. We did use our Garmin GPS which has Europe maps.

[Bella O]

Thank you! Appreciate you taking the time to post such a helpful response.

[Zermatt]

I have seen posts asking about what to pack for an Iceland trip and I know it is best to pack for all scenarios. We are planning a cruise in August of this year stopping in Reykjavik, doing the Golden Circle Tour, Akureyri, and Isafjordur. Would we need boots for icy conditions? We are not hikers exactly but need to know the best shoes to wear.

 

Thank you

[Nitemare]

If you're doing a glacier walk you'll see ice, otherwise you'll be fine with regular hiking boots.

[reney313]

I have seen posts asking about what to pack for an Iceland trip and I know it is best to pack for all scenarios. We are planning a cruise in August of this year stopping in Reykjavik, doing the Golden Circle Tour, Akureyri, and Isafjordur. Would we need boots for icy conditions? We are not hikers exactly but need to know the best shoes to wear.

 

Thank you

 

Waterproof shoes are critical if it rains. While we were there last summer, it started sunny, rained like crazy at the Geysir, sprinkled at the waterfall, and was sunny again for the south side. We were happy to have our waterproof shoes on.

 

You can find some good trail shoes rather than boots that are lighter to pack and are affordable. You can often find some good deals on Sierra Trading or through your local outerwear store when they have sales.

[ljandgb]

The first time we were there, end of May, we did standard tourist tours where we were driven to waterfalls, etc. We jumped out to see the sights then got back in the car. For that, I actually wore Keens with wool socks. Not the most fashionable, but I didn't not want to pack a heavy pair of shoes to be worn for only 2 days on our way to our Baltic cruise. We had the usual Icelandic mix in weather - sun, rain, sleet. I did get a bit wet, and a second pair of socks would have been good as a back up, but it was not that bad.

 

The second trip was Iceland alone, in March, and I had both waterproof hiking shoes and heavy waterproof boots. We had very different tours including glaciers, ice caves, etc.

 

If you will be hiking beyond the tourist parking lots, or if you really want to explore around the waterfalls, good waterproof shoes will be more comfortable. If you are just wanting to see the standard sights, you could probably get away with lighter weight shoes.

[Zermatt]

Thanks for the quick responses. This information really helps.