The Golden Circle
After a day trip through Snæfellsnes Peninsula, Alan and I headed south by way of the Golden Circle where we saw Goðafoss, The Geyser, and Kerið crater on our way to Hotel Selid. Though it was a fun day, it was our least favorite of our week in Iceland. The Golden Circle was full of tour buses and the scenery was less dramatic, making it my least favorite region of the trip. Alan and I both agreed we would have rather skipped the Golden Circle and spent this afternoon chasing waterfalls along the south coast. So my biggest tip to anyone thinking about going to Iceland (besides GO!), is to skip the Golden Circle.
Sleep: Hotel Selid
Explore: Goðafoss, the Geyser, Kerið Crater
Vík
Vík is a must-see village and the perfect base for exploring along Iceland’s southern coast. We were based there for two nights and hiked, chased waterfalls, swam in Iceland’s oldest swimming pool during the rain, climbed onto epic plane wreckage, drove past purple fields of lupine and danced on black sand beaches. We will definitely be returning!
Sleep: Iceland Air Hotel Vík
Eat: Restaurant Berg
Explore (listed from west to east): Seljalandsfoss, Gljúfrabúi, Skogarfoss, Seljavallalaug, Sólheimasandur, Dyrhólaey, Vík black sand beach Reynisfjara, Vík church
Vatnajökull Glacier
I must have pinched myself a dozen times during our “glacier day”; I’d never seen anything so inexplicably beautiful. We drove three hours east to Vatnajökull Glacier (Europes’ largest glacier) where we had booked a three hour Super Jeep and Snowmobile tour. Extreme Iceland did an amazing job, I can’t recommend them enough (the tour was worth every penny!).
After snowmobiling, we experienced our first Icelandic storm, but we didn’t let the winds and rain stop us from seeing floating glacier chunks in Jökulsárlón & Fjallsárlón Glacier Lagoon (though the wind did knock us off our feet several times). We ran out of time + energy to see Svartifoss and the Fjaðrárgljúfur canyon, so we saved those for our next trip to Iceland!
Sleep: Iceland Air Hotel Vik
Explore (listed from west to east): Fjaðrárgljúfur, Svartifoss, Jökulsárlón, Fjallsárlón Glacier Lagoon, Vatnajökull Glacier (Extreme Iceland)
Hveragerði
We planned to spend our last full day on The Westman Islands hiking a volcano + sailing out to the smaller islands. But due to high winds, the ferry to Vestmannaeyjar was closed all day. So instead we opted for plan B and hiked to a thermal river near our hotel (Hveragerði) for a final swim. This hike ended up being our favorite of the week! We laughed and swam in the river with locals + other travelers (from all over the world). The locals were pros and brought bagged pasta + eggs that they boiled in the geothermal river. So leave the granola bars behind and enjoy a hot lunch + cold beer in the river.
After the hike + swim, we relaxed at our hotel’s small spa (Frost & Fire) and enjoyed a delicious dinner at Restaurant Varmá. I cannot recommend this hotel enough!
Sleep: Frost & Fire
Eat: Restaurant Varmá
See our week-long Iceland Itinerary.
Follow our adventure on Instagram: #FousheesSeeIceland