Iceland

[Simpo Two]

Pondering a trip there next year, perhaps a cruise. Before I hit Google, does anyone have any recommendations for nice ways to get there and/or interesting things to see? Thanks

[Jaska]

One of the best places I've visited, I went towards the end of November - You can pretty much see/do everything in 3 or 4 days too, unless you want to head out into the country.

Definitely do the hot springs, blue lagoon, the geysir, the penis museum, gulfoss waterfall...

A very friendly, relaxing country. Food is expensive, travel appears to be cheap. I rented a well equipped w/ snow tyres Volvo D2 for £120 for 3 days.

For a more pistonhead idea, the glacier area where the car chase scene from Die Another Day is somewhere along the south coast, probably a few hours drive from Reykjavik. Additionally I know you can go snowmobile driving, dog sledding etc.

Buy some thermal base layers and thick socks, and a nice winter coat/scarf and you'll be fine.

[Janesy B]

Weird, I was about to start my own thread...

I am going on January - was planning on renting a car so I can explore for a week at my own pace rather than going on tours. Can I get away with something like a Toyota Auris or is it best to get something 4WD? Most pics I see show the roads fairly clear and I'm not planning on driving up any mountains...

Any other general tips would be appreciated too.

[Allanv]

Last weeks thread contains a lot of information.

http://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&a...

[Simpo Two]

Allanv said:

Last weeks thread contains a lot of information

Thanks, I'm not a regular visitor here

[Jaska]

Janesy B said:

Weird, I was about to start my own thread...

I am going on January - was planning on renting a car so I can explore for a week at my own pace rather than going on tours. Can I get away with something like a Toyota Auris or is it best to get something 4WD? Most pics I see show the roads fairly clear and I'm not planning on driving up any mountains...

Any other general tips would be appreciated too.

The other thread doesn't really answer this so I'll go for it here. I would definitely suggest hiring a car, the speed limits are low in the snowy part of the year [think 50 to 70kmph] so you should feel fairly secure, you will rarely see other people driving around once you get out of Reykjavik apart from tour buses too. In fact at night around Reykjavik it got so empty that I totally forgot I was supposed to be driving on the wrong side of the road a few times... Nobody seems to be in a rush too which is nice.

As said I drove a volvo hatch, heated seats were a god send when you're coming back to the car. I think they tend to fit winter tyres as standard in Iceland too. Most of the main tourist attractions are on generally flat A-roads away from you, and they are kept swept by snow ploughs often. And the roads are generally elevated from the nearby terrain to stop them getting bogged down!

general tips - you'll shower nude at the blue lagoon, DO NOT take your towel outside and hang it on the towel rack, leave it inside where it will stay nice and warm, rather than fall off in the wind, get wet, and freeze solid...
Seeing Geysir in winter is awesome, but try not to let the vent actually land its water on you, as yep that water will freeze solid too...
Everyone speaks good english so if you arent sure if a place is open or whatever just give them a ring! We drove for an hour to a more off the grid 'local' hot spring to see what its like, only to find that it's shut in the winter...

[Dodsy]

Make sure you go at the right time to do the inside the volcano tour. Its only available a few months of the year. Did this with my sons and it was by far the best thing we did while there.

https://insidethevolcano.com/

[Janesy B]

Jaska said:

The other thread doesn't really answer this so I'll go for it here. I would definitely suggest hiring a car, the speed limits are low in the snowy part of the year [think 50 to 70kmph] so you should feel fairly secure, you will rarely see other people driving around once you get out of Reykjavik apart from tour buses too. In fact at night around Reykjavik it got so empty that I totally forgot I was supposed to be driving on the wrong side of the road a few times... Nobody seems to be in a rush too which is nice.

As said I drove a volvo hatch, heated seats were a god send when you're coming back to the car. I think they tend to fit winter tyres as standard in Iceland too. Most of the main tourist attractions are on generally flat A-roads away from you, and they are kept swept by snow ploughs often. And the roads are generally elevated from the nearby terrain to stop them getting bogged down!

general tips - you'll shower nude at the blue lagoon, DO NOT take your towel outside and hang it on the towel rack, leave it inside where it will stay nice and warm, rather than fall off in the wind, get wet, and freeze solid...
Seeing Geysir in winter is awesome, but try not to let the vent actually land its water on you, as yep that water will freeze solid too...
Everyone speaks good english so if you arent sure if a place is open or whatever just give them a ring! We drove for an hour to a more off the grid 'local' hot spring to see what its like, only to find that it's shut in the winter...

Thanks for the reply, I've just booked a Dacia Duster 4x4 from Bluecar. There's plenty of up to date information about the state of the roads. My Basic route is Keflavik - Reykjavik - Golden Circle (as much as I can do with 5 hours daylight) - Selfoss - Vik and then work my way back towards Keflavik. I have 7 days so I think this should be enough. Seeing as I'm sticking to the main routes I don't think road closures will be much of an issue?

[JQ]

Janesy B said:

Jaska said:

The other thread doesn't really answer this so I'll go for it here. I would definitely suggest hiring a car, the speed limits are low in the snowy part of the year [think 50 to 70kmph] so you should feel fairly secure, you will rarely see other people driving around once you get out of Reykjavik apart from tour buses too. In fact at night around Reykjavik it got so empty that I totally forgot I was supposed to be driving on the wrong side of the road a few times... Nobody seems to be in a rush too which is nice.

As said I drove a volvo hatch, heated seats were a god send when you're coming back to the car. I think they tend to fit winter tyres as standard in Iceland too. Most of the main tourist attractions are on generally flat A-roads away from you, and they are kept swept by snow ploughs often. And the roads are generally elevated from the nearby terrain to stop them getting bogged down!

general tips - you'll shower nude at the blue lagoon, DO NOT take your towel outside and hang it on the towel rack, leave it inside where it will stay nice and warm, rather than fall off in the wind, get wet, and freeze solid...
Seeing Geysir in winter is awesome, but try not to let the vent actually land its water on you, as yep that water will freeze solid too...
Everyone speaks good english so if you arent sure if a place is open or whatever just give them a ring! We drove for an hour to a more off the grid 'local' hot spring to see what its like, only to find that it's shut in the winter...

Thanks for the reply, I've just booked a Dacia Duster 4x4 from Bluecar. There's plenty of up to date information about the state of the roads. My Basic route is Keflavik - Reykjavik - Golden Circle (as much as I can do with 5 hours daylight) - Selfoss - Vik and then work my way back towards Keflavik. I have 7 days so I think this should be enough. Seeing as I'm sticking to the main routes I don't think road closures will be much of an issue?

With 7 days I'd want to do more than that - Reykjavik, Golden Circle and Selfoss is a day trip if you've got your own car. With 7 days you could do the Golden Circle then circumnavigate the whole island.

[BenWRXSEi]

Janesy B said:

Thanks for the reply, I've just booked a Dacia Duster 4x4 from Bluecar. There's plenty of up to date information about the state of the roads. My Basic route is Keflavik - Reykjavik - Golden Circle (as much as I can do with 5 hours daylight) - Selfoss - Vik and then work my way back towards Keflavik. I have 7 days so I think this should be enough. Seeing as I'm sticking to the main routes I don't think road closures will be much of an issue?

An excellent choice







These were taken a couple of weeks back, rented through Bluecar. While you don't need AWD I was very glad of it, and rather bonded with the little Duster after a week. It's nice to be able to get away from the tour coaches and wander up an F-road or two as well.

Plenty has been mentioned above, but additionally the peninsula around the airport (Grindavik to Hafnir) is worth a pootle round. Try also to head North - we only made it as far as Borgarnes but apparently the countryside in the north-west is spectacular. I'd say a must-do is a glacier tour (crampons and everything!). Most are pricey as they include transfers, but we booked a tour-only through Mountain Guides which was one of the cheaper offerings, but still an excellent couple of hours.

[Janesy B]

JQ said:

With 7 days I'd want to do more than that - Reykjavik, Golden Circle and Selfoss is a day trip if you've got your own car. With 7 days you could do the Golden Circle then circumnavigate the whole island.

Even with 5-6 hours of daylight? I had originally planned that route but binned it because I didn't want to find myself dashing from place to place to avoid driving in the dark.

BenWRXSEi said:

An excellent choice

[IMG]http://i429.photobucket.com/albums/qq14/benedwards64/Duster%2001_zpsy9gvsroz.jpg[IMG]

[IMG]http://i429.photobucket.com/albums/qq14/benedwards64/Duster%2002_zpse2lw816g.jpg[IMG]

[IMG]http://i429.photobucket.com/albums/qq14/benedwards64/Duster%2003_zps1jsqblwy.jpg[IMG]

These were taken a couple of weeks back, rented through Bluecar. While you don't need AWD I was very glad of it, and rather bonded with the little Duster after a week. It's nice to be able to get away from the tour coaches and wander up an F-road or two as well.

Plenty has been mentioned above, but additionally the peninsula around the airport (Grindavik to Hafnir) is worth a pootle round. Try also to head North - we only made it as far as Borgarnes but apparently the countryside in the north-west is spectacular. I'd say a must-do is a glacier tour (crampons and everything!). Most are pricey as they include transfers, but we booked a tour-only through Mountain Guides which was one of the cheaper offerings, but still an excellent couple of hours.

I actually booked it based on your recommendation and someone else's in the other thread, thanks for the other tips

Edited by Janesy B on Tuesday 1st December 17:03

[BenWRXSEi]

No probs

FWIW, I did plenty of driving in the dark to maximise daylight hours at various destinations. The main routes are really very good.

[JQ]

Janesy B said:

JQ said:

With 7 days I'd want to do more than that - Reykjavik, Golden Circle and Selfoss is a day trip if you've got your own car. With 7 days you could do the Golden Circle then circumnavigate the whole island.

Even with 5-6 hours of daylight? I had originally planned that route but binned it because I didn't want to find myself dashing from place to place to avoid driving in the dark.

Yep. We've circumnavigated the island in 3 days - stayed in Hofn the first night and Akureyri the second. You may only have 5 hours of daylight, but it doesn't go pitch black the rest of the time, it's more dusky either side of the daylight hours. It would be a waste to have 7 days there and only do what others do in 2 days. There's so much more of the island to see.

[BenWRXSEi]

Another tip while I think of it - pick up a bottle of the local Reyka vodka as you go through duty-free when you land at the airport. It's really very good, and a bit of pre-gaming helps take the sting off the bar prices

[Rude-boy]

And at all costs avoid the lichen schnapps unless you want to take home a bottle for those evenings with friends which start with "I dare to to drink a shot of this and not immediately start pulling a face like a Bulldog chewing a wasp whilst reaching for a pint of water..." Which, incidentally, is what we use what is left of ours for...

[Fer]

Dodsy said:

Make sure you go at the right time to do the inside the volcano tour. Its only available a few months of the year. Did this with my sons and it was by far the best thing we did while there.

https://insidethevolcano.com/

This!

You get to walk from Europe to North America, and the volcano is pretty special!