The beautiful country/island. We have wrote some "Good to know" and "What to bring" down here. Our day plans and description of our each destinations will be here in couple days :)
GOOD TO KNOW:
1. Expensive: oh boy, Iceland is soooo expensive. Other than Reykjavik, all the cities you visit during your road trip have only couple gas stations on the road and they only have burgers. Get ready to eat unhealthy. The protein bars, chocolates, sourveniers are extremely expensive. So make sure you have a good budget for this trip.
2. Weather: if you don't like the weather; just wait 15 minutes and it will change :) it will rain and then in short time; all the clouds will be gone and it would be sunny! So make sure you wear layered clothes.
3. Choosing a car: we visited so many places that we kept saying "Thank god we rented a 4WD". There are four or five places that we have visited and regular 2 wheel cars couldn't get on the road or they had to hike about 20 minutes to get to the place. Or can't go to the places like; Gjain, you ride one hour on very bumpy roads to get there.
4. Car insurance is expensive just like anything else in Iceland. Check out if your credit card company is covering car insurance.
5. Gas stations: There are sooo few stations on the Road Ring. So full it up whenever you see any station. One more thing about gas stations... Some of them doesn't except credit card without chip pin code. So you might have to find a different station.
6. Blue Lagoon reservation: Make sure you make a reservation before so you don’t wait in the line; also if you can go early in the morning; fewer crowd is there. During lunch time and afternoon so many tour busses arrive and trust me you don’t wanna have a bath with all of those people :D we made a premium reservation and scheduled a massage and that was the best thing we ever did in our lives :) In water treatment is something you have to try in Iceland.
7. Iceland guide book: we bought lonely planet Iceland tour guide book months before the trip. While Doruk was driving; I was reading the attractions on our next destinations.
The book also is a great resource of hotels and dinner places.
The book also is a great resource of hotels and dinner places.
WHAT TO BRING:
1. Light hiking shoes is a must!
2. One light hiking pants and One thick sweatpants for the days when it's colder.
3. Layered Clothes: Make sure to bring couple of heat-protected long sleeve shirts. (Depends on how many days you will stay.) I recommend Uniqlo's long sleeve heat protected shirts. And also get yourself a Colombia or similar fleece. You'll have the heat protected shirt underneath and then fleece on top and then wear your jacket.
4. Jacket: if you have a thick, wind-shield jacket and with a hoodie; pick that one for this trip. You never know when it will rain or when it will get windy. I would pack one rain jacket just for the wind and rain when the weather is nice; you wouldn't have to wear the thick one.
5. Gloves and a beanie! Even though you are visiting in summer, you will need at least a beanie to warm you up. (Gloves are starting from $25 and beanies from $20 if you want to buy it in Reykjavik).
6. Camera bag: if you decide to bring more than one lenses, make sure you have a light bag to carry the lenses with you during the hike.
7. Lenses: make some research and look at the picture of the places you will visit beforehand and decide what lenses you will need for the landscapes. We have borrowed 12mm lens from our friends and we used that lens almost everywhere except the glacier lagoon. We have used our 80mm to shoot the glaciers.
8. Hair bands for girls! I have lost countless of hair bands and thank god i brought about 10 or more with me :) when the weather is windy, you dont understand where the hair band falls off from your hair. Trust me and bring some extra hair bands.
9. Protein bars, trail mixes and nuts: food is expensive in Iceland. If you will do a road trip; make sure you take some bars and nuts with you. We have drove total about 4 hours or more everyday so it was nice to have some snacks with us in the car.
10. Swim suits and light towels(pestamels): There are some secret geothermal pools hidden in some valleys. You might wanna stop by, hike about 20-30 minutes and swim in a beautiful hot pool in the middle of an amazing valley. Oh also, You must visit Blue Lagoon while you are in Iceland, duh!
11. Car phone holders: If you will do a road trip, make sure you download the offline google map of Iceland and star (save) the destinations in google map so you can find it easily while driving.
12. Car phone charger: gps literally eats the battery. You'll need a to go charger.
13. Print out your trip plan and take it with you. The plan and the guide book will help you find your destinations easier.
14. Selfie stick or go pro: There are awesome places that unfortunately when you try to take the picture with your arm you can't capture the full beauty. Selfie stick will help you out.
15. Car games: I have failed bringing car games to play while we were on the road. You might wanna bring some games with you so you can entertain the driver :)
16. Spotify or iTunes offline music list: make sure you download an offline play list. Many areas of Iceland; the reception is not good. An offline list will help you out.
17. Ziploc bags: we always pack empty un-used ziploc bags with us. You always need it wherever you go.
ICELAND TOUR PLAN - JULY 2016
For weather forecast use: http://en.vedur.is/weather/forecasts/elements/#type=precip
Day 1:
Arrive at KEF Airport at 11.30pm, clear customs, pick up Budget rental car
Drive to Reykjavik (City Center Hotel) (45 minutes)
Day 2:
Wake up, wander around Reykjavik (TODO), old town, marina. Have lunch, pack a picnic.
Drive to Thingvellir (40 minutes)
Drive to Geysir (50 minutes)
Drive to Gulfoss (10 minutes)
Drive to Gjain (1 hour 20 minutes) (dinner picnic)
Drive to Hella (1 hour 20 minutes) (Guest House Nonni)
Day 3:
Nonni is famous for cooking excellent breakfast for guests. Have breakfast. Pack water, snacks. Fill up the tank.
From Hella -
Drive to Seljalandsfoss (30 minutes) (waterfalls - sneak from behind)
Drive to Eyjafjallajökull Erupts visitor center (15 minutes)
Turn left on 242 to Seljavallalaug Hot Springs Pool (10 minutes). Park near the farm and hike ~20mins. Bring swimsuit and towels.
Drive to Skogafoss (10 minutes) - Hike to the top for about an hour and come back (or if raining, come back next day)
Drive to Dyrhólaey (30 minutes) When driving on the main road #1 or ring road direction east you take a turn to the right to road 218. Drive that road to an end but please note you have two options i.e. either drive it all the way or make a right turn up the hill. That is because Dyrhólaey is divided into two parts i.e. the higher and lower part. When turning right you are able to drive all the way to top which I highly recommend. When coming down again I also recommend you finish road 218 because on the lower part there is a great view and a beautiful beach to explore.
Drive to Black Beach Restaurant (30 minutes)
Drive to Vesturhorn (3 hours 30 minutes)
- On the Ring Road driving East pass the town of Höfn. After 7 km turn right(south) onto an unmarked dirt road just before the tunnel. Follow this road for over 5km and you will reach a cafe with the statue you see in picture below
- Pay the fee in the box
Visiting Vesturhorn
- You can stop at the café and walk down to the black sand beach
- Or you can drive the road towards the military base that is not military anymore I think. There you have to stop, then turnaround and admire the view. You can walk in the sand dunes to get some nice foreground to the mountains
- Be careful with the grass. It is critical to the sand dunes to avoid erosion
Drive to Hotel Hofn (20 minutes)
Day 4:
Drive to Jokulsarlon (1 hour) Boat Tour at 9.30am *tickets confirmed*
After the boat tour, spend time around Jokulsarlon.
Drive to Fjallsárlón Glacier Lagoon (15 minutes), hike and spend time around.
Drive to the plane wreck (2 hours 30 minutes), if any spots were missed the day before, visit accordingly, consider lunch around Vik. Park and walk for 4 miles round trip to the plane.
Drive to Reykjavik (2 hours)
Dinner at Fishmarket at 8.30pm. *reservation confirmed*
Day 5:
Drive to Blue Lagoon (45 minutes), arrive between 9-10am. *tickets confirmed*
Massage reservation at 11am (30 minutes). *appointment confirmed*
Lunch at the cafe
Leave at 2.30pm to KEF airport (30 minutes)
WOW Air flight at 5.20pm to SFO
Iceland February 2017 Winter Tour Plan
For weather forecast, use: http://en.vedur.is/weather/forecasts/elements/#type=precip
Day 1:
19 Feb 04:00 arrival. Pick up the rental car from Budget.
Reykjavik downtown (10 minutes) -- PACK dinner, water, champaign, wine etc.
Drive to Thingvellir (40 minutes)
Drive to Geysir (50 minutes)
Drive to Gulfoss (10 minutes)
Hotel - Ice Stay Cabins (1 hour)
Night - hottub, chasing aurora?
Day 2:
Sunday morning - wake up - breakfast
Drive to Seljalandfoss (1 hour)
Eyjafjallajökull (10 minutes)
Plane Wreck (20 minutes) -- (you will need to walk about 4km)
Vik-Black Sand Beach (30 minutes).
Black Sand Beach Restaurant lunch.
Drive to Hali Country Hotel (2.30 saat - It might take 4-5 hours depending on the weather)
Look for an Aurora at night :)
Day 3:
Breakfast starts at 8am
Check out at 9:15.
Glacier Adventures - Meet with them at the reception.
Return around1pm.
Lunch at the hotel when we come back.
Stop by at Jokulsarlon
Seljavallalaug Zwembad secluded swimming pool (3 hours)
To Reykjavik.
8pm - Dinner at Fish Company
Night time - find a bar in Reykjavik or catch for aurora.
Return to hotel (Blue Mountain Apartments).
Day 4:
Morning - Blue Lagoon. 9.30am arrival (40 minutes)
11.30 In Water Massage - 12.30pm Lunch @ Blue Lagoon Restorant
Flight at 4pm. 2Go to Airport around 2pm. (30 minutes)
These are great tips Dila! Thanks!
ReplyDeleteI hope it helps! :) Enjoy your trip!
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