Visiting Iceland
Visiting Iceland
Any recommendations on must-sees in Iceland? Thinking of renting a car there, is a 4x4 necessary?
Re: Visiting Iceland
People do not become more irritable as they grow old - they simply stop making the effort to avoid annoying others.
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interleukin
- Posts: 2361
- Joined: Tue Apr 25, 2006 4:46 pm
- Location: Stockholm
Re: Visiting Iceland
The following is a copy paste from something I wrote on reddit a while ago when someone was asking what to do while in Iceland.
Of course there are the classic things: Gullfoss, Þingvellir, Geysir, Blue lagoon, etc. Those are close to Reykjavik and can be done in a day or two. The Blue lagoon is quite turisty, but pretty cool if you have never went to anything like that before. In Reykjavik, there is the Laugavegur shopping street that you can have a stroll down, the area around there gives you a feeling of Reykjavik downtown. My personal favorite things in Iceland are more on the north-eastern part. They are: Ásbyrgi (a horseshoe-shaped canyon), Askja (a crater with a lake) and Dettifoss (the Chuck Norris of waterfalls). These things can be hard to reach on normal car, even in a jeep, so it might be smart to see if you can get a bus-tour out of Mývatn (mosquito lake) for a few days. Another really cool thing is the Jökulsárlón (a lake meets a creeping glacier, the result is a cool lake with tons of icebergs. Bonus: you often find seals swimming around in the lake). Jökulsárlón is quite hard to miss (it is on the southern coast) as the main road (nr1) passes straight by it - reachable by any car. Also, in Skaftafell park in the south (national park), you can drive+walk up to a creeping glacier and stand there between the icebergs. It is very cool, even for someone who has been there before. Landmannalaugar 8s a really cool place as well, but you need a big-ish jeep to get past the last river (if you have a small car, just park it before the river and ask someone to give you a ride across). Landmannalaugar has fantastic scenery and a natural hot spring you can try out.
All these places have wikipedia-articles I think, have a look at them and then you can decide if these things would suit you.
About the weather (you didn't ask but anyway...): Be prepared for ten different types of weather in one day. That is how it works, especially of course if you go into the central highland area. Expect rain, but also cold weather or suntanning weather. Oh, and the tapwater is excellent and you are silly if you pay for water in bottles!
if you rent a car, very often they will have 4x4 anyway. It depends on you, how much you will be driving out in the countryside (gravel roads require a certain technique, easy if you are used to it but tourists glide with their cars out into the side of the road all the time if they've never tried those roads before). But for most things a normal car is fine. Depending on if you want to go to the more exotic part of the country, you'd need a big jeep anyway, and then it might be easier to just join a jeep trip for a day or two.
Of course there are the classic things: Gullfoss, Þingvellir, Geysir, Blue lagoon, etc. Those are close to Reykjavik and can be done in a day or two. The Blue lagoon is quite turisty, but pretty cool if you have never went to anything like that before. In Reykjavik, there is the Laugavegur shopping street that you can have a stroll down, the area around there gives you a feeling of Reykjavik downtown. My personal favorite things in Iceland are more on the north-eastern part. They are: Ásbyrgi (a horseshoe-shaped canyon), Askja (a crater with a lake) and Dettifoss (the Chuck Norris of waterfalls). These things can be hard to reach on normal car, even in a jeep, so it might be smart to see if you can get a bus-tour out of Mývatn (mosquito lake) for a few days. Another really cool thing is the Jökulsárlón (a lake meets a creeping glacier, the result is a cool lake with tons of icebergs. Bonus: you often find seals swimming around in the lake). Jökulsárlón is quite hard to miss (it is on the southern coast) as the main road (nr1) passes straight by it - reachable by any car. Also, in Skaftafell park in the south (national park), you can drive+walk up to a creeping glacier and stand there between the icebergs. It is very cool, even for someone who has been there before. Landmannalaugar 8s a really cool place as well, but you need a big-ish jeep to get past the last river (if you have a small car, just park it before the river and ask someone to give you a ride across). Landmannalaugar has fantastic scenery and a natural hot spring you can try out.
All these places have wikipedia-articles I think, have a look at them and then you can decide if these things would suit you.
About the weather (you didn't ask but anyway...): Be prepared for ten different types of weather in one day. That is how it works, especially of course if you go into the central highland area. Expect rain, but also cold weather or suntanning weather. Oh, and the tapwater is excellent and you are silly if you pay for water in bottles!
if you rent a car, very often they will have 4x4 anyway. It depends on you, how much you will be driving out in the countryside (gravel roads require a certain technique, easy if you are used to it but tourists glide with their cars out into the side of the road all the time if they've never tried those roads before). But for most things a normal car is fine. Depending on if you want to go to the more exotic part of the country, you'd need a big jeep anyway, and then it might be easier to just join a jeep trip for a day or two.
Re: Visiting Iceland
Sounds just like Finland to meinterleukin wrote:About the weather (you didn't ask but anyway...): Be prepared for ten different types of weather in one day.
. For this time, I think I will rent a normal car then. Thanks for the info. I always wanted to visit Iceland, so I am thrilled to bits about this trip.-
interleukin
- Posts: 2361
- Joined: Tue Apr 25, 2006 4:46 pm
- Location: Stockholm
Re: Visiting Iceland
I´m sure you´ll have lots of fun.
Remember to buy booze at the taxfree shop when you arrive in Iceland (there´s taxfree shopping going in and out of Iceland), stock up on stuff you´ll want as it´s much cheaper than buying it in Vinbud (the state-run alcohol shops).
Remember to buy booze at the taxfree shop when you arrive in Iceland (there´s taxfree shopping going in and out of Iceland), stock up on stuff you´ll want as it´s much cheaper than buying it in Vinbud (the state-run alcohol shops).
Re: Visiting Iceland
Just got back, what a wonderful place. Great people-really pleasant and helpful, great nature and great food. Planning my next trip already!!!