There's a great deal to see and do in Iceland and how much time it takes to 'see it' depends on several factors. Do you want to drive by and see the highlights of the Golden Circle or are you interested in seeing the Northern lights, hiking, photography, birdwatching, etc in Iceland.

A basic tour or self drive to the Golden Circle plus a visit to the Blue Lagoon can be accomplished in under 48 hours.
We stayed for 4 nights in July and next time we'd like to stay for a week to try to fit in some of the things we missed.

what do you mean by the primary sites?

the golden circle can be done in a day or so, and Reykjavik in not a lot more.

if you want to do a circular tour around the island on the main road [there's just the one main road that goes right round] that will take a minimum of a week, but 10 days would be better.

if you want to add on a trip to the western fjords and snaefellsness and/or the interior, you'll need at least 2 weeks.

Good luck!

I am interested in driving around the island. How are the driving conditions in Summer and is driving on the R side? Thanks!

Hi Fla,

in summer driving conditions on the "ring road" are absolutely fine. the road is tarmac all the way round and yes, they drive on the right.

one advantage of visiting in the summer is that you get long, long days for exploring - in mid-summer, there is virtually no night-time. this does take a bit of getting used to when you can sit outside and read a newspaper at midnight.

you should have a great time.

I agree with annhig but be prepared to be flexible with your plans as Icelandic road conditions can be unpredictable even in summer.
This summer we intended to drive to Jokulsarlon lagoon but the day before we arrived a bridge was washed away by flooding. The link describes what happened and this took weeks to fix!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EXO5WTHPLSg

As a professional tourist guide in Iceland since 1988 I've done hundreds of tours around Iceland. In summer you'll be able to get to more places than in the wintertime, simply because some roads may be blocked with snow. The road to Dettifoss waterfall for example. Dettifoss is the most powerful waterfall in Europe.

I recommend in summer six nights and seven days to drive around Iceland and see all the main sights. If you have one extra day then spend it in Reykjavik - preferably on a week-end when the pubs and bars are packed. Please note though that the locals go out rather late - like between 1 AM and 6 AM.

If you're in a hurry you can actually drive the entire ring road which is nearly all paved - 1.300 km or 900 miles, in one 24 hour day. This is not recommended though. If you're in a big hurry than four nights and five days should do it.

In winter four nights should do it.

If you enjoy photography then you can spend endless time in Iceland. It is truly the landscape photographer's paradise.

Pity I cannot post a picture of the northern lights from my last trip.

Can you actually see the northern lights in a summer trip to Iceland? I thought that was normally a winter phenomena? We're thinking of a possible 9 day trip in 2013 summer.

You need darkness to see the lights GreenDragon, so there is little chance of seeing them in the summer.

Makes sense to me. No darkness in the summer I remember June in Orkney, Scotland - 3 hours of twilight and the sun was back up!