wepn829

Hi - I would really appreciate any responses from my fellow travelers here. I am heading to Iceland for 5 nights the beginning of September. I arrive 9am at Keflavik Airport on Saturday and am renting a car for the week from the airport. I am planning on doing the Blue Lagoon right away since it is so close.

After that, the plan was to drive to Vik, where I will be staying two nights (Saturday and Sunday nights). What should I stop and see along the way from the Blue Lagoon? And what is a good day trip from Vik for the next day?

On Monday, I have the day to explore west of Vik, and plan on staying the night at Hotel Ranga (near Hella). Would it be possible to do the Golden Circle on this day before heading to the hotel?

Tuesday and Wednesday nights will be spent in Reykjavik. So I have Tuesday to also do the Golden Circle if the day before it is not possible, but I would like to explore in and around Reykjavik these last two days if I can.

Thursday is an early 10am flight from Keflavik Airport.

Any responses are appreciated. I am so looking forward to this trip!

annhig

hi wepn,

well i think that you are doing the right thing by not trying to see the whole of Iceland in the time you've got, which is an excellent start. However, I think that I would move your trip round a bit, to start by NOT going to the Blue Lagoon when you get there. It's something that you could fit in at the end if you like, but IMHO it's not a top priority, being really only a glorified swimming pool.

personally I would drive to Hella from the airport, and use that as a base for 2 nights to see that end of Iceland in particular the floating iceberg lake at Jukulsaron. Then i would drive back via Vik to the Golden Circle and spend 2 nights there, and finally a night in Reykjavik before you go home.

the main delights of Iceland are the natural wonders and although there are some interesting things to see in Reyklavik [the national museum of Iceland is excellent] a day is enough IMO when you have so little time anyway.

if you decide to stick with staying in Vik, i would drop Hella as you can still get to Jukulsaron from there, and your time would be better spend in the golden circle.

hope you have a great trip!

astein12

This should work OK with a few concerns and tips:

1) By the time you get your luggage, rent the car and get on the road, it's going to be a long day to go the Blue Lagoon, drive to Vik and do some sightseeing on the way. You might want to consider staying at Hotel Ranga (we liked it a lot) the 1st night, then going to Vik for 2 nights, then driving back to Reykjavik.

2) The Golden Circle can be a long day (if you don't speed through the stops and there is more to see than just the 'big three'). You might consider doing part of it in one day (Geysir and Gulfoss) and Thingvellir on the other (on the way back to Reykjavik) if it works out that way.

3) As for sightseeing, just look for the points of interest signs (looks like a square with little circles on each corner). I could give you some specific ones to see, but much of the fun of Iceland is 'discovering' these things on your own. Most are only a few minutes off the main road. You'll find waterfalls, lava caves, little churches, big gorges, etc. JUST WANDER!

astein12

and I agree with annhig... I loved the Myvatn Nature baths (a non-touristy version of the Blue Lagoon up in the northern part of the country), but I'd much rather have more time out in nature than spend the time at BL.

And Jukulsaron is really cool...