Iceland tour, first time - advice appreciated!
Nov 21st, 2014, 01:55 PM
#42
oh dear, what an unfortunate name.
to turn to more prosaic matters, when we arrived in Iceland in mid July there was a heat wave, which added to the almost permanent daylight made sleep pretty difficult. So you can't rely on its not being hot.
to turn to more prosaic matters, when we arrived in Iceland in mid July there was a heat wave, which added to the almost permanent daylight made sleep pretty difficult. So you can't rely on its not being hot.
Nov 24th, 2014, 05:17 AM
#43
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Re: carrenters.is
Wow 10000 ISK ($80) per day for a 14 year old car, things have got very expensive in this country! Still, a medium sized car will cost (including insurance) around 17000 ISK per day in the height of summer, so I guess there are savings to be made if you don´t mind driving an older car...
Wow 10000 ISK ($80) per day for a 14 year old car, things have got very expensive in this country! Still, a medium sized car will cost (including insurance) around 17000 ISK per day in the height of summer, so I guess there are savings to be made if you don´t mind driving an older car...
Jan 14th, 2015, 08:22 AM
#45
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I guess looking a couple times pays off - the previously fully-booked Hlid Viking Village now had a room open for our last day, so we switched our reservation to that from Grindavik. Yay! I know it's likely kitschy and silly, but it will be a fun last night for our holiday.
Jan 18th, 2015, 02:02 AM
#46
Glad that it's worked out, GD. i'm sure that there will be more people around in the evening [judging by the size of the restaurant possibly too many!] but wherelse can you dine surrounded by puffins and guillemots?
Have a wonderful time! [and please come back and tell us how the trip went. There's isn't enough info on Iceland on this board].
Have a wonderful time! [and please come back and tell us how the trip went. There's isn't enough info on Iceland on this board].
Jan 19th, 2015, 04:41 AM
#47
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You should know by now I love giving extensive and detailed trip reports. This one shall be no exception! Part of what intrigued me of the place was your own report. I shall be glad to contribute to the meager wealth of useful information. And hopefully I can also add to the photography 
Apr 6th, 2015, 12:00 PM
#49
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OK, plans are crystalizing and finalizing!
I've booked airfare (on WOW airlines, $634 each, non-stop from BWI to KEF).
My plan is changed slightly. I decided I wanted to do the westfjords, damnit! I sacrificed the snaefellsnes peninsula for it.
Arrive on July 18
3 nights in Reykjavik (The Capital-Inn)
2 nights in Skogar (Skogar Guesthouse)
2 nights near Jökulsárlón (Skyrhusid Guesthouse)
3 nights near Lake Myvatn (Langavatn & Klambrasel Guesthouse Farm)
4 nights in Hólmavík (Finna Hótel)
1 night in Alftanes (Hlið Fisherman's Village)
All rooms booked, car rented (I went ahead and got a 4X4, an older one, through carrental.is), and trip insurance purchased.
All that's left is to purchase any day trips I want, like a whale and puffin-watching trip out of Husavik.
I've booked airfare (on WOW airlines, $634 each, non-stop from BWI to KEF).
My plan is changed slightly. I decided I wanted to do the westfjords, damnit! I sacrificed the snaefellsnes peninsula for it.
Arrive on July 18
3 nights in Reykjavik (The Capital-Inn)
2 nights in Skogar (Skogar Guesthouse)
2 nights near Jökulsárlón (Skyrhusid Guesthouse)
3 nights near Lake Myvatn (Langavatn & Klambrasel Guesthouse Farm)
4 nights in Hólmavík (Finna Hótel)
1 night in Alftanes (Hlið Fisherman's Village)
All rooms booked, car rented (I went ahead and got a 4X4, an older one, through carrental.is), and trip insurance purchased.
All that's left is to purchase any day trips I want, like a whale and puffin-watching trip out of Husavik.
Apr 23rd, 2015, 08:38 PM
#55
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hey green dragon...liked going through your plans and this thread. thanks for that. My friends and I are planning a 10 day counter clockwise trip first week of May...next week !
Will definitely share anything pertinent.
We would like to do more activities like glacier hiking, snow mobiling, caving (though it may not be possible in winter)..and it seems thats all in the south.. while the north (husavik and the westfjords) appear to be more nature watching ..
Is this accurate..may tweak my trip to have an extra day in the south then.
day1 - reykjavik
day 2 - golden circle
day 3 - south, hofn
day 4 thru 7 - husavik
day 8-9 - westfjords
day 10 - back to reykjavik.
Cheers
Will definitely share anything pertinent.
We would like to do more activities like glacier hiking, snow mobiling, caving (though it may not be possible in winter)..and it seems thats all in the south.. while the north (husavik and the westfjords) appear to be more nature watching ..
Is this accurate..may tweak my trip to have an extra day in the south then.
day1 - reykjavik
day 2 - golden circle
day 3 - south, hofn
day 4 thru 7 - husavik
day 8-9 - westfjords
day 10 - back to reykjavik.
Cheers
Jul 13th, 2015, 09:47 AM
#57
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I leave Friday! I'm very excited We switched a night in Westfjords for another down in Alftanes - so we can do some horseback riding on the lava fields, among other things. This is going to be a looooong week at work!
We switched a night in Westfjords for another down in Alftanes - so we can do some horseback riding on the lava fields, among other things. This is going to be a looooong week at work!
Jul 13th, 2015, 11:29 AM
#58
GD - I've forgotten how many nights you have on the western fjords but whatever you do, don't miss the bird cliffs at the far western end of Iceland - a highlight of our trip.
And if you can, instead of driving round from wherever you are staying on the Fjords, get the Baldur ferry which will deposit you at Stykkisholmur on the Snaefellneses peninsular - it greatly shortens the journey and is a terrific trip in itself. you get the chance to see so many seabirds and a bit of the peninsular as well.
And if you can, instead of driving round from wherever you are staying on the Fjords, get the Baldur ferry which will deposit you at Stykkisholmur on the Snaefellneses peninsular - it greatly shortens the journey and is a terrific trip in itself. you get the chance to see so many seabirds and a bit of the peninsular as well.
Jul 13th, 2015, 12:59 PM
#59
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I've got three nights in the westfjords. One day is relaxing after a long trip from near Husavik. The second day is going around the main peninsula - Isafjordur, Dynjandi, and back. Then the next night we're off to parts south.
I'm staying in Holmavik, so actually I think it's shorter to take the land route south, towards Reykjavik.
I'm staying in Holmavik, so actually I think it's shorter to take the land route south, towards Reykjavik.
Jul 14th, 2015, 12:01 AM
#60
mmm - that might make it difficult to get to the bird cliffs; those roads round the fjords [at least the ones on the way to the cliffs did] take ages as they are generally gravel rather than tarmac. OTOH you do have a lot of day light to play with so if you don't mind a long drive, it might still be possible.
Looking at googlemaps, [for what it's worth] the drive from Holmavik to Breidavik [which is the closest point to the bird cliffs that they show on the map] is about 3 ½ hours; but the drive back to Holmavik via Isafjordur is nearly 7 hours. That's a lot of driving in a day.
an alternative would be to go to the bird cliffs on the last day in the fjords and spend the night at Baldur, getting the ferry in the morning. That would enable you to spend the day exploring the Snaefellness peninsular which you are missing at the moment.
of course, you may not be interested in seeing the bird cliffs at all, in which case, you can ignore everything that I've said!!!
Looking at googlemaps, [for what it's worth] the drive from Holmavik to Breidavik [which is the closest point to the bird cliffs that they show on the map] is about 3 ½ hours; but the drive back to Holmavik via Isafjordur is nearly 7 hours. That's a lot of driving in a day.
an alternative would be to go to the bird cliffs on the last day in the fjords and spend the night at Baldur, getting the ferry in the morning. That would enable you to spend the day exploring the Snaefellness peninsular which you are missing at the moment.
of course, you may not be interested in seeing the bird cliffs at all, in which case, you can ignore everything that I've said!!!
