Just back from 5 nights in the Netherlands and 2 nights in Iceland. <BR>We stayed at a small 3-star hotel (Hotel Toren) in a 350-year-old mansion on the Keisersgracht canal in Amsterdam. Day trip to the Keukenhof Gardens (fantastic!). A very pleasant all-day bike trip through the countryside and towns east of the city. The tour company is a one-man operation called "Let's Go". Check them out at http://come.to/letsgo or e-mail the owner, Frederik, at [email protected]. The tour was a small group (four of us plus Frederik), and we saw a wide variety of sites in rural Netherlands, as well as stopping at a walled medieval town and a fully restored 13th century castle. <BR>Amsterdam was very nice for walking around along the many canals, lined with hundreds of houses from the the 17th century. It seemed exceptionally safe to walk at all times of the day (no hint of the infamous pickpockets) and far more tidy than I had expected after reading posts on this site and on rec.travel.europe. The people are very friendly and open. They seem to genuinely enjoy having you in their city, and they all seem to have a great mellow sense of humor. The fact that nearly everyone speks excellent English is very convenient. The weather was sunny on most days, with only half a day of rain. <BR>Iceland was quite an experience after the Netherlands. Some areas (e.g. around the airport) are volcanic plains that on first glance are quite bleak. But looking more closely you see the many shades of green in the mosses that cover the volcanic rocks and it's actually quite beautiful. We had a car for our one full day and drove east of Reykjavik. This was very much like the Rocky Mountain high country, with lakes, lush meadows, rushing streams and waterfalls, snow-covered mountains, and complete calm. Practically no one on the roads (which were quite well marked), and even the "official" tourist sites - Thingvalir (sp?), Geysir, Gullfloss waterfall - were pretty much deserted. I'm guessing the tourist population picks up in the summer a good bit. <BR> <BR>I'd be happy to answer questions and/or go into more detail. <BR> <BR>- Bill

Bill, <BR>I am so happy that you posted this message! <BR>My boyfriend and I are planning a week trip to Iceland in September and we were wondering about the driving conditions. Thanks for answering those questions in your posting. What kind of car did you rent? We plan on staying pretty much on the main roads so we are wondering if a regular car will be sufficient or should we go with an SUV? SUVs are much more expensive and we would like to be as cost-conscious as possible. <BR>We plan on going to the three places you mentioned as well as The Blue Lagoon and possibly go north to Akureyri and from there take a boat to Grimsey. <BR>What hotel did you stay at in Reykjavik? <BR>Did you fly Iceland Air? We found that Iceland Air has good tour packages. Especially for their fly/drive offer. <BR>Do most people speak English as the brochures and web pages state? I have tapes on Icelandic because I would like to learn some of the language, but it is a difficult language to learn (just like English, I suppose). <BR>I know that there are alot of questions here. I would appreciate any help yoou can give me. Information on Iceland is pretty much hard to come by. <BR>Thanks, <BR>Kittie

Hi Kittie - <BR>We flew Icelandair. Very convenient (flew out of our hometown airport - BWI), very efficient and comfortable. <BR>We stayed at the Hotel Esja, which is owned by the airline. Pleasant enough, though at the edge of town, rather than where the action (such as it is) is. <BR>We had a Toyota Corolla hatchback. Nice comfortable car. $80/day. <BR>As I said, the roads are very well marked, and the quality is good. There will be some stretches of well-maintained gravel road as you explore, but you can zip along them pretty quickly. We could have used another couple of days to see more of the country. A week should be great if the weather is nice. (It was right chilly this month, and the sun was only out about intermitantly. <BR>Of course we had to see the Blue Lagoon before we boarded the plane. Good for about an hour or two. The water temp varies from one end to the other. The hot side is QUITE hot; you wouldn't want to spend more than 5 - 10 minutes before seeking the more moderate temperatures. They are in the process of building a vastly larger public facility at Blue Lagoon. Should be finished when you get there. The current one is like my neighborhood swimming pool... not that there's anything wrong with that English is spoken by most everyone you'd come in contact with in a tourist context, though not to the extent as in the Netherlands. Our attempts at Icelandic got only as far as "goden dag" (hello) and "bless" (goodbye). With a week, you should be able to pick up a good bit more. For guidebooks, look for the Lonely Planet series. It groups Iceland with Greenland and the Faroe Islands (which I'd never heard of) and is very much oriented to independent travelers. Amazon.com would have it (got mine at Borders). It has a very amusing description of some of the traditional foods (e.g. putrified shark meat). Feel free to ask for more details if you like. <BR> <BR>- Bill

Bill, <BR> <BR>Thank you for the wonderful information! <BR>We had in mind renting a Corolla hatchback. Now I know that my choice is o.k.. <BR>If I may ask a few more questions... <BR>At The Blue Lagoon...do people bring their own "bathrobes" or "bathingrobes" or "poolrobes" as I have heard them called in Europe? We will bring our own bathing suits, but I just wondered what the norm is there. <BR>Also, I read that people in Reykjavik don't usually wear jeans. They can spot a tourist because they are in jeans. What was your experience? Living in Florida, we are either in shorts or jeans. <BR>And lastly, does BWI mean British West Indies or Boston? Just curious. <BR>Thanks again! <BR>Kittie

BWI = Baltimore-Washington International. We live in Baltimore. <BR>Didn't see anyone at the Blue Lagoon in a robe. The changing room is about 10 feet away from the warm water, and most people didn't even bring their towels out with them - brrr! You can rent a towel there, BTW. <BR>Didn't take jeans on our vacation (for the same reason). On the other hand, some of the teenagers and young adults were in jeans, looking very American themselves (down to the skateboard punk look of young guys at a town plaza that's used for skateboard maneuvers).

Thanks again for the great information! <BR>I realized after I posted my previous message that you meant Baltimore...sometimes I'm a little slow &lt;g&gt;. <BR>We have had a little change in plans...we are now spending only 3-4 days in Iceland and 1 week in Scotland. I have a timeshare and one is being built north of Reykjavik. I had put in for an exchange for that timeshare, but I was recently told that it will not be available until 5/2000. So I did an exchange into Scotland and we will hit Iceland on the return. <BR>We still will rent a car to tour Gulfoss and Thingvellir. Who did you rent through? Did you set that up before you left? <BR>Thanks for you opinion on the location of Hotel Esja. We will be doing one of Icelandair's "stopover" packages and will check out the locations of the other hotels available on the package. <BR>Thanks again for answering all my questions. <BR>

Icelandair has a deal with Hertz. The airline set up the whole thing and sent me a voucher. You can call Hertz and they will pick you up and drive you to their office at the old airport on the edge of Reykjavik, about 10 minutes from the Esja. I haven't been to Scotland in... oh, 20 years, but remember it fondly. Try to get to the far north, such as the Orkney Islands and the western islands, if you can. <BR>

Bill, <BR>That sounds great! I am so looking forward to this trip! <BR>In Scotland we will be staying at Kinloch Rannoch about 70 miles northwest of Edinbough. We hope to take a drive north. A fery to one of the islands sounds great. The pictures I have seen are fantastic! <BR>My boyfriend has driven on the left before so he would be doing all the driving. I would be too uptight trying to do the lefthand side driving. <BR>Thanks again! <BR>Kittie

Katie - <BR>Driving left only takes a couple hours before it becomes semi-automatic, though it helps to have a person in the passenger seat saying "drive left! drive left!" when your mind reverts to automatic pilot. (The time in Ireland when I made a u-turn on a coutry road and started driving on the right comes to mind...). Have a great time on your trip.

Bill, My husband and I are travelling to the Netherlands this fall and will be in Amsterdam for a couple of nights. Do you recommend Hotel Toren? <BR>Thanks! Steph

Hi Steph - <BR>Yes; the Toren was quite pleasant, the employees very friendly, and was very conveniently located (a block and a half from Westerkerk and the Anne Frank House, a few more blocks to Dam Square, not even a bad walk to Central Station... if you like to walk). It's in a very beautiful neighborhood of numerous canals with some good restaurants an easy walk. The only down-side: a construction company's barges parked in the canal right out front (for the total rehab of a neighboring building). Go for the third floor of the "main building" (we were on the second and looked right at the barges) or better yet stay in the annex building several doors down the street. Or you could save some money and get a room with a view of the garden out back.

Bill, <BR>Thanks so much for getting back to me so quickly! I'll give Toren a ring. <BR>Thanks again! Steph

I second the recommendation to stay at the Hotel Toren. My husband and I stayed there a few years ago and loved it. We were able to walk everywhere from the hotel. We never took public transportation. Make sure you get a view of the canal.

Hi Bill! <BR> <BR>Your story made me laugh! I have a feeling that I will be the one saying "drive left, drive left"! <BR>The thing that worries me is the right-turns and left-turns. It's like the absolute opposite of driving on the right. I guess that my boyfriend will get used to it. <BR>We plan on taking a train to Pitlochry which is quite a bit smaller than Glasgow and renting a car there, I figure that we had better start the driving in the "country". <BR>Kittie