8 Days Around Iceland | Ring-Road & Roundtrip airport transfer

Upon arrival in Iceland, you will be transferred to your hotel in Reykjavik. You can spend some time to explore the surrounding area and have a good rest to prepare for many exciting days ahead.

Optional Activity



Blue Lagoon



If you arrive at an early flight, you might like to visit the Blue Lagoon before heading to Reykjavik.



Reykjavik City Sightseeing Tour



Explore the northernmost capital in the world. You can take a walk in the city to visit the landmarks and interesting places. Alternatively, you can add-on a Hop-on-hop-off city sightseeing tour that will bring you around the city to the places of interest. ...more ...less

Your journey will begin in the capital, Reykjavík where a bus will pick you up and head straight out to explore the famous Golden Circle.



Thingvellir National Park is the first stop of the tour, volcanic fields and mountains surrounded by snow will blow your mind, as it is one of the most beautiful locations in Iceland. Thingvellir has an amazing cultural heritage as Iceland’s first parliament was founded there in the year 930 AD. Only to add even more uniqueness to the location its geological features are truly amazing and exceptional because of the exposed North American and Euroasion tectonic plates on the surface. The location is a UNESCO designated World Heritage site for these reasons.



Your next two stops are no less impressive. Gullfoss is a huge waterfall which cascades in two tiers into a massive 32m deep canyon. The resultant spray of the falling water often catches the light on sunny days casting rainbows across this beautiful natural wonder.



You will also stroll through the geothermal area named after its most famous resident, Geysir. Although nowadays, this legendary hot spring very seldom erupts, you can watch his neighbour Strokkur erupt up to 20-metres in the air every 5-minutes.



You will spend the evening in accommodation in the Golden circle area.

Today you will travel along the picturesque South Coast. Your first stops will be at two of Iceland’s most famous waterfalls. The first, Seljalandsfoss, cascades from the great heights of the interior; its unique feature is the small cavern that lies behind it which allows you to walk completely around it.



The next waterfall is called Skógafoss which falls in a broad curtain from the steep highlands, and it is rumoured to have an ancient treasure hidden behind it. On sunny days, more than one rainbow can often be spotted depending on how close you get to its thunderous spray.



The final attraction for the day in the beautiful black sand beach Reynisfjara defined not only for its colour but its impressive basalt columns and famous sea stacks.



You will then head onto your accommodation close to the idyllic coastal town of Vík.



Winter



To make this day even more adventurous you will go on a glacier hiking tour. This glacier hike gives you amazing scenery through crevasses and jagged ridges, incredible surroundings around the glacier and get up close with the blue ice.

Your next destination will be the glacier lagoon Jökulsárlón with a few surprise stops along the way chosen by your guide depending on the weather and the group’s interests. Jökulsárlon is formed by the receding glacial tongue Breiðamerkurjökull where huge chunks of ice break away and float lazily out to sea. No one iceberg is the same and each is characterised by different blue and white shades scarred with volcanic ash from historical eruptions.



Diamond Beach



As these ancient icy giants make it to sea, some wash up on the adjacent beach which has been nicknamed Diamond Beach for the glittering chunks of ice that arrive with the surf. Walk beside chunks of ancient glacial ice and marvel at the magical sight at your feet.



Your night will be spent in the Southeast area.



Summer



To make this day even more adventurous you will go on a glacier hiking tour. This glacier hike gives you amazing scenery through crevasses and jagged ridges, incredible surroundings around the glacier and get up close with the blue ice.



Winter



Go on a Blue Ice Cave Tour - You will get the opportunity of a life time to enjoy one of the world’s greatest wilderness, Iceland’s largest glacier. You are driven in a specially modified Super Jeep to the glacier, where you get to explore the glacier environment, enjoy a view out of this world, go into and underneath the glacier and experience the glacier’s beauty from the inside! Blue Ice Cave Exploration is truly a unique experience. An experienced local guide leads the way and shares a wealth of fascinating information about glaciers, icefields and their impact on our environment during our journey, making sure everyone enjoys themselves to the fullest.

Optional activities



Summer



Go on an Amphibian Boat Tour, an exciting boat trips on the lagoon in an amphibian boats. During the excursion you sail among the huge icebergs in the picturesque scenery of Jökulsárlón. On the boat you get to taste the 1000-year-old ice and if you are lucky you might even see some seals.



Add a Jökulsárlón Boat Tour as an additional activity on this day.

Today you will be exploring the beautiful and remote Eastfjords. Travelling through mountainous passes with the ocean to your left, your guide will make a number of stops along these meandering passages. As well as being known for its dramatic fjords, this area is characterised by its breathtaking beaches, littered with multicoloured pebbles and rocks.



The entire region is sparsely populated, but the small communities that exist there live in quaint fishing communities, each with their own idiosyncrasies. Your guide will introduce you to small-town life out in the countryside before heading to the central ‘hub’ of the East, Egilsstaðir. As well as being the largest town in the Eastfjords, it is also close to the largest forest in Iceland, Hallormsstaðaskógar and the lake Lagafljót in which a legendary water monster is said to reside.



You will spend the night in Egilsstaðir.

Summer



You will be making your way to the North of Iceland today, right across the large and beautiful expanse of Vatnajökull National Park. Your first stop of the day will be the magnificent Dettifoss waterfall, the most powerful in Europe. The spray of this gigantic natural feature can be seen far before you reach the falls itself. Its awe-inspiring character has inspired many movie makers to select this area as a backdrop, including the blockbuster, Prometheus.



Your next destination is the varied and dynamic Mývatn area, named after the lake (‘Midge Lake’). This area is known for its energetic geothermal activity, and you will get to see this first hand at the Námskarð area where these forces rise to the surface through steaming mud puddles and fumaroles.



You will then head to the ‘Capital of the North’, Akureyri. Before you cross the mountain pass to get there, however, you will make a quick stop at the waterfall, Goðafoss. This is a historically famous site in which the old idols of the pagan religion were cast into the water as an act of fealty towards the Christian faith.



You will spend the night in Akureyri



Winter



A visit to Námaskarð pass, a high temperature geothermal area where the earth boils and gurgles. The orange and red landscape in the area shows how versatile Icelandic nature can be.



Dimmuborgir, your next stop is where you will explore a field of peculiar shaped lava pillars that rise from the earth and their formations may remind you of trolls, elves and other mythical creatures, even the Icelandic Yule Lads.



Your next destination is the varied and dynamic Mývatn area, named after the lake (‘Midge Lake’). This area is known for its energetic geothermal activity, and you will get to see this first hand at the Námskarð area where these forces rise to the surface through steaming mud puddles and fumaroles.



You will then head to the ‘Capital of the North’, Akureyri. Before you cross the mountain pass to get there, however, you will make a quick stop at the waterfall, Goðafoss. This is a historically famous site in which the old idols of the pagan religion were cast into the water as an act of fealty towards the Christian faith.



You will spend the night in Akureyri

Optional Activity



If you want to relax completely and get a chance to experience the geothermal nature of Iceland up close, add the entrance fee to VÖK Nature Baths here at the time of booking.

Today you will head back to where your journey began. You can explore the town of Akureyri or take in some final extra adventures.



From here you will catch a whale watching tour. You will hop aboard a boat in the local harbour and head out to spot these gentle giants.



You will then head further south to the Hvitserkur area. Hvitserkur is an intriguing rock formation that is often referred to as the ‘Troll of Northwest Iceland.’ It stands 15 metres tall in the Hunafloi Bay. Local legends say that this formation was once a troll who stayed out too late and when the sun came up, was turned to stone. Today Hvitserkur is one of the most photographed attractions in Northern Iceland and you will quickly see why.



You will then head back to the capital of Reykjavik.

If your flight is later in the day, you can choose to add-on a trip to the Blue Lagoon Spa before heading to the airport. Of course, you can also use the time to shop for some souvenirs before leaving.