Northern Lights Exploration - 8 days
Northern Lights Exploration - 8 days
Northern Lights Exploration - 8 days
8 Days Starting and ending in Reykjavik
Visiting: Reykjavik, Borgarnes, Hella, Hof, Vik
Tour operator:
Tour code:
1464/NLEX
Guide Type:
Fully Guided
Group size:
2 - 40
Age range:
12 years and above
Special diets catered:
Vegetarians, Please contact On The Go Tours with specific dietary requests
Tour operated in:
EnglishTrip Styles:
Interests:
Tour Overview
WINTER TOUR: Explore the best of West and South Iceland on our most inclusive winter tour. Start and end in Reykjavik, discover the Golden Circle, climb a volcano, meet Icelandic horses and relax in the Blue Lagoon all whilst looking out for the spectacular Northern Lights on this soft cultural adventure.
Highlights
Itinerary
Day 1: Reykjavik
Location: Reykjavik
Accommodation Name: Overnight: Reykjavik
Meals Included: Breakfast
Reykjavik. Welcome to Iceland and the start of your Northern Lights adventure! Your transfer to our accommodation is by Flybus shuttle. The remainder of the day is at leisure.
Day 2: Borgarnes
Location: Borgarnes
Accommodation Name: Overnight: Borganes
Meals Included: Breakfast
Reykjavik - Borgarnes - Borgarfjorour Valley - This morning we meet our tour guide and depart on a Reykjavik city tour exploring some of the highlights of Iceland’s capital before heading west to Borgarfjorour.
Along the way we stop in Borgarnes and learn about Iceland’s earliest days at the Settlement Center.
Borgarfjorour valley is known as the Saga valley of West Iceland because many important historical events took place there. You will have the opportunity to climb the Grabrok volcano crater and warm up at Deildartunguhver, Europe's most powerful hot spring, producing 180 litres of nearly boiling water (97°c) per second.
We continue to Hraunfossar, a series of waterfalls pouring from beneath a wide lava field. Barnafoss - the Children’s falls, is nearby with its own tragic tale. We spend the next two nights at Borgarnes in West Iceland. This afternoon includes a lecture about the Northern Lights and after dinner we head into the garden to search for the Northern Lights, followed by a hot cup of chocolate or tea.
Day 3: Borgarnes
Location: Borgarnes
Accommodation Name: Overnight: Borganes
Meals Included: Breakfast, Lunch
Borgarnes - Snaefellsnes Peninsula - Borgarnes. Today we explore the Snaellsnes Peninsula or the Peninsula of the snowy mountain. A rugged mountain chain runs its length.
Depending on the conditions, we may also visit the fishing village of Grundarfjorour. One of the most photographed and famous mountain in Iceland, Kirkjufell, can be seen jutting out into the bay. Visit Arnarstapi and Hellnar before experiencing the area from below, inside Vatnshellir cave. We take you 35 meters underground and about 200 meters into the lava tube under the glacier Saefellsjokull
Today our guide gives us some practical tips of how to photograph the Auroras as part of the Northern Lights Academy program. Once darkness falls, we venture into the hotel garden and relax in the outdoor hot tubs to hopefully await an appearance from the breathtaking Northern Lights.
Day 4: Hella
Location: Hella
Accommodation Name: Overnight: Hella
Meals Included: Breakfast
Borgarnes - Golden Circle - Hella. This morning we travel along the scenic shores of the Hvalfjörour fjord, stopping at an Icelandic wool outlet store before continuing inland to Thingvellir National Park, a UNESCO World Heritage site. After a stop at the park, we continue to the Geysir geothermal fields, where there's a variety of hot springs and bubbling pools. The original geyser is now dormant but Strokkur, "the Churn“ is very much still active and erupts every 5-10 minutes. When we get to Geysir, we visit the restaurant and taste freshly baked hot spring bread served with delicious Icelandic butter, geothermally boiled eggs and local herring. This is best served with a small glass of ice cold (nearly frozen) Geysir Schnapps. Leaving the geyser fields, we stop at the last site on Iceland's Golden Circle - Gullfoss “the golden falls“. This double waterfall tumbles 34 meters into the HvÃtá River.
This afternoon, we learn about the history of the hardy Icelandic horse and the special qualities they possess. We also visit a geothermal greenhouse, before reaching our accommodation in South Iceland.
Day 5: Hella
Location: Hella
Meals Included: Breakfast
Hella - Eyjafjallajökull - Kirkjubaejarklaustur. Today we travel along the South coast. At our first stop of the day we will learn about the geology and the active volcano's in Iceland at the Lava & Volcano Exhibition centre.
Further east we visit one of Iceland's finest folk museums. This museum contains an outstanding collection of farm and domestic artefacts typical of Iceland’s past as well as several turf-built houses. Nearby is the waterfall of Skógafoss which stands 60 meters tall and is one of the most impressive waterfalls in Iceland.
This afternoon we take a stroll along black lava beach and the bird cliffs at Reynisfjara beach in South Iceland. We spend the next 2 nights near Kirkjubæjarklaustur in the Vatnajökull National Park region, located in complete darkness and ideal for Northern Lights search.
Day 6: Hof
Location: Hof
Accommodation Name: Overnight: Kirkjubaejarklaustur
Meals Included: Breakfast
Kirkjubaejarklaustur - Jökulsárlón - Kirkjubaejarklaustur. Today is all about glaciers, ice and icebergs. This morning we travel to Jökulsárlón glacial lagoon which is filled with floating icebergs. Exploring this extraordinary site we keep an eye out for seals swimming in the freezing Arctic waters. We then can walk along the black sandy beach where some large icebergs have gotten stranded.
This afternoon we visit the tiny turf church in the town of Hof before heading to the National Park. The Vatnajökull National Park covers about 12,000 square kilometres and is the largest National Park in Europe. Here we find Iceland’s highest mountains, an alpine environment, and Europe's largest glacier which the park is named after. Alternatively we can take an optional Ice Cave tour (between Nov 15th and March 15th only) - see Trip Notes for more details.
Tonight we enjoy a movie presentation about the Northern Lights as a part of the Northern Lights Academy program before hopefully seeing the Northern Lights shimmering and dancing across the night sky.
Day 7: Vik
Location: Vik
Accommodation Name: Overnight: Reykjavik
Meals Included: Breakfast
Kirkjubaejarklaustur - Vik - ReykjavÃk. This morning we depart Kirkjubæjarklaustur and head across the Eldhraun lava field to the village of Vik where we make a photo stop. We take a stroll on the black lava beach and along the bird cliffs at Reynisfjara beach in South Iceland. Further west we reach the high but narrow Seljalandsfoss waterfall which plunges over the mountain. Those wishing to get a bit closer can take a trail that goes behind the falling water but be prepared to get wet!
This afternoon we head to the famous Blue Lagoon for a relaxing soak.
Day 8: Reykjavik
Location: Reykjavik
Today our Northern Lights Icelandic experience comes to an end with included FlyBus transfer to Keflavik Airport.
What's Included
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Accommodation
3 star -
7 breakfasts
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7 nights standard hotels and cottage accommodation
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Keflavik Airport arrival and departure transfer (FlyBus shuttle)
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Guided underground tour into Vatnshellir cave situated under Saefellsnesjokull glacier
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Visit to Icelandic horse stables & geothermal greenhouse
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Visit to multi media presentation at Eyjafjallajökull Volcano Information Center
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Entrance into Skogar folk museum and turf houses
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Entrance with towel into the Blue Lagoon
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Services of an English Speaking Icelandic Guide
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Transportation in heated coaches with free Wi-Fi on board
What's Not Included
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International Flights and Visas
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Gratuity for your tour guide. Tipping your tour guide is an entirely personal gesture
Age Policy
Child: 8 - 11.99yrs. Adult: 12 yrs+
Check out our Q&As
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Are the local guides on the tour English speaking?
Yes
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What is the standard of the hotels on this tour?
3 star
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What is the maximum group size?
45
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Are airport transfers included in this tour?
Arrival and Departure Transfer with FlyBus from Keflavik Airport
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What Ethical Travel credentials does the tour company have?
Ensuring our footprint is light and that the benefits of travelling reach the local communities you visit is paramount to us. We’re proud to say that when travelling with us, the large majority of your holiday funds remain within the countries you visit, supporting local economies at a grass roots level.
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How long has the tour company been trading?
Since 1998
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Who will be my travelling companions on the tour?
With English-speaking tours, it's not a huge surprise that most on our travellers are from English-speaking countries or have English as their second language. Our group tours cater for everyone from 18 years old to 70+
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Will the accommodation included meet local health and safety regulations?
Yes
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Low Deposit
On The Go Tours requires a minimum deposit of 600 USD per person or the full booking value, whichever is less, with the final balance not due until 60 days before departure.
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Cancellation Policy
We don't charge a cancellation fee, here is a summary of on the go tours charges.
Up to 60 days before tour starts: Forfeit 100% of deposit.
At 59 days before tour starts: Forfeit 50% of booking price.
At 30 days before tour starts: Forfeit 100% of booking price.