Winter Wonders & Delicious Detours

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4.1 . Great
87%
Travel Style: Array Relaxed
Physical Level: Walking or physical activity half to most of day - no carrying equipment. Easy
Lodging Level: Mid-range budget with accommodations ranging from comfortable lodges, guesthouses, and homestays to three star hotels. Value (3*)
7 days
From: $ 1,849 $ 264 / day
Checking price

Overview

Highlights (Bullets)

  • Enjoy an introduction to Icelandic cuisine on a variety of culinary stops and excursions!
  • Discover the Golden Circle's highlights: Thingvellir National Park, Geysir Geothermal Area and Gullfoss Waterfall.
  • Walk along the banks of the famous Jokulsarlon Glacial Lagoon, one of Iceland's natural crown jewels.
  • Walk along the iconic black sand beach in Vik!
  • Gaze up at Eldborg, a volcano crater on the Snaefellsnes Peninsula.

Short Description

On this driving tour through west and southern Iceland, experience an array of landscapes in winter while enjoying Iceland’s culinary traditions. Begin your journey on Iceland’s dramatic southern coast, home to a number of iconic sites like the Golden Circle,  Vatnajokull National Park and Jokulsarlon glacial lagoon.

Next up: West Iceland. Highlights of this region include Snaefellsnes Peninsula with its glacier, unique lava formations, Snaefellsjokull glacier-volcano, and historical sites from Iceland's local sagas.

On this trip, you can enjoy a number of stops and tasty excursions along the way to experience Iceland’s tasty culinary culture!

Style Self-guided tour
See all the highlights and popular spots on a classic tour.
Itinerary Focus Classic Highlights
Mid-range budget with accommodations ranging from comfortable lodges, guesthouses, and homestays to three star hotels.
Lodging Level Value (3*)
Flight & Transport Inclusions Transport not included
Start City Reykjavik
End City Iceland

Itinerary

Day 1 Welcome to Reykjavik!

Say hello to Iceland! Upon arrival in Reykjavik, pick up your rental car, drive to your hotel in Reykjavik and spend the rest of your day at leisure in the world’s northernmost capital city. 

Culinary suggestions: Café Loki, Saegreifinn Restaurant

Day 2 Gullfoss - Geysir - South Coast

Head out of the city and drive to Gullfoss Waterfall and Geysir hot spring, highlights of Iceland’s famous Golden Circle. Continue your trip, stopping at highlights such as Seljalandsfoss and Skogafoss Waterfalls, and the majestic Eyjafjallajokull and surrounding area, the site of the infamous volcanic eruption in 2010.

Approximate driving distance: 200 miles

Culinary suggestions: Cafe at Fontana Geothermal Baths, Efstidalur restaurant and farm, Fridheimar greenhouse and restaurant, Farmers Bistro.

Day 3 Skaftafell - Jokulsarlon - Vik

Today, visit the majestic Skaftafell region in Vatnajökull National Park. Lace up your hiking boots and explore this beautiful area. Continue to the shimmering icebergs of Jokulsarlon Glacial Lagoon before returning to the charming village of Vik in the afternoon. Wander through this remote seafront village and walk along the famous black sand beach!

Approximate driving distance: 295 miles

Culinary suggestions: Thorbergur Cultural Centre & Cafe

Day 4 Thingvellir - Borgarfjordur

Leave Vik this morning and drive to the UNESCO-certified Thingvellir National Park, a popular stop along the Golden Circle and the site of the ancient Icelandic parliament. The park itself is situated in a stunning volcanic landscape of mountains and lava flows on the edge of Iceland's largest lake.

Continue to Borgarfjordur fjord, where you'll visit the historic site of Reykholt, Hraunfoss and Barnafoss Waterfalls and Deildartunguhver, the most powerful hot spring in Europe.

Why not treat yourself to a rejuvenating soak at the Krauma natural geothermal spa?  Relax in pools fed by a perfect blend of water from Deildartunguhver and nearby glacial springs.

Approximate driving distance: 208 miles

Culinary suggestions: The Settlement Centre in Borgarnes, Stedji microbrewery, Ljomalind Country Market 

Day 5 Snaefellsnes Peninsula

Explore the countless natural wonders of Snaefellsnes Peninsula, a 55-mile peninsula which is also a national park. With mountains to one side and the sea to the other, visit the wind-tangled Arnarstapi sea cliffs and the rocky beach of Djupalonssandur before driving along the north coast through bustling fishing villages.

Approximate driving distance: 200 miles

Culinary suggestions: Bjarnarhofn Shark Museum

Day 6 Reykjanes Peninsula

Today, drive to the Reykjanes peninsula and visit the moon like lava fields around Lake Kleifarvatn. You could also stop at the Krysuvik geothermal area with its bubbling mud pools.

For a culinary treat, visit Grindavik fishing village, famous for its heritage of producing salt fish. Salt fish is undeniably responsible for the prosperity of the Icelandic nation, particularly during the late 19th and early 20th century when the industry was at its peak.

Approximate driving distance: 128 miles

Culinary suggestions: Vitinn Seafood Restaurant, Salthusid Restaurant 

Day 7 Depart Iceland

Your Iceland foodie vacation comes to an end today. Be prepared to leave the hotel about three hours before the departure of your flight to allow time to drop off your rental car at the airport. 

Availability

Checking price
Price From $ 1,849
Price Per Day: $ 264 per day

20,252 Great Value Vacations Travel Reviews & Ratings

87%
4.1 out of 5 (100+ reviews)
Excellent 10,542
Great 4,772
Average 2,347
Disappointing 1,082
Terrible 1,509
Value
4.1
Guide
4.1
Activities
4.1
Lodging
4.1
Transportation
4.1
Meals
4.1

Winter Wonders & Delicious Detours

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Company Reviews

Good travel experience overall. Hotels could have been more centrally located.

4.0
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Value4.0
Guide4.0
Activities4.0
Lodging4.0
Transportation4.0
Meals4.0
Overall are experience was good. We really enjoyed Venice then Florence then Rome. The scheduled rail transportation was easy and convenient with our hotels closely located in Venice and Florence. We did not experience any issues with airfare either. Just note airfare will be overnight. If we were to offer any constructive criticism it would be our last hotel location in Rome (hotel Pineta Place). It was 30-45 minutes ( not including traffic) outside of central Rome rail station by Taxi ($40-$50 each way cost) where the hop off hop on city bus tours are located and 10 minutes away by vehicle to Bus lines (taxi $10). The hotel offered transportation to the bus lines but their schedule was limited and did not work around our tour times (early morning). We also learned airport taxi was to be another $100 one way. We ended up not staying at the outside hotel the last night in Rome because it cost too much to get back-and-forth with taxis to downtown and airport. The hotel was nice it was just the location. We actually scheduled another hotel downtown for our last night. I researched other central hotel locations and many were cheaper than where Pineta hotel was located outside of the city. Other than that location issue, the other city hotels were convenient, Although, we wish that us would’ve actually been in actual Venice island and not Mestre (outside Venice) to save on transportation costs. Florence location was perfect. Other city hotel locations locations were fine and not as big of an issue, when compared to Rome.
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Hotels were far from city…

3.0
Details
Value3.0
Guide3.0
Activities3.0
Lodging3.0
Transportation3.0
Meals3.0
Hotels were far from city center/popular spots so it made it a hassle to travel between the hotel and attractions. We had one really nice hotel, but the other 2 hotels were closer to 3stars than 4star places. Our city walking tours were scheduled for our last day in the city which defeated the purpose.
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Most fraudulent survey entity asking vital national id with demographic data to continue survey account

1.0
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Value1.0
Guide1.0
Activities1.0
Lodging1.0
Transportation1.0
Meals1.0
Valued Opinion is asking govt id. and personal documents with eye scanning demographic data to share with them after 1 year I created account and as I urged that I cannot share this crucial data and it can easily be misused by a third party out of my country ,they blocked my account on which I had 1700 points left .

My suggestion to all that please keep in distance from this fraud survey entity who asks your personal national ids to continue survey account only.
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Hotel was great

5.0
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Value5.0
Guide5.0
Activities5.0
Lodging5.0
Transportation5.0
Meals5.0
Hotel was great! I would go back and stay again!

Great Accommodations

4.0
Details
Value4.0
Guide4.0
Activities4.0
Lodging4.0
Transportation4.0
Meals4.0
The places we were booked into each night were charming and comfortable. We ended up in hotels, guesthouses, cabins, and on a working farm. All were excellent!
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Excellent coordintoon

5.0
Details
Value5.0
Guide5.0
Activities5.0
Lodging5.0
Transportation5.0
Meals5.0
Excellent coordintoon
Best hotels, service and picks for guides excursions and transport

Details

Flight & Transport Inclusions

Transport not included

Group Size

Independent

Accommodations

  • Icelandair Hotel Natura Reykjavik
  • Icelandair Hotel Vik
  • Hotel Skaftafell
  • Fosshotel Reykholt
  • Hotel Husafell

Trip ID#:

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