Day 1: Arrival
Highlights: Hveragerdi The Blue Lagoon Reykjavik Viking World
 
Approximate distance: ca 100 km / 62 miles

Geothermal Lagoon – Flower Village – Geothermal Greenhouses

Once you have landed at Keflavík Aiport, please pick up your luggage and head through customs.  Collect your rental car at the airport and proceed to your hotel.   Depending on your arrival time in Iceland, it may be ideal to stop and visit the renowned Blue Lagoon where you can relax in its geothermal waters.  Important:  admission to the Blue Lagoon needs to be booked in advance.

October – April:  Drive to your hotel in Reykjavik, the colorful capital of Iceland.  (Approximate distance:  ca. 50km/30 miles)

May – September:  Drive along the southern coast of the Reykjanes Peninsula to the charming village of Hveragerdi for your overnight.   This village is one of the few sites in the world located directly on top of a geothermal area and, because of its many greenhouses heated by hot water from nearby springs, it is often called the “flower village.”  (Approximate distance: ca100km / 62miles)

Please note check-in for most hotels begins at 14:00 (2:00 pm)

Day 2: South Coast
Highlights: Seljalandsfoss Skogafoss Dyrholaey Eyjafjallajokull Reynisdrangar Cliffs Vík
 
Approximate distance: ca190km / 118miles

Thundering Waterfalls – Cliffs & Stone Arches – Black Sand Beaches of the South Shore

Drive along the scenic South Shore and the area near the infamous Eyjafjallajokull volcano. This is the site of the massive 2010 eruption that stopped international air traffic. We recommend a stop at the exciting interactive new Lava Center where you’ll discover the powerful volcanic and tectonic forces that shaped both Iceland and Earth. The center has interesting exhibits for all age groups.

Continue onwards, past the beautiful Skogafoss and Seljalandsfoss waterfalls and Myrdalsjokull glacier, which covers powerful Katla volcano. Here it‘s possible to go snowmobiling on the glacier and hopefully get a splendid view over southern Iceland.  Stop by the seafront village of Vik to explore a dramatic stretch of coastline poised between glacier-topped mountains, rugged sea cliffs, and black- sand beaches.  Dyrholaey* is a rocky headland characterized by a black lava arch.  During the summer, thousands of sea birds and puffins nest here (puffins are generally in Iceland between mid-May and early August)

*Important: Please note that Dyrholaey is closed during nesting season, from about the middle of May until late June.

Overnight in South Iceland

Optional Suggestions: Lava Center Interactive Exhibition, Skogar folk museum near Skogafoss, snowmobiling or glacier hiking on Myrdalsjokull.

 

Day 3: Thjorsardalur Valley - Gullfoss - Geysir
Highlights: Thjorsardalur Hekla Geysir Gullfoss Laugarvatn Fontana Nature Baths
 
Approximate distance: ca 300 km / 186 miles

Colorful Valley – Hekla Volcano – The Famous Golden Falls – Exploding Geysers

Explore Thjorsardalur valley and its contrasting landscapes of birch woods, sandy lava fields, rivers, and waterfalls. The impressive Hekla volcano towers over the region. This valley is also where you can visit the excavated site of a Viking age farm that had been destroyed one of Hekla’s eruptions.

Continue to the amazing sites of Gullfoss waterfall and the Geysir hot spring area.

Overnight in the Golden Circle area.

Optional afternoon/evening visit to the Secret Lagoon in Fludir or the Fontana Baths at Laugarvatn

Day 4: Thingvellir - Borgarfjordur Area
Highlights: Thingvellir National Park Barnafoss Hraunfossar Deildartunguhver Snorrastofa – Reykholt Borgarnes Settlement Center of Iceland
 
Approximate distance: ca 300 km / 186 miles

National Park with Geological Wonders (UNESCO) – Picturesque Fjords – Waterfalls

Visit Thingvellir National Park, site of the ancient Icelandic parliament and a jewel of nature. Here you can see the rift between the continents.

Then via either Hvalfjordur fjord or the Kaldidalur highland track (Open June-August, 4WD needed), your journey continues to the beautiful Borgarfjordur region and Reykholt, home of the 13th-century scholar Saga author Snorri Sturluson.

Return to Reykjavik in the afternoon for your last night in Iceland.

Day 5: Departure
Highlights: Reykjavik The Blue Lagoon
 
Approximate distance: ca 52 km / 32 miles

Drive back to Keflavik International Airport and even stop at Blue Lagoon as it is on your way to the airport if you did not have time to do it on your arrival day. *