Explore the volcanoes inside, clamber over glaciers, or just dive into a hot tub. These are the activities that take you to the heart of this unique place…
1. Plunge into a hot tub
Since Viking times Icelandic folk have had outdoor swimming in thermal pools. You wouldn’t hesitate to enter, either as a surreal way to spend a dark winter day or relax after a rough walk.
The Blue Lagoon is the most popular and commercialized in Iceland with its brightly colored water. The Myvatn nature reservoir is also famous, as it is one of the craters, holes, lava beds, and solfatara of the Martian landscape. (Please be advised: first thing in the morning, the pool might be unbearably hot.)
However, thermal pools are in fact scattered throughout the region. Tell a restaurant about your favorite directions. You would actually have enough for yourself.
2. Pick up the ice
Over or below him, rise. Watch the sunshine or hear it collapse into the sea. In Iceland Ice is putting on quite a display.
For example, in an eponymous national park, Vatnajökull is an 8.100 km2 ice dome (covering 8% of Iceland landmass) with up to 800m thick and is protected. To explore the glaciers, hire a guide who will supply you with equipment and guide you safely through the mud of splits and pinnacles.
Then head for the glacial lagoon of Jökulsárlón, which jammed with thousands of massive, glacier-sized icebergs. Walk the moraines around the iceberg and glimpse them as they pass to and from the sea.
3. See the theme of Northern Lights
The Icelandic winter’s intense darkness has certain benefits. Iceland is one of the world’s best places to view the Northern Lights between September and April. Apart from Reykjavik’s “Big Smoke,” the show in Iceland contains virtually no light pollution.
Auroran views – and your comfort – are planned for hotels dotted throughout the world. You can see the lights in an outdoor hot pool and leave the thermal spaces comfortably in your pocket. You can eat or drink.
4. Watch Husavic whales Whales
You have some of the best opportunities to see whales in Húsavík. Whale-watching vessels are in the snug port of Húsavík and chug out in Skjálfandi, a bay of brooding mountains, most days between May and September.
Look for tiny whales and dolphins with a white beak - often humpbacks and giant blues show up too. Time is spent on land in one of the harbor bars and coffee shops for the Whale Museum.
5. Discover Eastern Magic
The wild Eastern Fjords of Iceland once had to be reached on a long trip, internal or long maritime flight. But direct airports now have convenient access to this untouched land of jagged mountains, strong waterfalls, and sandy beaches.
Image postcards like Djúpivogur, with a lovely little harbor and colorful boats scattered as confetti under old wooden houses, are an enjoyable experience.
6. Help a few sheep rounds up
Réttir is an Icelandic farming tradition, in which a long line of horsemen stretching for miles and driving back to the bottoms for the winter gather large crowds of sheep and horses that have spent the summer on free-roaming in the highlands. It’s a perfect day of fun for other Icelanders and tourists as the animal gathering is a serious business for farmers.
The viewer wakes up on the mountain slopes to see thousands of sheep and horses. In early September the first roundups begin and last all over the country until the beginning of October. You can walk or horseback to experience Rettir. The animal is often accompanied by traditional songs and dances by a round-up of local people.
7. In the volcano drop
Often curious about what the inner volcano looks like? Thrihnukagigur volcano is the only location in the world where you can find out for yourself. You have gone into the volcano by opening the glass elevator on top. Underneath, you will admire the magmatic chamber of the volcano in which a vibrant world of crimson, burnt orange, and golden rock awaits.
In Blafjoll, just a 30-minute drive to Reykjavik is Thrihnukagigur. Don’t worry! Don’t worry! Don’t worry! For 4000 years, the volcano has not exploded and is sleeping peacefully. Only from May to October is this unique volcano tour open.
8. Landmannalaugar Hike
Landmannalaugar is well known for its scenic walkways. And seeing why is simple. In the southern part of the Icelandic highlands, close to Hekla Vulcano, this walking hub in the Fjallabak Nature Reserve offers candy-colored paths up and down. With lakes with water marine. Springs of steaming hot and fiery lava flows, there’s a lot to do and see along this path.
In Landmannalaugar, Laugavegur is a very popular trail. This trek normally lasts for four days and takes you across robust glaciers, epic waterfalls, and the North Atlantic Ocean overview.
The two-hour walk to the Brennisteinsalda mountain ('sulfur wave") through the Laugahraun area and the one hour walk up Mt. Bláhnjúkur (“Blue Peak”) are worth the trek. The ride is quick.
9. Riding Travel
Though tiny, the horses of Iceland are as tough as the climate in which they live. They have evolved alone since arrival in the Vikings and have made them the perfect way to walk around the wild landscapes of the interior of Iceland.
Riding an Icelandic horse brings you to a little bit – it has two additional horses you might have ridden for. You should try one the tolt, a kind of running walk that briefly disturbed even seasoned riders, but when you relax in it it is extremely comfortable. They will take you back to the land of the Sagas and trot through the vast, rough terrain through giant mountains and waterfalls.
10. Take time in Reykjavik, the vibrant capital.
Reykjavik’s vibrant, seaside city is bound to enrich your day with its brilliant structures and blue sea views. People also use the capital to enjoy the larger adventures of Iceland, but people who spend time exploring Reykjavik will enjoy them.
You do not have to abandon the capital for wildlife as whales fill in the harbor of the city, while swans and geese gracefully glide across the lake Tjormin before the town hall. In the capital, Northern Lights can also be experienced and the green lights illuminate the sparkling buildings below.
Reykjavik, like most of the cities, is rich in museums, including the Reykjavik Art Museum, the impressive architecture of Perlan, and the most unique Phallological Museum in Iceland.
11. Crossing the Arctic Coast
If you like, then look not far beyond the Arctic Coast Way, to get away from the crowds of Reykjavik and the famous Golden Circle. A new route was established in June 2019 to highlight the lesser-known and lesser-visited areas of the country between Hvammstangi on the Northwestern coast to Bakkafjörżur on the North-East.
Take your own speed to discover the 900 km of coastal routes. There are a lot of places to rest along the way, with quaint fishing villages, swelling peaks, twisted rock formations.
Final Thoughts
Do not miss an opportunity to snorkel with puffins on the Arctic Circle, Grímsey Island, Iceland’s only group. The skies are full of common birds, and the ocean loves a dive as puffins.