Iceland

Priv said:
Very happy to read that, have a little trip with the Mrs booked for a few weeks time.
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Hiya - just thought I’d give a run down of some stuff we did. Hope it helps.

Firstly - you are in for a real treat. It is an amazing place

You can cram a lot in if you want, We did
Booked our tours through Get My Guide (they contract out to BusTours Iceland so it might be cheaper to do it direct)
Golden Circle tour is 8 hours
Southern Iceland tour is 12 hours
Both just fantastic.

You can tag Blue Lagoon on to Golden Circle.
We did it separately booking direct with BL and taking local travel.
it’s definitely worth doing despite being man made.
Also walked to the Perlan Centre which we enjoyed

Northern Lights? Well, suppose you got to do it just in case. Highly unlikely you will see anything and worth nothing most sightings aren’t really available to the naked eye. You will see a bit of haze then hold your camera up to get the ‘green’.
But, if you just might get the full show.

One thing we missed was the flight simulator ’over Iceland’ supposed to be fab.
Punk museum is a daft laugh. Costs a fiver and is in an underground bog. Nice little 10mins.

You can download ‘Appy Hour’ when you get there. it gives an up to date list on where happy hours are on.
Lots to choose from. I liked ‘Bravo’ but its a bit alternative with great music. My wife called it scruffy….. Happy hour until 20.00, Less than a fiver a pint.
Just round the corner tho was a lovely wine bar doing half price cocktails til 21.30. Called ‘verun’ I think

Lots of good restaurants to choose from - if you are looking for something special - FishMarket does it.
Sumac was also good
SeaBaron by the old harbour is great for lobster soup.

Stating the bleeding obvious - it is seriously cold and wet, especially with the wind. You need to be ready for it.
On the trips you will likely be walking on ice at times - if you can get some of those things that go on the soles of your shoes (easy crampons or something like that) it would be worth it.
Lots of people were falling over.

if you have any more q’s just let me know
 
1finny said:
Hiya - just thought I’d give a run down of some stuff we did. Hope it helps.

Firstly - you are in for a real treat. It is an amazing place

You can cram a lot in if you want, We did
Booked our tours through Get My Guide (they contract out to BusTours Iceland so it might be cheaper to do it direct)
Golden Circle tour is 8 hours
Southern Iceland tour is 12 hours
Both just fantastic.

You can tag Blue Lagoon on to Golden Circle.
We did it separately booking direct with BL and taking local travel.
it’s definitely worth doing despite being man made.
Also walked to the Perlan Centre which we enjoyed

Northern Lights? Well, suppose you got to do it just in case. Highly unlikely you will see anything and worth nothing most sightings aren’t really available to the naked eye. You will see a bit of haze then hold your camera up to get the ‘green’.
But, if you just might get the full show.

One thing we missed was the flight simulator ’over Iceland’ supposed to be fab.
Punk museum is a daft laugh. Costs a fiver and is in an underground bog. Nice little 10mins.

You can download ‘Appy Hour’ when you get there. it gives an up to date list on where happy hours are on.
Lots to choose from. I liked ‘Bravo’ but its a bit alternative with great music. My wife called it scruffy….. Happy hour until 20.00, Less than a fiver a pint.
Just round the corner tho was a lovely wine bar doing half price cocktails til 21.30. Called ‘verun’ I think

Lots of good restaurants to choose from - if you are looking for something special - FishMarket does it.
Sumac was also good
SeaBaron by the old harbour is great for lobster soup.

Stating the bleeding obvious - it is seriously cold and wet, especially with the wind. You need to be ready for it.
On the trips you will likely be walking on ice at times - if you can get some of those things that go on the soles of your shoes (easy crampons or something like that) it would be worth it.
Lots of people were falling over.

if you have any more q’s just let me know
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Thanks for that, im sure my mrs may have a few questions, il fire them over once ive spoken to her. Very much appreciated
 
We did a free (you tip at the end) walking tour around Reykjavik, I would definitely recommend that. The guide was spot on, he prided himself on never cancelling a walk. We got caught in the middle of a snowstorm at -10, and had to shelter in the Harpa concert hall whilst he randomly dished out an Icelandic version of Liquorice allsorts, once it died down, we finished the walk.
 
Superb place. Hired a camper with the wife and drove the orbital over 2 weeks, wild camping in some places. Spectacular. One of my favourite places
 
It blew my mind when I realised Icelandic surnames are their fathers first name but with “son” or “dóttir” on the end

For example if the father is called Johann, the sons surname becomes Johansson and the daughters surname becomes Johansdóttir

Maybe everyone already knew it but me.
 
Went there with my missus and another couple a few years back. Echo most of the positive sentiments on here. We did the “golden circle” tour and stayed in a lodge for a night. It was the middle of summer and the sun set for an hour each night. Breathtaking scenery. I prefer the guided stuff for the local insight. Allegedly, Iceland has the biggest banana plantation in Europe 🍌🍌🍌
It’s actually a Spanish plantation but that’s in the Canaries so technically in Africa. Why spoil a delightful little urban myth?
 
The blue lagoon is extremely over rated. I wouldn't go back. There is so much more to Iceland than the Golden Circle.
 
Seriously considering Reykjavik for new year as our Dutch trip is at risk of falling through.

Damon Albarn has a bar there I believe?
 
I went with the school in 2017 and loved it, I would love to go back and spend more time at the things I enjoyed.

Gullfoss falls was a wonderful spectacle
Humpty said:
The blue lagoon is extremely over rated. I wouldn't go back. There is so much more to Iceland than the Golden Circle.
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I enjoyed the Blue Lagoon but like you, I wouldn't rush back to it. There is another thermal spar just opened and that looks really good.

I went with the school in 2017 and other than wet nurse a group of 15/16 year olds, I had a brilliant time. We had our own tour guides throughout the trip and both were really knowledgeable. I didn't realise that the Icelandics feel that we invaded them during WW2.

Would love to go back with my sons - The wife hates the cold and would be bloody miserable throughout.

Edit: I forgot to say we went horse riding when there and Icelandic horses trot and canter differently from our horses. It took a bit of getting use to it but soon got the hang of it. I have always love riding and although many other members of staff and students were out of their comfort zone, I was in my element.

All them hour looking after the gypsies horses in South Bank paid off.
 
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