On the way we see waterfalls, volcanoes, floating icebergs, cliffs, black sand beaches, geysers, hot springs and so much more. There are even options for a glacier hike or a visit to the Secret Lagoon, and during the summer months you can add a boat tour on Jokulsarlon Glacier Lagoon.
Nominated Best Tour of 2019 in Iceland by TourRadar
From
Find out more details about the tour and its highlights.
The Golden Circle
The first stop on the Golden Circle route is at Thingvellir National Park. Thingvellir was the first place in Iceland to be made a UNESCO World Heritage Site, due to its historical and geological importance. The valley was once home to the Althingi, the oldest parliament in the world, first founded in 930 c.e.
Thingvellir is also the only place in the world where you can walk between two continental plates, from Europe to North America. Its location, on a seismic hotspot, has dramatically enhanced its beauty and we’ll see fascinating rock formations, vast lava fields, sapphire blue waterfalls and much, much more.
Our journey will continue to the Geysir Geothermal area – known for its many erupting geysers and bubbling fumaroles. The most famous, Strokkur, erupts every 5-7 minutes, propelling clouds of steam up to 30 meters into the air. The geysers here helped to launch Icelandic tourism and have been synonymous with the country ever since.
Our final stop on the Golden Circle is Gullfoss – a magnificent two-step waterfall that originates at the Langjökull glacier. Its name comes from the golden spray from the falls as it cascades over the brown lava rock. Be sure to bring a camera because you’ll definitely want to immortalize the scene!
Seljalandsfoss & Skogafoss
On the South Coast is the white, timeless Seljalandsfoss Waterfall. These cascades tumbles down 60 meters into a gorge below. In good weather, you can walk behind it, leading to some fantastic shots of every angle. Next is the nearby Skógafoss waterfall – a place of myth and legend that plays a vital role in the Icelandic sagas. Once upon a time, a passing troll was so enchanted by the beauty of the waterfall that he forgot about the approaching dawn. As the sun rose, it transformed him into stone. To this day, you can still see the troll’s faces in the rock formations that overlook the falls.
Northern Lights
The hotel we will stay in is a perfect place to pursue the Northern Lights between September and April months. Hopefully, the skies will be clear and the ethereal colors of the Northern Lights will illuminate the heavens – a bucket-list experience that will inspire awe and wonder in equal measure.
Reynisfjara Black Sand Beach
Reynisfjara is a black sand beach that overlooks the Atlantic Ocean. To one side towers a cluster of basalt columns, like tubes of a gigantic stone organ buried within the hills. Just offshore, the dramatic Reynisdrangar basalt pillars rise like mighty turrets out of the sea.
Jokulsarlon and Diamond Beach
Jökulsárlón Glacier Lagoon is famous for its blue icebergs, which break away the Breiðamerkurjökull Glacier and float out to the Atlantic Ocean in a spellbinding display of remarkable beauty. The lagoon also hosts a playful seal population that swims in between the icebergs. Some of the icebergs wash up on the aptly named Diamond Beach, where they sit like glittering jewels on its dark volcanic sands. Jökulsárlón and the Diamond Beach are truly magical places and we thoroughly recommend bringing a camera – because we guarantee that you’ll take amazing photos.
Ice Caving Experience
During the winter (October – April), you will go on a mind-blowing glacier hike and ice cave tour with a certified glacier guide. Each ice cave only lasts for a year and is totally unique, meaning that we can’t tell you exactly what we will be seeing. However, they are usually incredibly beautiful, thanks to the gorgeous patterns that the meltwaters have carved into the ice. The age of the ice in a glacier affects its color, so the older the ice, the bluer it will be. In summer, we go to Katla Ice Cave near Vik, the only natural ice cave that can be accessed during the summer months. As both the ice caves and the icebergs at Jökulsárlón contain deep layers of ancient ice, they are often exquisitely blue.
We’ll start on the Golden Circle route at Thingvellir National Park. Thingvellir was the first place in Iceland to be made a UNESCO World Heritage Site, due to its historical and geological importance. The valley was once home to the Althingi, the ol...)
We’ll start on the Golden Circle route at Thingvellir National Park. Thingvellir was the first place in Iceland to be made a UNESCO World Heritage Site, due to its historical and geological importance. The valley was once home to the Althingi, the oldest parliament in the world, first founded in 930 c.e.
Thingvellir is also the only place in the world where you can walk between two continental plates, from Europe to North America. Its location, on a seismic hotspot, has dramatically enhanced its beauty and we’ll see fascinating rock formations, vast lava fields, sapphire blue waterfalls and much, much more.
Our journey will continue to the Geysir Geothermal area – known for its many erupting geysers and bubbling fumaroles. The most famous, Strokkur, erupts every 5-7 minutes, propelling clouds of steam up to 30 meters into the air. The geysers here helped to launch Icelandic tourism and have been synonymous with the country ever since.
Our final stop on the Golden Circle is Gullfoss – a magnificent two-step waterfall that originates at the Langjökull glacier. Its name comes from the golden spray from the falls as it cascades over the brown lava rock. Be sure to bring a camera because you’ll definitely want to immortalize the scene!
We’ll then head to the South Coast on the Ring Road, the final stop of the day is Seljalandsfoss Waterfall. This white waterfall tumbles down 60 meters into a gorge below. In good weather, you can walk behind it, leading to some fantastic shots of every angle. We'll also pass the notorious Hekla volcano on our way to a charming country hotel. Hopefully, the skies will be clear and the ethereal colors of the Northern Lights during the September - April months will illuminate the heavens – a bucket-list experience that will inspire awe and wonder in equal measure.
Day two will start off with a visit to Jökulsárlón Glacier Lagoon. Jökulsárlón is famous for its blue icebergs, which break away from the Breiðamerkurjökull Glacier and float out to the Atlantic Ocean in a spellbinding display of remarkable beauty. T...)
Day two will start off with a visit to Jökulsárlón Glacier Lagoon. Jökulsárlón is famous for its blue icebergs, which break away from the Breiðamerkurjökull Glacier and float out to the Atlantic Ocean in a spellbinding display of remarkable beauty. The lagoon also hosts a playful seal population that swims in between the icebergs.
Some of the icebergs wash up on the aptly named Diamond Beach, where they sit like glittering jewels on its dark volcanic sands. Jökulsárlón and Diamond Beach are truly magical places and we thoroughly recommend bringing a camera – because we guarantee that you’ll take amazing photos.
After spending time alongside beautiful icebergs, our tour will head south to Iceland's famous Skaftafell Nature Reserve for a new adventure. From October to April, we join for a glacier hike to a natural ice cave on Vatnajokull Glacier. Going on a glacier hike is an incredible experience – a vast expanse of pristine snow, dotted with interesting rock and ice formations. After our hike, we'll enter a natural ice cave where we'll enjoy mind-blowing ice formations while learning more about how glaciers form. From May to September, we go to the only natural ice cave you can visit all year - the Katla Ice Cave tour near Vik.
Each ice cave only exists for a year and is totally unique, meaning that we can’t tell you exactly what we will be seeing. However, they are usually incredibly beautiful, thanks to the gorgeous patterns that the meltwaters have carved into the ice.
We’ll spend the evening in a traditional countryside hotel – keeping an eye out for the Northern Lights again (availability between September - April).
Day three is filled with iconic South Coast highlights. As we head back to Reykjavik, our first stop is Fjaðrárgljúfur Canyon, whose vivid blue glacial river offers a stark contrast to mossy lava rock. Fjaðrárgljúfur is incredibly photogenic and we g...)
Day three is filled with iconic South Coast highlights. As we head back to Reykjavik, our first stop is Fjaðrárgljúfur Canyon, whose vivid blue glacial river offers a stark contrast to mossy lava rock. Fjaðrárgljúfur is incredibly photogenic and we guarantee that you’ll capture some unforgettable moments. Be aware that on some days, we may not be able to stop at Fjaðrárgljúfur, as the ecosystem is very fragile and subject to occasional closure.
After Fjaðrárgljúfur Canyon, we'll head towards the moss-carpeted Eldhraun lava field, an ominous monument to the largest lava flow in recorded history. Our friendly guide will tell us fascinating facts about this dramatic event and point out the icy glacial rivers and vast sand plains that were carved out by massive glacial floods.
Next, we'll drive to Reynisfjara, a black sand beach that overlooks the Atlantic Ocean. To one side towers a cluster of basalt columns, like tubes of a gigantic stone organ buried within the hills. Just offshore, the dramatic Reynisdrangar basalt pillars rise like mighty turrets out of the sea.
Following Reynisfjara, our next stop will be at Skógafoss Waterfall – a place of myth and legend that plays a vital role in the Icelandic sagas. Once upon a time, a passing troll was so enchanted by the beauty of the waterfall that he forgot about the approaching dawn. As the sun rose, it transformed him into stone. To this day, you can still see the troll’s faces in the rock formations that overlook the falls.
We’ll climb the winding steps that lead to its summit and enjoy a spectacular view of the Eyjafjallajökull Glacier, rising on the horizon behind the falls. Locals also believe that one of the first Viking settlers buried the treasure somewhere in the area – perhaps, we’ll get lucky and find it!
We’ll then drive back to Reykjavik, arriving between 17-19:00 (5-7 p.m.) after a magical three days in the land of fire and ice.
Pick-up begins at 9:00 from your hotel or another meeting point in Reykjavik Picking everyone up can take up to 30 minutes – we thank you for your patience in advance. Check out our list of available pick-up points here. )
Please remember to bring – warm outdoor clothing, thermal top and bottom layers, a waterproof jacket and pants, headwear, scarves and gloves. Sturdy hiking boots are vital for glacier hiking and you will need them to attach crampons. Hiking boots ca...)
Still got questions about the tour? Hopefully you will find the answer here.
We always recommend booking a multi-day tour starting at least one day after arriving in Iceland. If you’re flying in from the US or will be landing early (4-6:30 am) you should be able to join the tour, but some risks would follow (i.e if the flight gets delayed) and could, therefore, miss out on the tour.
For multi-day tours, each participant is allowed to bring a small backpack and 1 piece of luggage weighing a maximum of 20 kg (44 lbs).
* The combined dimensions of each bag must not exceed 158 cm (62 in).
* If you have extra luggage that you would like to leave, we recommend storing luggage at the BSI Bus terminal (fees apply) or another luggage storage space in Reykjavik.
When booking with Adventures.com, you are guaranteed accommodation at a nice country hotel and/or a guesthouse. The hotels we have partnered up with are all of the same standards and offer nice rooms with made-up beds. The rooms come with private or shared bathrooms, depending on your booking. The standard room is a twin room but it’s possible to request a double room or a triple room, with no extra charge.
If you are traveling solo, you will have to add the single room fee if you wish to have a single room.
All hotels have free Wi-Fi. Towels, a hairdryer, and a kettle are accessible at all of the hotels. Hotel breakfast is included!
If your tour includes accommodation, breakfast is always included during the tour at the hotel/guesthouse restaurant.
Meals and beverages are otherwise not included on your tour. (Unless it’s specifically stated in the description of the tour)
On our multiday tours, we will be making stops at restaurants and convenience stores where you will be able to purchase all necessities.
You should count on spending around 8,000 ISK (80$) on food each day per person. Cash is not necessary, as credit cards are almost always accepted. Having a small amount of cash doesn’t hurt though.
Breakfast is included at all the hotels we stay in during the tour. The breakfast will be a typical breakfast buffet, offering bread, toppings, cereal, yogurt, fruits, coffee, and tea etc.
Your guide will also find a good place for the group to eat lunch. We always try to choose places that have a wide selection of dishes on the menu, so there will be options available for everyone. The dinner is usually at the hotels we stay at for the night.
We do welcome participants of all ages older than the listed minimum age for each tour. We have people of ages ranging from 8-99 years joining our multi-day tours. Our average group usually consists of participants between the age 20-55 years. We do get a lot of solo travellers joining our tours, as well as families and friends.
If you have difficulties participating in any of the activities included in the tour, for example, a glacier activity, you are more than welcome to skip it. You can explore your surroundings in the meantime or wait elsewhere. Our guide should be able to drop you off at a nearby place where there are some services available.
A single supplement is available if you want to have your own room, but you are not required to pay a single supplement. If you are a single traveler and do not wish to book a single room, you’ll be roomed with another traveler of the same gender.
Don’t worry, you can always rent sturdy hiking boots, a waterproof jacket and pants in the booking process. We do not rent these items from the location, they must be ordered in advance.
We drive on average around 300 km (186 miles) per day on our multi-day tours. You will be spending approximately 4-5 hours in the car each day. We do of course stop on multiple locations throughout the tour for sightseeing, activities, bathroom breaks and lunch stops.
The Northern Lights are natural phenomena and we, unfortunately, cannot promise you will see them. Their appearance depends upon atmospheric and weather conditions.
For more information on the Northern Lights, please have a look at our Northern Lights tours.
We, unfortunately, do not have one simple answer to this question.
There isn’t just one single setting for your camera that ensures great photos. However, if you have manual options, you are probably best served with experimenting with various combinations of ISO, aperture, and exposure settings. As a rule of thumb, ISO setting between 800 and 3200, aperture between f/2 8 and f/5.6, and shutter speed at between 15 seconds and 30 seconds have proven effective.
A good thing to keep in mind, ISO setting between 800 and 3200, aperture between f/2.8 and f/5.6, and shutter speed between 15 seconds and 30 seconds have given great results.
Different combinations may give very different results. Higher ISO setting will allow you to capture faster exposures, but the downside to this might be for example grainier images.
If the shutter speed is above 15 seconds it will result in a slight star movement.
Wider angle lenses are usually more versatile in low light settings, but longer lenses give you different options for compositions. Make sure that you remove all lens filters, as they may distort images. You will probably get the best results with manual setting for infinite focal length.
Reimbursement is not given if the northern lights tour goes ahead and no lights are seen but we do offer you the change to join a Northern Lights Minibus tour free of charge.
Please contact our Customer Care to re-book your tour.
When Northern Lights tours are canceled it’s usually due to unfavorable weather conditions.
In that case, your options will be to:
Please go to customer portal to re-book your tour or contact us by phone +354 562 7000
The northern lights are a pretty difficult thing to predict. We recommend you to check en.vedur.is to see the forecast and if the level is high and the skies are clear then it’s very likely that the tour is going ahead. We do update our website’s tour departure sheet with the information at 17:00 pm the latest. If your tour is canceled then you will receive an email from us.
If we think there is no chance at all of seeing the lights we will cancel the tour. We don’t want to bring you out and disappoint if there is no chance of the lights to be seen.
Yes, the guide on your tour will take a photo of you with the northern lights in the background.
These can be single or group photo’s and are free of charge.
The Northern Lights season is from late August until mid-April. However, if you want to increase your changes of seeing them, it is best to wait until the clear winter months of mid-September until March.
The northern lights depend on luck and weather if that is in your favor than you will be able to see the Aurora Borealis above the inviting streets of Reykjavík. Whether you see the lights or not they depend on two different factors. The first being the weather. If the sky is clear, no clouds, then you are halfway there to seeing the astonishing spectacle that is the Northern Lights (although light pollution can sometimes be a problem). Increased solar activity is the second half so, if these two merge together you may well be able to see the Northern Lights from Reykjavik.
Iceland is known for unforeseeable weather. It is likely that you can see all 4 seasons in one day.
Dressing for that kind sort of weather can always be demanding so we always suggest dressing in layers. 3 or 4 upper layers are highly recommended, for example, a light t-shirt (preferably wool) next to the skin, then a fleece or heavy wool garment topped off with a waterproof windbreaker.
Jeans are not recommended for our trips as they are not suitable for the weather conditions, they become very heavy, cold and uncomfortable to wear when they get wet.
Lightweight hiking pants, track pants or long cotton pants are convenient and wear wind/waterproof pants over. There is high UV and sunlight reflecting off on the glacier so we highly recommend using sunglasses and sunscreen even if it is cloudy.
You will need sturdy hiking shoes that fit crampons for the glacier hiking tours. If you do not own a pair then we rent out suitable hiking boots as well as a waterproof raincoat and trousers.
It is good to bring your own backpack on our full day or half day tours. It’s the best carry-on for a small lunch, extra clothes and other necessary items.
The scenery on the tour is full of stunning, scenic views that are photographable so you should definitely bring your camera along.
This is surely a personal choice, we do not deny pregnant women on our glacier trips but we highly recommend you to take a closer look at our trip description and difficulty ratings, they will hopefully give you a better idea. We also recommend you to contact your physician, as pregnant women’s health can be quite different. If you have any further questions or concerns then feel free to contact us.
Lunch is not provided on any of our trips, therefore we recommend you to bring your own lunch especially for the longer trips, snacks and a bottle of water (you can refill it on the trip).
Crampons make you enable to walk on the glacier ice without slipping. They are metal spikes that we attach to the soles of your hiking shoes.
Yes, we have specially trained and certified glacier guide on every glacier tour that we offer. And for our 3rd party tours we only partner with operators that meet our quality and safety standards.
Yes, we provide you with all the necessary glacier gear for our glacier hiking tours. Ice axe, crampons, harness, and helmets are provided. This will help you to complete the tour safely. The minimum shoe size to attach crampons is EU 35.
Iceland is known to have a lot of snow and when the snow stays long enough in one place than it turns to ice. Over long periods of time, the ice layers up becoming huge blocks called glaciers. It forms to create ginormous glaciers that sweep across huge masses of land. Iceland is home of the largest glacier in Europe that is called Vatnajökull. The Glacier Guides can tell you more about and everything you need to know about the Glaciers.
Rain is common in Iceland but we never let the rain be in our way to go forward with our tours.
That’s why we highly recommend appropriate clothing so you can be warm and dry on the tours.
Nature is out of our control and therefore we need to adapt to the weather. Your safety is our first priority so if your safety is compromised by going on the tour then we will cancel it and you will get full reimbursement.
The guide on your Glacier Hiking tour will provide you with all the information you might need when preparing for a glacier hike.
Yes, the parking fee depends on your car category.
Category A - Passenger car, 5 seats or less: ISK 750
Category B - Passenger car, 6-9 seats: ISK 1,000
Motorcycles: ISK 300
You can always check the newest fees here.
