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See the best of North and West Iceland in this 5-day tour! Waterfalls, lava fields, historical sites, and many other captivating places!
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This 5-day trip allows you to see some of the best North and West Iceland sites in one tour! You'll travel with a small group in a minibus, accompanied by the most fun and knowledgeable guide who will share all the captivating stories about places you'll visit.
The next stop of the day will be at Hvítserkur, a 50-feet-high basalt rock stack referred to as the 'Troll of Northwest Iceland.' Its natural shape, formed by the elements for years, resembles a Rhino standing in the sea.
Our day will end with a drive to Dalvík, a charming fishing village where we will spend the first night. We will relax in the evening, not forgetting to check the aurora forecast to see our chance of seeing the Northern Lights.
The second day will start with a truly magical site – Goðafoss Waterfall, or 'waterfall of Gods.' This 12-meter water cascade has an important historical significance. It marks Iceland's conversion from pagan religion to Christianity around 1000 AD. It is believed that upon the conversion, the statues of the Norse gods were thrown into this exact waterfall and lie at the bottom of it to this day.
After seeing this amazing waterfall, our day can go only upward. Our next stop will be at Lake Mývatn. At 36.5 km2, it is one of the largest lakes in Iceland. Surrounded by an incredible landscape full of waterfalls, hot springs, and craters, it is one of Iceland's most protected nature reserves. On our way to the lake, we'll stop by Skútustaðagigar pseudo craters. These craters formed almost 2,500 years ago by natural gas explosions and boiling lava flowing over the wetlands. Today these craters are no longer active and sit quietly on the hiking trail.
Near the craters, we'll find another fascinating location. Dimmuborgir is a 2,300-year-old lava field characterized by unique rock formations, lava bridges, and tunnels. It is no wonder the place is believed to be inhabited by trolls!
After the lava field, we'll make our way to a spectacular volcanic crater. Víti, meaning 'Hell,' is a 300-meter-wide crater that appeared after a brutal eruption of the Krafla Volcano. This eruption happened in the 1700s and lasted for five years (in other words, a real 'Hell' opened)! Today this crater, filled with blue and green water, is a wonderful site to see.
After exploring the crater, we'll head to the next attraction nearby. Námaskarð is a geothermally active area part of the Krafla volcano system. The land here is poisoned by minerals, which paint the site in patches of vivid colors. Even though you cannot see fresh lava coming through the surface, the area is still very much active. You'll see the bubbling mud pots, gurgling hot springs, and screeching fumaroles shooting meters into the air.
On our way back to our hotel, we can stop at Mývatn Nature Baths upon your request. The Myvatn Baths are often called 'the Blue Lagoon of the North,' but it is considerably cheaper – by even half the price! The baths contain around 3.5 million liters of water, with an average temperature between 36-40°C. Don't miss out on this opportunity to bathe in mineral-rich, alkaline water, which is believed to remedy various skin diseases or even asthma!
After Myvatn, we will return to the same hotel in Dalvík for the second night.
The third day of this 5-day tour begins with yet another adventure – a thrilling whale-watching tour by boat! You'll get a unique chance to see whales, dolphins, and porpoises in their natural habitat. We carry out our whale-watching tours responsibly, so we'll only get as close to animals as possible without disrupting their daily routines.
After the tour, we'll stay in Dalvik bay to do some sea angling, a popular pass time activity among locals. After that, we'll share the fresh catch and organize a barbecue.
After lunch, we'll leap past Glaumbær turf farm. This farm with 13 traditional turf houses is an exact replica of an early settlement built around 900 AD. Here you can see how the first settlers of Iceland lived, and your guide will tell you what materials they used to build houses.
After exploring the turf village, we'll make our way back to Reykjavik for the night.
After we've explored the North of Iceland, it's time to head west. Here another two days of unique attractions and adventure activities await us.
Once everyone onboard, we'll head to one of the best-kept secrets of Iceland, the Snæfellsnes Peninsula. The first stop we'll make today will be at the charming village of Arnarstapi, where we can take a walk to appreciate the scenery with dramatic cliffs and lava fields.
After a scenic walk, we'll go to Snaefellsjokull National Park, where you have an opportunity to enter the subterranean world of Vatnshellir Cave (at extra cost). This 8,000-years-old lava tube sits 35 meters (115 feet) below the surface. Here you'll feel like you're in Jules Verne's novel 'A Journey to the Center of Earth.' If you decide not to join a lava caving tour, your guide will take you through some of the most interesting places within the area.
Our next stop will be at Hellnar, an ancient fishing village where we'll be able to take a moment and grab some lunch before going ahead to Djúpalónssandur Beach.
Djúpalónssandur, which translates to 'Deep Pool Pearls,' is known for the black pebbles covering the beach. We'll take a short hike to explore the shipwreck that dates back to 1948. Here you can also find huge stones which were used to test men's ability to enter a fishing party in the old days. See if you'll be able to lift them!
After spending some time at Djúpalónssandur, we will go further to Mt. Kirkjufell, also known as 'the most photographed mountain in Iceland.' You can see the picture of this mountain in almost every souvenir shop in Iceland, and it was also featured in the famous HBO series Game of Thrones!
After an adventure-filled day, we'll head to a hotel in Borgarnes for the last night of the trip. We'll watch the Northern Lights forecast to have the best chance of seeing them.
After enjoying a delicious breakfast, we'll head to another magnificent West Iceland location – the Borgarfjörður area. We'll make the first stop of the day at Deildartunguhver, Europe's most powerful hot spring. The hot spring provides around 180 l/sec (48 gals) of 100°C (212°F) of hot water, used for central heating in the nearby areas. Here, you'll have an opportunity to soak in the brand-new Krauma baths (at extra cost).
After visiting the hot spring, we'll go to the historical site of Reykholt, which was once home to the famous saga-writer Snorri Sturluson. Today many scholars come to this place to study medieval history.
When you think you've seen everything, Iceland surprises you. Our journey will take us to two incredible waterfalls, Hraunfossar and Barnafoss. After admiring the peaceful beauty of the Hraunfossar waterfall, we'll head to Barnafoss. Barnafoss, or the 'Children's Fall,' gained its name from a tragedy. Your guide will tell the story of two children who fell into the waterfall.
Once everyone's back on a minibus, we'll leave the Borgarfjörður area and return to Reykjavik, looking for signs of wonderful Aurora Borealis.
Pick-up: You will be picked up from your preferred Reykjavik location at 9:00 a.m. Picking everyone up can take up to 30 minutes, and your patience is much appreciated.
Available pick-up points: Arctic Adventures’s pick-up list.
Drop-off: After the tour, we will drop you off at your hotel or nearby authorized meeting point around 19:00, depending on weather and road conditions.
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.
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.
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). If you have more or heavier luggage with you, you will need to book storage for the surplus luggage before you arrive, there is a small fee for using this facility. Luggage storage in Reykjavík can be added during the booking process of your order in the extras section.
* The combined dimensions of each bag must not exceed 158 cm (62 in).
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.
