Located halfway between North America and Europe, Iceland is a perfect place for a brief stopover. With a wide range of attractions, this unique island nation is absolutely worth a visit.
Unmatched nature, inspiring adventures, rich culture and a charming atmosphere await you in Iceland. Since many airline companies - from Icelandair to Play Airlines and Air Canada - offer free stopovers in Iceland, it is a great opportunity to explore the land of fire and ice.
If you have a tight timeframe and spend only a few hours in Iceland, don’t just wait at the airport. Why would you skip one of the 25 wonders of the world if it’s located within a 20-minute drive from the airport?
Take a relaxing bath in Iceland’s most famous geothermal spa and experience the health benefits of the famous Blue Lagoon silica! This dreamy lake lays in the middle of a rugged lava field. Breathtaking landscapes surround it. Regardless of the season, you visit it, it will surely enchant you!
If you prefer visiting the capital, you can spend your time discovering the city. Join a city tour or, if you like exciting activities, join a whale watching or horseback riding tour. You will find multiple options of all these.
If you stay in Iceland for a whole day, go explore some of the most popular tourist attractions. There is a route, dubbed The Golden Circle, which features some incredible historic locations, world-famous geological wonders, and an all-natural geothermal lake.
The first stop on this route is the Thingvellir National Park, which is a UNESCO world heritage site. Here you can walk between the Eurasian and North American continents as the tectonic plates meet and move apart here.
Thingvellir is also a remarkable historic site. The country’s first parliament was founded here over 1000 years ago. This parliament was also the first democratic parliament in the world.
The next stop on the Golden Circle Route is an active geothermal field. A frequently erupting geyser will make you feel closer to nature than ever. An eruption of the Strokkur geyser can reach a height of 40 meters and shoots out every 5 to 8 minutes.
The third place that you visit on the Golden Circle is an enormously powerful Waterfall, called Gullfoss. The water that cascades down two steps and descends into a deep curving ravine.
You can walk up very close to the waterfall in the summertime, you can even feel the spray of the water on your face. If you are lucky, a rainbow might show up over the waterfall.
Finally, you can visit a natural geothermal lake, the Secret Lagoon. It is a natural warm water pool where you can soak in and relax after the beautiful nature sightseeing tour. Hot springs, geothermal greenhouses, bubbling pots and tiny geysers will surround you. Between October and March, you have a good chance of seeing the Northern Lights show in the skies!
If you have a two-day-long stopover in Iceland, the South Coast is the other must-see area after you visited the Golden Circle. Here you will find completely different landscapes than you saw on the Golden Circle. Some of the most famous waterfalls, glaciers, and black sand beaches are found on the south coast.
Two tremendous waterfalls, Seljalandsfoss and Skógafoss are located quite close to each other. Seljalandsfoss waterfall drops over 60 meters (197 feet) and you can walk behind the fall. Skógafoss is also 60 m tall (197 ft) but much wider, 25 m wide (80 ft).and more powerful waterfall. You can often see rainbows around the fall on sunny days.
In good weather, you will see the notorious Eyjafjallajökull glacier-volcano on the way as you pass by. This is the volcano that erupted most recently in 2010, forcing 800 locals to leave their homes. The eruption continued for six days and caused a huge air traffic disruption across Europe.
The famous Reynisfjara Black Sand Beach is also a destination on this tour. This amazing volcanic beach has been ranked one of the best non-tropical beaches in the world. No wonder why: it has fine, pitch black sand, curious basalt column formations, dramatic sea stacks and a huge cave.
On this tour, you will be able to walk on one of Iceland’s sparkling blue glaciers. Some glaciers are very easy to access and safe to walk on. We will gear you up with crampons and take you up to the surface of a glacier, accompanied by a professional glacier guide. This will be an adventure of a lifetime!
If you have three days in Iceland, on your third day you can travel further to east. Visiting the Vatnajökull National Park, you will see fascinating landscapes and a unique natural phenomenon, a glacier lagoon. The marvelous Jökulsarlón Glacier Lagoon is one of the top tourist destinations in Iceland.
It is a dreamy location, a glacier lake where huge icebergs float towards the ocean. This thrilling environment is constantly changing, it never looks the same. It is not surprising that Jökulsárlón has been a top filming location of many Hollywood movies.
Not far from the glacier lagoon, lies the famous Diamond Beach. This is the place where icebergs get washed up on the seashore. Broken into small pieces, they look like a million sparkling diamonds, laying on the pitch-black sand. This magical place has been an inspiration to thousands of photographers.
