24 Hours in Iceland

Alright I am going to start by saying this was quite the learning trip! It was an amazing experience but I learned so much from it that I would love to share what worked and what I would absolutely do differently. To get started, huge tip. If you are interested in going to Iceland make it a two country trip. 9/10 times you can get a layover in Iceland for up to 7 days free of charge, yes I said it FREEEEEE. I actually planned this trip when I noticed the majority of the flights to Nepal had layovers in Iceland so I thought well shi*t why not extend this.

So fast forward I am on my quick 6 hour evening flight to Iceland and arriving at Keflavík International Airport around 6 am with only a very basic plan. I also want to mention right away that I personally do not believe you need any longer than 3 days in Iceland. You will not be going for the food or drinks, now be able to afford much of them that you should plan to spend all your time seeing the beautiful waterfalls, landscapes and hot springs then head out.

Our plan was simple. We had actually 25 hours and our only plan was to rent a car, see everything we could and then stay in the Airbnb I pre booked. Getting through the airport was fine and overall renting a car was too. It is very important however to dress appropriately, walking out of the airport I was actually worried I would be swept away by the freezing cold wind. It is also very important when renting a car to make sure you tell them automatic because if not they will give you a manual car expecting you know how to drive stick and you will have to crawl your way back through the wind to switch cars. We did not pre-book the car and although it was quite easy and only took a few minutes it wouldn’t be a bad idea to look ahead in case there are any special deals.

Once we were settled and in the car it was time to hit the golden circle. Because we only had 25 hours we did preplan our path to be sure it was all manageable in the time we had. There were a few places such as The Sólheimasandur plane wreckage that we wanted to see but it was about 5 hours out of the way and we would have wasted far too much time. Another fun fact, be sure to take a look into how long the sun will be out when you are visiting. We did not realize that when we went there would only be around 6 hours of sunlight…. Our first stop was the Pingvellir National Park and the sun was just barely starting to appear which made finding it a bit difficult. We parked in what we hope was a lot and hiked up to see the waterfall. It was so beautiful and watching the sun slowly rise onto it was truly incredible. I could not believe I was actually in Iceland seeing what I was seeing. We spent about 20-30 minutes there taking pictures and taking in the beauty and decided to head to the next spot.

Next was Gullfoss, this was was insane. I thought Pingvellir was big but when I got to Gullfoss I swear the ground was going to collapse into it taking everyone with it. I wore hiking boots the entire time and I do recommend that. There are quite a few stairs to climb to see the best few of the falls that you will be happy you have something with good grip.

Next was Kerið, a massive krater that was absolutely breathtaking. I highly recommend standing on the bench and taking a selfie with it, turns out to be a very cool shot. We only stayed for about 10 minutes and then were on our way to see the Geysir.

As you arrive you will instantly start to smell the strong stench of sulfate but as you walk you’ll get pretty used to it. There are a bunch of small geysirs as you walk but then you will see an area with people circling around this tiny puddle and watch as the real Geysir erupts. It happens every few minutes so definitely worth sticking around and watching a time or two.

We continued our drive and head to the Blue Lagoon. I would like to warn everyone that the drivers can be a bit crazy and drive very quickly but to just drive at your own pace and enjoy the views, the pretty horses on the side and take it all in. We did pass the black sand beaches but did not have enough time to get out and enjoy them, definitely wish we could have.

The Blue Lagoon was truly something else. We pre-paid for the most basic package at 4 o’clock. I highly recommend paying ahead to lock your spot in and save yourself from the line and also 4 is the best time to go, at least in winter, just plan around 40 minutes before sunset. You will be able to enjoy the views while the sun is still up but as it gets darker the employees seem to care much less about kicking people out after their 90 minutes and you will get to see what the lagoon looks like at night as well.

The basic package includes a free face mask, one free drink, a towel and the incredible experience. I personally thought that was a great deal and loved it. However my one HUGE MAJOR TIP FOR LADIES. If you want to go in and get cute pictures with your hair dry do, you, but if you plan to get it wet get your A** back in the bathroom afterward, lather your hair with their conditioner before getting into the water because otherwise you will be feeling your straw hair from all the sulfate for days and it ain’t pretty.

When we felt it was time to call it a day we headed to our Airbnb. Now to finish with a few tips, if you are coming to see the Northern Lights do A TON of research. We only did a little and I read that we would be able to see it by our airbnb, this was incorrect so Unfortunately it was not something we were able to take part in. Final tip, as I mentioned earlier, Iceland is not somewhere you go to for the food and drinks. Everything is imported so this also means you will be paying extremely high prices for pretty low quality things. I’m not saying nowhere has good food in Iceland, I am just saying I brought a few high quality bagged meals, my favorite brand is OMEALS , and they were 10x better then the sh*ty pasta the girls bought for $32 dollars EACH.

Overall, Iceland is a magical place. You can do a ton in a short time and do not need a lot of time, although I wish we had more. My advice is to take around 3 days and do it as a layover to another country! Feel free to reach out to me for any questions!!