Iceland has always been a bucket list destination of ours. All the things we aim to experience whilst travelling; culture, unique cuisine, a stunning and diverse landscape, wildlife, are all ready and waiting to be explored in this one fabulous country.  

Since Iceland is notoriously expensive, and we travelled bang in the middle of peak season in July, we pre-planned our itinerary, pre-booked accommodation, and arranged a rental car 4 to 6 months prior to the trip to snap up some of the last remaining (semi-) affordable options. See below part one of our road trip itinerary, from Reykjavik to the Golden Circle.  

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Day 1: Arriving in Reykjavik

Flying from Dublin with Icelandic Air, the short 3-hour trip was smooth sailing until we landed in Reykjavik and discovered that unfortunately my bag had not joined us on the plane. Not ideal when hopping from one location to the next, however Icelandic Air were fantastic in hooking us up with Iceland Cover Outdoor Clothing Rental, who allowed both of us to hire wet weather gear (jackets, pants, boots and gloves) at no charge. This was a lifesaver! With the weather we experienced over the coming week it turned out that we were severely underprepared- the lost luggage turned out to be our saving grace!  

For the 45-minute journey from Keflavík Airport to the city we jumped on a FlyBus coach, then walked 10 minutes from the transit station to our accommodation, Hotel Von. It was quite hilly but it felt good to stretch the legs after travelling. We planned to spend more time in Reykjavik at the end of the trip so we only stayed for one night after our arrival in Iceland. We spent the afternoon casually wandering around the city streets, which felt more like a quaint but large fishing village. It was really lovely. We admired Hallgrímskirkja Church, which at 74 metres high can be seen from pretty much any point in the city, and strolled through the art district before stopping at different bars for cheeky beverages and a delicious dinner at Krons Kitchen & Bar.  

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Day 2: The Golden Circle

Before departing Reykjavik we picked up our hire car from Avis Car Rentals. It was a trusty little Mazda 3 and suited our itinerary just fine. We did notice that the majority of other tourists had rented 4×4’s, with Land Rover Defenders being the popular choice. After seeing them with the Iceland backdrop we have since fallen in love and swoon everytime we spot one on the roads at home.  

Being Iceland’s most scenic route, the Golden Circle features stunning geological landmarks, historically significant sites, and lots of exciting adventure tours.  

Thingvellir National Park

Our first stop was at Thingvellir National Park– a short 40-minute drive from Reykjavik. Thingvellir is listed as a UNESCO world heritage site and is one of Iceland’s geological and historical treasures. Iceland is located on the Mid-Atlantic Ridge, where the North American and Eurasian tectonic plates drift apart. Moving at a rate of 2 centimetres per year, the separation of the plates is the reason for Iceland’s harsh yet beautiful volcanic landscape. Thingvellir is located in a rift valley between the divide and is the only place on earth where you can see and walk between two drifting plates.  

Fun fact:  Thingvellir is also where Iceland’s parliament was founded, as early as 930, making it the oldest operating parliament globally. The parliament continued to convene at the site for 868 years until 1798. This rich political history has also given the area its namesake, with Thingvellir meaning Assembly Plains. 

Starting at Almannagja, the most impressive gorge in the park, there are numerous walking trails where you can stop and read about the history of the site, native wildlife and the geological forces that create the different basalt rock formations. One of the trails also takes you to Oxarafoss, a stunning 13 metre high waterfall which flows into the Oxara River, then into Lake Thingvallavatn, Iceland’s largest natural inland lake.  

The photos really don’t do the area justice, and they certainly don’t convey the more spiritual feelings you have walking between the enormous rock columns. Standing in such a unique place and knowing it cannot be experienced anywhere else in the world is a very powerful feeling. Using words like beautiful, fascinating or amazing to describe the experience are all very true, however they don’t completely encompass everything that we saw and felt in Thingvellir. 

Silfra Fissure

While in Thingvellir we couldn’t pass up the opportunity to snorkel through the Silfra Fissure. In 1787 a major earthquake opened several fissures across the park, however only the Silfra Fissure was filled with meltwater from the nearby Langjökull Glacier. The water travels 60km from the glacier into Silfra, filtering through the porous underground lava fields in the area; a journey which takes up to 100 years to complete. This origin is where Silfra gets its name which means ‘silvery’.  

Booked through Get Your Guide and operated by Arctic Adventures, the snorkelling tour takes you through 4 sections in the fissure; the deep Silfra Crack, where you can have your photo taken between the two tectonic plates, Silfra Hall, Silfra Cathedral and the Silfra Lagoon.

The glacial water is completely pure and clean (Ross loved drinking it as we swam!), resulting in amazing underwater visibility extending to over 100 metres. This, combined with the colourful marine algae, means the underwater scene is painted in countless shades of jewel-like blue, green and orange, and makes for an absolutely breath-taking sight.  

I was a little apprehensive about swimming around in the thick/ stiff dry suits, but I was happy to discover they give you incredible buoyancy, so it was pretty much effortless paddling around for an hour or so. Me being the clumsier one of the two of us, and Ross being irritatingly good at most things he tries, I did still look and feel like a walrus splashing about, and Ross glided through the water like a bloody dolphin.  

Bruarfoss

After finishing the tour and warming up with some hot chocolate, we headed for Haukadalur Valley- the Golden Circle’s geothermal area. Along the way we stopped at Bruarfoss, which is one of the most unique and beautiful waterfalls we have ever seen. Bruarfoss (Bridge Falls) is a small but striking waterfall where water from the Langjökull Glacier runs into the Hvita then Bruara rivers, it then falls 2-3 meters into a crevice made of black volcanic rock, creating a series of sky-blue rapids. The churning of the icy water makes the rapids appear to contain glitter, which is truly mesmerising.  

Haukadalur Geothermal Valley 

Following another short drive, 40minutes from Thingvellir (not including the stop at Bruarfoss), we checked into our accommodation at Hotel Litli Geysir. We opted to stay at the smaller of the two hotels located directly beside the geysir field, purely due to it being a few hundred dollars cheaper. We still ventured over to Hotel Geysir for dinner and breakfast the next day, and highly recommend the Geysir Restaurant as the food was phenomenal.  

Wandering around the geothermal area we were immediately stuck by one of the areas calling cards; the smell of rotten egg wafting in the air which is caused by hydrogen sulphide gas being emitted by the geothermal activity (if you happen to like that smell then I also recommend giving Rotorua in New Zealand a visit). In a small walkable area there are a few of Iceland’s best-known sights, including the Konungshver thermal spring, Litli Geysir, the Strokkur Geysir and the Great Geysir itself.  

It’s hard not to be intimidated just standing in the geysir field. Feeling the heat of the steam, seeing the yellow sulphur stains around the hot spring’s rim, and knowing that the venting gas is coming from deep within the earth really can put certain aspects of life into perspective. It’s a particularly humbling experience and I would be lying if I said I didn’t feel a little on edge; the moment triggering apocalyptic scenes to flash in my head.

The eruption of the Strokkur Geysir is an incredible event to witness and further fuels this feeling. Being the smaller of the two large geysirs, Strokkur erupts reliably every 10 to 15 minutes, shooting boiling water up to 20 metres in the air. It’s quite exciting watching and waiting for the water to start churning and bubbling – a sign of imminent activity. We went back to visit the field a couple of times, and on our final visit Strokkur erupted 3 times in the space of 1 minute. Knowing the facts above, and feeling like the ground was going to break apart beneath us (it didn’t) we decided to move onto our next stop.  

To hear more about our Iceland Road Trip, read on in Part 2.

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