I defy you to visit Iceland and not leave a piece of your heart there. Whilst it looks baron and cold on initial view, it’s a country full of spectacular views and such fabulous culture.
A visit over Easter was a great time to go – not too cold and full of enough daylight to get some adventurous stuff done.
I flew from Luton with Wizz air – my first experience with this airline and, I have to say, I was very impressed. I felt a little odd walking through the airport worth my duvet coat and other warm cloths amongst the travellers dressed in shorts, t-shirts and flip flops – their destinations clearly warmer than mine!
The flight was just short of 3 hours and was very smooth. Boarding and disembarking the aircraft was good and I arrived into Keflavik airport in the dark and wet….complete contrast to what I left on the UK!
Keflavik is about 45 minutes away on the shuttle bus. Make sure you get a ticket that takes you to the hotel or area of your hotel otherwise it will drop you off at the bus station and you might have quite a walk depending on the location of your hotel.
The Icelandic people are friendly and very willing to help, however when you are asked at the bar if you want a double of single G&T, unless you have robbed a bank and have the cash with you, the answer needs to be a single! I went for a double and then worked out that at £18 I could have bought a bottle at the airport for that price!
If you are in the country for a short period of time, it is worth booking excursions to see the main attractions. I chose to go to waterfalls, the geyser and the Blue Lagoon with the black sand beach on the next day. You will see that they have helpful signs in the toilet showing how to use them!
The views were just stunning. As you can see, the sun didn’t really appear on the first day but it still was beautiful never the less. The Blue lagoon was a bit touristy but it was a great place to relax. It was essential to put conditioner on your hair ahead of going in to the water to prevent it from destroying it.
Food was quite expensive so I adopted a grazing mode and ate little and often which made it cheaper. In some service stations they have a wide range of snacks including dried fish – which is a must to try. It does not taste as bad as it might suggest! Evening meals consisted of a cheesy fish dish with brown rye type bread or sweet potato fries! One night I did venture out to a more sophisticated place and the fish meal was delicious.
The black beach in Reynisfjara was amazing. The sea was calm and there was a slight breeze. The sea can be very unpredictable and the waves have eaten a few tourists who were too keen to get a photo and then needed to sprint on the black sand to safety or be engulfed. Insta has too many videos of the latter happening – what a waste of good cameras!
The trip I was on on day 2 took me to the town of Vik, the glacier and also an area where there was a waterfall that you could walk behind. That was amazing and getting soaked by ti was just so much fun! The glacier was just as facinating as it was black and white with the volcanic ash blended into it and as you got closer you could see where it was melting. I had visited this site 30 years ago on a Scout expedition and the glacier had receded many hundreds of meters over those years. This is the visible impact of global warming.
The final night I had to do what every tourist does when they visit Iceland – go in search of the wonderful phenomenon, the Northern Lights. I thought I was pushing my luch doing this in April as it was right on the edge of seeing them due to the evenings getting lighter. I wrapped up warm and took the camera ready to take amazing photos. This was a coach excursion and once we had been out staring at the cloudy sky for about an hour and a half, the lead guide suggested we all went back to the coach for a hot chocolate… I, plus a couple of other die hard photographers, didn’t go. I didn’t want to miss anything! And lo and behold, I saw a grey whisp from the bottom of a cloud, looked through my camera and and it was green! The lady aurora was waving hello to us! Albeit briefly.
My final day was exploring the city ahead of my return. A visit to the church up the rainbow road is a must and a climb to the top is essential for superb views. Luckily I had a clear day which gave a great view of the city and beyond. Nearby the church is a lovely cafe that serves bread flavoured ice cream and fermented shark. Whilst I was happily tucking in to my ice cream with hot chocolate, a couple of men were tasting the fermented shark – their faces were a picture! Glad I gave that one a miss.
The Sun Voyager, a striking steel sculpture at the water’s edge is also worth a visit. It looks like a viking long ship but it is in fact a dream boat and it is thought that it is a vessel that transports souls to the realm of the afterlife. Get there early in the morning to avoid the tourists for a good photo!
On the flight back – always look out of the window. Lady aurora gave a band of grey – green through the camera – to bid us a farewell as we were leaving.
Although a short visit – it is definitely on the list to return and I will not leave it 30 years this time – and I will most certainly be flying on Wizz again.
This Girl Travels 