We learned a lot of helpful tips while planning for Iceland and while visiting. I wanted to write them all down so that I could pass them on to friends and family that one day visit and for my own records. So below are the best tips I would recommend knowing if you plan on visiting!
If you want, I recommend pulling up Asgeir on YouTube and listening to his music while you read this post. He's from Iceland & we heard his songs on the radio during our trip. This was the song that we heard all the time. I fell in love with his music and still love listening to him, especially his songs that are in Icelandic.
1. Housing
There are 3 main choices for where to stay in Iceland. Camping, camper vans and an actual house/hotel/airbnb. We knew it would be too cold for camping in a tent. I had a friend that visited in August, and they camped, and she said it was still so cold that they ended up booking a last minute airbnb while there. So we debated between getting a camper van or going the hotel route.
We loved the idea of a camper van because you can drive wherever you want and don't have to stick to a set schedule in order to check in to your next place. We also liked the idea of grabbing groceries and cooking our own meals. But we needed a camper van that could drive on F roads (I'll get more into that in the rental car section). When it comes down to it all, camper vans aren't cheap. In fact, when we did the calculations, it was going to end up being about the same price to get a camper van for 1 week as it was to get a rental car + hotels for a week. Crazy huh?! You have to keep in mind that because Iceland's tourism has picked up so much, you can't just park on the side of a road anymore and you need to park at a park and those still cost money. We also knew that we would save some money with the free breakfast's that were offered at the hotels. After weighing the pros and cons, we decided to go with the hotel route (mainly because we liked the idea of having a hot shower every night haha).
Hotel vs Airbnb vs Guesthouse
We stayed at all 3 during our stay and there are pros and cons to them all.
Hotel: Typically they are nicer, you have your own bathroom and more amenities like a TV, wifi, toiletries, etc. The big pro to hotels is having free breakfast (depending on the hotel you stay at). Food is not cheap in Iceland. If you go to a restaurant and get a typical breakfast meal, it can go for $30 easily. We ate huge breakfasts and filled up so we didn't really have to eat until dinner. We would also grab the extra fruit or bread to go and ate that later on.
Airbnb: We noticed that a lot of 'guesthouses' would rent through airbnb but also have their own websites. So I'm referring to just the typical airbnb that you would find in the US. We liked these because you could find them in the most remote locations and you have a better chance of finding something cheap. Also, I feel like a lot of airbnb's are pretty cute and I like being able to find something unique. Finally, I like that a lot of airbnb's give you an entire cabin or house to yourself and it's nice to have the privacy.
Guesthouse: Pretty much a combination of an airbnb and a hotel. Normally there would be a shared living room, kitchen and bathroom and then we would have our own room. We loved these because we could cook meals in the kitchen and that's a great way to save money.
So to each their own, but those were the main differences we found. Finally, I'll say that because tourism has risen so much in Iceland in the last few years, you have to book your accommodation early because places will fill up. We booked about 3 months early and I know we would have gotten cheaper options had we booked earlier.
2. Food
I know I've said this a million times, but food is expensive. If you're trying to save money on this, buy from a grocery store. Bonus is a really popular grocery store. Also, similar to the US, try to not buy grocery like items at the gas station because they're a lot more expensive. However, almost all gas stations serve hot dogs and those are definitely worth getting! We ate a hot dog almost every day there and they're really good and pretty cheap. There are american fast food joints likes Subway and KFC. I don't know why but I was surprised to see so many. Finally... there is a Costco! I was shocked to see that and I was so bummed no one had told me about it! I didn't bring my Costco card and I'm not sure if you can still go in a foreign country, but next time around, we will for sure try to hit that up!
3. Safety
It's really important to note that the weather can be really dangerous. You're in the middle of nowhere at times and when we would be hiking alone, I kept thinking how easy it would be to get lost and not get help because it's so isolated. I sent my itinerary to my mom and told her I would check in every few days. I just think it's smart that someone has a rough idea of where you'll be. You can also register your trip with Iceland and say what hotels and cities you plan on checking in to. It's really easy and doesn't take very long... click on this link: https://safetravel.is You can also check for alerts and warnings in the area and it's a good idea to check it out multiple times throughout your trip. It'll tell you everything like road closures, avalanche & volcano warnings, wind storms, blizzards, etc. 112 is equivalent to America's 911. You can download an app that will let you call incase of an emergency.
4. Language
Everyone speaks English. No joke, everyone. Which is super convenient, but also I wished I would have had a chance to learn some phrases in Icelandic.
5. Clothing
Layers are your friend! The weather changes so much throughout the day, having layers is the way to go. Also, waterproof clothes is super helpful. It's cold, dress for it. I bought fleece lined leggings off of amazon for $10 and it was the absolute best purchase ever, they kept me so warm! Finally, hiking boots are so helpful. We were planning on just roughing it in our tennis shoes and then 2 weeks before our trip we decided to buy hiking shoes and I can't imagine our trip without them. Even if you aren't hiking up mountains, you're walking on sand, gravel and rocks and those shoes saved our feet.
6. GPS
Our rental car was brand new and came with a GPS and it was awful. I'm so glad we didn't pay extra to rent a GPS and that it just came with because I would have been mad to spend money on that. You are wayyyy better off downloading the free app MAPS.ME. You can download the country of Iceland and then use it as a normal GPS throughout your trip. It worked so great!
7. Weather
You have to be flexible when it comes to weather. We really did get so lucky while we were there and I'm really grateful for that! We went during the off season, the last week of April/first week of May. Be prepared for all the elements and if there is a warning about driving somewhere, take it seriously.
8. Money
Everyone takes credit cards. We use the Capital One Venture card and it doesn't have foreign transaction fees so we used it the entire time and it was easy & great. We converted a little bit of money and used about a dollar when we wanted to buy food to feed some horses and when we payed a toll. The rest of the time we used our credit card.
9. Traffic
It's important to learn the traffic laws. Our rental car agency went over this with us and they had a set of rules in the car to remember. Off the top of my head, I remember that you can't turn on red lights. Also, there were certain signs that were important to know such as a sign that meant 'one lane bridge ahead'. Finally, there are traffic cameras that track if you're speeding and take a picture of your license plate. A few times during our drive we saw this random sign that we didn't understand. It wasn't until the end of our trip that we realized it was telling us that a traffic camera was coming up. The picture looks like a vintage camera. I really don't know how we didn't end up with a speeding ticket but I'm so grateful! Also, I heard their speeding tickets are really expensive. So be aware of those.
10. Gas
It's important to tell if your car takes regular gas or diesel. We got a car that took diesel and at first we were worried we would have a tough time finding it because diesel isn't always at every gas station in America. It's at every single gas station so you don't have to worry about that. However, if you plan on using your credit card to get gas, you need a pin number. We didn't have a pin number for our credit card so the easy solution was to buy gas cards. Basically it's a gift card to a gas station. I would recommend buying gas cards to a popular gas station that you'll see more so you don't end up buying multiple gas cards for multiple gas stations and then at the end of your trip have left over money on them.
11. Rental Car
Rental cars can get pretty pricey so keep that in mind when booking a trip. You also need to check and see if you want to visit places that require you to drive on F roads. I now understand why they call them F roads... because while you're driving on them, you're thinking what the f haha. But really. Basically it means you need 4 wheel drive. It's going to be a lot more expensive to get a car that has 4 wheel drive but it's definitely worth it. If you're caught on an F road in a car that doesn't have 4 wheel drive, you can get a ticket and more importantly, you've got a high chance of getting stuck. It's also important to get some basic insurance. I always skip getting rental car insurance because it's a total rip off and my credit card covers a good amount of insurance. But in Iceland it's almost required to get a basic insurance that covers sand, gravel and wind damage. It's going to happen, it's almost unavoidable because of the weather conditions, so factor that in. Our car rental included a basic insurance coverage for that stuff in the price, others don't include it so just shop around. We got our rental car at http://www.carsiceland.com
12. Ask around
If you're heading to Iceland, ask around for tips. I joined a Facebook group called Iceland Q&A, it has a lot of locals in it as well as people that have traveled to Iceland. I found a lot of really helpful information in that group. That's how I found out what GPS app to use and where the puffins like to visit and that they were even there. When I looked on Google and other travel websites, they said they wouldn't be there for another few weeks. Also, talk to people that are traveling. We loved getting to hear tips from other travelers while there and more often than not, they'll share places to visit that are less known.
13. Explore
My final tip is to allow yourself time to explore. There are so many amazing and majestic sites to see. And definitely don't miss those. But some of my favorite memories from the trip are the times we went off on our own and found hidden treasures.
12. Ask around
If you're heading to Iceland, ask around for tips. I joined a Facebook group called Iceland Q&A, it has a lot of locals in it as well as people that have traveled to Iceland. I found a lot of really helpful information in that group. That's how I found out what GPS app to use and where the puffins like to visit and that they were even there. When I looked on Google and other travel websites, they said they wouldn't be there for another few weeks. Also, talk to people that are traveling. We loved getting to hear tips from other travelers while there and more often than not, they'll share places to visit that are less known.
13. Explore
My final tip is to allow yourself time to explore. There are so many amazing and majestic sites to see. And definitely don't miss those. But some of my favorite memories from the trip are the times we went off on our own and found hidden treasures.
There ya have it folks! All the tips I found helpful to share.
I'm honestly so proud of myself for documenting our entire trip. Kenneth has only been begging me to do so for the last 10 months haha. Here are quick links to all the days:
Day 1
Day 2 Part 1 & Part 2
Day 3 Part 1 & Part 2
Day 4
Day 5
Day 6
Day 7 & 8
I'm honestly so proud of myself for documenting our entire trip. Kenneth has only been begging me to do so for the last 10 months haha. Here are quick links to all the days:
Day 1
Day 2 Part 1 & Part 2
Day 3 Part 1 & Part 2
Day 4
Day 5
Day 6
Day 7 & 8
xo, Lo
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