Hey guys, I figured that only writing experiences for Iceland, specifically, is maybe a bit selfish and it would be useful if i can give you all the tips and things I’ve learned by going there myself 3-4 times already and absolutely loving it. That being said, I am not an expert and I still have places to explore more myself too. However there are a few things I learned the hard way and would be nice to share with you here. So let’s see..
Main things to know
Renting a car
To understand what car you should get, please first get acquainted with the road structure and types of the country. For example, if you want to go to a location that is somewhere in the highlands, you cannot go to if you are not in a 4×4 car. Also, the highland roads are usually only open in the summertime anyway. So, gravel roads are a no-go in a regular, smaller and cheaper car. I would recommend to give the extra 1-200 eur for full insurance because if you accidentally go on a gravel road and they find out, you still have to pay a lot of money for potential damages, or if you are hit by a sand storm, something you cannot predict anyway. The car rentals are at the airport and the car is usually located right next to the airport, there’s a parking for car pickup. Of course, you have to return the car wth full tank and don’t forget to take a lot of pictures of the car, especially at any damage, before you even sit in it for the first time, so you can prove later that these damages are not from you. Of, course, the standard rule is that you cannot rent a car with a debit card, only with a credit card, so make sure you have a credit card.
Oh, one more important thing which is not exactly how it works everywhere else in Europe.. is the rule for the roundabouts.. The outer lane must yield for the inner lane car, if the car is going to exit. See the picture below. I had this in the car i rented and almost crashed because I didn’t yield, managed to stop in the last moment luckily but please be careful with this rule.
Do NOT underestimate the Icelandic weather
To start with the weather.. Regardless if you are going in the summer or winter, there is a good chance that there will be wind and it could often be strong, and the temperatures even in the summer, are not exactly high as you can see below (average high in the summer is around 13 degrees).
So, my recommendation is to make sure you bring plenty of warm clothes, ones that you can layer on top of each other and remove when you’re warm. I thought I was prepared the first time i went, however I was always cold and at one of our tours, they gave us North66 rubber jackets for our walk and descent into an old volcano and it started raining while we hiked and it was also very windy and the jacket absolutely saved me. I so much loved the jacket that I went to Reykjavik and bought the same jacket for myself, it cost around 175 eur, which for me was a lot for a jacket, but it was worth every cent. I got a slightly bigger size so i can actually put it on top of my regular jacket and also have space between that and my regular jacket to hide my camera away from the rain. I, later on, found a very similar coat to that by The Faery Whisperers for only 60 eur at TKMaxx that would work equally well. I highly recommend checking out and getting a similar jacket for yourself. I believe last time i went to Iceland I did see these jackets at a price under 100 EUR.
How about the famous Icelandic Sweaters? YEASH! They are so pretty! But also SO expensive. So, what you can do instead, is go to the Red Cross store in the center of Reykjavik and browse the second-hand items which they sell at a super reasonable price and buy your Icelandic sweater there. My sweater is now a mandatory part of my luggage along with my rubber jacket every time i go to Iceland. Last time I went to the store again and got myself one more pretty and green sleeveless sweater to use as a little extra layer. The wool keeps you SO warm, you’ll love it.
Of course, don’t forget also your swimsuit, although many Icelanders will hate me here, but there are plenty of hot springs and SPA centers you can visit. Icelandic people are really, REALLY unhappy with tourists who wear swimwear and especially those who shower with their swimwear, so make sure to wash yourself well without your swimwear before putting it on and going to the pool, because it is considered very rude and unhygienic to shower with your swimwear and not wash your intimate areas well before you swim along with others.
And.. don’t forget your proper hiking boots, you will need them! Make sure they cover your ankle so you are safe when walking around canyons, lava rocks and whatnot..
Links & Resources to keep handy
- cloud coverage + Northern Lights Forecast: to figure out where you can have clear skies and head there to see the northern lights -> apparently it would be amazing to see the lights in the North-East of the country at midnight tonight as I am writing this (16th of Oct ’25)
- Good to know before renting a car
- road system: Understand how the road system works in Iceland
- map with road conditions where you can see which roads are closed – per region of the country, check the roads and also get some more information at the bottom of the page
- Some live cameras
Northern Lights
Seeing the light will be fairly easy in winte,r but unless the activity is above 4, it may be quite disappointing. The thing is the could look like a faint cloud and you may not even be able to spot it even if it is right before your eyes. BUT, when activity is strong, you will definitely see it. The activity level means more of how strong the aurora will be, but not necessarily how colorful it will be. So, for example, what happened when I went at the Westfjords last time, the activity was 5, very clear sky, you could see the lights move all around you, but they were very faintly green in colour. Of course, my camera captured them beautifully so i was pretty happy, but it was nothing like the Aurora I saw in 2017 in Norway. That aurora was super super bright green, with your naked eye you could see exactly what you see in photos online, however, this depends on the density of the incoming charged particles, their altitude of collision, and the density of the atmosphere at that altitude. The KP index that you see on the picture above, saying 5, means how far south the aurora will be visible. Very strong KP index can also be assumed as a very good chance of bright aurora as well. If you feel like educating yourself more on the topic, check out this article. Last year we had Auroras visible in the Netherlands and as far south as in my home country, Bulgaria, where people also took photos of it. Check out this short video, too.
Learn a bit about the culture and people
I have developed a little habit (expensive one, rather) from my travels – to always buy books that will teach me something about the place I visit – history, culture, nature, whatever. I am doing this instead of (or more like along with) buying souvenirs, as I consider this quite a fun thing to do, and I cannot recommend it more. I am so proud of my little Icelandic collection, which consists of the book below (ignore everything left of Melrakki (book about the Icelandic fox)). But besides this, the best way to learn is to meet local people. However, if you are on a trip that is a bit harder to achieve, so i recommend instead, to try and sleep at farmhouses along the way and meeting the local farmers who can tell you many stories. For example, a lady we stayed with told us how it was some time ago when Eyjafjallajökull last erupted in 2010. For some of these stories, please read my other posts.
Nature-wise, you will notice the lack of.. trees. Well, once upon a time, many years ago, the island was actually 1/3rd forested, however the uncontrolled logging led to the country losing its forests, but also they cannot just grow anywhere, with the vulcanic nature of the island, the soil is not very rich in nutrients and also nit very thick as a layer, so tree roots cannot really grow deep and it’s hard for trees to survive. In Iceland now they have a few sites where they planted trees, but they are tiny and very few, they even have a saying in Iceland which kind of sums up the situation.. “if you get lost in the forest, stand up” 😀 😀 😀 But the lack of trees and the barren landscape, kind of takes off of your perspective and you cannot imagine how huge the mountains are because there’s nothing to compare to. It is a bit strange at first. But for that reason, the major thing that grows there is moss. And the moss is not really moss, but more like lichen and Icelanders are very proud of it and protect it. It is not allowed to step on the moss, not allowed to drive over the moss. Even if you step once on the moss, it will turn brown and die, so please do NOT step on the moss. You will see as you drive, there are locations you can stop and observe the moss growing over lava stones and it looks unnatural and beautiful, but alongside the paths where people walk, the moss is just dead. I asked once some tourists to respect the rules of the island and not step on the moss, because they were purposely stepping on the moss and filming for tiktok. Please, PLEASE don’t be that tourist..
Icelandic Folk Tales and Sagas
Below you will see the first video of a series from an Icelandic news channel that I love, it features Matthew Roby, a postdoc at the Icelandic University. He tells stories of famous sagas that Icelandic students have to learn at school. Probably the most famous of which is the Njal’s Saga. I bought this book and tried to read it but it was not enjoyable to read it.. in fact, it was hard to understand it, despite being written in English. This is how I searched for the story on Youtube and discovered these series. And since then I watched all of their stories, they are not many, mayne 11-12 videos. Below is the first one, search their channel for the rest if you like it. I highly recommend.
Icelandic sheep
The Icelanders let their sheep roam free during the summer months which is the reason you can see lots of unattended sheep, including on the roads. So be careful when driving. During the herding season, around September and after, farmers gather all the sheep in one place and then sort them according to the farm they are from. They gather the sheep with ATVs and dogs from all around the herding locations, including the highlands which can be a pretty difficult terrain to reach. It’s a community effort. They keep them in for winter, wait until they get lambs in spring, unfortunately, then they slaughter some number of animals and release the rest to graze again for the duration of the summer. I slept during my trip at a farmhouse close to Kirkjufell and there the farmer told me the story about herding and it was a pure bliss to wake up to the calls of the sheep. Super cute creatures. Iceland is also pretty famous for the meat of sheep and lambs.
Icelandic volcanos
The usual suspects (sightseeing)
Reykjavik
I think Reykjavik requires no introduction, just walk around the center, see the famous church Hallgrimskirjka, the Sun Voyager, explore the city center with its artwork and numerous tourist shops and nice restaurants. I’d say one day is plenty of time to visit the main landmarks and do some shopping. You can even go to the lake in the center (Tjornin), pretty nice and full of waterfowl.
Skógafoss
One of the prettiest waterfalls in Iceland, you can spot it from the road already, park there, walk around and behind the fall, this whole thing takes maybe 30 min to visit.
Geysir
I very much loved seeing how the geysers explode. I really recommend going there and spending a bit of time there. One of the geysers explodes every 3-4 minutes, the huge one doesn’t explore at all or super rarely, so if you get to see it, then you are really, really lucky. You can also have a little hike of 20 min to go to the top of the hilll behind the geysers and see the geyser park from the top and see how the geyrser explodes from there. It’s a very nice experience and in the summer it’s also super pretty full of the prettu purple, Alaskan lupine, flowers which are an invasive species there.
Gullfoss
This waterfall is one of the most vigorous and probably the noisiest form the water rumble. So beautiful and magnificent to see from up close. It’s one of my fav waterfalls there. I think it’s part of the Golden Circle too.
Jökulsárlón Glacier Lagoon
Beautiful location to see how gorgeous and vast the glaciers are. You can see huge icebergs in the lagoon slowly moving downwards into the water. You can see the bright light-blue glaciers which have flipped upside down and exposed its bright, clean side, lots of birds on the icebergs and an occasional seal swimming in the lagoon. It is a very nice and must-see place. There you can also do kayaking at the lagoon, a boat tour around the fallen icebergs pieces and also you can book a glacier walk tour and an ice cave tour in winter only. I highly recommend the Arctic Adventures, which i used for a glacier tour and the kayak tour. It was great and they also told us interesting stories and let us climb a glacier at some point. Quite nice. And you certainly need a good guide for the glaciers as they are “living beings” almost, every day the glacier looks different and you need someone who knows their way around and knows how to spot and avoid crevasses…
Diamond Beach
Diamon beach, as you may know, is called like that due to the melting Jökulsárlón glacier right above it, which melts, pieces of it fall into the water and are washed out into the sea, where parts of it get stuck at the beach. This makes the beach look as if there are diamonds, especially with the black sand. It is gorgeous, but sometimes a bit disappointing – there are not always big pieces of ice there, sometimes only a fe,w and everyone goes around them, not such an enjoyable experience from a touristy point of view, but still nice to see. And a good opportunity for photos
Reynisfjara black sand beach – DANGEROUS!
Reynisfjara black beach is part of the trip usually when you go see the glaciers and Vik. I have seen numerous videos of people close to the water being pulled in suddenly by sneaker waves, so please be VERY careful, do NOT go close to the water and always be on the lookout. For example, check this video out from that beach..
Vik
Vik is a charming little town where you can stop by to have a bite and do a little exploring. There is also a Lava show you can see at the lava center. I recommend it in case there is no active real eruption at the Reykjanes peninsula that the authorities allow hiking to see.
Kirkjufell
This is one of the most famous pictures of iceland, this peak, nothing too special but still pretty and close to retkjavik to visit
Thingvellir National Park
I strongly recommend to walk around the park, it is where the North American and Eurasian tectonic plates are moving apart and you can walk in between them. Super super cool! And very beautiful, mossy and perfect for a few hours of exploration in nature.
Silfra Fissure
Swim between the North American and Eurasian tectonic plates which move with 2 centimeters apart from each other every year. Crystal clear (and super cold) water, great for pictures. However, sadly, I am not that brave when it comes to cold, so I haven’t been there myself.
Less popular locations and things to see
Kerlingarfjöll mountain with geothermal areas
parking here – This is, honestly, one of the most beautiful things and places I have seen in Iceland, not that I can compare a glacier, with geothermal area or with the mountains or with anything else, absolutely every part of this country is totally unique and otherworldly, but this is a place I definitely remember so vividly as if it were yesterday. You can see photos of everything in the gallery at the end of the post. It is such an amazing place to see, but getting there is quite difficult as in the road is a gravel road with a lot of holes and you need to drive quite slowly and need to be in a 4×4 car for that. Also, the roads may not be open during the wintertime.
Studlagil canyon
This is a super beautiful canyon. One thing I didn’t know and got really anxious about it, was that I’ve seen videos of people being able to go down the canyon, as in on the riverbank and when we parked at the east side and had to walk quite some time (i thought the place is right next to the parking, but it wasn’t), I got more and more anxious that we will be on the wrong side of the riverbank, BUT we were on the right side! So we could actually go down and look at the gorgeous stone pillars from bottom up. On the other side there’s a parking lot right next to the canyon, west side, but if you park there, you will only see it from a little balcony and not be able to hike down. So, my recommendation is to park here, and walk to the canyon, you will see the path on the satellite view, or below..
Hengifoss and Litlanesfoss (East)
Beautiful waterfalls that you can hike to, a very short and easy hike, you pass by Litlanesfoss and continue to the Hengifoss waterfall. Quite nice to observe during your trip.
Fjallsjökull glacier (South)
Grojotagja cave
Hverfjall volcano (North-East) + Dimmuborgir lava field
This is a volcano crater rim where you can walk, takes maybe 2h to go all around it. At Dimmuborgir, you can also walk on a lava field, but it’s probably better to walk the latest one in the Reykjanes Peninsula (around Keflavik Airport) where the latest eruptions happen, and there’s an ongoing activity for the last 3 years
Dettifoss waterfall (North-East)
Myvatn Nature Baths (North-East)
Blue water baths just like Blue Lagoon, but prettier and waaay less crowded. First time we visited, we did not go to Blue Lagoon, but rather to Myvatn and it was so much better. A few years later I visited Blue Lagoon and while it was nice, the amount of people was definitely not something to enjoy.
Husavik (North)
Do you want to see whales? Well, Husavik is the place for it, but be aware that often you have to ride on the board for around 1.5h before you even get far enough from the shore to see whales. I have seasickness and felt really bad, but we did see a whale (the tail of a whale). Luckily, I have seen them before in Norway so it was not a miss, but maybe you will be luckier than I was. But make sure you prepare well with anti-nausea pills or patches if you suffer like me, maybe even a bag in case you.. you know.. And don’t forget to dress warm and with a good raincoat.
Hveravellir hot pool/stream
This is a hot pool you can go to, I haven’t been there yet, but my intention is to go there next time and try chilling a bit more in nature
Vestrahorn (South-East)
Here is some gorgeous black beach with views and there’s a film set of an old viking village, which is an abandoned movie set. I loved exploring it, super interesting how they built it and what is part of it as types of buildings. It is partially ruined which makes it a bit mysterious to explore too :)\
Fjaðrárgljúfur Canyon
This is the most beautiful canyon for me. It’s a very short walk to the other side, maybe 30 min max. It is a very picturesque canyon that has been featured in multiple movies and shows.
The Commonwealth farm
Learn some Icelandic history and explore the insights of the famous Turf Houses of Iceland.
Solheimasandur Plane Wreck
Dyrholaey, the puffin hotspot
Ytri Tunga, the seal hotspot
Here you can see seals. They chill and are super cute. Do not get close to a seal, not only theyb may attack, but also it is sometimes vital for them, especially if they are young, to keep dry and not get scared and go into the water. So do not get closer than 50m away from them, please.