Max group size - 20 pax
Round trip - nature, culture & history
Experience natural beauty & landscapes during Iceland's summer
June, July and August are the “official summer months” in Iceland with up to 24 hours of daylight and the time of the midnight sun. The temperatures are mild, wildlife is most active, and nature is in bloom. In activities, you will learn about the Icelandic horse, experience sea angling, enter a folk museum with its turf houses, visit a Viking Age Settlement museum and explore the natural habitat of whales on a whale watching tour. You bathe in a pool of geothermal water rich in minerals and silica, walk on black lava beaches and sail between floating icebergs on a glacial lagoon.
Iceland Country Life is an ideal tour for those who want to experience the whole variety of Icelandic landscape, culture, history, and nature in only nine days. You visit two of Iceland’s three national parks, and there are opportunities to do some walks in the beautiful countryside most days during the tour. Accommodation is in a mix of 3 and 4-star hotels; all rooms are with private facilities.
Individual transfer by Flybus shuttle bus from Keflavik airport to your accommodation in Reykjavík where you spend the night.
Overnight location:
Fosshotel Reykjavík, Reykjavík. Breakfast included. (50km / 31mls)
Start your trip with a short Reykjavík city tour before heading north-west. Visit the Settlement Centre in Borgarnes and learn about the Viking Age and the Icelandic Sagas. In the afternoon, join a short hike up the Grábrók volcano crater from where you will have a perfect view over the region and its vast lava fields. Stop at the most powerful hot spring in Europe, Deildartunguhver where you will learn about geothermal energy. Continue to Hraunfossar, a unique waterfall that drains from under vast lava fields into a glacier river. Nearby is Barnafoss waterfall. Later this day enjoy Medieval Icelandic history at the cultural site in Reykholt, which was the home of the 13th-century writer, scholar and chieftain Snorri Sturluson, who wrote many sagas. Visit Snorri’s pool, one of Iceland’s most important cultural and archaeological sites.
Overnight location:
Fosshotel Reykholt, Reykholt. Breakfast included & 3-course dinner. (190km / 118mls)
Drive over mountain passes, lava fields, green pastures, fertile farmlands and along fjord landscape to North Iceland. Early afternoon go whale watching and sea angling for 2-3 hours in Eyjafjörður – Iceland’s longest fjord right below the Arctic Circle. You will see humpback and minke whales, harbour porpoises and dolphins – The success rate to spot whales is 99%! Finish the afternoon at Akureyri – Iceland’s second-largest city – before reaching the picturesque village of Húsavík.
Overnight location:
Fosshotel Húsavík, Húsavík. Breakfast included & 3-course dinner. (460km / 286mls)
Start the day with a stop at Goðafoss, a beautiful waterfall but also a prominent spot in Iceland’s history. Tour the Lake Mývatn area with its abundant birdlife and amazing volcanic landscapes. The lake’s unique features are shaped by nature – strange lava formations, any kind of volcanic craters, attractive bays filled with thousands of birds and ducks. Stroll through the mysterious lava labyrinth of Dimmuborgir, look at pseudo-craters at Skútustaðir and see the tephra cone of Hverfjall. Our last stop is the geothermal Mývatn Nature Baths, which contains a lot of minerals, is alkaline and well-suited for a relaxing and rejuvenating bath.
Overnight location:
Fosshotel Húsavík, Húsavík. Breakfast included & 3-course dinner. (170km / 106mls)
In the morning, explore more volcanic and geothermal landscapes. Visit the hot springs, fumaroles and bubbling mud pools of Námaskarð. At Krafla, see the impacts of volcanic activity and smell the sulfur. Víti is a circular explosion crater filled with blue water, surrounded by colourful mountains and hissing steam vents. Continue the journey to the 44-meter high Dettifoss, Europe’s most powerful waterfall. Head through the uninhabited highlands to East Iceland. Stop at Möðrudalur to visit the church on the farm. Enjoy the view of the mountain Herðubreið. In the afternoon arrive in the fertile region of Fljótsdalshérað in East Iceland.
Overnight location:
Hotel Hallormsstaður, Egilsstaðir. Breakfast included & buffet dinner. (330km / 205mls)
Today admire the green valleys, high mountains, dramatic fjord landscape and tiny fishing villages at the end of twisty roads in the East Fjords. Stop at the charming village of Djúpivogur. Observe the magnificent Vatnajökull, Europe’s largest glacier. Embark on a boat ride among the floating icebergs on the Jökulsárlón glacial lagoon. Walk along the black sands of the so-called Diamond beach. Spend your evening in Vatnajökull National Park.
Overnight location:
Fosshotel Glacier Lagoon, Vatnajökull national park. Breakfast included & 3-course dinner. (390km / 242mls)
In the morning continue exploring Vatnajökull National Park. See the stratovolcano and highest peak in Iceland: Hvannadalshnjúkur. Walk close to a glacial tongue, cross a sandy desert and embrace the beautiful lava field of Eldhraun covered with blue-green moss. Stop at the black lava beach of Reynisfjara. In the little village of Skógar learn about Iceland’s early Modern history at the Skógar folk museum with its turf houses. Admire the waterfall Skógafoss. Travel along the famous Eyjafjallajökull glacier and volcano and stop at Seljalandsfoss waterfall.
Overnight location:
Hotel Örk, Hveragerði. Breakfast included & 3-course dinner. (340km / 211mls)
Start the day by visiting the farm of Friðheimar where you will learn about Icelandic horses and greenhouse agriculture. Spend the rest of the day travelling along the Golden Circle: the waterfall of Gullfoss, the active geothermal area of Geysir and the National Park of Þingvellir National Park, the birthplace of the first Parliament and now a UNESCO world heritage site.
Overnight location:
Fosshotel Reykjavík, Reykjavík. Breakfast included. (210km / 130mls)
Individual transfer by Flybus shuttle from your accommodation in Reykjavik to Keflavik airport.
(50km / 31mls)
Inclusion
• 8 nights accommodation in room with shower/wc
• 7 days escorted tour with English-speaking guide/driver-guide
• Arrival & departure airport transfer by Flybus shuttle (no guide)
• All transportation in destination location
• 8x breakfast
• 6x 3-course dinners
• Entrance fees
• Explore two national parks
• Whale watching & sea angling tour (weather permitting)
• Boat trip on Jökulsárlón glacier lagoon
• Icelandic horse show
• Mývatn Nature Baths, including towel
• Icelandic settlement centre on Viking Age Iceland
• Skógar folk museum on early Modern Iceland
Complementaries
Entrance fees
Free Wi-Fi on the bus
Exclusion
Any private expenses
Lunch
Dinners in Reykjavik
Any additional services
Single supplement (mandatory when in single room)
International airfares
Optional activities
Other meals, drinks, tips and other personal expenses or services not specified on the program
Personal equipment
Travel insurance
Gratuities
Voluntary tips for guides or drivers
Travel and medical insurance
Any items not mentioned as included
Note
Additional services
• Extra night in Reykjavik before/after the tour – on request
Cost for optional VIP-Seating supplement is available on request
Cost for Child is available on request.
Tour is not recommended for children younger than eight years of age. Triple rooms are double rooms with extra bed and ideal for two adults and one child.
NOTE: Itineraries may be subject to change at short notice during severe weather conditions and certain outdoor activities/day trips may be cancelled during the winter season in Iceland. In these rare cases, where situations of force majeure apply, excursions/activities cannot be refunded but the local guides will try their best to find reasonable alternatives where and whenever possible.
NOTE: Accommodations are subject to change.
Start & End Location
Keflavik International Airport (Flybus shuttle)
Departure Time
9:00 on day 2 from Fosshótel Reykjavík, Reykjavík (subject to change)
