My Guide to Iceland in a Week

Reykjavik feels like a sleepy little town, despite being home to a little more than a third of Iceland’s residents. In January 2017 I spent a few days exploring the city and put together this guide to Iceland (the main Iceland attractions at least.) Getting there is pretty easy as Reykjavik Excursions provides buses between the airport and capital – some even have stops at the Blue Lagoon. We stayed in an Airbnb close to the Reykjavik Art Museum Kjarvalsstaðir and found everything we wanted to see in town was within easy walking distance. It was also helpful to have a kitchen for cooking breakfast, etc as food in Iceland is expensive. The owner of the Airbnb asked me about his English, which I told him was perfect. He told me that he grew up learning four languages in school: his native Icelandic, English, French and fourth language of their choice. I can’t imagine how well off we would be as a country if Americans learned four languages in all public schools. I was also very impressed with Iceland’s commitment to clean energy and recycling.

I was most excited about soaking in the famous Blue Lagoon but couldn’t have chosen worse timing to visit it. I recommend booking your time slot well in advance as we were left with few options (it was obvious why when we arrived – this place is always packed). Somehow I thought it would be okay to go at 5 pm in late January but it was freezing! The walk to and from the Lagoon was MISERABLE and even in the 98-104°F waters, it was hard to warm up as hail and sleet poured down on us. Additionally, my photos were dark so I think it’s best to go during the day.

Despite all this, the Blue Lagoon is a once-in-a-lifetime experience. Floating around in the steamy, milky blue waters feels like you are in a dream. The fact that there is a bar in the middle of the lagoon confirmed that this was, in fact, my dream. You can scoop white mud out of the lagoon and put it on your face and body – it will make your skin amazingly soft. I had read about the minerals being really damaging to hair and was worried about that but I used the special soap and conditioner they provide in the showers before and after getting in and my hair was fine. It’s also easy to get to the Blue Lagoon if you book through Reykjavik Excursions (the main transport company for major Iceland attractions).

We booked the Golden Circle tour with the add-on to visit the Fontana Wellness Center hot springs. This day tour hit the major sites along the Golden Circle: Gullfoss (amazing horseshoe-shaped waterfall similar to Niagara Falls), Geysir geothermal area and Thingvellir National Park (where the North American and Eurasian tectonic plates meet). At the end of the day you also visit the Fontana spa where you can soak in natural hot springs and sample some rye bread that was baked in a hot spring (super yum!). Another fun way to spend a day is visiting all the tourist-free Game of Thrones filming spots. If you do the Golden Circle tour you’ve already got one location (tectonic plates) checked off your list!

Honestly, the Northern Lights were pretty disappointing. Our guide took us way out into the middle of nowhere to see them and based on the time of year and position in the solar cycle we had a pretty good chance of a spectacular show. However, what we saw was more of a milky white haze in the sky. When photographed the lights appear bright green but it wasn’t evident to my naked eye or a lot of the other people we spoke with who trekked out on the bus with us for the phenomenon. Perhaps the lights were stronger on other days and we just had an off day for them I’m not sure. I also wasn’t prepared to correctly capture the lights (didn’t have a tripod or the correct lens). Make sure to prepare and find out everything you need to know to photograph the Northern Lights before you go.

Thankfully, Iceland has a lot of other natural wonders that won’t let you down like the Vatnajokull Glacier and ice caves.

Iceland’s main attraction is its natural beauty and amazing landscape so it’s not exactly the foodie destination of Europe. But we found a lot of great restaurants! My favorite was Nudluskalin, a low-key noodle shop that serves delicious tofu soups. My friend really enjoyed the steelhead trout at Messinn. We both liked Fiskfelagid Fish Company and Sjavargrillid.

The craft beer in Iceland is amazing. Here are my favorites:

Lava smoked imperial stout from Olvisholt Brewery (5/5 stars)
Einstok Doppelbock seasonal flavor (5/5 stars)
Myrkvi Nr. 13 porter from Borg Brugghus (4/5 stars)

Overall we spent four days in Iceland and that was plenty of time to see everything on our list, we probably could have done everything in three days. If you are planning to stay longer this Iceland itinerary includes more activities such as seeing the native horses or a black sand beach. Icelandic Air offers flights to Europe with stopovers in Iceland, which seems like the perfect way to see the highlights.

After visiting in January I think there’s a lot to do in Iceland in winter, but you can visit any time of year it’s always picturesque.