Famous Route No.1 is a national road around Iceland. Some of the most popular tourist attractions are by the Ring Road Iceland.
Recommended time for RING ROAD ICELAND is 8-10 DAYS.
Roadtrip like this is THE TRIP, one of a kind.
If you want to visit also WESTJORDS I would say 14days trip is optimal.
The total length of the Road No 1 is 1,332 km (828 mi) and was completed in 1974.
Speed limit is 90km/h, 90% of the road is paved with asphalt, but there is still a short stretch in eastern Iceland with unpaved gravel surface. (BUY GRAVEL INSURANCE)
Iceland population is less than 400 thousand people and density is 3,5 person per km2 !
6000 person town is a large town for Icelandic standards.
ICELAND is an unique palce. The NATURE there blew my mind.
Then to go?
Between March-October, because then the Ring Road is drivable. In winter time snow can destroy your trip plans.
If I would recommend best time to vistit Iceland I would say May-September.
Of course if you plan to see the Northern Lights, then it’s October-March
What to wear?
ICELAND’s weather is very unpredictable. Wait 5 minutes and it wll change, yes that is so true.
Mind the WIND mostly. I think it’s one of the most windy places on the planet.
CLOTHES and gear you need:
- a Hat
- rain coat
- softshell
- windblock warm fleece jacket or light down jacket
- gloves
- and most of all a good pair of waterproof boots
We partnered with Campus company who’s apparel we used on our RING ROAD ICELAND trip.
Where to stay and what to eat?
Accomodation
Cheaper option is camping, you will need a tent and all the gear like sleeping bags.
You can also camp in a Campervan like we did. The Campervan rental include sleeping bags and sheets as well 🙂
To save even more you can buy a CAMPING CARD ICELAND and pay even less for chosen campsites.
More expensive option are guesthouses and hotels, fully booked in high season( keep that in mind).
Expect to pay more than 200USD per night for a regular room. Book ones with a hot tub…
Food
Restaurants are super expensive. One plate dish is 40-50USD, and pizza is around 30USD.
You can go cheap and buy in discount stores like Netto and Bonus and cook yourself.
Campsites have very good facilities with hot showers and even kitchen sometimes.
How to travel the RING ROAD ICELAND ?
By car, a Campervan the best.
There are many rental companies. We used RENT.is Rental Company and everything was great.
Our choise was VW Caddy Campervan.
5 seater (bed for 2 + one infant). It had webasto heating, fridge, cooking set, a table and two folding seats.
We travelled counter clockwise direction to start with most populated area and finish with Westfjords.
Stay 2-3 days in each part of the Iceland the South, East, North, West and Westjords.
South Coast
The Golden Circle <–more
Wonderful one day round trip from Reykjavik with highlights like: Tingvelir National Park, Geysir hot springs, majestic Gulfoss Waterfall and Kerid crater.
Seljalandsfoss
Beautiful waterfall you can walk behind, dont forget to take waterproof clotses not to get soaked.
Skogafoss
Just a short drive from Seljalandsfoss an epic waterfall rustles loudly. We made a camp a the foot of Skogafoss. Do that! 🙂
Sólheimajökull
A short hike up the Glacier. Also guided trips into the glacier itself. tour link
Dyrholaey
Reynisfjara- black sand Beach
Definitely the highlight of the South Coast, very popular black sand beach with photogenic basalt columns. A MUST SEE
Vik
Go up to the church uphill, the view is astonishing
Fjaðrárgljúfur
Impressive 2km long 100m deap canion carved in the landscape.
Svartifoss
Basalt Waterfall one hour trek in Skafatfell area.
Also Gacier guided excursions are popular here. ICE CAVE winter tours are a blast.
Jokulsarlon Lagoon and the Diamond Beach
Originating from enormous Vatnajokul huge icebergs melt.
After some time these icebergs are washed into the sea and come back as shining Diamonds on black sand beach.
East Fjords
Gorgeous land of deep valleys carved along the coast. Pure joy soaking up these surroundings.
Vestrahorn / Stokksnes
Just over an hour’s drive from the incredible glacial lagoon Jökulsárlón, and close to Europe’s largest glacier Vatnajökull, Vestrahorn is a natural wonder, a great place to experience the isolated, beautiful charm of Iceland. Be aware, that the beach at Stokksnes is private, and has a small entrance fee, which allows the landowner to keep up the maintenance of the road.
Djupivogur hot bathtub
Maybe one km before the town you can find best ever hot pot with a magnificent view for the fjords.
Seyðisfjörður: the most charming fishing village in Iceland
We had a great Coffee Latte in Nordic restaurant and quiet afternoon in this peaceful town.
Hallormsstaðaskógur forrest and Hengifoss
Hallormsstaður National Forest is located in Fljótsdalur valley about 25 km from the town of Egilsstaðir. We stayed overnight in Hotel inside the forrest and drove around the lake to see Hengifoss the next day. One of the highest waterfalls in Iceland 128m high.
Fáskrúðsfjörður
Lovely peaceful camping here.
Hafnarhólmi
Borgarfjordur Eystri – Iceland’s best spot to see puffins face to face
A 2-3hour detour from the Ring Road Iceland up north there is a charming fishing village situated on a grassy valley along a short wide fjord.
Is it worth it? You can get very close to puffins. See for yourself.
the North
is most known for Northern Lights in winter, but during the summer it has a lot to offer.
Godafoss
is one of the most spectacular waterfalls in Iceland 12 meters high and over 30 meters wide.
In the year 1000 the Lawspeaker Þorgeir Ljósvetningagoði made Christianity the official religion of Iceland. Legend says that after his conversion Þorgeir threw his statues of the Norse gods into the waterfall. That’s why the name.
Dettifoss
the second most powerfull waterfall in Europe in Vatnajökull National Park. Situated on the Jökulsá á Fjöllum river, which flows from the Vatnajökull glacier and collects water from a large area in Northeast Iceland.
It is the largest waterfall in Iceland in terms of volume discharge, having an average water flow of 190 m³/s. You can feel it’s power, and don’t get too close.
The falls are 100 metres (330 ft) wide and drops 44 metres (144 ft) down to the Jökulsárgljúfur canyon.
Asbyrgi
is a glacial canyon not far from Dettifoss, located 38 kilometres (24 mi) east of Húsavík. The horseshoe-shaped depression is part of the Vatnajökull National Park and measures approximately 3.5 km in length and over 1 km wide. The canyon is divided through the middle by a distinctive rock formation 25 meters high called Eyjan „the Island”. The canyon’s steep sides are formed by cliffs up to 100 metres (330 ft) in height.
Krafla
is a volcanic caldera of about 10 km in diameter with a 90 km long fissure zone, in the north of Iceland in the Mývatn region.
Krafla includes the crater Víti,in Icelandic it means „hell”. In former times, people often believed hell to be under volcanoes.
Since 1977 the Krafla area has been the source of the geothermal energy used by a 60 MWe power station.
South of the Krafla area there is Námafjall a mountain and Hverir Geothermal Area, with boiling mudpools and steaming fumaroles.
Myvatn Lake
Mývatn is a shallow lake situated in an area of active volcanism in the north.
The surrounding landscape is dominated by volcanic landforms, including lava pillars and rootless vents (pseudocraters). By the lake and the surrounding wetlands there is a variety of waterbirds, especially ducks. The effluent river Laxá is known for its rich fishing for brown trout and Atlantic salmon.
The North has it’s own Blue Lagoon,
it’s called MYVATN NATURE BATHS
We stayed in a cool Vogajfos farm. They have a restaurant with cows behind the glass 🙂
Akureyri
going further don’t’ miss second biggest town in Iceland.
Last Bonus store is here before Westjords and famoust Brynja Ice cream
Local guy came up to me and asked: You came to Iceland for ice cream? 😉
Glaumbær – The old turf farm and Fosslaug hot pot
WESTFJORDS – minimum 3 days
West
Snaefellsnes peninsula
Grundarfjordur and Kirkjufell mountain
the most famous mountain in Iceland
Eldborg Crater
Akranes
Budir church
HELLISSANDUR
Beautiful coexistence of raw Nature and great peace of street art.
In June a street art festival is held and many artist come to paint the walls in this small town. Some works beacome huge Murrals 🙂
Snaefellsjokull National Park
We had a really bad weather here so if you want to see more Link
