Compare 3 Day South Coast - Golden Circle, Jokulsarlon Glacier Lagoon & Ice Cave by Arctic Adventures vs Iceland In-Depth featuring the Northern Lights by Tours of Distinction
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| Trip |
5 | Excellent
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5 | Excellent
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| Duration | 3 days | 8 days |
| Price From | $ 837 | $ 3,699 |
| Price Per Day | $ 279 | $ 462 |
| Highlights |
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| Trip Style | Small group tour | Small group tour |
| Lodging Level | Standard | Luxury |
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| Countries Visited | ||
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| Flights & Transport | Ground transport included | Ground transport included |
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| Meals Included | N/A |
6 Breakfasts | 3 Lunches | 5 Dinners |
| Description |
This small group 3-day tour is fabulous for those with limited time to enjoy the best of Iceland. An unforgettable adventure, the most popular attractions, spectacular waterfalls, glacier hiking and a magnificent ice cave in Vatnajökull, Europe’s biggest glacier. Your nights are spent away from the city, giving you the best chance of seeing the glittering northern lights. |
Iceland is one of the world’s ultimate islands of contrasts… fire and ice; long nights with colorful northern lights and daylight for 20 hours; glaciers and steaming hot geysers, waterfalls galore, pretty puffins, and magical elves. It is a fierce landscape of volcanoes, plains of mossy, craggy cliffs, and black sand beaches. It is an island still being formed by water, ice, and fire and closer than you believe. |
Day 1: The Famous Golden Circle Route
Your tour begins with the three famous Golden Circle attractions: Þingvellir (Thingvellir), Geysir and Gullfoss. Pingvellir National Park, a UNESCO listed World Heritage Site, is the place where the Icelanders founded their historic Parliament, Alþingi, in the year 930. This is the oldest continuously operating Parliament in the world, it is certainly situated in one of the most geologically amazing places on the planet. The boundary between the Eurasian and North American tectonic plates is here, they have been slowly edging apart creating a rift valley, and a great cliff right behind where the Law Speaker would stand in the olden days. Þingvallavatn is a very beautiful lake set within this incredible landscape.
You will visit the geothermally active area of Geysir, this is the erupting hot spring from which the English word, Geyser, has been taken. Great Geysir is not active now, so we will visit Strokkur, a nearby spouting hot spring. You will not have to wait more than a few minutes to see Strokkur erupt scalding water up to 25 m skywards. Next, is Gullfoss (the Golden Falls), the most often visited waterfall in Iceland. See the golden spray around the waterfall, and feel the water droplets in the air as the amazing powerful Hvíta (the White River), roars through the rugged canyon, dropping 32 m.
On a clear day, we will get great views of Mount Hekla on the way to Seljalandsfoss, one of the most unusual waterfalls in the world. You can walk behind the powerful but graceful falls to enjoy the view from both sides. Next up, is Skógafoss, a really impressive waterfall which drops 60 m into the tranquil pool below. There are 527 steps leading to the top giving another vantage point. The famous volcano, Eyjafjallajökull, lurks high above the waterfall, if visibility is good you will get a view of this magnificent mountain glacier.
Your country hotel will be close to the small coastal town of Vík, a really great place to catch the mesmerizing northern lights if the conditions are right. A little northern lights luck is very useful!
Day Highlights;
- Þingvellir National Park (Thingvellir)
- Geysir hot spring area
- Gullfoss Waterfall
- Seljalandsfoss Waterfall
- Skógafoss Waterfall
- The small coast town Vík
Included:
- Guided Minibus Tour
- The Golden Circle (Þingvellir, Gullfoss and Þingvellir)
- Seljalandsfoss and Skógafoss Waterfalls
- Northern Lights Hunting (in good conditions)
- One night at a hotel near Vík
Day 2: Black Sand Beach & Jökulsárlón Glacier Lagoon
After a nourishing breakfast we head off to the dramatic black sand beach at Reynisfjara. The powerful, rolling waves of the Atlantic Ocean really show their force here. Watch as these roaring white-tipped beauties crash onto the black beach – a word of warning – follow the advice of your tour guide and stand well back. These fierce waves can be very unpredictable! You should visit the amazing black basalt column cave before you leave the beach. You will see incredible black basalt pillars rising from the sea just off the shore at Reynisdrangar, these will give you a good idea of where some Icelandic toll folklore sprang from!
Your tour will then take you through enchanting lava fields and incredible desert sands, formed by enormous glacial floods, knows as Jökulhlaups, as we head east. We continue to Breiðamerkurjökull, a glorious outlet glacier which reaches down, like an icy finger, from Vatnajökull, the second largest glacier in Europe. The magnificent Jökulsárlón Glacier Lagoon and the nearby Diamond Beach are our next stop. The lagoon is filled with icebergs of all shapes and sizes, as they glide in a dreamlike procession towards the salty waves of the Atlantic. They are often washed ashore at the Diamond Beach, where they shimmer like diamonds on the back sand. You will be amazed at the bright blue tones which glitter within many icebergs, these colors are caused by a combination of factors including ice compression. Ocean birds are abundant and seals can sometimes be seen. Your hotel will be in the Skaftafell area, a great place to test your northern lights luck! If the forecast is good you need to keep an eye on things, will shimmering colors dance across the sky? We can never say for sure, but you don´t want to miss them!
Day Highlights
- Reynisfjara Black Sand Beach
- Balsalt pillars of Reynisdrangar
- Jökulsárlón Glacier Lagoon
- The Diamond Beach
Included:
- Breakfast at hotel near Vík
- Guided Minibus Tour
- Reynisfjara Black Beach
- Jökulsárlón Glacier Lagoon
- Northern Lights Hunting (in good conditions)
- One night in a hotel near Skaftafell
Day 3: Glacier Hike and Ice Caving
Today you will explore two of Vatnajökull National Park´s stunning natural jewels:
Accompanied by a certified glacier guide you will explore the mesmerizing world inside an ice cave. Usually, we visit the Crystal Cave in Breiðamerkurjökull, a glacial tongue of Vatnajökull. Other times a different ice cave will be chosen, your guide will choose the cave with the best conditions at the time. Ice caves change a lot, both from year to year and within each winter. Your guide will explain how these caves and the incredible formations in them are formed. Photographers will get a rare opportunity to capture the shimmering blue light which passes through the glacial ice. Surprisingly, deep shades of jewel blue will surround you, these tones are caused by ice compression, the way we perceive light and color, and the blueness can sometimes be intensified by algae.The temperature inside the ice cave is well below the freezing point so please dress accordingly.
Now for glacier hiking! Your guide will give you ice crampons and everything you need to explore Svínajökull glacier. The glacier is dynamic, it is always moving and changing, incredible ice features are constantly being formed. Your guide will explain all about sink holes, crevasses, ice falls and ridges, and how climate change is impacting upon the glaciers in Iceland. Your 45 minutes on the ice will be filled with wonder and fascinating facts. Stand still and you will hear the ice groaning at it moves – on the glacier there is peacefulness but, in a true sense, never complete stillness!
We will return to Reykjavík between 20:00 and 23:00, depending on the conditions. We make some stops along the way, the weather is somewhat in charge, particularly during the winter!
Please note: If the conditions are expected to be better, this tour will sometimes visit an ice cave on day 2, your guide will make the most of the opportunities available.
Remember to bring: Warm layers, waterproof top layer, headwear, gloves, scarves with non-cotton thermal underwear if you have it. Good hiking boots are absolutely essential, it is not possible to fit ice crampons to any other kind of footwear. You can hire good boots from us in the booking process, we do not rent from the locations, so such items must be booked in advance.
Day Highlights:
- Glacier walk on Vatnajökull glacier
- Natural Ice Cave
Included:
- Breakfast at hotel near Skaftafell
- Guided Glacier Hike on Vatnajökull Glacier
- Guided Ice Cave Tour
- Certified Glacier Guide
- Guided Minibus Tour/Return to Reykjavík
Day 1 - Depart for Reykjavik, Iceland
Transfer to the airport and check-in for your overnight flight to Reykjavik.
Day 2 - Reykjavik
Arrive in Reyjakvik and head toward the famous Blue Lagoon. The lagoon is a geothermal wonder of nature, with pleasantly warm mineral rich geothermal seawater in the middle of a lava field. The high natural levels of silica, minerals and algae give the Lagoon its rich blue colour – hence the name Blue Lagoon. Later, a city tour will show us the highlights of the capital.
Welcome dinner and overnight at your Reykjavík hotel.
Day 3 - Iceland Countryside
After breakfast, we drive north out of Reykjavik and through the tunnel under Hvalfjordur, one of the country’s longest fjords. We make a visit at the Settlement Center museum in Borgarnes. We continue through the pretty lake-dotted valleys of the Borgarfjördur district where the ice-age glacier covered the area about 10,000 years ago. We will then make a brief stop at Deidartunguhver, Europe’s largest hot spring, where around 200 liters of 97C hot water flows from the earth every second. Enjoy our short stop at the beautiful waterfalls of Hraunfossar and Barnafossar in the river Hvítá before returning to Borgarnes.
Lunch and dinner and overnight in Borgarnes.
Day 4 - Iceland Countryside
The first highlight of the day is Thingvellir, the great lava arena in a rift valley, where the divide between the Eurasian and the North American tectonic plates is clearly visible. Founded by the Norse settlers in 930 AD in Thingvellir, you will see the world’s oldest still-existing national parliament. Get ready to visit Gullfoss, which is often described as Iceland´s most beautiful waterfall, and the famous Geyser area, Strokkur, the world´s most active, is likely to spout several times. We make our final stop at Friðheimar, known for using geothermal heating for cultivation of tomatoes and cucumbers – come and enjoy their famous tomato soup.
Light lunch in Frioheimar. Dinner and overnight in Selfoss.
Day 5 - Iceland Countryside
Today we will drive along the south coast and visit the magnificent waterfall of Seljalandsfoss. It is a narrow and high waterfall which plunges over the mountains of West Eyjafjöll. From there we head to Vík, a village east of Mt. Reynisfjall in Myrdal. In Vík and the neighboring coastline, there is a wealth of contrasts and landscapes renowned for their natural beauty. Mt. Reynisfjall and its cliffs have few rivals in Iceland for richness of vegetation and bird life and the black sand beach Reynisfjara is a large breeding colony for the Arctic tern. According to local folklore, three rock stacks rise up to 66m from the sea: Skessudrangar, Landdrangar and Langhamrar and are said to be trolls turned to stone at sunrise. Then we continue towards Kirkjubæjarklaustur, which in the old days was known as „Kirkjubær“ (Church Farm) and was an important farming village.
Day 6 - Iceland Countryside
From Klaustur, we travel along the south coast to Skaftafell. Skaftafell National Park was designated as one of Iceland´s three National Parks in 1967. Towering mountains, imposing glaciers, gulches with clear brooks and beautiful waterfalls, birch woods, a wealth of wild flowers and lush vegetation give credence to its status. The most majestic of its several waterfalls is Svartifoss (“Black Falls”) that cascade over a wall of symmetrical columnar basalt that resembles an organ. En-route to our stop for the evening, we visit glacier lagoon Jökulsárlón and the museum Þórbergssetur in Höfn. The museum is dedicated to one of Iceland‘s most significant twentieth century author, Þórbergur Þórðarson.
Day 7 - Iceland Countryside - Reykjavik
Today, we start by making a stop at the breathtaking waterfall Skógarfoss, which is 60m high and one of the most impressive waterfalls in the country. After, we experience the Folk Museum at Skógar before continuing to the power plant Hellisheiðarvirkjun for a Geothermal Exhibition about geothermal energy in Iceland.
Overnight at your Reykjavik hotel.
Day 8 - Depart Reykjavik
Say goodbye to Iceland this morning as we head to the airport for our flight. Upon arrival in the USA, transfer home.
