the best 5 day

iceland itinerary

Traveling to Iceland? Look no further for the most efficient & memorable trip!

Days 1 & 2 – stayed the night in Reykjavík (Airbnb)

Day 3 – stayed the night in Vik (Black Beach Suites)

Day 4 – stayed the night in Jökulsárlón (Fosshotel Glacier Lagoon)

Day 5 – stayed the night in Vik (Black Beach Suites)

Day 1

6 AM – landed in Iceland (KEF) – took us about 1.5 hours to get through immigration, grab our luggage, and get the rental car

7:30 AM – Drove to Reykjavík (about a 45 minute drive to the city)

  • On the way, stopped at Kvikk/Orkan Fitjar (gas station), we picked up a mobile hot spot we could use for the trip (wi-fi), booked via trawire ($50 for 5 days), can also book through the rental car company (usually slightly more expensive)

8:30 AM – got to the city, went to our Airbnb, dropped off our bags (couldn’t check in yet)

8:45 AM – went to eat at a place called Sandholt, good bakery with many breakfast/pastry options

  • Good items on the menu included the shakshuka, blueberry pancakes, & all the pastries they have (especially the cinnamon bun)

9:45 AM – left the restaurant, stopped at a local supermarket to grab some snacks/drinks for the many car rides ahead

10 AM – drove back to Airbnb, changed, and layered up!

10:15 AM – Drive to Thingvellir National park (GOT filming area) (45 mins away)

  • Walked around for a little bit, don’t skimp on paying for parking, they will know, make sure you pay

11:30 AM – Drive to geyser hot spring area, geysers erupt every 5-10 mins (50 mins away)

  • There is one geyser towards the back, large one, erupts the most frequently

1:15 PM – Drive to Gullfoss waterfall (10 min drive)

  • Use the outlook parking lot underneath, closer walk to the waterfall

2:30 PM – Drive to back to Reykjavik and rest up

  • If you have time and energy, stop by the Laugarvatn Fontana Spa (they bake bread underground, cool experience)

5 PM – head out to Blue Lagoon

  • Make sure you purchase tickets ahead of time

7:30 PM – Head back to Reykjavík, grab dinner somewhere, there are many options and places are open pretty late

10 PM – If you are feeling adventurous and the aurora forecast calls for it, head out and try to spot the Northern Lights

Day 2

9 AM – wake up and get ready to seize the day

10 AM – make sure you are layered up, will be spending most of the day outside, go grab a quick breakfast in the city

  • Emilie and the Cool Kids (they had good bagels and coffee)
  • MAKE SURE TO BRING LUNCH/SNACKS WITH YOU – won’t be many places to eat once you leave the city

11 AM – leave for Snaefellsness peninsula, ultimately this route ends at Kirkjufell Mountain, but there are many must see spots to see on the way

  • Stop #1 – Gerouberg basalt cliffs
  • Stop #2 – Olkelda mineral Spring (drink from the tap, it doesn’t taste well but its good for you)
  • Stop #3 – Ytri Tunga Beach (spot some Icelandic seals)
  • Stop #4 – Drive to hellnar point, enjoy the view (stop & eat lunch here)
  • Stop #5 – Bjarnarfoss waterfall (in Snaefellsbaer), climb to the top, so worth it, or admire from bridge underneath
  • Stop #6 – Drive to Kirkjufell Mountain (another GOT filming area, super beautiful)

4:30-5 PM – will be exhausted at this point, start the drive back to the city (about 2.5 hours)

7 PM – get back to your Airbnb/hotel, rest up and go grab dinner nearby

9 PM – If you are feeling adventurous and the aurora forecast calls for it, head out and try to spot the Northern Lights

Day 3

9 AM – Wake up, get ready, check out of your Airbnb, go grab another quick breakfast in the city

10 AM – head to Seljalandsfoss Waterfall (1 hr 45 min drive)

  • Gljúfrabúi Waterfall, hidden waterfall right near this one, can walk to it through cave, don’t miss it

1 PM – head to Skogafoss waterfall (30 min drive) – can climb to the top via stairs, really beautiful view

  • Kvernufoss waterfall, near there, a little bit of a hike, but if you have time check it out

2:30 PM – head out towards Vik, can find a place to eat or wait until you get to Vik (30 min drive)

**you may spend more time at the waterfalls as they are amazing so timeline might fluctuate

3 PM – check into hotel, drop off bags

3:30 PM – drive to Reynisfjara Beach (Another black sand beach) [5 min drive]

  • GOT filming area

4:15 PM – drive to Dyrhólaey (nice views) [20 min drive]

5 PM – drive back to hotel, there are restaurants in Vik you can grab food from

8 PM – better chance of driving around and finding Northern Lights in this area, less light pollution, check aurora forecast

Day 4

9 AM – wake up, check out of the hotel, grab breakfast from somewhere close by or at hotel

10 AM – We booked an ice cave tour on this day, headed out towards Jökulsárlón Lagoon (2.5 hrs away)

  • Tour leaves from the lagoon parking lot, its about 3 hours round trip, but a very cool experience

1 PM – go on tour with group

  • If you get there early, there are food trucks there you can eat at, or just check out the lagoon

4 PM – get back to the lagoon parking lot, can hang out there and eat if hungry

4:30 PM – head over to diamond beach (close by, 5 min drive)

  • Catch the sunset here, amazing viws

6 PM – Head over to Fosshotel Glacier Lagoon and check in (25 min drive)

7 PM – grab dinner

9 PM – check the aurora forecast, drive around and try to find the Northern Lights

Day 5

9 AM – wake up, check out of hotel, and grab some breakfast close by (or from hotel)

10 AM – Drive back to diamond beach, admire the morning views, get some good pictures (20 min drive)

  • Stop by the lagoon across the street as well, Jökulsárlón, different view during the morning than during sunset

11:15 AM – Head over to Svartifoss waterfall (45 min drive)

  • Little bit of a hike once you get there, but a good workout and you can get really close to the waterfall
  • Food trucks also here to grab a meal before/after the waterfall

2 PM – head over to Fjaðrárgljúfur Canyon (1 hr drive)

  • 2 parking lots to park in, both close walking distance to canyon, amazing views

3:30 PM – drive towards Vik and get to hotel, check in (1 hr drive)

4:30 PM – drop off bags and head over to Reynisfjara Beach for Sunset

6 PM – Find dinner in Vik, few restaurant options available

9 PM – Go out and try to find the Northern Lights on your last night, check the aurora forecast (we got lucky and saw them close by to the beach!)

tips/lessons learned

  • Bring a lot of snacks from wherever you are coming from, they are very useful on the many long car rides you will be taking (you can purchase from Iceland, but it will be more expensive)

  • There are a lot of fast food restaurants near the city where you can pick up food from before all your road trips – 100% recommend doing this (i.e. Subway, Dominos, etc.)

  • If you are going to see the Northern Lights, make yourself very familiar with the aurora forecast and how it works before hand (there are also Facebook/Meta groups you can follow that post updates constantly on northern light spotting’s in Iceland)

  • Gas is quite pricy, be mentally prepared to pay a lot for gas as you will be driving tons

  • Speeding is taken very seriously in the country of Iceland, don’t do it, or else you will paying a very HEFTY fine (watch out for speeding cameras in tunnels too, they are there)

  • Covid 19 – upon arrival you do have to show your test results and you do need to take a test when coming back to your destination, there are many rapid test/pcr locations, just make sure you schedule ahead of time, otherwise, you are mostly outdoors and away from people, so its comfortable & safe

  • Most places take credit card for payment (hopefully you have a travel credit card with no international fees), you can exchange cash for Icelandic Krona’s at the airport upon arrival if needed, I would recommend just doing a small amount

  • When driving around the country, you will notice how beautiful it is at all times, beautiful roads with mountains surrounding you, don’t be afraid to pull over and take pictures, it will delay your itinerary but it’s 100% worth it (see below for just some of the pictures)

route

  • Most people do the ring road when they visit Iceland, however, since we only had 5 days, we decided to check out as many places as we can instead of drive for 5 days straight. Recommended time for doing the entire ring road and visiting many of the landmarks is closer to 10 days. Below is the area’s we drove to, which was plenty for 5 days.
  • Time of year we travelled: October
  • Average temperature: About 40 degrees (farenheit), but with unpredictable wind chill, will feel closer to the 10 degree to 20 degree range