We finally did it, we visited Iceland! Iceland has been on our bucketlist for a very long time. We finally got the chance to visit in October 2023. We took a direct flight from Berlin to Iceland with Play Airlines. They have great prices and fly direct to Iceland from many European cities and even the US and Canada.
We only have 3 days in Iceland and are travelling with our 1 year old baby so we were on a tight schedule, determined to see all the major cites of Iceland. In this post I will give you our exact 3 day itinerary for Iceland.
Day 1:
We arrived in Keflavik Airport after a 3 our flight with Play Airlines. We rented a car from Geysir Car rental. A car is definitely a must in Iceland, especially if you want to be flexible. There are day tours available but I'd recommend a car. Since we arrived in the afternoon we did not include any major sites for that day and headed straight to the capital city, Reykjavik. The drive from the airport takes about 45 minutes. There is also a shuttle bus available and you can buy your tickets onboard at Play.
The city center is small and easily walkable. Since it was cold we warmed up with hot chocolate at Sandholt bakery. For dinner we tried the famous hotdogs at Baerjarins Peztu Pylsur. They really are as good as they say! Depending on your flight arrival you could also visit the famous Blue Lagoon since it is very close to the airport. In the evening we drove to our accommodation for the night, which was located on the Golden Circle Route. It was cold Blue Hotel Fagrilundur and was great in terms of location.
Day 2:
The next day we woke up and enjoyed breakfast at the hotel. Our first stop for the day was Geysir. Here you can observe geysers of different sizes. The most active one is currently Strokkur, which erupted frequently every 3-5 minutes. This place is definitely a must see.
Next stop for the day was Gullfoss. This is one of the most impressive waterfalls in Iceland and you should definitely include it in your itinerary. There are different walking paths to view the waterfall from different angles.
Two other stops that are part of the so called Golden Circle are Thingvellir National Park and Kerid Crater. You can easily visit all of them whitin a day but we skipped those two because baby was tired.
When doing the Golden Circle there are also some great options for food. Fridheimar is a tomato farm offering various tomato based dishes. Another option is Farmers Bistro, which is a mushroom farm and is famous for it's mushroom soup.
If you have extra time there are also some other great stops on this route:
Secret Lagoon
Bruarfoss
Selfoss town
We continued towards the South of Iceland, where we will spend the night in a super unique location. On the way we drove by beautiful landscapes and encountered the beautiful Icelandic horses. You will see them often along the drive. Before heading to our home for the night we stopped in the town Hvolsvöllur to grab a bite and pick up some snacks from the supermarket. We ate at Eldsto Art Cafe which had some great soup to warm up und very delicious Fish and Chips.
Our accommodation for the night was a very unique location. We stayed at Iceland domes and it was our first glamping experience. We were hoping to catch the Aurora that night. Read all about it here.
Day 3:
First stop of the day was Seljalandsfoss. This is another well known waterfall and the great part is you get to walk behind the waterfall. Make sure to bring a raincoat and some proper footwear because you will get wet. Next to it is another, lesser known waterfall called Gljufrabui. It's kind of hidden and less touristy and is definitely worth a visit.
Next we were headed to the town of Vik which is a 1 hour drive away. On the way we drove by Eyjafjallajökull, which some of you might remember from it's eruption in 2010. Skogafoss and the Solheimasandur Plane Wreck are also along the way. For the Plane Wreck you need to know that you will have to walk around 30 minutes from the parking lot and back. I heard that there sometimes companies offering a shuttle but it is not regular so we skipped on it.
Vik offers many food options. We went to Skool Beans Cafe to try their bagels and famous hot chocolate and it did not disappoint. Also, how cool is this location?
After having warmed up we headed to Reynisfjara Beach, aka Black Sand beach. This beach is a must see and has been frequently named as one of the most beautiful non tropical beaches in the world. It can get pretty windy and the waves are rough so make sure to follow the warning signs.
For us, it was time to head back to Reykjavik to catch our flight back to Berlin. If we hade 1 or 2 more days we would have also visited Diamond beach and Skaftafell Glacier. After a dinner in Reykjavik and some baked goods we headed to Aurora Airport hotel to get some sleep before our early morning flight back to Berlin with Play Airlines.
Iceland was one, if not the most unique landsscape I have visited. I was a bit afraid how traveling to Iceland with a toddler would be. He loved being in the nature and the weather was ideal since it wasn't too cold yet.
I hope this guide will help you plan your next trip to Iceland.
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