Three Day Winter Itinerary in Iceland

 

Prerequisites:

Adequate winter clothing, readiness for unpredictable weather, and pre-booked tours

Iceland is a place that I always planned to visit twice, once in winter and once in summer! I took the traditional Sankranti winter vacation to Iceland this time!

Day 0

Well, lets put it this way: getting to Iceland is tough. I think there are a couple of one stop options from India, but they didn't suit my plans. I began my trip after wrapping up my commitments in a conference at Vellore. Hence my my onward travel itinerary was; well, hold your breath; Vellore - Chennai -  Dubai - Amsterdam - Keflavik - Reykjavik (Road, Emirates, Emirates, Iceland Air, Road)

Keflavik is the town with the international airport in Iceland. In the Iceland air flight towards Keflavik, I purchased the shuttle tickets from Keflavik to Reykjavik (although you can purchase the same from the airport as well). The other options to travel include taxi (expensive), or you could rent a car for the days in Iceland from the airport. I didn't opt for the latter because of three reasons : international driving licence requirements, driving in the right side of the road, and mainly the general danger of driving in Iceland in winters (slippery roads, and limited daylight). You may be adventurous and opt for the latter, but it is generally discouraged in winters.

It was perhaps four thirty when I left the airport, but boy was it already dark! It had started drizzling already, and I walked it to the bus. The bus was full. It took an hour to the reach the Reykjavik bus terminus, from where another small bus dropped us off to the hotels. I decided to stay at the Hotel Grand Reykjavik, and found it to be in a rather convenient location to move around. It was six in the evening when I reached the room. I showered and headed out for dinner. I decided to walk to the Hilton hotel closeby as Google had given good ratings to the restaurant. I slipped on the ice on the way, which made me watch my all my steps in the entire trip! Fish and Chips and the local Gull beer made an excellent dinner. 

Iceland is five and a hours behind India. The time difference and the very long journey made me crash at 930 pm itself. 

Day 1

Firstly the dress code! Remember, although the temperature may seem relatively mild compared to the colder places you have been (I have been to Longyearbyen, where the temperature was -26 degrees C), Iceland can fell extremely cold, due to the constant wind/rain. The temperature was 1 degree Celcius on day 1 and boy was I happy I had dressed appropriately.

Back to the dress code (I purchased most of the stuff at Decathlon in Hyd): two caps, inner puffed jacket over the shirt, outer water proof jacket with a water proof hoodie, winter water proof gloves, inners, jeans, water proof ski pants, socks and shoes. Crampons are recommended, but I decided against them (I did just fine).

I had booked the trip through Viator. Today I planned to travel in the Golden Circle tour.

0630. Breakfast at the hotel.

0730. Pick up at the hotel and transfer to a central point.

0800. We got into the Golden circle tour bus. The bus was comfortable and there was free Wifi. The tour was excellent and she gave excellent insights about Iceland in general.

1000. Thingvellir national park. Well, it was still pitch dark when we got here. We were taken to a view point, where we could see the area of the oldest parliament in the world (Viking era). We could see the Thingvalavatn, the largest natural lake in Iceland. The sun rays had just started coming over the horizon and this made it an excellent view (better seen with the Samsung night camera, though). We could see the place where the tectonic plates of North America and Eurasia actually meet, making this country most prone for earthquakes and volcanoes. Grab an opportunity for a quick coffee/hot chocolate, and using the washroom before you leave the place!

Night mode on Samsung

1100. Geysir. We reached here at 1100. The sun had risen, but it was cloudy and it was drizzling constantly. But the area was awesome, It was a large area bubbling with geothermal activity. There were small steam vents, boiling mud pits, streams of boiling hot water and the of course the geysers! 

Strokkur is the largest of all the geysers, and it erupts every ten to twleve minutes, throwing up a large jet of hot water up in the sky. If you are patient with the camera, you can catch the spectacle very nicely (it spurts for about  8 to 10 seconds). On the rainy day, most of us in the tour decided that it was meant for our eyes only! 

1200. The Gullfoss (The Golden Waterfall). Boy, was this a large waterfall. It looked special as on either side of the waterfall, the mountains were covered with ice and snow, while the water made its way relentlessly. The sound was thunderous. There were numerous viewing platforms, including some close to the falls. The pathways can be very slippery here, so be careful! Lunch at the visitor centre.

1300. From here many people decide to take a snowmobile trip/monster truck up the glacier and go to the natural ice caves. Further extension of the same trip could take you to the Sky Lagoon or the Blue Lagoon. I decided to skip them all. The reason was I had already visited a mega glacier and ice cave in Svalbard on a dog sled (one of my best tourist experiences) and I am personally not a fan of public baths. However,  although the camera use is difficult, the two aforementioned lagoons are supposed to be very beautiful indeed). I later came to know that the glacier and the ice cave trips on that day had been a nightmare due to very heavy rains! We had lunch at the Gulfoss visitor centre (the lamb soup, was awesome, its a local delicacy). 

1400. We headed back to Reyjkavik. Why did I take the shorter trip? Well wait, wait...

1600. Back to the Grand hotel, rest and shower.

2000. Dinner at the Grand Hotel by the fireplace!

2030. Pick up at the Grand hotel for the Northern Lights tour! The tour guides are very experienced and they know just where to take you. Mind you, it was a very cloudy night, yet the tour guides took us to two places where we could sight the northern lights, albeit not for very long at each place, before the clouds moved in again. Always book this tour on the first night itself, as the tour operator will take you the next night for free should the first night be marked as 'unsuccessful'. Ours was marked unsuccessful, but the trips of the subsequent nights were cancelled due to persistent rainy weather 😞. 

2345. Reach hotel and crash!

Day 2

0630: Get up, get ready and get some breakfast!

0830. The minibus came and picked me up right from the hotel. The South Coast Small Group tour begins! Well, it was a very rainy day again today. We rode in complete darkness to the first point, a place chosen by the tour guide in such a way that we could cover the maximum distance before sunrise at 11 am. Use the restroom facilities on a the way, when the driver stops for a short while and also pick up some Hot chocolate/coffee.

1100.  Skogafoss. It is a majestic waterfall which is a 60 metre drop. Somehow the downstream river is very serene. There is a viewing platform at an elevation, but it is quite a steep climb. The view from there is supposed to be incredible, but I, like most others, skipped it as it was raining steadily. The waterproof jackets come to your rescue.

1200. Reynisfjara beach/ Black sand beach. This was a stunning beach, which was formed by flowing lava and silt directly hitting the ocean. The currents here are very strong and we were not to go towards the water. If you get pulled in, the next piece of land would only be Antarctica! Large basalt columns line the beach, which make it a stunning spectacle. Rain as usual played spoil sport. 

1300. Lunch at the visitor centre. For the second day running, I took the lamb soup , which was delicious. I rounded it up with a cake and hot coffee. 

1330. Pass by the picturesque town of Vik, quite photogenic (had it not been for the incessant rains!)

1430.  Solheimajokull glacier. It is a tongue of a much larger glacier. We need to walk a short distance from the parking lot to actually see the part of the glacier meeting the lake that is formed by the melting ice, with floating icebergs. It was quite the spectacle. The evidence of global warming was seen when the guide explained how much the glacier had been eroded in the last decade. 

We then decided to walk away from the pathway created and move along the lake shore. That was a mistake and the black soil was very soggy. My shoe got stuck in the mud, as a result to balance myself I had to adjust in such a way that my gloves and socks were soaked in the wet black muck, making the rest of my trip, well, not so 'clean'. It reminded me of the short hikes we used to have in the western ghats near Pune in the college days.

1530.  Seljalandfoss. When we browse Iceland on YouTube or Google, you would often find this waterfall in all vlogs/blogs. It is an iconic waterfall and it was particularly voluminous on that day. In summers, you can actually go behind the waterfalls, which was closed as the path was frozen. You can good photos here, Use the restroom and also drink something here, as it is a 2 hour drive back to town after that.

1800. Reached back to the base well past the Iceland sunset. Well, to get myself cleaned up, took up enormous effort and time (and money if you count the clothes I had sent to laundry). Watched a Manchester City EPL match, to see our team squander yet another lead (the story of the year for City), room service for dinner and crash. 

Day 3

Day in Reykjavik

0900. Get up late and have a leisurely breakfast

1000. Head out by cab to the Perlan museum.  This is a beautifully designed museum to describe the natural wonders of Iceland. Included in the museum price are the Planetarium show (concentrated mostly on the Northern lights), the volcano show and the Ice cave experience. After the time spent indoor in the museum, head up to the fourth floor, where you can grab an ice cream and then walk on the terrace, from where you can see the panoramic view of the whole of the city. Mind you, the wind can be particularly strong in some parts. Overall, an awesome experience!

1230. Head out to the Hallsgrimkirkja, the iconic cathedral of Reykjavik. It is the poster picture of any Reykjavik website or social media site. A lot of photo taking opportunities here. The church itself was serene.

1330. Lunch at Cafe Loki or at Three Coats. Cafe Loki is a favourite for traditional Iceland food. It is famous for the fermented shark dish ( I was warned about its pungent taste and I decided to skip it). I decided to move to the Three Coats restaurant, which is smaller and less conspicuous, but it is a place that  serves another exotic Iceland dish: whale meat steak (sssh!) It was awesome!

1500. Take a snap at the Sun Voyager; nothing to  ride home about, but an iconic Iceland landmark nevertheless.

1515 to 1545. Burn your lunch calories by walking along the sea coast to the Fly over Iceland building

1600. Fly over Iceland. Do not miss this! This is a 7D experience, where you will be made to sit on a chair (with safety seat belts, of course). The chair will move forward into an empty well, where your feet will be hanging in the air, and the 7D show starts to give a surreal flight over all parts of Iceland. It was exhilarating! However, I will not recommend this for people with vertigo and heart conditions!

1645. Walk to the Lava Show museum, a short walk. Attend the Lava Show, which is another greatly unique experience! You can see artificially produced but scientifically accurate Lava pouring down the centre of the room (do not dare touch, the lava is at 800 degrees celsius when it is poured down and remains well above 200 degree celsius throughout the show). A geologist will explain the various properties of Lava, and about all the infamous volcanoes that had rocked Iceland.

1800. Head back to the hotel via the church, as it looks astonishingly good at night time too!

1900. Pack for a really early morning departure the next day, enjoy a fireplace dinner and crash!

Day 4

Take a taxi back to Keflavik and head home! (I had a stay over in Amsterdam on my way back)