My husband and I were talking about visiting the land of ice and fire #Iceland for quite a while since we both are anxious to check the Northern lights off our bucket lists. Iceland is a land where Mother Nature’s scenery is pristine, raw, and breathtaking so Iceland was our choice. And, the amazing part is we have our good friends joining us to celebrate with on the trip! I researched and planned everything for the Iceland trip by myself for months and decided to visit it during late October. Wait, Why October? It’s their wettest month. First of all, the weather in Iceland is so unpredictable! Second, it’s the transition month to winter. And, we would have an excellent opportunity of chasing the Aurora Borealis and enjoying the scenery. We didn’t want to experience the insanely cold weather during their actual winter. The Icelandic people said that the weather in Iceland changes every 10 minutes and we found that to be “TRUE”. In a 10 minute period we saw the sun, rain, snow, and hail with ferocious winds! It might sound a tad unpleasant to experience that unusual weather but hey it’s all part of the adventure. If there’s a place that is new to me with new cultures, I’m in.
Landed at Keflavik airport. Got a rental car and made sure we had a GPS plus a map to travel with. All set and off we went! The journey at the ring road 1 had begun. Although, travel around the country is pretty easy - just follow the main road highway 1 to some main attractions, but the off road side is another story. I pinpointed on the map all the sightseeing and daily activities, with the possibility to chase the Aurora Borealis. I also made sure we had good accommodations to assure we had good sleep. The first 2 nights we stayed at the ION Adventure Hotel - it’s a designer hotel. It’s located in Selfoss where it’s close to Thingvellir National Park, the Langjokull Glacier, where we signed up to explore the ice cave.
To get into the ice cave deep inside the glacier, we first had to travel 30 minutes across the glacier. It was so cool! We rode on the glacier in a monster truck that transported us to the entrance of the ice tunnel. Everything outside was white. We were literally in a “white-out”. It was like being in the Ice Age. It was an unmissable opportunity to see the majestic world inside the heart of Langjokull, 2500 years of ice sculpted by the hand of nature. I must say this one was my most exciting experience. It literally took us a whole day to do but it was worthwhile. We learned a lot about glaciers and the formation of ice from the tour guide. It was fantastic.
On the way to the Southern part of Iceland, we found other great photo opportunities at several famous waterfalls such as Seljalandsfoss and Skogafoss and continued on to our next destination; black sand beach at Dyrholaey, Reynisdrangar. We spent the 3rd night in the town of Vik at Icelandic Hotel and that night we got to see our first Northern lights! We drove a few miles away from the hotel’s lights and boom - pitch dark! The Amazing Aurora started to dance as the clouds moved away. We have to give credit to our friend Chris who is the Northern lights motivator and forced us out of the hotel lobby.
The next morning, we drove to Jokulsarlon glacier lagoon (the lagoon belongs to Vatnajokull, the largest glacier in Iceland) and the Diamond Beach shouldn’t be missed. It is one of Iceland’s greatest wonders of nature. I was stunned and speechless to see it. It’s like entering through a magic world. The ice-chunks take on so many forms and colors, ranging from transparent to white and to the most amazing blue. Some of the ice was black from all the rock it was carrying. It was a breathtaking experience visiting the lagoon and I don’t think there’s anything like Diamond Beach anywhere else in the world where the icebergs meet the Atlantic Ocean. The beach is right across the highway opposite the lagoon and you’ll see the ocean and black sand beach covered with turquoise blue chunks of ice and pieces of crystal clear ice with the waves crashing in on them. It’s surrealistic. If that day weren’t so rainy I would have sat at the beach until the sunset. It’s one of my most favorite beaches in Iceland. We spent a night at the Foss Glacier Lagoon hotel and again went out chasing Aurora Borealis and were lucky to see it again.
To get a glimpse of the Icelandic life, you’ll see a farm with plenty of the Icelandic horses and sheep along the road. My goodness they’re so darn cute and my camera was always on. I’m so obsessed with those animals. On the way to our next accommodation, I couldn’t help myself to stop for a picture of the Eldharuan lava moss field along the highway! Walking or sitting on the lava moss field is allowed and its fluffy soft like a carpet. I thought I was in a wonderland. We stayed 2 nights at Hotel Selid, which is more like a Bed & Breakfast, with its remote countryside and surrounded by miles of rolling hills. The GPS from our car rental agency was not updated so this hotel was not on its map. It is a 6 mile drive off the main road to Hella. The hotel has a nice hiking trail to the beautiful river and waterfall. Another picturesque location.
Time flies. The adventure had almost come to an end. I wrapped up the trip with a wonderful relaxing and luxurious stay at Hotel Silica Blue Lagoon for 2 nights. We were floating on the private hot spring lagoon under the freezing air. OMG I’m in heaven. It’s a spa heaven to me. I enjoyed it so much with an unlimited pure silica nature mud mask on the face and body every time I got into the pool. We all had so much fun covered with mud. The facility is truly unforgettable, the room is tastefully decorated with amazing views of a lava field. The best part of the hotel is the private lagoon of course and it was uncrowded and peaceful and I personally found it very enjoyable. The famous public blue lagoon is just a short walk away from the hotel which is good too, but too crowded & commercial for my liking. Plus the private lagoon is on till midnight, so it could be a great way to see the northern lights again! Great staff, great food. “The best for last.”
It was a once in a lifetime trip for both of us and I couldn’t be happier of the trip I planned. Until next time Iceland and thank you friends and family for following my journey through facebook, instagram, and my website. Watch for my next trip! Can’t wait to see where we will be next!
Oh, just an alert for anyone of you who might travel with a budget. The meals in Iceland are very expensive. For example, a bowl of soup costs $30, but the food quality is excellent. Most meals we dined out at the hotel restaurants or a local restaurant like Salthusio in Grindavik, which is highly recommended and the price is reasonable and their fish is to die for! Scrumptious!
Goodbye from Reykjavik.
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