Iceland Vacation Ideas

Our vacation, and the guide exceeded all of our expectations! We saw so much of the southern part of Iceland in 6 days which was perfect for us. We had a private guide for the entire trip, and our guide took us everywhere in his jacked up Land Rover with giant tires capable of driving through rivers, lava fields, and on beaches! Our guide was so knowledgeable about the people, culture, and land, and we felt like we really knew the country and had made a real friend by the time we left. Having a private guide and being able to go where and when we wanted was awesome, and our guide went over and above to make sure we saw the highlights as well as less seen places, and he kept an eye on the Aurora forecast, and got us to a very dark place where we were lucky enough to see a spectacular show! Our stops included, the Blue Lagoon which was a great way to start our vacation after taking the red eye from the US. It's a tourist stop, but worth going to since it takes 20 years off of your body- so they say! We went 400 feet inside of a 4000 year old volcano which was an awesome experience. We saw multiple waterfalls- Gljufrabui, Seljalandsfoss, Hraunfossar, and the Golden, and all were worth the hike. In Thorsmork we went to Thor's Ravine, an awesome canyon and a pretty good hike. Eyjafjallajokull Glacier is the one that erupted in 2010, and it's stunning. We spent 2 nights in Vik, and traveled around from there, and 3 nights total in Reykjavik, which is a great little town with restaurants and bars and a harbor. We took a zodiac boat ride on a glacial lagoon, and got up close and personal with the glacier. We drove the Kaldidalur Mountain Pass between glaciers, and went into the Langiokull Glacier through a manmade ice cave. Finally, we went on to the Golden Circle, with it's three main attractions- Thingvellir National Park, Geysir Hot Spring, and the Golden Waterfall. I planned the entire trip with the owner of the travel company, and he tailored the trip specifically to my family. We emailed and had one 45 minute phone call, and he had the entire trip planned including hotel reservations, reservations at attractions, and he even suggested and made dinner reservations for us. Also, he and his wife gave us weather forecasts, tips for clothing, and answered any other questions and concerns, and always responded almost immediately. I would totally recommend Zicasso, who asks a bunch of questions so they can pair you with 3 highly rated travel agencies, and follows up with you, and the travel company- an awesome travel agency who planned a trip that exceeded all of our expectations! 

Our trip to Iceland was wonderful. We had never been to Iceland. Our travel agency developed a great 7 day itinerary - starting and ending in Reykjavik. We traveled around the island counter clockwise, stopping at many beautiful spots along the way. On day 6 we arrived in Akureyri on the Northern tip of Iceland. From there we flew back to Reykjavik to spend another nice afternoon/evening there.The itinerary was established by Arnar (our travel agency's owner). Arnar was very responsive in the months & weeks leading up to our trip as we decided on various activities and stops. As mentioned, the itinerary was great. The hotels that we stayed at along the way were really top notch! All very clean, good American style breakfasts each morning, & the dinners were very good. We ate dinner at 3 of the 6 different hotels where we stayed. Other nights, we had great dinners away from the hotels at spots recommended by Arnar or our guide.Our guide is a great guy - professional, courteous & knowledgeable. We really enjoyed spending time with him for the week. He really goes out of his way to make the trip special.We could have attempted to do Iceland on our own, but I don't believe our trip would have been nearly as special. Bottom line, we never would have had the experience we had if not for Arnar & our guide. The itinerary was fantastic and our guide's service was superb.

I chose our travel specialist based on reviews I read on Trip Advisor. Arnar worked with me to design a 7-day trip for my husband and I. He was flexible and thoughtful with his planning and our tour guide was so full of knowledge. You would never know that English was not his first language. It was a great way to learn about the country without being lectured to. He also turned out to be a fabulous photographer who took great photos of my husband and I.We visited the Blue Lagoon first thing which was an awesome experience especially in winter. We had a nice balance of "tours" and alone time to explore Reykjavik. 4 days of private tours:Golden Circle Adventure which we stopped at a tomato farm for an AMAZING lunch! Also did the Lava Tube Cave.Thorsmork & Eyafjallakull Adventure where we did a snowmobiling trip on Eyjafjallokull Glacier. Such a blast!Jokulsarlon Glacier Adventure. We had planned to go on a glacier hike, but after speaking with people on our snowmobiling trip we decided to go hike to an ice cave. Arnar was able to make this happen with the help of our guide. It was such a site!WaterFalls & Volcanoes Adventure. The weather was so bad that the activity we had planned, which was an ATV Tour, was cancelled. Our guide quickly came up with a new plan. We went to an Interactive Volcano and Earthquake Exhibition.  It was fascinating to learn all about the different types of volcanoes and to better understand the explosive history of this extraordinary country. Then to a local restaurant that he knew.The accommodation in Reykjavik that he chose was in a great location. Really modern and chic hotel with lovely hotel rooms. Located in the center of the town well placed for restaurants and bars.The accommodation in Vik was a very basic accommodation. Breakfast was good, they had nice home baked bread and waffles. Because of the distance from other places our guide was able to take us to see the Northern Lights which were spectacular!Overall it was an AWESOME vacation and would definitely recommend our travel specialist.