9 Day - Around Iceland, Highlands and Volcano Adventure

A 3 day tour, which includes stops at at Vestmannaeyjar Island and puffin watching, Laki & Lakagígar volcano, Eldgjá Volcanic Canyon, Landmannalaugar, Icelandic Highlands. It includes 2 nights at Adventure Hótel Geirland and breakfast.

Day 1 - In the morning of the first day of your tour, you'll get picked up from your accommodation in Reykjavík. The tour will then head to the southern part of Iceland. The first stop of the day is at Landeyjarhöfn harbour where you will embark on a ferry to Vestmannaeyjar Islands. After about a 30 min ferry ride to Vestmannaeyjar Island, we will go straight to the southernmost part of the main island, Stórhöfði Cape. It's an ideal location to get up close to the oldest inhabitants of the island, the Atlantic Puffins. Next up is Eldheimar Museum, a volcano museum of remembrance of the volcanic eruption of 1973, when the entire population had to be evacuated from the island to the mainland in the middle of the night. After the museum, you will have the opportunity to do a short hike up the volcano Mt. Eldfell or spend some time in the town, before heading back to the mainland in the afternoon. Once back to the mainland, you'll travel along the south coast of Iceland, getting some views of waterfalls, such as Seljalandsfoss and Skógafoss, and the infamous volcano Mt. Eyjafjallajökull which erupted back in 2010, causing massive interruption of air traffic across Europe and North-America. We'll then make a stop at the scenic coastal village of Vík, where you will have some time to wander around the village or go down to the Black Sand Beach. From Vík, there's about an hour drive through the Eldhraun lava fields to the hotel where you'll stay for the night.

Hotel: Adventure Hótel Geirland.

Day 2 - After breakfast, you´ll start the adventure of the day at the majestic Fjaðrárgljúfur Canyon. Hiking alongside the canyon is like being in a fairy tale painting. After exploring the canyon, you'll venture further into less travel area of Iceland, to Laki and Lakagígar, which are part of the UNESCO National Park of Vatnajökull. Once we are at Mt. Laki, we'll hike to the top of the volcano where you can get a great view of the site. You will see Lakagígar craters that were formed in a eruption 1783-1784, one of the biggest volcanic eruption in historic times. The eruption and the ash coming from it caused a famine in Europe, which eventually altered history as it´s said that the famine was the beginning of the French Revolution. We'll continue to drive around the highlands making couple of shorter stops before coming back to the main road. There we´ll make a stop at the small village Kirkjubæjarklaustur, where you have free time to walk around. You could check out Systrafoss Waterfall, Systrastapi Rock or Kirkjugólf (Church Floor), which are basalt columns stone slabs. From there, it's just a short drive back to the hotel.

Hotel: Adventure Hótel Geirland.

Day 3 - In the morning, you'll have breakfast and then check-out of the hotel before getting back on the road. We'll start heading back towards Reykjavík, but we'll be taking off the beaten track by driving a scenic F road, known as Fjallabaksleið nyrðri. Our first stop of the day is at Eldgjá canyon, which is part of the same volcanic system as Katla volcano, it is the largest volcanic canyon in the world, about 40 km long, 600 meters wide and 270 meters deep. We´ll do hike in the canyon and explore Ófærufoss Waterfall. From Eldgjá, we´ll continue further to Landmannalaugar, a pearl of the highlands. At Landmannalaugar, you'll have the opportunity to explore the lava field Laugahraun, hike to colourful Mt. Brennisteinsalda and/or soak in the natural geothermal pool. After about couple of hours at Landmannalaugar, we continue making our way back to Reykjavík before nightfall, but before reaching Reykjavík we will make a short stop at Hjálparfoss Waterfall situated in Þjórsárdalur valley. Once back in Reykjavík in the evening, you will be dropped to your accommodation.

Day 4 - The day starts with a pick-up from your accommodation in Reykjavík. First, we will head out to explore the famous Golden Circle, which includes Þingvellir National Park where Icelanders founded their parliament in the year 930 A.D., the oldest parliament in the world. The Circle includes Geysir hot springs and Gullfoss waterfall. Next, we will drive to the beautiful South Coast. Our first stop is at Seljalandsfoss, a unique opportunity to experience the power and wonder of nature. Don´t view this one from a distance – the walking path will take you directly behind the waterfall itself. Next, we will stop at the scenic Skógafoss, where the water crashes down over sea cliffs that marked the coastline of Iceland long ago. Watch out for rainbows – the incredible spray from this waterfall makes it an ideal spot to catch one or even two at a time. The final stop of the day is at Reynisfjara Black Sand Beach, the home of the famous Reynisdrangar peaks, rumored to be the figures of two trolls caught in the sun and turned to stone, and a basalt column cave. After that, we will make our way to a country hotel near the charming village of Vík, where we will rest for the night.

Day 5 - The journey continues along the South coast in the direction of Skaftafell and Vatnajökull National Park. At Skaftafell, another of Iceland´s three national parks, we will take a 3-hour glacier hike on one of Vatnajökull outlet glaciers, led by one of our skilled glacier guides. After that bracing experience, we will explore a little further Jökulsárlón glacier lagoon where we can expect to see floating icebergs and the occasional frolicking seal. Beside the glacier lake, we will find another black sand crystal beach, which is usually filled with clear icebergs that have floated back to shore. For the evening, we will lay our heads in accommodations in the pleasant seaside town of Höfn.

Day 6 - The scenery continues as we follow the coastline of the East Fjords to Egilsstaðir, a picturesque town on the banks of the Lagarfljót River. On the way there, we will go for a 3-hour hike to Hengifoss, one of the highest waterfalls in Iceland which drops into a striking gorge. Next is Litlanesfoss waterfall – look for the red strata climbing the walls around the waterfall, created by volcanic ash and basaltic lava over thousands of years as the cliff was formed in the heat of many mighty eruptions. We will then make our way to our accommodation for the night.

Day 7 - This day is filled with highlights of Iceland. We'll start by exploring the stunning Stuðlagil Canyon, where towering basalt columns rise from the turquoise waters. Next, we head to the Lake Mývatn area. Here our first stop will be Námaskarð geothermal area, filled with mud pools and fumaroles, which are an interesting geological feature marking a vent for steam and hot gasses in the Earth´s crust. We'll then make a stop at Earth Lagoon (formally Mývatn Nature Baths), where you have the opportunity to bath in the hot spring pools. The entrance fee can be added when booking or paid on site. For those that don't wish to go in the water, they can stroll around the area and enjoy the views or sit down in the cafeteria. Next up, we will take a walk to the Hverfjall crater, caused by a volcano eruption 2500 years ago, and Dimmuborgir, the “dark cities” of lava formations that tower overhead. We will continue our drive around Lake Mývatn before heading in the direction of Akureyri, with a stop on the way at Goðafoss Waterfall. Our accommodation will be at an inviting country hotel near Akureyri, the second largest city in Iceland.

Day 8 - We will start the day by exploring the town of Akureyri, the capital of North Iceland. Then, we will drive to the neighboring town of Dalvík where we go for a 3-hour whale watching tour in Eyjafjörður fjord. Take this opportunity to enjoy the wonders of sea life, including humpback whales, white-beaked dolphins, and the occasional blue whale. If fishing interests you, give sea angling a try and taste whatever you catch. Next we will travel the Tröllaskagi Peninsula, which will take us through a couple of fishing hamlets before we stop in the cozy village of Siglufjörður. Thereafter, we will head to West Iceland, where we will spend the night in a hotel in a small college community.

Day 9 - On our final day, we will explore part of West Iceland, voted one of the best travel destinations in 2016 by Lonely Planet. We will stop at Deildartunguhver hot spring, Europe‘s most powerful hot spring. Next, we will view the Hraunfossar waterfalls flowing from underneath the lava field and walk to the nearby Barnafoss waterfall. Our final stop of the day is at the historic site of Reykholt where Snorri Sturluson, medieval historian, politician and writer of some of our greatest sagas, lived. We will then head back to Reykjavík, completing our circle, arriving in the late afternoon.