We start the tour with the ever so popular Golden Circle which is Iceland’s most popular day tour route. We visit the great waterfall Gullfoss which falls in two steps down a crevice. We stop by the Geysir geopark where the geyser Strokkur erupts every few minutes gushing a 15m column of water into the air. We also visit Thingvellir national park where you can see the mid-Atlantic rift rising above the ground. This is where two tectonic plates meet and also the historic meeting site for the ancient parliament Althing founded in the year 930.

We drive north through the mountain passs Kjalvegur. The road is only accessible to jeeps making the region remote and ill accessible.

We stop in Kerlingafjöll mountains are a part of a 100km long volcano system.There you will be able to see a number of hot springs and rivulets. The area is a popular hiking route both amongst locals and tourists.

We will be hiking in this region for most part of the day enjoying the fantastic sceneries of the highlands.

We overnight in Kerlingafjöll

Next to Kerlingafjöll is the geothermal hotspot Hveravellir. We explore the area before continuing up north.

We start this day in Akureyri, often referred to as the capital of North Iceland. This cozy little town, with population less than 20.000, is Iceland’s second biggest towns after the capital region.

Goðafoss is one of Iceland’s most spectacular waterfalls. It’s name refers to the heathen gods making this the waterfall of the gods. It’s low and wide falling only 12 meters with an impressive 30meter width.

We overnight in the small village Husavik where you can enjoy a whale watching tour on a wooden boat. This small fisherman village is both scenic and friendly.

 

Hljóðaklettar are amorphous columnar basalt rock formations in the Jokulsa canyon. It’s one of the most beautiful hiking locations in Iceland. The rock formations draw their name Whispering rocks from the echo’s in the canyon.

We continue our journey towards the mighty waterfall Dettifoss. At 45m height and 100m width it’s reputed as Europe’s most powerful waterfall. It was a filming location for Ridley Scott’s Prometheus.

Leirhnjúkur is a dormant stratovolcano with a magma chamber located 3km below the surface. In the past centuries there have been two eruptions in the region, one in the 18th century and one that lasted from 1975 to 1984. You can still feel the warmth of the lava at Leirhnjúkur and see the sulphur and earth colours that characterise the region.

Námaskarð has hot springs, fumaroles, mud pools and mud pots. The first thing that meets you is the strong scent of sulphur. This area is truly boiling hot and scenic.

We overnight in the Myvatn region. Myvatn is a picturesque lake in the north with small islands, rich birdlife and colourful plants. If you had to pick one word for the region tranquility would be a great choice. 

Aldeyjarfoss waterfall is also spectacular and falls down in Skjálfandafljót, the same river that Goðafoss is situated on. Aldeyjarfoss is know for it’s contrasts being surrounded by black basalt columns and the water being fissuring white.

We drive through Sprengisandur, the black desert highlands of Iceland. This is an ancient pass used in the early settlement for remote areas to access the parliament at Thingvellir. You will surely get the feeling as if you are driving on the moon.

Háifoss is an particularly high and narrow waterfall falling into a gorge in Thjorsardalur. We view the waterfall from the opposing cliff. On our way down from the cliff we stop by Gjáin a beautiful area with small springs and small waterfalls.

We explore Þjórsárdalur where you can see the waterfall Hjálparfoss and a reconstructed viking farm Þjóðveldisbærinn. If you are interested in the viking farm we can even visit the nearby archaeology dig that it’s constructed from.

We finish our journey with some off road actions on the black sands beaches on the south coast.

This concludes the tour and we drop you off at your Reykjavik accommodation.