South Iceland Explorer

DAY 1 Reykjavik
Welcome to Iceland! Your tour commences with a shared arrival transfer from Keflavik airport to your hotel. Enjoy the remainder of your day at leisure, resting or exploring the city on your own if time allows.

Stay at: Fosshotel Baron, Reykjavík (3 star) or similar
Stay at: Fosshotel Reykjavik, Reykjavík (4 star) or similar

DAY 2 Reykjavik
Explore the highlights of Iceland’s exciting capital. Learn about life in the city from the very beginning of settlement in Iceland to the present day stopping by the church of Hallgrímskirkja and drive through the university district, past the Nordic house and the National Museum. Continue to the City Hall, which juts into the small lake of Tjörnin. Nearby are the Lutheran Cathedral and the House of Parliament. Then travel along the harbour to observe fishing vessels of different sizes, whale hunters and whale watchers. The latest addition to Reykjavík is the concert/conference hall of Harpan (the Harp), built on the town centre’s northern waterfront, whose dramatic design captures and reflects the city’s light, ocean and sky with a thrilling effect.

In the afternoon, enjoy a whale watching cruise traveling across Faxaflói Bay, where a blend of warm and cold ocean currents creates spectacular whale-watching opportunities. You might also see dolphins, humpback, orca, blue, and minke whales. Afterwards, visit the Whales of Iceland exhibition with life-sized whale models and a virtual reality experience.

Enjoy an authentic and inspiring spa experience at the Sky Lagoon, Iceland’s latest geothermal lagoon spa experience, where the ocean meets the sky. Immerse yourself in the warm and rejuvenating waters of an oasis near the city centre.

Stay at: Fosshotel Baron, Reykjavík (3 star) or similar
Stay at: Fosshotel Reykjavik, Reykjavík (4 star) or similar
Meals included: Breakfast

DAY 3 Reykjavik - Westman Islands - South Iceland
This morning, board a short ferry ride to the Westman Islands where you will embark on a bus for a walking tour of the village of Heimaey. Learn about this extraordinary island and the volcanic eruption in 1973, considered the largest natural disaster in Iceland's recent history, that left much uncertainty whether it could be repopulated again. Walk up the volcano crater, visit 'Pompei of the North' (Eldheimar museum), a volcanic excavation project and explore the bird cliffs during your tour. The afternoon is then free to wander around the town of Heimaey before returning to the mainland and continuing to your next stop in South Iceland.

Stay at: Hotel Stracta, Hella, South Iceland (3 star) or similar
Meals included: Breakfast

DAY 4 South Iceland
The first stop today will be at the high Seljalandsfoss waterfall, which plunges over the mountains and where you can follow a slick and wet trail right behind the falls. Travel south with the view of Myrdalsjokull glacier and the infamous volcano Eyjafjallajokull in the distance to the village of Vík, where you will attend the stunning Iceland lava show, the only exhibition in the world where you can experience actual flowing lava! By melting lava and pouring it on ice in a room full of people, you will be able to observe the lava flowing, hear it sizzling, and feel the heat that radiates from it.
Have a chance to walk along the black lava beach and bird cliffs at Reynisfjara and see the exciting basalt columns and rock formations. Next, visit Skogafoss waterfall, which is 60 metres high and belongs to the most impressive waterfalls in the country and nearby, visit the beautiful Skogar folk museum with its turf houses. The last stop today is at the Solheimajokull glacier tongue, where you can join an optional glacier hike that is informative, and an easy glacier walk through a frozen wonderland of different shades of glacier ice.

Stay at: Hotel Stracta, Hella, South Iceland (3 star) or similar
Meals included: Breakfast

DAY 5 South Iceland - Landmannalaugar - Reykjavik
Travel the rough unpaved road to Landmannalaugar, an oasis in the barren highlands surrounded by vivid rhyolite mountains. The highlight is a 90-minute round-trip hike up toward Brenninsteinsalda, the rainbow mountain of Iceland, which is still 'hot' and where you can see sizzling sulphur springs and vapour at its sides. This is the most colourful and spectacular volcanic mountain of Iceland, and so its picture is often found in books and calendars. Enjoy a picnic lunch here where there is also time to enjoy a relaxing bath in the natural geothermal stream. Take a short stop at the beautiful waterfall Hjalparfoss, surrounded by unusual basalt rock formations. Return to Reykjavik.

Stay at: Fosshotel Baron, Reykjavík (3 star) or similar
Stay at: Fosshotel Reykjavik, Reykjavík (4 star) or similar
Meals included: Breakfast and lunch

DAY 6 Reykjavik
After breakfast, your tour concludes with a shared departure transfer to Keflavik airport for your onward journey.

Meals included: Breakfast