Reykjavik, Iceland. Places to stay things to do?

[atfc village]

I went about 15 years ago and it was about £8 a pint then! (but duty free on the way out was really cheap). Damon Albarn owned a bar in the city and we drank there most of the time.


If you get lost in an Icelandic Forest there is an easy way to find the way out....


...stand up. The combination of cold, wind and volcanic rock means their trees only grew a couple of feet high.


The scenery is amazing... go to all the places mentioned above but also just take a drive out away from the main roads/towns and enjoy the amazing alien-looking landscape.

Kaffir Barrin was the bar.

 

[atfc village]

Eat during the afternoon in restaurants, You'll save up to 2/3's on the price . My mate just did the Rekjavik marathon and went self catering . Bread £4 a loaf ,5 Chicken Breast's £25 and Beer indeed £8 a pint. I went in 09 after the Banks crashed and we were so lucky as it turned out to be a decent priced trip.

 

[Iamapen15]

Been a couple of times. Brilliant place, if not very expensive.

Last time I went, about 18 months ago, we done skidooing on a glacier, which was great fun. Ice snorkelling in dry suits and larva pot holing. I'll find the 'adventure' company's details that arranged it all if you are interested.

Another place to go is the observatory - I think its called the Pearl. You can get panoramic photographs of the whole city and with the various colour buildings and roofs you get excellent photographs.

Hot dogs are big in Iceland, and there is a famous Hot Dog Kiosk that's worth a visit - just to say you've been there!

 

[BlockDpete]

Was in Reykjavik back in June for Secret Solstice Rock Fest, and really enjoyed what I saw of the place.

Would echo that the Golden Circle tour is worth doing. In terms of the Blue Lagoon, I heard that even the public swimming pools in Reykjavik have thermal pools of varying temperatures.

Yes, you can eat Minky whale and Puffin, but both of those are endangered, and its more of a tourist thing.

 

[Return of the Rev]

I'm off to Reykjavik with 3 friends on 31st October for 3 nights.

Have you been? If so what can you recommend? Northern Lights tour and Blue Lagoon are a must. Was also looking at the Lava caves?

Will probably end up trying some crazy Icelandic cuisine like Súrir hrútspungar (Sour rams testicles) and Svið (Singed and boiled whole sheep head) also heard you can eat whale meat (not endangered whales) and Shark. I've heard its around £8 for a pint!

mrs rotr went over earlier in the year and had a great time at the fan zone for the Iceland V England fixture

 

[BlockDpete]

Oh, and the locals pretty much all speak English and are friendly.

Some stunning girls there too

 

[Wozza]

Flights, 3 x nights, Northern Lights AND Golden Circle trips - just £299 at the mo (eg 12/12 from LGW; based on two sharing)

http://www.icelandair.co.uk/holiday...wsletter&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=week36

 

[Whoislloydy]

Been a couple of times. Brilliant place, if not very expensive.

Last time I went, about 18 months ago, we done skidooing on a glacier, which was great fun. Ice snorkelling in dry suits and larva pot holing. I'll find the 'adventure' company's details that arranged it all if you are interested.

Another place to go is the observatory - I think its called the Pearl. You can get panoramic photographs of the whole city and with the various colour buildings and roofs you get excellent photographs.

Hot dogs are big in Iceland, and there is a famous Hot Dog Kiosk that's worth a visit - just to say you've been there!

yes please! any information would be great!

 

[Lyndhurst 14]

Been to Reykjavik a few times coming back from New York as Icelandic Air are one of the cheapest airlines and throw in an overnight stay for a few more bucks. As a lot of posters have said booze and food are very pricey so get your DF quota of alcohol.

Nothing to add on the places to visit but would say take plenty of photos as the light is fantastic (all of their energy comes from geo thermal sources so there is very little pollution) and you get an almost unworldly feel to the photos.

 

[Exile]

Another place to go is the observatory - I think its called the Pearl. You can get panoramic photographs of the whole city and with the various colour buildings and roofs you get excellent photographs.

The 'Perlan'. Excellent shout. DEFINITELY go here.

It is actually something to do with the geothermal infrastructure, but they built a (revolving) restaurant on the top. Brilliant views / photo opportunity. It is pricey to eat there, but they seemed perfectly happy for you to just have a coffee or a drink, and a look about.

 

[Prince Monolulu]

Heard good things of Perlan. Super view.

Red wine looks a bit pricey though! http://www.perlan.is/raudvin/

 

[Skaville]

I'm taking the kids at half term. Cannot wait. We're self catering though so slightly concerned about the prices. Sounds a daft question, but do many countries restrict you taking food in? We have a massive luggage allowance and I was thinking we could take a lot with us.

Anyone had any good rental car experiences there?

Also, any tips on great things with kids?

 

[Mileoakman]

Just a thought about those worried about the drink prices. When you land at Reykjavik they let you into the duty free when you arrive. If your only there a few days you can easily stock up with booze for the duration.

Sent from my SM-G920F using Tapatalk

 

[Lurchy]

Would highly recommend Saegreifinn / SeaBarron, where a lot of locals go, fish there is excellent and is reasonably priced. Lobster soup is excellent.

https://www.tripadvisor.co.uk/Resta...n_The_Sea_Baron-Reykjavik_Capital_Region.html

Also the bar at Kex is worth going to, hipster bar with a good selection of beer on tap. Eidur Gudjohnsen and Hermann Hreidarsson are the owners.

 

[Dolph Ins]

My favorite trip abroad. The cathedral is pure Ikea. Agree with trips. There is a Subway in the centre which we ate at most of the time as it was the only cheap place we could find. When we were there the Northern Lights were ho-hum but the stars were absolutely magnificent. Enjoy!

 

[Whoislloydy]

Would highly recommend Saegreifinn / SeaBarron, where a lot of locals go, fish there is excellent and is reasonably priced. Lobster soup is excellent.

https://www.tripadvisor.co.uk/Resta...n_The_Sea_Baron-Reykjavik_Capital_Region.html

Also the bar at Kex is worth going to, hipster bar with a good selection of beer on tap. Eidur Gudjohnsen and Hermann Hreidarsson are the owners.

Kex is also the hostel we were thinking of staying at, £40 a night.

 

[crodonilson]

I loved it.

To be honest I didn't think it was that expensive. Most locals only go out after midnight so most pubs/bars do happy hours until 9/10pm buy one get on free etc and with a pint costing about £7 in the happy hours it was cheaper than at home. Food was fairly pricey, if you're on a budget I'd recommend looking for immigrant retaurants like chinese/indian which tended to be cheaper.

 

[ExmouthExile]

I went there in February and I have to say it's one the best places I've ever visited, it's like being on another planet in some places. Like others have said, the Golden Circle excursion is fantastic, get some crampons for your shoes if you can because there are some very icy slopes to negotiate, we found some for about a fiver and they were a godsend. Don't expect to see the northern lights otherwise you might be disappointed as they're very hit and miss, just consider it a huge bonus if you do see them, we were lucky enough to see them and got some good photos, just do a bit of research on exposure times and take a tripod, there's also a permanent northern lights exhibition down in the harbour with a huge screen where you can just sit and chill out and watch a video of the lights, just in case you don't see them for real. Make sure you take a trip out of Reykjavik to see the lights because of the light pollution, there are plenty of coach trips available. Another tip, if your only going for three nights, take loads of snacks, tea and coffee, pot noodles, biscuits etc., because the prices are astronomical over there. There were 3 of us and we stopped for a burger, 3 burgers and chips and 3 bottles of beer came to around £70 in English money! Obviously take plenty of warm clothes, thermals, plastic bags, I put plastic bags on my feet before I put my shoes on because my feet were getting soaked walking in the slush all day, but the bags kept my feet warm and dry. As long as you prepare well for the weather you'll be fine, the wind over there can cut you in half if you're not careful.

 

[Alba Badger]

Be warned, watch what you do when you are over there. I have heard of a thing called the Icelandic Viking Clap going about, sounds nasty to me.

 

[Was not Was]

I loved it.

To be honest I didn't think it was that expensive.

This.

I went last year. We found food and drink to be London prices or less. Car hire isn't cheap, but you don't need a car in Reykjavik.

You might want to bear in mind that you can't buy alcohol in supermarkets/grocers, so make sure you know where the closest Vinbudin is, if you like your beer or spirits.