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Trip to Iceland
- Thread starter essbee
- Start date
Franks Wild Years
New member
No tips, but very envious. Joint top of my places to visit, shared with Japan.
Hi - I went last September, and had a fantastic time. It is a great place to visit. Most bars have a happy hour or 2 from around 5pm, but you would probably still be out seeing sights at the time of year you are going. But the good news is that there is a large duty free shop which is in arrivals, and you can load up with lots of booze, just as the Icelanders do. Me and my mates hired a car from Sadcars. They seem to be a setup where some blokes who are good at car maintenance decided to venture into rental. Their cars are fairly old, but as the state of many roads are gravel, it made sense to have an old car where it did not matter so much with chips etc. They have their own website. Not sure how long you are there for but some must sees are Geysir which is about a 90 minute drive out of Reykjavik. On the way there you can stop off at the place (forgotten its name) where you can see the American and European Tectonic plates pulling apart, and it is where the Icelanders formed the 1st Parliament in the world. Blue Lagoon is also a must, even though it is man made. Costs about £25 but you can stay there for hours. Quite near Blue Lagoon is another area where you can see the ground just boiling. You will have a great time, but even in July, take some warm clothing just in case, as the winds can be bitter, and as there are hardly any trees, it can cut right through you.
I went on a trip there with the school back in February, absolutely fantastic. We had a coach and a tour guide from a company called Iceland Excursions (or something to that effect) and they were brilliant, tour guide was lovely and we saw some amazing sights. There are a number of brilliant waterfalls you can visit and I would definitely recommend the geysers in the south of the country. The blue lagoon is a geothermal spa outside of Reykjavik and you must not miss that, nothing quite like it in the world. I have some pictures of the places I went if you're interested?
Iamapen15
New member
Lucky bugger. I love the place.
You must go to: -
a) Blue Lagoon - smells of eggs really badly but there is no where like it.
b) The Pearl - Its essentially a building on a hill, but there is a viewing platform that allows you to take the whole of Reykjavik. You can take the most amazing photo's
c) The Geysirs - About an hours drive out of the city. Simply amazing.
d) The Great Hot Dog Stall, in the City centre (near the concert Hall).
You must go to: -
a) Blue Lagoon - smells of eggs really badly but there is no where like it.
b) The Pearl - Its essentially a building on a hill, but there is a viewing platform that allows you to take the whole of Reykjavik. You can take the most amazing photo's
c) The Geysirs - About an hours drive out of the city. Simply amazing.
d) The Great Hot Dog Stall, in the City centre (near the concert Hall).
tinycowboy
Well-known member
As everyone else has said, Blue Lagoon is phenomenal, Thingvellir (where the tectonic plates meet), Geysir, Gulfoss waterfall. Found it very hard to eat well at a reasonable price - maybe best keep it simple unless you're wealthy and adventurous. Supermarkets are pretty bad for fruit and veg (for obvious reasons). When you realise you're standing in the main shopping street in Reykjavik, you won't believe it. It's no better than Haywards Heath for shops.
Dorset Seagull
Once Dolphin, Now Seagull
I think Edna may be a good person to ask as she went recently and posted some fantastic pics on twitterhi, the great and good of NSC,
Off to Iceland (the country not the supermarket) at the end of
July - based in reykjavik
Any tips on where to go, places to eat and most importantly
will beer intake have to take a knock because of the prices!?
cheers
father_and_son
Well-known member
Went a couple of years ago....
The Blue Lagoon is incredible if you've never experienced anything like it before - I'd recommend.
Prices are a killer... all the locals drink before they go out and what you drink out merely "tops up" the alcohol already in the system.
Switch to spirits rather than beer.
The Blue Lagoon is incredible if you've never experienced anything like it before - I'd recommend.
Prices are a killer... all the locals drink before they go out and what you drink out merely "tops up" the alcohol already in the system.
Switch to spirits rather than beer.
Been 6 or 7 times in the last 10 years for Landscape Photography. One of the most spectacular places on the planet.
The Blue Lagoon is unmissable, so too Strokkur ( the Geysir ) Krisuvik & Lake Kleifarvatn and Gullfoss Waterfall, are all within an hours drive of Reykjavik.
Iamapen talks about the famous hot dog stall in the city centre. Cheapest outdoor food in the city and very popular, always big queues.
You lucky @3&*(%
The Blue Lagoon is unmissable, so too Strokkur ( the Geysir ) Krisuvik & Lake Kleifarvatn and Gullfoss Waterfall, are all within an hours drive of Reykjavik.
Iamapen talks about the famous hot dog stall in the city centre. Cheapest outdoor food in the city and very popular, always big queues.
You lucky @3&*(%
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I think this post says it all, I think you have covered everything. I still rate Iceland up there as one of, if not my favourite places I have ever been to. I went in July too and was in a tshirt most days!!
crodonilson
He/Him
I went last year, it really wasn't as horifically expensive as I'd expected. You'll probably pay £30 for a bog standard meal for two and you can get cheaper than that if yuo are on a budget (try eating at Orientakl restaurants which I found to be cheaper than 'traditional' Icelandic grub. Also try some Puffin, delicious.
As previously mentioned lots of places do happy hours, some go on as late as 11pm, if you find the right places to go in happy hour you'll pay less than the price of a pint in the UK.
There's a good guide which I think you can download of the net called the Reykjavik Grapevine, it's basically a newspaper in Englosh but it has a guide to all the happy hour pubs, times and prices.
As previously mentioned lots of places do happy hours, some go on as late as 11pm, if you find the right places to go in happy hour you'll pay less than the price of a pint in the UK.
There's a good guide which I think you can download of the net called the Reykjavik Grapevine, it's basically a newspaper in Englosh but it has a guide to all the happy hour pubs, times and prices.
New Carpet?
New member
- Aug 23, 2009
- 797
Iceland is fantastic - I'd jump at the chance to go again.
The Golden Circle tours that generally operate are great for a day out - tons of spectacular sights (you can even ascend a glacier if you pay a bit extra and travel by jeep).
As for Reykjavik itself, this place was really good to eat in and gives a nice local slant on Fish & Chips http://www.fishandchips.is/
Their beer is a bit hit and miss - Gull sadly doesn't live up to its superb name (very similar to Carlsberg, but fizzier and worse), and Viking isn't much better, but if you see an Ulfur or Bjartur served anywhere, I really recommend you grab a bottle or five.
The Golden Circle tours that generally operate are great for a day out - tons of spectacular sights (you can even ascend a glacier if you pay a bit extra and travel by jeep).
As for Reykjavik itself, this place was really good to eat in and gives a nice local slant on Fish & Chips http://www.fishandchips.is/
Their beer is a bit hit and miss - Gull sadly doesn't live up to its superb name (very similar to Carlsberg, but fizzier and worse), and Viking isn't much better, but if you see an Ulfur or Bjartur served anywhere, I really recommend you grab a bottle or five.
Yep another one who loved Iceland, not much to add except Reykjavik is very small you can walk from one end to the other and the girls are absolutely wild Friday and Saturday nights. Also the spectacular Hallgrímskirkja offers great views of the city and try the Brennivín its basically a vodka snapps with herbs in and quite drinkable.
Mileoakman
Well-known member
I went for my second visit last November and want to go again. I really love the place. Theres a hamburger place there that sells the most fantastic burgers I've ever tasted, (if I can remember the name I'll let you know), which sold me a Rudolph Burger, absolutely brilliant.
I'll second the recommendations on the sites to visit, especially the Golden Circle tour and the Blue Lagoon and do visit the duty free at the airport on the way in. I got four bottles of wine on my last visit and must have saved nearly £30 on what they charge in the shops.
I was chatting to a taxi driver while I was there, (they all speak perfect english), and we both agreed that we don't think there's another country where there are so many ugly men and so many beautiful women, absolute stunners most of them.
Lastly do try the famous hot dog stand by the harbour. Very tasty although a bit off putting when they tell you that Bill Clinton sneaked out of his hotel when he was there to get one and had a heart attack a few days later!
I'll second the recommendations on the sites to visit, especially the Golden Circle tour and the Blue Lagoon and do visit the duty free at the airport on the way in. I got four bottles of wine on my last visit and must have saved nearly £30 on what they charge in the shops.
I was chatting to a taxi driver while I was there, (they all speak perfect english), and we both agreed that we don't think there's another country where there are so many ugly men and so many beautiful women, absolute stunners most of them.
Lastly do try the famous hot dog stand by the harbour. Very tasty although a bit off putting when they tell you that Bill Clinton sneaked out of his hotel when he was there to get one and had a heart attack a few days later!
The Stout Yeoman
Master Farter
Mums been to Iceland ... I'd ask her ...
