Iceland: Around the Island on the Ring Road

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1. Day1 Arrival in ReykjavikAthens → Reykjavik

   Fly from Athens with one stop at a European hub and land at Keflavík. The road to Reykjavik crosses a plain of black lava without a single tree. If your arrival time allows, your coordinator leads a first walk around the old harbour and the tall-towered church of Hallgrímskirkja before you settle into the hotel.

   • Flight
2. Day2 The Golden CircleÞingvellir · Geysir · Gullfoss

   First Þingvellir, where the Eurasian and North American plates are slowly drifting apart and the ground is split by long, deep fissures. Then the geothermal field of Geysir, where Strokkur throws up a column of water and steam every few minutes. Last comes Gullfoss, a double cascade that drops into a narrow canyon. In the evening we drive on to the south coast.

   • Coach
   • Breakfast · Dinner
3. Day3 Waterfalls and black sandSeljalandsfoss · Skógafoss · Reynisfjara

   Seljalandsfoss falls like a thin veil and, when conditions allow, a path lets you walk behind the water. Skógafoss, about 60 metres high, throws up a fine mist and often a rainbow. At Reynisfjara the sand is black, the basalt columns look like organ pipes and the Atlantic waves are unpredictable, so we always keep well back from the water. We sleep near Vík.

   • Coach
   • Breakfast · Dinner
4. Day4 The iceberg lagoonJökulsárlón · Vatnajökull

   The road crosses lava fields carpeted in moss and passes outlet tongues of the Vatnajökull ice cap. At Jökulsárlón the glacier calves into a lagoon and blue icebergs drift slowly towards the sea; weather permitting, a boat takes you among them. Across the road, on the black sand beach, stranded pieces of ice glitter like glass. We sleep in the south-east.

   • Coach
   • Breakfast · Dinner
5. Day5 The east fjordsEast Fjords

   One of the finest roads on the island follows the east fjords: mountains falling steeply into the sea, small fishing villages with painted houses and streams tumbling down the slopes. We stop for coffee and photographs and, with a little luck, you may spot wild reindeer on the higher ground, though they are never guaranteed. We spend the night in the east of the island.

   • Coach
   • Breakfast · Dinner
6. Day6 Mývatn, Goðafoss and AkureyriMývatn → Goðafoss → Akureyri

   From the highlands of the interior we reach Lake Mývatn, a landscape of pseudo-craters, the lava labyrinth of Dimmuborgir and fields where mud bubbles and the smell of sulphur follows you. Next comes Goðafoss, the «waterfall of the gods», a broad horseshoe of water. In the evening we reach Akureyri, the capital of the north, at the head of a long fjord. Dinner is free.

   • Coach
   • Breakfast
7. Day7 From Akureyri to ReykjavikAkureyri → Reykjavik

   A long drive south-west through valleys of grazing land, farms with sturdy Icelandic horses and the Borgarfjörður region. There are plenty of stops for stretching your legs and taking photographs. We reach Reykjavik in the afternoon, with time to stroll between cafés and shops before the farewell dinner.

   • Coach
   • Breakfast · Dinner
8. Day8 Farewell to IcelandReykjavik → Athens

   If the flight time allows, we suggest an optional stop at a geothermal lagoon on the Reykjanes peninsula, with milky turquoise water set in black lava: a last soak before the journey home. Transfer to Keflavík airport and the flight back to Athens with one stop.

   • Coach
   • Breakfast