Iceland is a dream destination for road trip lovers. We believe it should be on everyone’s bucket list!
Coming up with an itinerary is not that difficult, since there’s pretty much only one road to take: the Ring Road. This highway circles the country passing through all the major attractions. The hardest part will be to decide which ones you don’t want to miss because you’ll have the urge to stop every 5 minutes.
Once you’ve decided how much time you’re going to spend around the island ( we can help you with that here), it’s time to start planning this once in a lifetime adventure! But first things first…
RENTING A CAR IN ICELAND
Renting a car is always a tough task for us. We get obsessed with reading all the small letters, so we don’t miss any condition that might jeopardize us in the end. We’re sure you’ll have many doubts when it comes to renting a car for your Icelandic road-trip. Let’s tackle them:
do you need to RENT A 4X4?
Probably not. Unless you’re going during the winter or if you’re planning to drive off-road, you won’t need a 4×4 vehicle.
Which Car Rental should i choose?
There’s no shortage of rental companies to choose from! By the time we went, we’ve found the best deal through Blue Car rentals and ended up going for them after reading some seriously good reviews. Although we can not recommend them enough, we encourage you to do your homework and spend some time seeking a good deal. You can start by searching in the Guide to Iceland, which shows the best offers from different companies. They even have reviews for each one, which is definitely a plus.
What about insurance?
Car rentals will do everything to make you buy extra insurance, even for events that are very unlikely to occur. Usually, we would tell you to skip it and take the risk, but not in Iceland. During your road trip, you might face strong winds, heavy rain, or thick fog, even if you wake up to a beautiful sunny day. Better safe than sorry – those extra bucks can buy you some peace of mind and avoid crazy charges at the end. Let’s break down the type of extra insurance you might hear of:
- CDW: this stands for Collision Damage Waiver and means that the rental company is waiving their right to collect a high deductible from you, in case something happens to the car. That way, you can be sure the maximum amount you’ll pay is the excess you’ve contracted. Imagine you have a CDW with a self-risk of 2.000€: this means that if something happens to the car, you’ll only pay up to 2.000€. If repair costs are higher, the rental company pays the rest.
- SCDW: the Super collision damage waiver reduces the excess amount or even turns it to zero – meaning you won’t pay a thing no matter what happens. On the other hand, you need to pay a higher amount per day to have this.
- GP: Gravel Protection is a thing in Iceland. It covers damage to windscreen, headlights, and paintwork caused by gravel that gets thrown at the vehicle by other cars, or even strong winds.
- SAAP: Sand and ash Protection is super recommended, especially if you’re driving on the south coast.
- TP: This is probably the only one we would dismiss – Theft Protection. Iceland is a very safe country, and there are low chances you’ll ever need this.
If you still have questions after reading this, it might be worth taking a look at the website of Blue Car Rentals. It explains everything in a very straightforward way.
Should I consider renting a camper van instead?
For us, accommodation is a big and exciting part of exploring somewhere new. And although having a house on wheels certainly adds more freedom and adventure to any road trip, we didn’t consider that option. However, Iceland is one of the most friendly destinations to explore with a camper van, so if that’s your thing, we definitely think you should go for it!
ITINERARY for 8 days / 7 nights
We’ve already covered in this post how much time you should spend in Iceland. Long story short, try to have enough time to drive the whole Ring Road, starting and finishing in Reykjavik.
In this itinerary, we’ll show you how we’ve done it in only eight days. We think most of you will find it useful to know how to fit everything in a short amount of time. After all, everyone wants to maximize their “out of office” days.
However, bear in mind you won’t get to sleep more than one night at the same place, and some days will include a lot of driving. If you have more than eight days, you can still stick to this itinerary and opt to spend more time in a specific place. Read our guides to find out everything you can do in each region of the country, so you make the right decision.
If we had had the time, we would have loved to get to know the Westfjords. Definitely consider it, but be aware of the following:
- You’ll need to rent a 4X4;
- Driving off-season can be extremely challenging;
- Get ready to cover long distances. Also, many of the roads will be unpaved.
DAY 1: Arrive in Reykjavik and pick up your car. It’s probably a good idea to stop by a supermarket while you’re in town and stock up on some essentials before hitting the road. We’ve arrived early in the morning, so we had the whole day ahead of us. We’ve decided to spend it visiting the mainstream spots of Golden Circle, and what a way to start! We went all the way to the Gullfoss to then return to Selfoss later in the afternoon, where we had booked our first Airbnb.
DAY 2 and 3: On the second day, we’ve explored the South Coast of the island. Even after reading so much about it, we were still not prepared for the awe-inspiring landscapes we’ve passed by. We had to make smart choices to maximize our time, but you can easily spend 2 or even 3 days around the area. Actually, on our third day, we took a break from driving since we had booked a Hike of around 6 hours in the massive Vatnajökull Glacier.
DAY 4: After spending our third night in the small town of Berunes we drove all the way to our next destination: Seydisfjordur. It is the cutest and most picturesque town, secluded in the middle of the Fjords. Definitely try to fit it on your itinerary!
DAY 5: Our 5th day was a long, long one. Only 351Km separate Seydisfjordur from Siglufjörður. But the northeast part of Iceland is full of amazing things to do, and it turned out to be one of our favorite areas of the country. Again, if you have the time, spare at least two days in this region. We promise you’ll be stunned, and the landscapes are completely different from what you’ve already seen! Totally out of this world!
In all of our trips, we always choose a night to splurge ourselves, and this was it. We slept in the charming Siglo Hotel and had an experience we’ll never forget. But on the next day, after a hearty breakfast, it was time to hit the road again.
DAY 6: From Siglufjörður to Ólafsvík (Snæfellsnes Peninsula) we’ve barely made any stops. There’s not that much to see during this drive, besides the staggering landscapes that will never disappear from the front windshield of your car. But then again, you need to go back to Reykjavik to catch your plane back home. And by this point, it’s faster to do it this way than going all the way around. By day 6, you’re probably starting to take the marvelous sceneries for granted – try not to! You’re going to miss them.
DAY 7: We’ve spent the following day exploring the Snæfellsnes Peninsula. It can be an excellent option for a day trip from Reykjavik, as you get to see tons of different things. Old fishing villages (like Stykkisholmur), the Snæfellsjökull Glacier, black sand beaches, and even one of the most photographed icons of Iceland: Kirkjufell. Not to mention the Búðakirkja black church that you’ve probably seen on Instagram. Snæfellsnes seems to have it all! After a whole day of traveling around, we’ve finally arrived in Reykjavik at night.
Sneakpeek tip: head to Ytri Tunga beach to spot seals! And take a break at the Fjoruhusid cute cafe which has the most beautiful view!
DAY 8: And suddenly, our last day in Iceland had come! We’ve decided to take it slowly and enjoyed a beautiful sunny day in the capital. Our flight was only scheduled for 9 pm, so we had a lot of time to check out the best places in Reykjavik. It is quite small, so one full day is enough to cover the whole city.
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