Iceland is one of our favourite countries and one we are itching to get back to as soon as possible. Anyone who has ever visited will surely agree that it is like nowhere else on earth. The natural beauty is breathtaking and somewhere that has to be seen to be believed. You can walk over glaciers and behind waterfalls, you can swim between North America and Europe in Thingvellir National Park and you can relax in the thermal waters of the famous Blue Lagoon. It really is a destination for everyone. However, the are a few things you need to know before visiting Iceland. Here are the top 5.
Iceland Is An Expensive Country
One of the most important things you need to know before visiting Iceland is as with the other Scandinavian countries, Iceland is expensive. If you manage to get cheap flights or can take advantage of a layover on an Atlantic crossing you need to consider accommodation costs and spending money before taking the leap and visiting Iceland
Eating out is expensive, unless you are happy dining on Icelandic hot dogs morning, noon and night. Therefore, you need to either reduce the volume of food you eat or budget accordingly. One way to cut the cost is to stock up at the local supermarket, Bonus and Netto are the cheapest. However, if eating out is an important part of your travelling experience, this may not be for you.
Also if you want to see all that Iceland has to offer at your own pace by hiring a car, again prepare yourself for the cost of fuel. In reality, we paid only slightly more per litre than we do in the UK. However, if you are from the US for example, you could be paying over three times as much per litre in Iceland than you do at home which may come as a shock. Of course, there are a number of organised tours you could take instead. However, obviously, this does restrict your freedom to explore.
Consider A Hostel
As explained above, Iceland is an expensive country and that extends to accommodation too. As Iceland was a big holiday for us we allocated quite a lot of cash for accommodation and split our time between a fabulous wooden lodge with thermal hot tub close to Geysir and a 4-star hotel in Reykavik. This did not come cheap (but was totally worth it).
If you do not have the cash to splash on accommodation or never spend money on fancy accommodation, hostels in Iceland could be ideal for you. The first thing you will notice about hostels in Iceland is that the majority of them are extremely modern and decorated in a cool Scandinavian style. This is because of the recent tourism surge to the country. Many offer private rooms and bathrooms, with some even offering breakfast in bed.
Obviously, if you do want something extra special and are willing to pay for the privilege, The Retreat at the Blue Lagoon is the perfect place. Although at roughly £1000 per night, we think for us, it is an experience that will only be doable if we win the EuroMillions! But until then we can continue dreaming.
Even In Summer You Will Need Your Winter Clothes
We suppose the clue is in the name when a country is called Iceland you sort of know what to expect. We visited in November and took all the winter woollies we owned. Together with hand warmers and we even invested in some Sorrel boots to keep our feet warm and dry. On some of the colder days, even that wasn’t enough. January is the coldest month in Iceland with temperatures averaging -2 degrees.
If you are planning on visiting during the summer months you would be forgiven for thinking you could leave your winter clothes at home and pack lighter more summery outfits. Unfortunately not. The warmest month of the year in Iceland is July. Even then temperatures only reach an average high of 13 degrees. Therefore, the shorts and sandals that you usually pack for other summer European jaunts need to stay in your wardrobe.
Regardless of the time of year you visit, layers are a winner. You get too cold, put another layer on. You get too hot then take a layer off simple. Also, waterproofs are always a good idea, just in case there is a downpour or you get too close to a waterfall. We would also recommend sunglasses all year round. especially if you plan on hiring a car. During the summer months, you will need them for obvious reasons. And in the winter, even though temperatures can be below freezing, the low summer sun can fall right in your line of vision.
Plan Your Days Depending on Sunlight Hours
How many hours of daylight you have will depend on the time of year that you visit Iceland. If you visit in December or January you will only have between 4-5 hours of sunlight per day, with winter solstice being the 21st December. Whereas if you visit between May and July you are likely to get almost 24 hours of daylight per day with the peak of Iceland’s Midnight Sun around the summer solstice, on the 21st of June.
So being an early bird or a night owl goes out of the window when visiting Iceland at certain times of the year. We found trying to cram everything we wanted to see and do into 5 hours every day quite challenging and that is why we’re glad we visited for a full week. If we had explored at our usual pace, we probably would have done everything we had wanted to do in 3 or 4 days which of course would have been possible if we had visited during the summer months.
We did not want to waste any of the precious daylight we had. So, we would always ensure we were at our first stop for sunrise, which in November is between 9.15 am and 10.45 am depending on when in the month you visit. Therefore we would recommend driving in the dark to your first stop and leaving your last stop just as the sun sets. One of the major benefits of visiting during the winter months is of course the possibility of seeing the amazing Northern Lights which we had the pleasure of seeing dance across the sky.
Don’t Worry About WiFi
One of the wonderful things, barring the magnificent scenery, this country offers and a biggie you need to know before visiting Iceland is that you will find free wifi almost everywhere. Therefore, if you are worried about using up all your data allowance or having to pay for data, this is something you may not even need to consider.
Iceland has the largest percentage of people who are connected to the internet, roughly 98%, and that extends to its visitors too. Most hotels, bars, restaurants and service stations across the country together with buses and trains offer free, unlimited wifi. Making it easy for you to google map your journeys, stay connected with people back home and even update your social media channels if you must.
If you are planning on hiring a car, as we did, most rental companies offer the added extra of a portable 4g hotspot device. This allows you to connect your phone or wireless-enabled sat nav to it allowing you to enter your destination and simply follow the route guidance. Even though getting around Iceland is pretty easy, we found this extra bit of tech invaluable.
We hope these things you need to know before visiting Iceland help you when you are planning your trip.
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