Iceland By the Experts: 10 Travel Tips

Having spent one week in Iceland, we’re now experts, obviously!

Okay, we barely scratched the surface of this place in the short time that we were here, but I did learn a lot. To wrap up this section of the blog, I wanted to share these tips: based on things we did wrong, things we did right, things we wished we’d known before we came here, and things I wish everyone knew before they came here.

Here goes!

1. Save a LOT for your trip. The country is expensive — more than you think. I’d been warned that, but it wasn’t until we were there and spending $10 for a beer, upwards of $20 for a modest meal, $80 to fill our compact car’s gas tank, etc, that it really hit home. Plus, the currency is confusing and it’s not easy to quickly estimate in your head what you’re actually spending. 1000 kroner is about 8 US dollars (as of September 2015). Also, make sure to keep in mind that in Iceland (and many other places), commas and periods in numbers mean the opposite of what they do in the US! A period separates the thousands, while a comma marks the decimal point. If you plug 10.500 ISK into Google’s currency calculator it’ll tell you $0.08, but it’s actually $83.98!

From iceland2013.org. Expect to spend many, many thousands of these.

2. Come prepared with anything you might need. This is basically an extension of #1, but I think it merits its own point. There were many things that we figured we’d buy in Iceland if we needed them — like maps, warmer clothes, power converters, etc. They ended up being far too expensive, so we made do without them (thankfully we really lucked out on the weather, so we ended up being fine with the clothes we brought). A light raincoat and a good pair of hiking boots are especially essential.

3. Know where to save money — and where not to cut corners. We saved money by planning our own itinerary and renting a car instead of paying for tours; by picking up fellow travelers to share the price of gas; by staying in hostels and with locals (a thousand thank yous to Ryan and Joe!); and by making many of our own meals. All of this was good, although I wish we’d gone even further by camping at least a couple of nights. Renting from Sad Cars also turned out well for us, but I can’t recommend it due to all the horror stories I heard. It’s worth spending a little extra money to not have to worry about your car breaking down and stranding you in the middle of nowhere. Plus, splurging on a 4×4 is the way to go — it opens up so much more of the country to you!

Thanks for not breaking down, Veronica.

4. Invest in a good map. Writing down Google Maps directions in advance is laughably useless, and as soon as you lose track of your route, it can be hard to get situated again. Make sure your map specifies which routes are actually dirt roads or potentially unpassable — Google won’t tell you this. Even if you have access to a GPS you’re likely to encounter areas without signal, so if you’re completely reliant on it, you’ll probably be screwed. Plus, it’s more fun to navigate the old-school way!

5. Don’t be afraid to be adventurous, but know what you’re getting yourself into. Some of the coolest places are off the beaten tourist track, but be prepared for very remote areas, gravel roads, no towns or gas stations for miles around, etc. Don’t let that scare you away, though! As long as you know what to expect, you’ll be fine (and even if you don’t, as we often didn’t, you’ll probably still be fine).

That time we accidentally spent half a day driving on gravel roads in the middle of nowhere.

6. Don’t be afraid to ask for help. Despite the recent crazy influx of tourists, Icelanders seem to have endless patience for answering dumb questions. They all speak perfect English, too. They may tease you, but it’s meant with good intentions (and you should be able to laugh at yourself anyway)!

7. Don’t be a dick. It’s amazing how unrestricted visitors are to explore this country, walk right up to and around the natural wonders — almost entirely for free! But careless tourists have already begun to damage the fragile environment at many of these special places. Pay attention to the signs and don’t go where you’re not invited to go. Don’t litter. Don’t endanger yourself stupidly. Don’t be an asshole and ruin it for the rest of us.

You can walk behind this waterfall whenever you want, without supervision, for free. Don’t fuck it up!

8. Spend more time here than you think you’ll need. It’s not a large country, but it’s so jam-packed with amazing sights! A week is enough to physically make it around the Ring Road, but you won’t get to really stop and enjoy anything. I’d suggest a minimum of 10 days, but two weeks is better. Or more! Just quit your job and move to Iceland.

9. Thoroughly research every destination. There are so many hidden gems that you won’t find if you don’t know to look for them. The black sand beaches of Vik were amazing, but I’ll never forgive myself for not also stopping just down the road to see the abandoned WWII plane crash, which we learned about after we left.

Photo by Aline Lenaers. We were about a quarter mile away from this and had no idea it was there.

10. Be outgoing and flexible. Icelanders are very proud of their country and will give you great advice about what to see and where to go — and on the whole, they’re pretty awesome people to talk to, too! Same goes for fellow travelers. We ended up almost completely scrapping our original itinerary and redoing it based on tips from locals and tourists.

Have anything else to add? Please leave a comment!