Travel

Iceland Travel Question

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RolandCouch wrote: I saw a single cop car near Reykjavik

Btw for OP...watch out for speed cameras. Speed limits are low and going like 20 over will get you a massive fine.
saw 1 or 2 cop cars but mostly speed cameras so watch out for that.
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Btw anyone been to the secret lagoon? It says you need to shower openly nude before going in. Won't be a big deal for few of us but I know some family/friends it will be. Do they enforce that rule?
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Where is the best place to shop to flights? Also are there many campgrounds along the circle route?
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CEOofPopeyes wrote: Btw anyone been to the secret lagoon? It says you need to shower openly nude before going in. Won't be a big deal for few of us but I know some family/friends it will be. Do they enforce that rule?
you shower in the change room. Just like how it is at the swimming pool.
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marktang wrote: you shower in the change room. Just like how it is at the swimming pool.
Yes but everyone openly nude while in the shower for hygiene reasonsright? In other words you cannot wear your swimsuit for the shower.
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CEOofPopeyes wrote: Yes but everyone openly nude while in the shower for hygiene reasonsright? In other words you cannot wear your swimsuit for the shower.
they don't enforce the rules but it's for hygiene reason. if they are not comfortable showering in front of each other than shower separately.
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CEOofPopeyes wrote: Yes but everyone openly nude while in the shower for hygiene reasonsright? In other words you cannot wear your swimsuit for the shower.
Yes, you need to shower completely nude and do not be surprised if they enforce it (shower police!). Swimming areas are very hygienic in Iceland and they like to keep it that way. I don't know about the facilities in the Secret Lagoon, but at the Blue Lagoon, they had some showers and change rooms with doors for privacy. Generally speaking, Icelandic people will openly shower in the nude as they don't really care about that kind of thing.
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I haven’t been to Iceland since April 2011 and June 2015. I would like to go sometime maybe in 2019 but this time with a toddler and 4 yr old. Last time I went, it was relatively unpopulated by tourists. Some of the hostels in the small towns along Ring Rd were pretty empty. Is it almost the same now or has the popularity of Iceland as a travel destination picked up? Its awesome driving along mountain rd and not see a car for hours.
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Didi_beee wrote: I haven’t been to Iceland since April 2011 and June 2015. I would like to go sometime maybe in 2019 but this time with a toddler and 4 yr old. Last time I went, it was relatively unpopulated by tourists. Some of the hostels in the small towns along Ring Rd were pretty empty. Is it almost the same now or has the popularity of Iceland as a travel destination picked up? Its awesome driving along mountain rd and not see a car for hours.
I'd say it's nothing like you remember it. We went last year and because we started planning late, we couldn't find accommodations in certain, more popular, areas. Plan in advance :)
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CEOofPopeyes wrote: Btw anyone been to the secret lagoon? It says you need to shower openly nude before going in. Won't be a big deal for few of us but I know some family/friends it will be. Do they enforce that rule?
I was there in 2016, the male changeroom was wall showers, no dividers. The showers are mandatory for good reason. I can't comment on what would happen if you skipped the shower because I didn't see it happen.
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Didi_beee wrote: I haven’t been to Iceland since April 2011 and June 2015. I would like to go sometime maybe in 2019 but this time with a toddler and 4 yr old. Last time I went, it was relatively unpopulated by tourists. Some of the hostels in the small towns along Ring Rd were pretty empty. Is it almost the same now or has the popularity of Iceland as a travel destination picked up? Its awesome driving along mountain rd and not see a car for hours.
I was there in June 2016, which is pretty much high season. Reykjavik was busy, but not crazy. I didn't find any of the stops along the Ring Road to be especially overcrowded. There were definitely lots of other people, especially in the Golden Triangle. Once we drove east of Hofn, it was pretty isolated all the way to Lake Myvatn.
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Didi_beee wrote: I haven’t been to Iceland since April 2011 and June 2015. I would like to go sometime maybe in 2019 but this time with a toddler and 4 yr old. Last time I went, it was relatively unpopulated by tourists. Some of the hostels in the small towns along Ring Rd were pretty empty. Is it almost the same now or has the popularity of Iceland as a travel destination picked up? Its awesome driving along mountain rd and not see a car for hours.
went June 2017. in the city there were lots of people since it was a national holiday when i went. And also Geysir was packed with people and the roads were jammed since they were doing construction. Everyone were riding so slowly since it was a dirt road with huge potholes. Other than that most other places were pretty quiet.
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Bumping this thread. I'm considering going to Iceland in June 2019. I don't drive so exploring the country by myself won't be possible. Would I be OK basing myself in the capital and taking a few day trips around? Would 7-10 days be too much there? I'll have 2.5 weeks off from work so maybe I could combine Iceland with somewhere else in Europe...
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mcbg1 wrote: Bumping this thread. I'm considering going to Iceland in June 2019. I don't drive so exploring the country by myself won't be possible. Would I be OK basing myself in the capital and taking a few day trips around? Would 7-10 days be too much there? I'll have 2.5 weeks off from work so maybe I could combine Iceland with somewhere else in Europe...
If you are taking day trips out of Reykjavik, then you probably don't need more than 3-4 days as you are limited to what tours are within driving distance. You could also consider an organized tour if you don't want to drive. For 7-10 days i'd do the ring road/island circle. If you want a shorter time, the southern coast trips are usually around 3-4 nights and cover some of the best highlights of Iceland. There are many companies who offer these tours, here's an example, although they don't seem to offer summer 19 yet: https://www.tour.is/longer-tours/guided_iceland_circle
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Soty613 wrote: If you are taking day trips out of Reykjavik, then you probably don't need more than 3-4 days as you are limited to what tours are within driving distance. You could also consider an organized tour if you don't want to drive. For 7-10 days i'd do the ring road/island circle. If you want a shorter time, the southern coast trips are usually around 3-4 nights and cover some of the best highlights of Iceland. There are many companies who offer these tours, here's an example, although they don't seem to offer summer 19 yet: https://www.tour.is/longer-tours/guided_iceland_circle
I'm fine taking a few days just exploring the city and chilling though.
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mcbg1 wrote: I'm fine taking a few days just exploring the city and chilling though.
Up to you. I wouldn't say there was too much to explore in Reykjavik TBH. For what I wanted to see in Iceland, it wasn't possible as day trips. Up to you to see what interests you there vs the rest of your trip.
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Soty613 wrote: Up to you. I wouldn't say there was too much to explore in Reykjavik TBH. For what I wanted to see in Iceland, it wasn't possible as day trips. Up to you to see what interests you there vs the rest of your trip.
Agreed. 2 days in Reykjavik was enough for me. The ring road was pretty cool. Beautiful country, just expensive
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2 days is enough for sure. everything else is outside of the city.
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mcbg1 wrote: I'm fine taking a few days just exploring the city and chilling though.
Just as a point of reference, I arrived in Reykjavik around 1pm or so, did a load of laundry that I had to stick around for and checked-in to my accommodation, so I didn't even get around to exploring until 2:30pm or so. Even then, that was more than enough time to explore the capital. By 7pm, I was basically on my second lap around. The city centre is quite small and doesn't have much to see or do. It's not ugly, but it's not exactly pretty either.

If you don't drive, you should look into longer bus tours that go into the more remote parts of the country. The shorter day trips force you to backtrack to Reykjavik every night.
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Thread revival.

I am planning a 6-9 day trip to Iceland in August. I am travelling by myself. Thinking to book a flight and spend 1 day and night in Reykjavik and the rest with a tour. Then fly back to Toronto. I hate driving so going with a tour is a must.

Can anyone recommend a tour operator? So many options and I'm not sure which one to pick. I'm much more leaning on the longer duration ones (6-7 day ones). I searched some tour operators already and seems like I'm looking at a around$3k CAD for a 7 day trip. No meals included. After flight and my 1 day of hotel in Reykjavik + misc expenses, probably going to end up costing over $5k for myself. Yikes!

Thanks in advance fellow RFDers. Hoping to find a good deal. Timeframe slightly flexible.

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