I'm working out the fine details of our trip this June, and I wanted some opinions on this subject. Our flight lands at 6am, and we are renting a car at Keflavik. I know we wont be able to check in to our hotel in Reyk. so was thinking of going straight to the Blue Lagoon, as my understanding is it's kind of half way between the airport and Reyk. Time slots to start are 7am, and 8am. Is it realistic to get there for 7am if we need to rent a car? Is that a fairly quick procedure or not really? I'm just wondering if we book 8am we might be waiting around a while - not sure how strict they are on entry times at the Blue Lagoon. Also open to suggestions of good breakfast spots near Blue Lagoon to eat first, then go in. I know they have a restaurant on site but thought it looked more upscale than I'd want for 4 tired people to eat breakfast!
I took a look at their website. The 7am booking would mean that you could check in any time in that 7am hour (so, I believe as long as you're there before 7:59am, you'd be fine). I do remember that when I rented a car at the airport, I waited around for a car to be returned and serviced before my car was ready. I'm sure most people have no issue getting their car right away.
Customs and immigration moves very quickly at the Keflavik Airport. I'm not sure that there's much between the airport and the Blue Lagoon. I think your idea to go to there straight from the airport is a good one, but if it was me, I'd probably take the 8am time slot, grab something to eat at the airport, and stop at duty free for a bottle of wine or two before exiting. Alcohol is very expensive in Iceland, so even most Icelandic people stop at duty free to stock up on the way out of the airport.
Thanks for the info - I'll try and bring a bit of food from home too maybe so I don't need to worry about it. I will stock up on wine too!
On our most recent trip to Iceland, we too landed early in the morning and were headed straight to the Blue Lagoon. Our plane landed early, so about 5:30am I think it was. We were out of the airport within 30 minutes tops, went over to Blue Car Rental and picked up the car and drove into Keflavik. We found a bakery that was open and got donuts and coffee and killed tie for there a bit. We arrived at the Blue Lagoon much earlier than our reservation, and they had no issue letting us in. In the winter they open at 8 am, so we were there right as they were opening. With you coming in summer and they open at 7, I think you could book either 7 or 8am and be fine, but the 8 am time slot would give you more of a buffer if you are worried.