Just returned - a week in Iceland.

This all sounds so nice! Can you talk about your restaurants and hotel experiences?

Sure.

Hotels. They were all clean - some nicer than others - but all clean and well cared for.

We stayed at the following:
Hotel Odinsve - Reykjavík - 1 night
Guesthouse Flúðir - Flúðir - 1 night
Black Beach Suites - Vik area - 2 nights
Camp Boutique - Flóahreppur - 1 night - SO FUN, HIGHLY RECOMMEND
Bergas Guesthouse - Keflavik - 1 night

Food. I was a bit surprised that we had difficulty finding fresh fish in restaurants; however, that may be due to the fact that we were traveling with teens and they only wanted burgers and pizza. We did get food from the grocery store three times as they had readily available sandwiches and most rooms we stayed in had a kettle/microwave so we would cook noodles/mac & cheese/ramen and have fruit for dinner in the room after a day of traveling/driving.
All restaurants menus were in English as well as Icelandic so we never had any difficulty ordering.
One of our favorite restaurants was Kaffi Krús in Selfoss.

R

RGS, we’re going to Iceland in mid-July with two nights in Reykjavik. Do you think that we can drive the Golden Circle on Day 1 with a quick stop at the Blue Lagoon and the South Coast on Day 2?

Yes. You can drive the Golden Circle in one day. I read somewhere that it is 140 miles so do-able. The Blue Lagoon is a must as far as I'm concerned. It is easily accessible and between the airport and Reykjavik. I would plan on spending about 3 hours at the Blue Lagoon and definitely book in advance. Have fun!

This is exactly what I wanted to read! We are going next summer with our two young adult kids, so similar. It looks like by doing this you got a good overview of everything, with some good places to stay. We will need to add Akuyredi (sp?), not sure where that is in relation to the tour you followed, it’s my husband’s ancestral hometown so gotta see it!

Sounds like a nice trip:) We have been 3 times so far, with the 4th trip planned for next summer. I think you are right about fresh fish and where you ate. We didn't have any problem finding it at all, but never ate burgers/pizza. We had our adult kids (in their 20's) with us last summer for 12 days and had fish every night. It was split between restaurants and self catering cottages where we would buy fish and lamb and cook it ourselves. We never had a bad meal, and actually haven't in any of our trips!

Did you do the glacier hike or just go to the toe of the glacier? We did the hike this winter, and it was beautiful coming back down as the sun was setting.

Lindsay, Akureyri is on the north side of the island. It looks like RGS concentrated on the south side. If you want to go to Akureyri, usually people do a complete Ring Road trip, allowing at least ten days. Plenty to see in the north.

we are 2 adult couples that will do a 12 day ring road trip in july 2023. staying one night in most places. wondering if a 2 night stay on the west side (near national park) before returning to reykjavik is worthwhile? Thanks for your opinion.

which national park are you referring to?

hi RGS,
i think this is what i had in mind, Snæfellsjökull

Thanks for the report! Sorry this is 3 months late...
Did you hike? What trails were excellent and how long were they?
Did you drive the Ring Road?