Looking for Opinions for an Iceland Trip in March

You need to scan the thread for the query just before yours; that person wants to go
to Iceland in February and drive. Bottom line, not the greatest idea.

If you want to get away from Reykjavik, though, your options are mainly rent a car
(again, in March, not the greatest idea) or some kind of guided tour. There are
public buses, though.

I think you are excited about the trip possibilities and are caught up in the trap many
are caught up in, trying to plan and do it all. Well, you say you have 5 days - is that
5 full days on the ground in Iceland, or is the first day an arrival and the last day a
departure day (in which case you really only have 3)?

If you go on a guided tour, you won't really have a chance to be a local. If you drive,
your itinerary will be at risk due to weather.

Note that many towns outside of Reykjavik have some sort of municipal bath complex,
and of course there are natural hot springs in the countryside, but getting there is the
question.

Hi!

Thanks for your reply.
I did read the thread before mine, as well as the comments. I'm not a fan of driving in other countries just because I don't speak the language and, should something go wrong, I'm screwed. I also don't want to do winter driving in Iceland based on what I read. Sure I love winter diving here in northern Ontario, I'm not a fan of driving on ice.

So, it's 5 days, 4 nights. Because we'd land at like 6am on day 1, we have at least 4 days. Right now, we're planning the touristy stuff because you have to... Golden Circle, a lagoon (trying to avoid Blue Lagoon because it's so busy, but at the same time, it's such a must do), and more than likely the Northern Lights because I'm a bit of a nerd. I also want to walk around town, see the shops, have a drink at a local bar, go to the cat cafe, get a traditional wool shirt... I know I want to pack in a lot, but that's why it's an adventure trip rather than a vacation.
We're looking at starting downtown Reykjavik, so the walking portion should be easy peasy enough.

I'm just overwhelmed when planning such a trip because I want to see the main highlights, but I also want to live it. I want it all, and I know I can't. It's why I turn to pros and those who have been in my shoes.

Thanks again for your response!

March is one of my favorite times to go (and am planning to go again this coming March for about a week). The weather can be hit or miss. Might have snowy, cold conditions, maybe rainy, maybe sunny and decent. Maybe all of them in one day. Just to touch on a couple of things, the store that sells the sweaters is likely the Hand Knitting Association. It's not a tourist trap. You might find some sweaters at the flea market near the harbor that takes place only on weekends (Kolaportid). Try to avoid places like Icewear for the authentic sweaters because those are generally machine made, often not in Iceland, but with Icelandic wool. If the price seems too good to be true, it's not hand knitted.

I'm not sure if you're planning to drive or not but definitely hit the Golden Circle. Snaefellsnes or the South Coast can be good day tours, but really long days. Don't plan too much for your first day due to jet lag unless you sleep well on overnight flights (I don't). I haven't spent much time in the city of Reykjavik yet (that's part of the plan for next time), but I don't think you can go wrong with hotels. All the ones I've stayed in have been pretty clean.

Thanks for your reply!

Have you gone in March before? It's the only time I can travel (yay, March Break) and my husband wants to go away this year and decided Iceland (over a beach) because he's looking for an adventure.
The weather sound similar to what I get here in Ontario. Shouldn't be too much of a shock. It doesn't mean I won't be bringing my snowpants and all the warm clothes!

Thank you for suggesting where (and where not) to get a sweater. I really appreciate that. It's going in my notes.
I don't think I'll be able to hit a flea market because we're looking at Sunday-Friday. I was kind of looking forward to it, but when I was doing a bit of research, I read that it's only a weekend thing. Oh well!

We're looking at guided tours including the Golden Circle. I need to hit up a lagoon and I read that Blue Lagoon is a little too touristy and busy. I figured as much, so I'm trying to look at other options and wondering if it's worth it or if I just suck it up and do the Blue Lagoon. I need a hot spring no matter what. I've also only seen the northern lights once, so I'm thinking I may want to take a crack at it while in Iceland.

I won't be driving because I'm not a big fan of driving in a country where I don't know the language. If anything goes wrong, I'm not in a good position to be able to explain things. Also, if the roads are more on the icy side, it doesn't matter how awesome the car and tires are, one can slide.

What we're looking at gives us the Golden Circle (with a few stops, one of them being a newer geothermal spa -- the name escapes me right now) and Northern Lights. This gives us approximately 1.5-2 days on our own in the city centre which is when I plan to go to the cat café and get a sweater, as well as explore the city aimlessly.

Thank you so much for your reply. I really appreciate it.

Hi Mel_L, I am planning a trip to Iceland next year in July, which of course is a far cry from March. However, I've been reviewing a lot of the forum posts and getting information from some of our resident experts here on Iceland.

So it looks like you will have four full days plus a little over half of a day when you first get there. That's certainly enough to do a Golden Circle tour and see all the things you want to see in town plus get some time in at a hot springs. There might even be some places outside of town that are fairly easy to get to without renting a car that you could visit. I'm sure others will weigh in here.

With regards to the Blue Lagoon, it is very overpriced and very crowded with tourists. There is another lagoon in the area called Sky Lagoon that a lot of people like more than the Blue Lagoon and I believe it's cheaper as well. There are also thermal pools in the city of Reykjavik that you could certainly go to, and quite a few hot springs outside of town.

I'm not going to give you details because I am definitely not an expert. I've only been to Iceland once before and that was for just one and a half days. So I will leave it to others to fill you in there. But I did want to say that from everything I've read, as much as March can be inconvenient in terms of the weather, it's also a wonderful time to visit Iceland. There aren't as many tourists there, and you get to experience the magic of this climate with all the snow and ice. And coming from a northern climate, you should be used to it.

I took an Icelandair package tour in late October. I chose the Center Hotel Plaza as my accommodation - great central location, a couple blocks to the tourist bus stop where many day tours and shuttles pick up passengers. As your flight arrives very early, note that most hotels have a mid afternoon check in time so you'll have to have them hold your luggage until your room is ready. That was really a slog for me as I had flown from west coast USA and was extremely tired.

I wasn't aware of the cat cafe, but this tour company offers a cat walking tour that appears to visit the cafe. I took their food tour and loved it. https://yourfriendinreykjavik.com/tour/reykjavik-cat-walk/

Depending on weather and solar activity you may or may not see the northern lights. If you do an Icelandair package, you can choose a northern lights excursion. Do that the very early in your trip as if conditions cancel the excursion, they'll let you go one of the next nights. It's a late night so I don't recommend scheduling an early departure tour the next day.

March is still solidly winter so driving could be iffy. The thing with Iceland is not so much snow as it is wind and black ice, plus the roads do not have shoulders nor guardrails, and they are elevated so if you veer off you will go down an embankment. Sometimes small, but other times god size drop offs.

With just 5 days, and depending on your budget, here is one idea. We have done a couple of the Icelandair packages and because they were so cheap, we would leave our room in Reykjavik and head out a few hours away. Yes, paying twice for hotels, but we found places that were to crazy expensive and it actually was still cheaper than not doing the package.

Otherwise a good option is to book your flights separately, and then stay in Reykjavik for the night you arrive and your last night, and then take a multi day tour for the middle part of the trip.

If you do the package, and want to stay in Reykjavik each night, it is not ideal but it is not the end of the world either. Just do day trips such as the Golden Circle, Snaefellsness and the south coast. That would fill your time nicely. Keep arrival day for just in Reykjavik itself to get over jet lag.

In March, that is still a good time to see the northern lights. I highly recommend Aurora Experts for one of these tours as he is excellent! He is a one man show, and absolutely loves what he does. He is very ethical and will not take you out if the chances are not good. He does not want to waste your time and money. He does give you a second chance, so you could book this for the first night and then if you need a second chance you could go another night. Day tours are often long (except the GC) so if you do a second chance night, do not book it after a tour to either Snaefellsness or the south coast as you will not be back in time to go.

March is also great for glacier hikes, ice caves, snowmobiling etc. We have used troll.is for these excursions since you have to have a guide for them, and Troll has always been excellent for us.

For anything hand knit, head to the Handknitting Association stores, and NOT Icewear. Icewear are "designed" in Iceland, but not made there and not by hand. Those stores are all over the city though, but don't be fooled. Also look at the thrift stores for the sweaters. If you get outside of Reykjavik, many towns have small hand knit shops as well as hand knit items in a small area of restaurants and such. I have 3 of these from various trips and one was from the store in Reykjavik, one was from a gas station in the Westfjords, and the other was from a small store on Snaefellsness. If you do a GC tour, at Seljalandsfoss there is a gift store there that is easy to miss, and looks tiny, but as you go in you can see it is much larger and they have some great hand knit things in there.

For lagoons, you have quite a few options. Some tours will include one, so really look around. We always try to hit as many as we can on each trip. The Blue Lagoon is nice and IME it is not overrated. Sky Lagoon is in Reykjavik, but sort of on the outskirts so you would want to bus/taxi/drive there. I really like this one, but it has gotten significantly busier. Just north of Reykjavik is Hvammsvik which is hands down my favorite commercial one. In the Golden Circle there is Secret Lagoon which is rustic, but nice. They have pool noodles which I love because I am short so those keep me afloat, lol. Laugarvatn Fontana is good too, and the cold plunge is the lake. They have one pool area that is more for toddlers as it is extremely shallow, but we loved that one too. Laugaras is a brand new one that just opened a week or so ago. It is supposed to be a high end lagoon. I am anxious to try that on our next trip.

Don't forget the local pools. Most towns have them, and there are several in Reykjavik. I like Sundhollin with their rooftop hot tubs:)

Yes, the cat cafe is a lot of fun! It is just a block off of rainbow road.

Two things I highly recommend for Reykjavik itself. One is the Citywalk "free" walking tour where you tip what you want at the end. Those bookings start a week in advance and go fast, so if you are interested then mark it on your calendar to book. Also, the food tour is really good. There is so much food that it will easily cover lunch and dinner, so if you look at it that way, it its actually very cost efficient. We have done both of these several times when traveling with various people.

Thank you, Mardee CL, mikliz97. I really appreciate your wealth of knowledge on this one. So many fantastic ideas and suggestions, I will definitely have to look it up in detail. THANK YOU!!!!

Mel, you are smart to not drive yourselves in March. But, just so you know, everyone in Iceland that we've met on our three trips there speaks excellent English. You won't have any problems with that.

Hi naalehuretiree,

I just worry we'll meet the one jerk and I'll be screwed. However, I'm realy glad to hear they speak great English. I had a feeling that was the case, but I never want to take a chance.