nordicvisitor.com vs booking your own

We have never let someone else plan our trips. Iceland is no different. I have planned all 4 of our trips here by myself, including one that was a ring road trip with 5 adults. There is nothing difficult about it, just takes a bit of time. Well worth it for us.

I've read your other posts and I think that you are all over the place. Looks like you want to do it all with not enough time.

There is a lot of information on the internet, and you'll find sample itineraries and helpful responses on both the Travel Iceland Facebook page and the TripAdvisor forum. They both get a lot more traffic than this site.

Having someone plan your trip for you versus doing it on your own is really subjective. If you have the time, it's really easy to research and plan your own and that way you get to do what you want to do. I know you said on your other thread that you are worried about missing out on something but honestly with only seven days there will be a lot that you will be missing out on.

With six adults you could rent two cars, so look at companies like Blue and Lotus to see what that would cost. Also with a group of six, you'd have a hard time finding a vacation rental that would house all of you, but you can look around on Booking.com for what you can find in the places you want to visit. You might discover that $12,000 for six people is what you will need. $200 a day for two cars = $400 times 10 days = $4,000. $200 each night for a room for two in a hotel times 3 = $600 per night times 10 nights = $6,000. Plus you need food and gas.

Your trip is not very far away, and you really do need to be making some decisions soon.

There is absolutely nothing wrong with letting a local professional plan this trip if that is what meets the needs of your group!

There are no points or awards given for one type of travel over another. The key is to identify your group’s needs and the most practical way to meet them.

I know the owner of this travel agency and can highly recommend them. They offer both escorted and independent self-drive options for Iceland. Nordic Travel

Thanks! I'm all over the place, because we just found out we're going, and I feel overwhelmed :) I have a few things booked, but I will work this week to get some sort of plan solidified. I am also a bit worried about how much time I have here to plan (and consult 5 other people).

So, the two things I'm hearing-- it's probably better to plan ourselves and don't do too much. We actually have 9 days... we're getting to Reykjavik on July 2 and leaving the 10th. I was thinking we'd do the Reykjanes Pennisula the first day or two to get us acclimated :)

I used Hidden Iceland to plan my 15 day ring road tour. I was very pleased with the value.
I have only been to Iceland for the above trip, so am far from an expert, but here are my thoughts.

Six nights is nowhere near enough time to see all of Iceland, so as mentioned above, you will not see everything there is to see. Knowing this ahead of time will help you.
Traveling with 6 adults would be a nightmare for me, because I like to be in control of what I am going to be doing. Having 6 will slow you down even more because people will be interested in different things and want to eat different food and eat at different times and sleep at different times, etc.
Please don't try to do the ring road in 6 nights, you will just be driving for 6 days.
In six days you could do the Golden Circle plus the Southern Coast to the east or go West, or if you are efficient the whole southern coast. Again, with six, I would do more activities in less areas.

The advantages of using a TA are that they know the logistics and they know what people like. They will give you an itinerary to follow. And while you don't have to follow it exactly, it will give the group a structure to follow. If you have 2 cars, you could decide the evening before at dinner which car is leaving early and which later, which group is going to hike and which group is going into town to look for souvenirs. If you have a van, you will have to agree on one plan.
You could ask the TA to present 3 different itineraries and then you could vote on them.

The TA will also help you to narrow your focus.

Sorry, I was typing when you posted. Nine days is better.
Whatever you decide, you will have a great trip, but don't let anybody shame you into doing everything yourself.

That is really 8 days.

No, it's not "better" to plan it yourself. It's all in what works for you.

In your other post you said that you will have July 3 through the 9 for the Ring Road because you already have July 1 and 2 planned. So you have 7 days, not 9. My previous comments were addressing the fact that you were trying to do the whole Ring Road in these 7 days. This is getting very confusing!

haha, I'm confused, so please excuse my confusing posts! I have been working hard, and I think I have three good options to present. I also was able to find hotels to cover the entire trip (with free cancellation, so room to tweak). You are all very right- the whole ring road would be a nightmare to do! I feel so much less intimidated, thanks to all of you!

I didn't see anyone that said either planning option was "better" than the other.

Doing the Reykjanes Peninsula on the day of arrival is good. It is a fairly small area and is very easy to do without rushing to the next sight to see.

“We never let someone else to plan our trips” is a pretty strong statement. Most people would infer that you are condemning such an action. “We like to plan our trips ourselves”. Would be far more neutral.

Carol--I can only suggest not to read into something that isn't there. That was not my intent at all. I simply stated what we do, without opinion.

Honestly, I appreciate all comments and advice, even if they sound harsher than intended. I didn't even blink at the comment-- it was feedback I needed. As far as doing all the work myself - I'm not. I LOVE trip planning, and I have my sister-in-law working with me (we have a google doc so we can easily share changes we make).

I had the day off yesterday, and I worked obsessively. I now have hotels with free cancellation booked in Reykjavik for the entire trip. That way, we are covered in case I can't get hotels on our overnight ventures and I can cancel the days we don’t need. And I have presented two well-paced options- one that includes all the way to Diamond Beach, one that includes going north for Icelandic culture/history (my father in-law is Icelandic). I have kept the ring-road option but highly discouraged it (even saying my husband doesn't want to do it, gas stations may not take US credit cards, and gas is $7 a gallon). If we end up with option 3, I may just go with nordicvisitor.com, because there are too many logistics for my comfort level.

You may have felt my panic yesterday. haha Again, I have to thank you all-- I'm a "react first, think later" type of person, but I do eventually bring myself down :)

I hope you enjoy the rest of the process.
Let us know how things are going and when you have a set plan, please share.
And of course a trip report please!

Thank you- I will do that :)