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Solo visit late March: 4 day itinerary + aurora?

I’m traveling solo through KEF with 4 night stopover. Arrive early a.m. Sunday, 22 March. Depart Thurs 26 March (late morning). I haven’t booked lodging yet. Initially thought I’d base myself in Reykjavik and do day trips to major sites BUT I would really love to see the aurora borealis, which I know is never guaranteed. (I read that solar activity increases near the equinox.) Would it be better to split my time between Reykjavik and a less populous town? If so, where and at which end of the trip? I was not planning to rent a car, but could do so if that makes logistics easier.

I’m recently widowed and this will be my first international trip alone. I’d prefer active touring rather than sitting on a coach listening to a guide speak. I love to hike and generally to be in nature. I would love tour recommendations. Thank you!

Posted by
3855 posts

We are in Iceland now on our 9th trip here. I can give you loads of information tomorrow when we are sitting at the airport. You can see a lot in 4 days. Bear with me for a day or so:)

Posted by
3860 posts

(I read that solar activity increases near the equinox)

I'm not sure that is particularly true, but the chances of seeing the aurora are substantially higher when there are no clouds and it is very dark. Sunset in late March is 8 p.m. https://www.timeanddate.com/sun/iceland/reykjavik You can easily take a guided tour to see the lights from city center Reykjavik. If conditions were favorable it would leave around 10 p.m. and get back after 1 a.m. So I don't advise booking it for your arrival night if you will be substantially jet lagged. But I would book it the second night in case the conditions cancel the trip most tour companies will let you go the next night (or the one after).

I took five tours in Reykjavik as a solo traveler. A foodie/walking tour with Your Friend in Reykjavik, the Golden Circle and Northern Lights tours with Reykjavik Excursions (big bus), a South Coast tour with GeoIceland (small group), and the free city walking tour (which I recommend doing the first day). If you search the Iceland part of the forum there are many tour company recommendations.

Edited to add: listen to whatever mikliz97 advises you!

Posted by
3855 posts

For your wants you pretty much have 2 choices. Base in Reykjavik and do day tours or do a multi day tour. I would start by looking at tours and see what things interest you.

We normally self drive here, but this last week we based in Reykjavik and did day tours. We never do that but it works well this time of year. You dylll need to be flexible as yours get cancelled due to weather. Do staying in Reykjavik is nice because if one tour is cancelled you can opt for something else.

We have used Troll, Nice Travel and Bus Travel Iceland and had great experiences with all of them. We have been using Troll for several years but it was our first time with the other two companies.

Our snowmobiling and ice cave tour was cancelled due to extreme weather and we encountered a very serious accident due to patches of ice in the road. The road was closed for 2 hours and a helicopter had to land in the road to rage the victims to the hospital. We were only 4 vehicles behind it so it happened maybe 2 minutes before we got to the spot. I share this just so you know how severe the weather can be and with limited roads you can get stuck. Our tour guide was excellent at revamping the day though.

For an aurora tour, look at Aurora Experts. Heimir is excellent and we have used him a few times. He is very ethical and won’t take you out unless chances are good as he doesn’t want to waste your time or money.

We ps led in so much this week that I am thoroughly exhausted. I need to relax from vacation, haha:)

Posted by
2 posts

Thank you both for this helpful advice! Sounds like staying in Reykjavik is the answer! And thank you for the tour recommendations and encouragement on solo travel. I needed both;-)

Posted by
3855 posts

You will have a great trip! I would love to do a solo trip but my husband would be sad;)