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South/Southeast itinerary help

Posted by (Kansas) on

hello,
We are a group of 4 adults age 55-60 in good physical condition. We like seeing as much as we can in little time so don't mind spending 1 night in different locations. We all pack light and only carry backpacks. Going to Iceland Sept 25-Oct 1. I am trying to decide the best way to fit all the tours into our itinerary. We definitely want to do the glacier lagoon boat tour and the silfra fissure snorkel/diving (need to get dry suit certified). Would also like to do a glacier hike and ice cave tour, but could give up one of these. here's my itineray thus far:
sept 25: land 6am, Blue Lagoon, Reykjavik for night
sept 26: south sites on way to Skaftafell / Jokulsarlon area to stay night
sept 27: lagoon boat tour and glacier hike. stay same place as night before (or drive to Vik and do Katla ice cave tour next day)
sept 28: 9:30 ice cave tour (3hr tour) in Jokulsarlon then drive 5 hrs to Gullfoss (stay Geysir area)
sept 29: Thingvellir and snorkel/dive Silfra fissure; drive 2.5 hrs to Stykkisholmsbaer for night
sept 30: Snaefellsnes pennisula with night in Borgarnes
Oct 1: Borgarnes sights? and drive 2hr to airport for 4:55pm flight

My dilemma is night of Sept 27 and whether we should drive to Vik after our tour and do the ice cave Katla on the 28th. I like the Jokulsarlon ice caves better because they are clearer and more blue than Katla ice cave, but maybe the ash makes the cave more interesting. Another thought could be to do either the glacier walk or the ice cave on the 27th which would free up sept 28th for a leasure drive to Gullfoss. What are your thoughts?

Posted by
2028 posts

You are smart to stay in Reykjavik that first night. The next day though is really long, a minimum of 6 hours drive time, without stopping, and there are SO many places you are going to want to stop at.

Do the zodiac boat ride vs the amphibian. The zodiac is really fun!!!

We loved Katla and while it is not that striking blue like other ice caves, it has its areas that are. It is a really varied experience and we loved it. We used Troll and what I liked about them is that while the initial group was 20, they split us into two souped up vans and we never saw the other half of the group. We walked in by ourselves and had the cave completely to ourselves for as long as we wanted. Our guides were telling us to take our time and were taking photos of us, etc. Then when we walked back to where we parked, we still didn't see the other group. I liked how they had it staggered enough and was not rushed by any means. The guides we had were exceptional.

If you can do both the ice cave as well as the glacier hike, do that. Don't skip one. We have done both, although the hike was at Solheimajokull, and both were really good!

There is the settlement center in Borgarness, but honestly, I would skip it in lieu of the Reykjanes Peninsula that last day. Leave early in the morning though just in case weather is bad as you don't want to risk missing your flight. There is so much to do on the peninsula and it is close to KEF. Definitely allow plenty of time at KEF as well.

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