Anyone been to Iceland and can share some travel tips?

[Themadcatparade]

It’s my partners 30th next week and I’ve been saving to book a trip to Iceland for next year. It’s been on his bucket list to see the northern lights.

I know you can’t plan such spectacular events and it will be down to luck but I’d like to book a time in the year where we have a good chance of seeing them.

January? February? October?! Has anyone ever been lucky enough and can give advise on what time of year to go?

Also, how many days would we need? The plan I think is to stay in Reykjavík it seems to be the most popular spot for tourists.

Any other advice would be gratefully appreciated, I am a travel novice and I’d like to keep the panic down 🤣

The penis museum!

There’s a penis museum?! He’d love that! 🤣

Jan/feb is the best time to see it, you can see forecasts for the northern lights online. Although I've been twice and still not seen it yet! They say to give yourself the best chance of seeing it, go for a week but that might be out of budget. Id recommend 4 days.

Food is hideously expensive. Book an apartment with a kitchen and go to the local supermarket to keep costs down.

The golden circle tour is a must, whale watching and Icelandic horse riding is fun even if you've never been on a horse. To see the northern lights you need to get away from the city as too much light pollution - lots of coach tours and jeep tours will take you out. You can find plenty to occupy you in and around reyk for 4 days at least. Its a beautiful place. Everywhere will push the blue lagoon but it's very much a tourist place, it was manmade although they do like to give the impression its a natural hot spring, it's not. And we saw people having it off in the water (they don't mention that in the guide books!) Find yourself a natural hot spring if that appeals.

I've been to Iceland 4 times and never seen the Northern Lights there!

There are day tours (round the major sights) you can do from Reykjavík if you don't fancy driving. I say you'd need at least 4 days, preferably 5/6. From experience it's an expensive place to visit.

I have travelled to lots of Scandinavia and would recommend the Ice Hotel in Sweden for the sheer experience. Stunning Northern Lights there (this was mid January). We had one night in a ice room, two nights in a heated room. We did ice sculpting and snowmobiling when we were there.

We went in feb half term and saw them, I’ve been in April and didn’t. We did the golden circle tour with the blue lagoon. We did a few other places near rekjavik in the hire car ourselves. The black sand beach is probably a bit too far. We loved the public swimming pools in rekjavik. We wanted to go skiing too but it was too windy.

Thank you so much!

The golden circle tour keeps popping up, is that worth doing?

Ideally I had the thought of renting a campervan to travel around, but I got scared of the thought of driving around in winter so i thought a hotel/apartment might have been better.

We are vegan also. I have heard they are very for meat and seafood over there but have read opposite that it’s also one of the most vegan friendly countries with food so I have no idea! Maybe an apartment would be better for us.

4 nights seems the most ideal advice so I’ll aim for that!