A couple of questions about Iceland

[NannyR]

Ive booked flights and accommodation to visit Iceland next February and I'm now looking at the different tours and activities available.

I arrive at 3pm on the Sunday and was planning to go to the blue lagoon from the airport.

On Monday, I'm looking at doing the Golden circle tour.

On Tuesday I'm undecided between a whale watching trip or a dog sledding trip. Looking at the websites for the whale watching trips, they don't seem to see that many whales at this time of year and the sea could be very rough, hence I've looked into dog sledding instead; bit more expensive but something I've never done (and not likely to have another opportunity).

On Wednesday, I was looking at doing the South Shore tour.

Leave first thing Thursday.

What I would like to know from people who've done a similar trip is, are two long coach trips too much in the three days? Would I be better choosing one and spending the third day looking around reyjkavik? Which of the two trips (golden circle or south shore) would you recommend? Or are they both well worth seeing?

I will have a half day on the weds to see reyjkavik as well as the evenings if I do both trips. Also hoping to see the northern lights at some point depending on the weather!

Also any recommendations for good but cheaper end cafes/restaurants in reykjavik would be great.

Thanks.

Both tours are well worth doing in my view and you will have plenty of time on the bus to rest. A half day in Reykjavik is plenty of time to see the main sights to be honest.
In regards to restaurants Icelandic fish and chips is nice although think it may have changed its name, cafe Paris is also reasonable. Lots of other small cafes where you can get a snack and if you eat meat you must try a pylsur (hotdog) from the famous stand at the harbour.

We did dog sledding in Finland last year and it was brilliant. So definitely don't miss it.

Just spotted this thread. I would also recommend doing both the south shore and the golden circle. Both are well worth doing and different enough not to feel too samey. I've not done whale watching or dog-sledding. The dog-sledding sounds fun but be aware that the experience is unlikely to be like you see it on to in places like northern Norway. It's unlikely that there will be thick blankets of snow for example. For northern lights you would probably need to join another coach tour to get away from the city lights. The coach trips won't go out in the evenings for northern lights of the weather is poor though so you won't waste an evening for nothing. You can just pop into the tour offices in the afternoons to find out if they are going out that night. I've been twice in February (for 7 nights and for 5nights) and haven't seen the northern lights .
In terms of restaurants I'm also a fan of Icelandic fish and chips too. It was still called that when I went this February. The laundromat cafe is also good value IMO. There is also a good burger place called (I think) hamburgerfabrikkan that works out pretty good value for nice quality food.

The main museum in Reykjavik was good, we enjoyed that (can't remember its name, sorry), and the hallgrimskirka church by the leif Ericsson statue where you can go up the steeple for an amazing view over the town, were our stand out memories from a visit years ago. You won't need a whole day for Reykjavik sightseeing though and you can easily walk around the whole town, including over the frozen lake.

Reykjavik hasn't much to recommend it; I mean it's alright, but not touristy. Iceland is pretty small, the coach rides don't look too much to me.

Thanks for the tips and advice everyone. Really looking forward to going now!