Iceland Feb Half Term

[Waffles21]

Hi
We’ve been considering Iceland for a couple of years and have just booked to go in Feb half term for 5 days and 4 nights. We know it’s not necessarily the best time to go but our son has GCSEs next year and for various reasons this is our best opportunity. I’ve read lots on Tripadvisor and here and I think we’ve decided to stay in Reykjavik the whole
time so that we can drive and explore when the weather is good but not risk getting stuck anywhere.does this sound sensible? We looked at 2 day trips etc but they’re way over our budget and not massive fans of organised trips either.
We’ve driven in the alps and Canada in winter and understand we may have to change plans but for example the golden circle route seems quite well maintained, am I right there? Some thoughts ( and questions!) from me. We’d like to snorkel at Thingvellir, also do Gulfoss and the crater and would we be best given the light keeping it to that and then doing the geysir and secret lagoon another day or could we do it in one long day? Could we do Reynisfjara Beach and Vic another day? We’d love to go to Jökulsárlón
but is this doable in Feb if we stay in Vic overnight?

finally we’re considering the Hilton exec floor so we get aome
drinks and snacks in the evening and save on dinner, again is this worth it? Which other hotels would you recommend in Reykjavik otherwise?

thanks for reading and thanks so much for your help!! All thoughts v much appreciated.

We drove the Golden triangle route in Dec the roads where the worst we have ever been on but the little hire car was fine as the tyres are designed for this.
We hired an apartment the owner was great and told us the restaurant food mayn't be to our liking. We ate Pizza from local supermarket as it was £40 for soup and coffee in a restaurant!

We went in the summer but had originally booked for March. From all accounts, winter is not the time to self drive. The weather changes in minutes (even in summer) and there are strong side winds as well as any rain or snow.

You can do day trips from Reykjavik to the Golden Circle, parts of the South Coast and Snaefellness. Some are in minibuses and others in coaches which are cheaper. That may be a better option than trying to go to Jokulsarlon.

We stayed in Vik for a couple of nights and Jokulsarlon was a looong day trip from there. I think it would be a bit ambitious to try to do it from Vik in only a couple of days.

Thanks so much both. We’ve booked a hotel in Reyjavik for the whole time and agree Vik may be a bit of a stretch! We’ll hopefully have the weather to drive the golden circle and see some things.

We were there in February half term this year, and each day we were out on trips we’d see at least a couple of cars that had driven off the roads.

We stayed in October half term. We stayed 6 nights in Reykjavik, and did day trips.

We stayed in an airbnb on the outskirts of Reykjavik so mainly self catered. The Bonus supermarkets were not too expensive. We were a 20 min walk from centre of Reykjavik and was lovely.

We hired a 4x4. I think they have snow tyres. The golden circle roads are really well maintained. If weather holds up driving is really easy there..I can imagine in snow though would be completely different.

We did Vik in a day...but oh my goodness it was windy. I've never known anything like it. There were crazy people though stood right on the beach by the waves. But distance wise was fine, lots to see on the way to break.it up

Also Blue Lagoon gets some stick for being touristy; I nearly didn't book it. Am so glad I did, we went at sunrise and was magical. Even 14 and 16 year old teens loved it, we stayed in for over 3 hours.

Was our best ever holiday , teenagers loved it. We're planning to go back to see more. Just stunning. It was also very very very cold even in October.

Have a fabulous time!

Love Iceland!!

It will all come down to the weather at the times. February can be very dicey.

I suggest that you book a car hire that you can cancel/redund. You may find that the weather is too bad for you to drive yourself but the tours still operate.

It's not the roads that cause the issues, it's the visibility. It can be horrific and very scary.

Suggest if weather OK do Gulfoss Geysir and Thingvellir. Another day do the south road and do the 2 big waterfalls and do the Tomato Farm and Secret Lagoon.

Vik and Diamond Beach will be too far for that time of year unless you spend a night in Vik.

Suggest the Greenhouse Food Hall at Hveragerdi and the Dairy Foodhall at Selfoss.

Aww I love it so much!! Been so many times!! Saw the most amazing northern lights show last November!

Iceland's wonderful! We went in early March and, as PP said, the Golden Circle roads are fine but if the weather changes from sunny to snowy (we had 3 days of sun and on the last day it changed) the (lack of) visibility when driving is terrifying. We missed the Blue Lagoon, returned our hire car and hung around the airport instead.

Also, when the hire car has big stickers on the dashboard warning you about opening car doors in the wind, don't scoff. It really is gobsmacking.

Take lots of photos! www.flickr.com/photos/ifaw/albums/72157632936064841

This summer I took a road trip with a friend and we drove the south coast to Jökulsárlón - but in several days. The day we went to Jökulsárlón we started in Heimaey and got the ferry, so started driving the ring road from Seljalandsfoss at about 10 am. We got to Jökulsárlón, having seen the main stops along the way, at about 5 pm. We stayed the night near Kirkjubæjarklaustur and got to our accommodation at about 8 pm. About 4.5 hours of driving plus time to see the things you've actually come to see. Vík - Jökulsárlón - Vík is about the same amount of driving.

It was doable, but a really bloody long day and I'd say rather too much for my own preferences - really we should have taken another day for the distance. And mind this was a lovely summer's day with perfect road conditions so we could drive fast. In February you may have to add a fair amount of time to account for ice and snow. Driving in winter is mostly fine but you do need to go slower and may need to abort your plans if a storm is coming in.

It's definitely not impossible, and obviously more efficient to start the day on the mainland which we didn't, but it would be quite full on so be aware. Jökulsárlón is amazing, though, and I definitely recommend a visit if you can swing it. Personally I would rather do fewer nights in Reykjavík and enjoy the south coast, but you're right that in February there is a risk of delays.

We went in February half term, but that was 2012. We booked with a company called "Discover the World" who seemed very knowledgeable.

Yes we did the Golden Circle all in one day. TBH we found Thingvellir a bit so so but Gulfoss and the Geysirs were amazing.

We also enjoyed the Blue Lagoon and wandering around Reykjavik, though it was a bit nippy.

It is expensive. One tip we followed was before you leave the airport, go in to duty free to buy booze at a vaguely affordable price. VERY pricey anywhere else.

Thank you all, really can’t wait!
We’ve booked a day trip to the South Coast after all as I do really want to see it! We’ll do the golden circle one day or if it takes two because of weather that’s fine! South road could be good as self drive too and def keen to do secret lagoon. So excited!!