Iceland in October half term: self-drive or guided Golden Circle tour?

[SparklyDeer]

Me, DH and 2 teens are going to Iceland for 3 night in Oct half term. The cost of guided tours for all 4 of us is v expensive (Golden Circle). It is easy /recommended to self drive - it will be much cheaper but will we miss out by not doing a guided tour?

Also any top tips for what we should see/do/where to eat?
Thanks

Agree about car insurance, including for roadside assistance. There are lots of potholes, and car parks are unsealed roads. We got a puncture on day 2 and it cost £350 in roadside assistance and repair costs (just repair, not replacement). Hoping we can claim it back on our insurance when we get the chance.

We did self drive a few years ago. We flew into Reykjavik for a couple of nights then flew to Egillstadir picked up a hire car and drove route 1 round the south. It was fantastic, the weather was changeable but we managed it. Had booked in various stops on the way. We found a good travel agent who organised it all.

It was so much better than being on a group tour. We saw the Northern Lights too!

Hi we did self drive when we went and toured staying at different places. We got the cheapest car we could which was a good idea. There is a main ring road round the island - that is kept clear but there was snow and ice on the edge of the roads. I did spin the car on a road. We went into a snow drift and couldn’t reverse. We were maybe only minutes out of the car before someone turned up and pulex the car back onto the road.

@Manhattanman May is not October half term. Very different weather and you would not expect snow and ice in May.

Does Iceland get much snow in October? I never mentioned the weather as I didn't consider it particularly relevant, but thanks for policing my comment for the betterment of this thread 😊

@Manhattanman. It most certainly can do. Definitely sleet. You can get lucky and the south is milder but we’ve had snow in mid Sept there. It can be very windy and half term is typically late October and the weather is unpredictable with much shorter days by then. I do think time of year matters in Iceland more than msny places.

The Secret Lagoon is lovely. We were there today and it was very quiet - only a few people in and you can stay as long as you like. We also went to the nearby Farmers Bistro for lunch and had a fabulous mushroom-themed buffet.

@roadtripps We have done the Golden Ring twice. Once in July and once in Sept. We never saw throngs of tourists. There are people looking at geysir, and it’s quite a small site, but not throngs. Neither did we see loads of coaches. It’s all pretty relaxed and I doubt the end of October is equivalent to July in terms of tourists. In late October you only have so many hours of daylight though: far less than July. So this will inevitably concentrate the tourists into the short daylight period - whether you are in a car or not. You will enjoy taking it slower though.

In what years did you visit?

Iceland has been trending on social media in China, so the number of visitors from there has increased significantly in the last 2-3 years.

We've been here for just over a week and the golden circle was busy last weekend - it only takes a couple of buses at each site to make them feel crowded.

It became less crowded during the week and as we got further away from Reykjavek.

Iceland's wonderful (at least around Reykjavík). We went in April and did self-drive. Possibly weather-equivalent to October.

Here's a pic from our hire car. I laughed at the "be careful when opening the doors in a strong wind". Nanny state, etc.

Really, don't laugh.

Thanks all! We are hiring a car and doing one day/morning in the very sw corner. They an afternoon/evening in Reykjavik. Then 2 days doing Golden Circle but this is all weather dependent. There was a weather warning last week for wind and a lot of people couldnt do Golden Circle and had to stay in Reykjavik. A hire car does give us flexibility.
So looking forward to geeking out on the geology/geography!

@roadtripps 2022 and 2025. Yes - do visit midweek. We didn’t ever feel it was crowded anywhere. 2025 was the July visit. We didn’t see loads of Chinese people either. I can barely remember any. I guess flights coming in have not changed much. Not sure about cruise ships which are obviously bigger but they won’t be around in the autumn.

The wind can be gale force. If that’s combined with snow, as we witnessed on the September trip, a car door would be difficult to open! When we were holed up for 3 hours waiting for the storm to blow through, the driver of the car next to us obviously wanted a wee! Not easy!

So long as you all have waterproof trousers you'll be fine. There is rain or snow an average of 210 days a year in Southern Iceland so you'll definitely need them.

The only thing we cancelled due to the wind was our kayaking trip in the glacial lagoon but there were still amphibious boats going out. Visibility was impacted by the low cloud though.

And if you are hanging out at night to see the lights - make sure you have the clothes for it - never been so cold in my life.

We went in a couple of years ago and the previous week they'd had a blizzard that meant motorhomes couldn't travel safely for a couple of days.

@countrygirl99 Yes! In the blizzard we endured, a motorhome was on the other side of us . Rocking and rolling was an understatement!

I have been several times.

Your potential enemies in October are wind and rain. A pp laughed at wind warnings when opening a car door - but this is no joke! You have to open the car doors carefully if there is a lot of wind as they can be ripped off. The wind can be brutal - as in very dangerous.

Arrive at attractions at first light or last light to beat the crowds. If you can run to it book a private glacier walk, ie just the four of you.

Eating (and everything, really!) is expensive, but imo just go for it and eat baked beans for a few weeks back home.

Yes. Make sure you park into the wind so it doesn't damage the car doors.

Yes. 100% park facing the wind direction. Even then, just opening a car door is a struggle and watch for them slamming shut too. Last light at some places means gloomy! I’d accept a few more people and decent light.

Posing for photos in white outfits on black sand beaches seems to be a popular bad weather activity for some gen-z tourists. 😁