Category: Iceland

Iceland – Snæfellsnes Peninsula

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Day 7: Our day on the Snæfellsnes Peninsula was one of the hardest to plan. There are so many things to see, and the peninsula looks deceptively small on a map of Iceland. The area itself is only 90 km long, but once you see how the roads around the peninsula are laid out, visiting all of the sights would take much longer than a day trip. So we had some tough decisions to make when planning our day. Fortunately the forecast looked good – just some cloudy weather in the morning that would burn off for a sunny afternoon…. Continue reading

Northern Lights in Iceland

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When we first starting talking about taking a vacation to Iceland, the possibility of seeing the Northern Lights immediately jumped out as a main attraction. Going into the trip, we were so hopeful we would get to see the lights, and about halfway through, we were very fortunate to get to see them! We ended up seeing the Northern Lights three nights in a row. It was incredible! Northern Lights Outside of Borgarnes The afternoon that we checked into our house outside of Borgarnes, Scott and I had a good feeling about our chances to see the Northern Lights. We… Continue reading

Blue Lagoon with Two Toddlers

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Day 8: Our last full day in Iceland was going to be another fun day because we saved our visit to the Blue Lagoon until the end of the trip. Since it is located so close to the airport, we thought it would make sense to go to the Blue Lagoon and then spend our last night in Iceland in Keflavik so we could get to the airport easily in the morning. It seems to be pretty common for travelers to visit the Blue Lagoon first thing after arriving in Iceland. I can see the appeal of soaking in the… Continue reading

Day Trip to Reykjavík

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Our trip to Iceland was jam-packed with activities. One of the hardest decisions we had to make was how much time to spend in Reykjavík. Being the largest city in the country, at first it seemed like a natural home base for exploring more of Iceland, but once we started looking at distances and drive times, we realized that we would probably just pass through Reykjavík a couple times. We still wanted the chance to visit the city, so, we planned a day trip to Reykjavík between our stay in Selfoss and our stay in Borgarnes. We would be driving… Continue reading

Western Iceland & Into the Glacier Tour

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Day 6: We woke up on a high note today after seeing the Northern Lights the night before, and we were not too stressed about time since Scott was headed right into town to get our flat tire replaced. Don’t get me wrong – this was NOT something we wanted to have to deal with – but at least the kids could have more time playing around the house before we set out for the day. Our original plans for the day included a tour into a glacier cave at 12:30 pm and other various sightseeing in the area. Since… Continue reading

Iceland Golden Circle

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Day 4 We woke up to pouring rain this morning. Scott was the first one up and made an executive decision to let the rest of us sleep in. Very much appreciated because it had been a night of restless sleep for all of us. While the weather was a discouraging start to the day, it ended up being a much-needed relaxing morning. Our original plan was to hit up the major Golden Circle sites: Gulfoss, Geysir, Þingvellir, including a stop for lunch at Efstidalur II, and possibly visit a thermal springs if time allowed (considering either Secret Lagoon or… Continue reading

Iceland South Coast – Part 2

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Day 3 We started out this day feeling a bit more rested than the day before. I guess the jet lag was beginning to wear off. This was a good thing because we had yet another BUSY morning planned. We wanted to finish up the main sites along the South Coast before our lunch reservation at Friðheimar, a tomato greenhouse/restaurant along the Golden Circle. Since this had been our last night at the AirBnb in Vík, we needed to pack up all of our stuff as we set out for the day. Because it would be a lot to juggle… Continue reading

Iceland South Coast – Part I

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After a long travel day, the first part of our Iceland trip was along the south coast. I will always remember these first couple of days as possibly the busiest stretch of time of my life. Fond memories, of course, but also a little hectic. Our travel day consisted of: Step 1. Tuesday morning – take kids to daycare so we can pack. Because life happened and packing the day of our flight was where we landed. It worked out; the only thing I forgot was my own swimsuit. [Note: taking the kids to school was actually a genius idea…. Continue reading

9 Days in Iceland with Two Toddlers

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We visited Iceland at the beginning of October 2019 for what might have been my favorite vacation to date. Notice, I used the word vacation (!!) there. For the first time since traveling with the kids, we went on something that felt possibly closer to a vacation than just a trip! Don’t get me wrong, it was WORK – two toddlers, remember? But Iceland was so magical that even weeks after getting home, I’m wondering how we will top it. Why Iceland? During the planning and since getting home, I have been asked “why Iceland?” over and over. A couple… Continue reading

Car Rental and Self-Drive in Iceland

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One of the first decisions we made when planning travel to Iceland was to rent a car for the length of our trip. Factoring the distance between main attractions and knowing the unpredictable nature of travel in general but especially with kids, this was honestly a no-brainer and ended up working out really well for our family. I would HIGHLY recommend self-driving for anyone visiting Iceland. The stunning landscape kept us engaged for the whole 9 days, and the scenery was as varied as it was gorgeous, so the long drives never felt tedious. Benefits to Renting a Car Building… Continue reading