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Reykjavik, Iceland Vacation Day One
My husband and I got on the airplane in Denver around dinnertime and flew directly to Reykjavik, Iceland. Our flight lasted 7.5 hours, and landed around 7 am Icelandic time. Although we technically flew overnight, I can never sleep on airplanes! I watched a few movies and maybe dozed in and out a little bit. Once we landed, I so excited to be in Iceland that I wasn’t tired at all. (Yay for vacation adrenaline!)
We picked up our rental truck from Blue Car Rental located by the airport. My husband’s special request: the Toyota HiLux. We don’t have these trucks in the USA and he really wanted to drive one, so why not?
The almost Midnight Sun on our drive along the Ring Road in South Iceland
Take advantage of Iceland’s longer daylight hours during the Spring and Summer months. We drove around to see sights until nearly midnight!
The Keflavík International Airport (KEF) is a 45 minute drive from our hotel in Reykjavik. Since we can’t check into our hotel until afternoon, our first stop is the Blue Lagoon. The Blue Lagoon is in Grindavik, just a few minutes’ drive from the airport.
The Blue Lagoon is one of Iceland’s top tourist attractions. People go there to soak in beautiful blue geothermal waters surrounded by dark lava rock. The Blue Lagoon is one of those unique vacation experiences everyone should do at least once.
The Blue Lagoon was a wonderful way to begin our first day in Iceland.
The warm waters were warm and relaxing. We even ventured into the spa’s sauna and steam room.
Iceland Vacation Day One Activity List
- Visit the Blue Lagoon
- Horseback Riding Iceland
- Self-guided Walking Tour of Reykjavik
Icelandic horses are so much fun to ride, even if you have never ridden a horse. You must experience the tolt!
I love horses, and there was no way I was going to miss out on my chance to ride Icelandic horses. We booked a ride with Íslenski Hesturinn – The Icelandic Horse. I definitely recommend this company. They are top-rated on TripAdvisor. Our entire experience went smoothly. Riding an Icelandic horse was every bit as wonderful as I dreamed it would be!
I could go on and on about the Icelandic horses. We took tons of photos on our horse riding tour. We also saw lots of Icelandic horses as we drove around the countryside. My husband knows how much I love these unique-to-Iceland horses, so he was always willing to pull over so I could pet them and take more pictures.
The sun was shining and the early May temperature was warm. We did a self-guided walking tour of Reykjavik. It is an easy city to get around without a car. You can actually walk to any attractions you want to see within Reykjavik. Highlights include: Hallgrímskirkja church, Harpa Concert Hall and Conference Center, and the Sun Voyager sculpture on the Coastal Path.
Simply let yourself get lost (don’t worry, you won’t really get lost lost) in the city’s neighborhoods. Colorful houses line the streets. Don’t miss the main shopping district in the city center. Be on the lookout for street art.
We made the most of our two days in the Reykjavik area, but left so much undone. All our trip really did was give us a taste of Iceland that made us want to come back for more. Next time, we want to bring our children to explore this fascinating country.
Search Here for Hotels.com Best Hotel Deals! in Iceland
Have you ever been to Reykjavik? Do you want to go on an Iceland vacation?
Don’t miss what we did on Day 2 of our Iceland Vacation! We drive to see amazing waterfalls near Reykjavik, visit Thingvellir National Park and Geysir. I have lots of photos to share.
Emily @DomesticDeadline.com says
I really want to go to Iceland one day! Thanks for sharing at #HomeMattersParty
gala says
Dear Nicole
Thank you for so much information, looking forward to more pictures and information about your second day
Nicole says
You are welcome! Feel free to ask me any more questions, I love to talk about our trip to Iceland. Also, I will definitely try to hurry and get our Day 2 posted soon.
Your questions help me know what kind of information people may be looking for on blogs, so I appreciate your comments. It definitely helps direct what I write on the posts. There is so much I could say about trips, but I try to condense it down so people will actually want to read it. LOL –Nicole 🙂
gala says
THanks a lot. We’re going to Iceland in may too. SO how was the weather? tell more about food? Do you think it’s possible to do horse riding without any experience at all? How expencive life in Iceland?
Nicole says
Hi Gala, We had amazing weather on the days we were in Iceland. It was sunny both days and the high temperatures were in the 60 degrees F range. I still wore a light jacket when we were outdoors. Honestly, we could not have gotten better weather for this time of year. We were also prepared with gear for rain and cooler temperatures, which are common in the spring. My advice is to watch the weather right before you leave home, so you know what kinds of conditions to expect. Bring layers of clothing so you can add or take off clothing as the temperature changes.
YES, you can absolutely do the horseback riding with no experience. Our guides made sure that everyone in our group felt comfortable no matter their skill level. There were several people who had never been on a horse before and they had a wonderful time. The Icelandic horses we rode were extremely well-trained and gentle.
The prices on food in Iceland are higher compared to prices in other European countries we have visited. Not outrageously high, but do expect to pay more money when you eat out at restaurants or go to the grocery store. We only ate out a couple of times, but the food was good. My favorite Icelandic food is the yogurt called Skyr. It is so good and actually not expensive! We also went to the top recommended hot dog stand Baejarins Beztu Pylsur so we could try the famous Icelandic hot dog (these are also not expensive, so good if you are on a food budget!)
Other traditional foods include stuff like shark, puffins and sheep head. I would definitely recommend researching a good restaurant if you want to be adventurous and try those dishes.
Thank you for your questions, I hope I was able to give you the answers you needed. Have a wonderful time planning your trip! –Nicole