4 x 4 Highlands and Lowlands 8 days
This tour covers the most interesting lowland sights in Iceland, as well as being a real highland adventure.
BP13 Map
Upon arrival at Keflavik airport, a meet and greet service is provided by a TOURIS representative who will take you to your Reykjavik hotel.
Highlights of the day:
Reykjavík
Overnight:
Reykjavík
Optional activity:
Reykjavik City Card
Pick up the car in the morning and drive along Hvalfjordur fjord, surrounded by high mountains and to the Borgarfjörður District where you will visit Deildartunguhver, Europe's largest hot spring. Drive further inland to the waterfalls Hraunfossar and Barnafoss, some of Iceland's most beautiful cascades and through the Húsafell woodlands. Proceed over the mountain pass Kaldidalur, one of Icelands highest mountain roads, to Thingvellir National Park, a unique place from a geological point of view. Research has shown that Thingvellir is a natural wonder on an international scale. The faults and fissures of the area make evident the rifting of the earth's crust. Thingvellir is also the most historical place in Iceland and a place of exceptional beauty. Thingvellir were accepted as a UNESCO world heritage site in 2004.
Driving distance
230 kilometers
Highlights of the day:
Deildartunguhver
Hraunfossar
Reykholt town
Þingvellir
Overnight:
South west area
Recommended optional activity:
The Settlement Exhibition and The Egil Saga Exhibition
Krauma Baths
Continue to the Great Geysir area and explore the hot springs and see the famous Great Geysir and Strokkur, an active geyser that spouts every few minutes, as well as numerous other hot springs. The Geysir Service Center offers a restaurant, hotel, swimming pool, souvenir shop, snack bar, gas station, a geo-center multimedia show, horse rental, quad bike tours, and a camping area. Continue to the majestic waterfall Gullfoss one of Icelands most beautiful waterfalls. Turn around at Gullfoss and head back to the waterfall Faxi and to the volcanic crater Kerið. After a short stop at Kerið continue to the town Selfoss. From here drive east and stop at the waterfalls Seljalandsfoss and Skógafoss a little further along the main road. A walk behind Seljalandsfoss is an option during the summer and can be quite a unique experience The glaciers Eyjafjallajökull and Mýrdalsjökull are towering above.
On March 20th 2010, a volcanic eruption started on Fimmvörðuháls, a mountain ridge between the glaciers, Eyjafjallajökull and Mýrdalsjökull. The eruption on Fimmvörðuháls lasted a couple of weeks. After this eruption came to an end a new and bigger eruption started underneath the nearby icecap of Eyjafjallajökull Glacier. This eruption came to an end on 23. May 2010.
Make a detour to the glacier Sólheimajökull (passable only during summer) before continuing to Dyrhólaey natural reserve and a nesting colony of numerous seabirds (closed for all traffic during the nesting period until June 25th). The promontory at Dyrhólaey is a massive natural arch carved by the relentless pounding of the winds and surf. Drive to Reynishverfi, with beautiful coast, spectacular rock formations and thousands of nesting seabirds which nest in almost every crevice in summer.
Driving distance
220 kilometers
Highlights of the day:
Gullfoss Waterfall and Geysir Hot Springs
Faxi waterfall
Kerið
Skógafoss Waterfall
Seljalandsfoss Waterfall
Dyrhólaey Nature Reserve
Reynisfjara beach
Vík Town
Overnight:
Vík area
Recommended optional activity:
Glacier Walk
Snowmobiling on Solheimajokull Glacier
LAVA Centre
Drive across the Mýrdalssandur floodplains and Eldhraun, the largest lavafield ever to flow on Earth in historical time, and to the small village Kirkjubaejarklaustur. Fjaðrárgljúfur is a narrow and beautiful canyon a few km to the west from Kirkjubæjarklaustur, worth taking a look at. At Kirkjubæjarklaustur see Kirkjugólfið (the Church Floor), a protected natural monument just east of Klaustur. Kirkjugólfið is columnar basalt, eroded and shaped by wind and water. Then continue over Skeidarársandur, vast tracts of black sandy desert washed down by torrential glacial rivers. Stop at the Skaftafell National Park, an oasis wedged between sand and glacier. Its natural beauty is a result of favourable weather conditions and the interaction of fire and ice. Beneath the Vatnajökull ice cap, towering above Skaftafell is Grímsvötn, one of Iceland’s most active volcano. In the afternoon of 21. May 2011, a sub-glacial eruption started in the Grímsvötn volcanic system underneath Vatnajökull Glacier. Later the same day, the eruption broke the ice cover of the glacier and started spewing volcanic ash into the air. The amount of ash fall was the greatest close to the village Kirkjubæjarklaustur. The eruption went on for about a week. It ceased on 28. May 2011. See the interesting Visitors Center where you can learn the history of fire and ice in the region and a video of the volcanic eruption and the catastrophic flood in the area in 1996 can also be viewed. An interesting hiking trail takes you to Svartifoss, one of Icelands most picturesque waterfall, framed in by beautiful basalt columns that surround it. In the area are many other interesting hiking trails. Continue to Jökulsarlón the Glacial Lagoon where huge icebergs, sculptures of nature, broken off the glacier float and grind together in the deep blue waters of the lagoon. A cruise among the icebergs on the Lagoon is available in summer. Make the Jökulsárlón a turnaround point and drive back to the Kirkjubæjarklaustur area.
Driving distance
320 kilometers
Highlights of the day:
Kirkjubæjarklaustur town
Fjaðrárgljúfur Canyon
Skaftafell National Park
Svartifoss waterfall
Jökulsárlón Glacial Lagoon
Overnight:
Kirkjubæjarklaustur area
Recommended optional activity:
Amphibian boat Tour on Jökulsárlón Glacier Lagoon
Drive to Lakagígar craters. A rewarding, although a bumpy drive the scenery at the end of the trail makes it worth the effort as there are few wild and rugged natural wonders that equal the beauty of the Laki area.
Lakagígar craters, named for Mt. Laki, which the 25km long eruption fissure runs through. The craters are on a roughly south-west to a north-east trending line, the general line of fissure eruptions in Iceland. About two thirds of the more than hundred craters are west of Mt. Laki, while the remainder lies south of it. The craters were created in an eruption of five months duration and from them issued the greatest volume of lava on Earth in a single eruption within historical times.
Most of the enormous lava flows are covered with a thick carpet of green moss. The whole area, scarred with colourful craters and volcanic debris has a character of grim beauty. Besides the enormous lavas that issued from the craters, about 500 million tons of gases and ash was ejected. This created clouds of ash and pumice and a haze that hung over the entire country during the eruption. These ash clouds spread with winds and rose high up in the stratosphere to encircle the globe and cause colourful sunsets in the northern hemisphere for the next year. From the craters issued molten lava, flowing down to lower ground, in two broad streams, filling and levelling hollows, small valleys and the deep canyon of the river Skaftá on their way down to lowlands, where they spread out to destroy numerous farms. The volume of lava was estimated in excess of thirty billion tons and the area of land covered is about 565 sq km.
Driving distance
120 kilometers
Highlights of the day:
Kirkjugólf Basalt Columns
Laki Craters
Overnight:
Kirkjubæjarklaustur area
The Fjallabak route is one of the most scenic trails in the interior highlands of Iceland, perhaps the most colourful and diversified of the many interesting mountain tracks, rugged colourful landscape of unsurpassed beauty. One of the highlights of the route is Eldgjá, one of the most interesting sights in this part of the country. Here nature has created a unique spectacle splitting mountains and valleys in its course creating a gigantic 30 km long gash into the earth, in some places is up to 600m wide and up to 200m deep. The volcanic fissure is considered to be the greatest of its kind on earth. Ófærufoss, used to be one of the country´s most beautiful waterfall, framed by a natural bridge, arching over the rivers gorge that collapsed years ago.
Continue to Landmannalaugar, nesting under the high edge of an obsidian lava flow. Here is a warden station, mountain hut and a camping site. Near the hut is a warm water pool created by the confluence of natural hot water and a coldwater springs. Bathing here in the natural hot spring water is a great experience.
The scenic interest in the area is tremendous. The mountains here are perhaps the most varied and colourful in Iceland.
A hike to nearby Bláhnjúkur, where the visitor has unobstructed view of the surrounding countryside is highly recommended, also to Jökulgil, a long rugged defile with several side canyons and tributary gullies. High up on the slopes above the lava under which the hut nestles is a colourful thermal area, springs emitting sulphurous odours. Leave Landmannalaugar and pass lake Frostastaðavatn, surrounded by colourful mountains and craters. Visit Landmannahellir, a cave that runs some distance into a hillside. This mountain track known as Landmannaleið is rugged and rocky in sections. The track passes through a wide variety of canyons, valleys, over rock ridges and black lava, weird plain of lava rocks surrounded by captivating mountains. The mountain track over Landmannaleið offers some of the finest scenic views available throughout this fascinating region. Off the track there are various trails leading to the volcano Hekla, which is in view on and off to the south of the trail.
Driving distance
230 kilometers
Highlights of the day:
Eldgjá Canyon
Landmannalaugar
Mt. Hekla
Overnight:
Hella area
Take the main road west to the village Hveragerði, where geothermal water is used to heat greenhouses for cultivation of decorative flowers and vegetables. Cross the plateau Hellisheiði, with a lot of geothermal activity and plumes of steam rising from the ground. Numerous boreholes have been drilled on Hellisheiði in the last years for hot water and steam, some of the cleanest energy available. Continue to The Blue Lagoon and enjoy a relaxing bath at the Blue Lagoon in an otherworldly setting where lava and thermal water complement each other to prepare you for your journey home. Filled with mineral-rich waters, the Blue Lagoon has become internationally known for providing soothing, medicinal relief for sufferers of skin ailments, as well as for others simply looking for a sensational bathing experience. Soak in the refreshing and healing waters of the Blue Lagoon, and have a wonderful last unforgettable taste of Iceland, that ensures that you are fully relaxed when you leave Iceland. If you plan to take a bath at the Blue Lagoon, we strongly recommend that you book your ticket in advance. It can be booked at www.bluelagoon.com Return to Reykjavík and drop off the car.
Driving distance
180 kilometers
Highlights of the day:
Hveragerði Town
The Blue Lagoon
Overnight:
Reykjavík
Private transfer from the hotel to Keflavik International Airport.
Transmission: Automatic
Seats: 5
Suitcases: 4
Doors: 5
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