Iceland- Beautiful and Inspiring
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On Wednesday 18th March 2016, we set off early morning for our 07:35 flight from London Luton. Travelling from Birmingham meant a tiring start, but we were excited and ready to go!
Arriving into the beautiful city of Reykjavik, we jumped off the plane and headed into the airport. We stopped off for a quick snack at the Joe & Juice, I had a Tunacado sandwich & smoothie - delicious! Once we finished, we hopped onto our coach for our transfer to the Blue Lagoon!
After a quick and scenic transfer, we arrived at the popular Blue Lagoon Spa. We were welcomed with sparkly, diamond blue water and tall rock formations which lead the way to the spa. After a few pics we headed in, got our wrist bands and quickly changed.
I genuinely did not know what to expect from the lagoon, of course I had heard all about it, but being there was a completely different thing. The weather was freezing, but the sun was beaming... I began walking into the lagoon and instant relaxation hit me. The water remained at a relaxing temperature of around 38 degrees - it was more than what I could ever have imagined. We spent most of the day here, trying out the different face masks on offer and enjoying a couple of drinks in the marvellous weather. Honestly, I could have stayed here until the night – the whole experience was just breath-taking.
After a few hours spent in the lagoon, we took a transfer back to our hotel. We stayed at the Hotel Cabin, which was conveniently located. The view from our room was incredible, it overlooked the beautiful ocean and we could see the glaciers in the distance topped with snow. Of course, hunger was now calling so we took a short 5-minute walk to the restaurant, Hamborgarafabrikkan. We feasted on some yummy hot wings, nachos, burgers and chunky chips!
The next day we took part in the famous Golden Circle Tour. This was honestly one of the best tours I have ever experienced. Our first stop was a tomato farm where we heard about how tomatoes were grown there and we got to taste some of the delicious homemade tomato soup along with warm bread, it was delicious. After this, we took a short walk to go and see the Icelandic horses - they were so cute!
Our second stop was to see the powerful Geysers. Here we were able to experience the incredible power of the Stokkur Geysir. With temperatures rising up to 100 degrees, the water bubbled, spurted and pulsed in and out. At certain times, the Geysirs would shoot up spraying hot water and mist high into the air. The main Geysir, Stokkur, is the most active going off every 5 minutes. Aside from the strong smell of Sulphur, this visit was incredible to see.
Our third stop of the Golden Circle Tour was to Gulfoss Waterfall; this has to be one of the most surreal experiences for me. As we took a walk down the steep hill, the water fell hard against the rocks and caused mist to spray like rainfall. The beauty of Gulfoss is impossible to describe, the only way to understand is to experience it yourself. The views here were stunning and the sound was calming. We decided to take a seat on a nearby bench and listen to the water rush by.
Our fourth and final stop was to Þingvellir National Park. Here, we took a 20-minute stroll up the mountain and visited a nice little shop that sold many Icelandic hand crafted items. We then headed back to our hotel.
On day 3 we took part in the South Shore Tour. This consisted of 6 stops and lasted for 10 hours. Our first stop was to a small village for a pit stop, here there was a few shops, a post office and a petrol station. We took a short walk just to stretch our legs as the coach journey for this tour was pretty long!
The second stop was to see some incredible Glaciers. We took a short walk along a mountain and came to a river, across the river was a magnificent Glacier standing tall. The view was impressive and the area was so peaceful. We were unable to trek up the Glacier due to the conditions (and due to the fact we didn’t have the right gear!), but taking the view in was more than enough. The sun was shining again today and it just made the experience even more enjoyable.
Our third stop was to the charming Black Sand Beach. The wind was so powerful, but the sun was out in all of its glory today which created a tranquil atmosphere. The rock formation along the beach was amazing, it looked as though man had sculpted them as part of an art project! The beach had weird and wonderful black stones and pebbles throughout. The sea roared with power as the waves crashed against the shore and the sun reflected off the water which caused it to sparkle and glisten – so pretty!
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On our fourth stop we visited the quiet village of Vik. The coastal town was very small, but had so much character. We took a walk up the steep hill towards the church. The views were lovely from here, we could see the whole town and the ocean. After this, we visited a shop and sat in the local café where they served hot homemade lamb and veg soup, delicious!
For the fifth stop, we visited the Skogar museum, where we learned about the history of the Vikings and got to see some of the tools, weapons and clothing they used. The tour guide told a story of how the Vikings would fish and make a living – it was very interesting stuff!
After our visit to the museum we had two more stops to make on the way back to Reykjavik. The two wonderful waterfalls; Seljalandsfoss and Skogafoss. This is what I was most excited about for the whole tour.
The first waterfall we visited was the Seljalandfoss. It stood at an incredible height and the power of the water was immense. The water crashed into the rocks and sprayed mist continuously – it was quite hard to keep my eyes open! After taking photos, we decided to be brave and take a walk up to the top of the waterfall – which can I say did not look as steep or as high as it actually was! To get to the top if took about 10 minutes and a lot of effort – it was all worth it once we stood over the waterfall. We looked out onto the city and the view was inspiring.
The second waterfall and last stop of the tour was Skogafoss. This was truly beautiful, we climbed some stairs and over a few rocks to walk behind the waterfall. This was such an amazing experience; I will never be tired of listening to water gushing down and falling onto the rocks.
On our fourth day in Reykjavik, we decided to take the opportunity and explore the city. The weather was great yet again – we were so lucky! We took a relaxed walk along the coast and took in the views of the ocean and glaciers. Once we reached the centre, which was about a 20-minute walk, we were met with tons of fascinating art work which coloured the town – it was outstanding! We also visited the Hallgrímskirkja Church, here you can climb stairs to the top and enjoy 360 degrees views of the city.
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My visit to Iceland was one to remember. I never really knew what to expect because I had never heard much about Iceland in the past, but I can see why it is becoming one of the most talked about and visited places in Europe. The wonders of this country are endless and the trip was inspiring and beautiful. The people are welcoming and kind, the food is delicious and the views are breath taking. I will be back Iceland – see you soon!
