Description
| Type of Tour: | Escorted Coach Tour |
|---|---|
| Duration: | 6 days / 5 nights |
| Visit: | Stockholm – Kiruna – Jukkasjärvi – Kiruna |
| Includes: | • Shared arrival and departure airport transfers in Reykjavik • 5 nights accommodation • Entrance to the Northern Lights Centre (Day 2) • Geothermal bakery experience at Laugarvatn Fontana (Day 2) • Visit and introduction to an Icelandic Search and Rescue Teams Base • Entrance to the Lava Centre and volcano film at the Lava Centre’s Cinema • Blue Lagoon bathing fee and rent of towel, silica mud mask and one drink • Northern Lights guided hunt on foot one selected evening • Northern Lights hunting kit (blanket and headlight) • Meals as indicated in itinerary (B=breakfast, D=Dinner) |
| Excludes: | • Airfare and airport taxes • Beverages during meals except for tap water or tea/coffee • Extras at hotels not mentioned • Guaranteed early check-in or late check-out • Travel insurance, meals and services not listed above, optional tours and activities, gratuities. |
| Notes: | • All departures are guaranteed with minimum of 2 participants • The supplier reserves the right to amend routes without prior notice due to road conditions. • Solo travel option on the following dates, 15% discount on sgl room price: Feb 11, Nov 12, Jan 21, Mar 9 |
| Accommodation: | Accommodation will be provided in standard rooms with private facilities in hotels roughly equivalent to 3 and 4 stars although Iceland has no official hotel grading. |
Full Itinerary
Day 1: REYKYAVIK
If you are arriving earlier in the day, you might consider adding a day tour. We’d be happy to make suggestions based on your interests. One of our favorite activities after a long flight is to visit one of the neighborhood geothermal pools. It is so refreshing to relax in the warm water, breathing in the fresh Icelandic air. It’s a great way to get to see Icelandic daily life and maybe meet a few locals. It’s also nice to take a stroll in the old city center, perhaps visiting one of the museums or relaxing with a cup of coffee in a cozy café.
Please note guaranteed early check-in is not included in the price. Most hotels begin check-in around 14:00 (2:00pm).
Overnight: Reykjavik
Day 2: THINGVELLIR – GEYSIR – GULLFOSS
Northern Lights Centre – National Park with Geological Wonders (UNESCO) – Lively Geysers – The Famous Golden Falls
After breakfast complete check out procedures. Start the adventure by visiting the fascinating Aurora Reykjavik Northern Lights Centre. You will get a great introduction to northern lights, how they are formed and the folklore surrounding them. Then head onwards to Thingvellir National Park (UNESCO World Heritage site) where the world’s oldest parliament met for centuries on the shores of Iceland’s largest lake. You might even have the rare chance to walk between two continents. Continue on to the geothermal fields of Geysir with bubbling mud pools and the high-spouting Strokkur hot spring. Last but not least, visit the dramatic two-tiered Gullfoss waterfall, a spectacular sight in winter when frozen mid-cascade. Stop at Skalholt, Iceland’s capital “city” during the Middle Ages and now a culture centre with a beautiful church.
During the day you will also visit the town of Laugarvatn. The town is built around three hot springs, and the residents have cleverly harnessed the hot springs for heating, greenhouses and even cooking. You’ll visit a unique outdoor geothermal bakery where sweet Icelandic rye bread is baked in the hot sands. You’ll have the chance to taste some of the freshly baked bread, hot from the ground. It’s especially delicious slathered in sweet Icelandic butter.
If weather conditions are right, your guide will take you on a northern lights hunt on foot in the area outside your hotel tonight, or on the evening of Day 3 or 4 (subject to weather conditions)
Overnight: Gullfoss (BD)
Day 3: ICELAND’S SOUTH SHORE
Waterfalls – Lava Centre – Glacial Views – Black Sand Beaches
After breakfast complete check out procedures. Drive along the South Shore, an area of Iceland that is especially beautiful to view in the winter. This is one of the main farm regions of the country. This part of Iceland is home to the wonderful LAVA Centre, an interactive, high-tech educational exhibition depicting volcanic activity, earthquakes and the creation of Iceland over millions of years. Enjoy both the exhibit and viewing an interesting film about Icelandic volcanoes at the Centre’s cinema. If the skies are clear you might see the area’s two most famous volcanoes in the distance: Mount Hekla (last eruption 2000) and Eyjafjallajokull (last eruption 2010). You might also possibly catch a glimpse of Westman Islands archipelago off the coast of Iceland.
Stop at the spectacular waterfalls Seljalandsfoss and Skogafoss. It has an interesting history geologically, and it just may also be hiding some buried treasure from the Middle Ages. Head onwards, passing Myrdalsjokull Glacier, to visit Reynisfjara beach. Take a walk on the black sands, admiring the extraordinary rock formations and waves of the Atlantic Ocean. Cross Eldhraun, a vast lava field created from a very destructive 18th-century eruption as you head into Southeast Iceland. The snows of winter make this landscape into something very mysterious.
Overnight: Kirkjubaejarklaustur (BD)
Day 4: VATNAJOKULL NATIONAL PARK – JOKULSARLON GLACIAL LAGOON
Western Europe’s Largest National Park – Glacial Lagoon with Icebergs – Europe’s Largest Glacier
After breakfast you will complete check out procedures. Today you will be in a world of glaciers! You’ll be visiting the southern area of Vatnajokull National Park, named after Europe’s largest glacier. The total park area covers almost 14% of Iceland, making it the largest national park in Western Europe. Drive through vast sand plains created by glacial outwashes as you head east. Visit Jokulsarlon Glacier Lagoon where you can enjoy the breath-taking sight of icebergs floating in the fantastic 180m deep glacial lagoon. Nearby is the dramatic beauty of the Diamond Beach, where shrinking icebergs settle on the black sands before they drift out to sea. Then view Svinafellsjokull, one of the most beautiful glacial “tongues” that are slowly creeping down from Vatnajokull. Visit the national park’s famous Skaftafell area, a site of outstanding natural beauty dominated by several magnificent glaciers.
Overnight: Southeast Iceland, Vatnajokull (BD)
Day 5: HVERAGERDI – BLUE LAGOON – REYKJAVIK
Greenhouse Village – Thundering Waves – Geothermal Lagoon
After breakfast complete check out procedures. Head back along the beautiful South Coast, enjoying a different view of the winter landscapes. Visit the village of Hveragerdi, which is one of the few sites in the world located directly in the middle of a geothermal area. Hveragerdi is often called “The Flower Village” because of its many flower greenhouses heated by hot water from nearby springs. Turn onto a southern coastal road and follow alongside the shoreline with its breath-taking sea waves, passing through a deserted community that once was a flourishing centre for the region.
The trip takes you through the surreal landscapes of the Reykjanes peninsula, where you can enjoy a dip in the famous Blue Lagoon, a unique wonder of nature with pleasantly warm, mineral-rich water in the middle of a black lava field. Return to Reykjavik, where the evening open for you to enjoy your own activities
Overnight: Reykjavik (B)
Day 6: FAREWELL TO THE LAND OF FIRE AND ICE
After breakfast you will be transferred to the airport.
Rates
| HIDDEN POWERS AND NORTHERN LIGHTS HUNT (Escorted tour) – Min.2 pass. – Up to 24 pass.) | 6 Days | Currency | Per Person Sharing |
|---|---|---|---|
| 11** February 2021 from: 25 March 2021 from: | Reykjavik – Reykjavik | EUR | 1 109 |
| 14, 21** & 26 January 2021 from: 16, 23 and 25 February 2021 from: 4, 9**,16,18 & 23 March 2021 from 1 & 6 April 2021 from: | Reykjavik – Reykjavik | EUR | 1 161 |
Includes: Shared arrival and departure airport transfers in Reykjavik, 5-night escorted coach tour; sightseeing and entrance fees as per itinerary; meals as per itinerary.
Excludes: Beverages during meals except for tap water or tea/coffee.
Note:All services and activities are subject to weather conditions.
**Solo travel option on the following dates Feb 11, Nov 12, Jan 21, Mar 9
All rates will be converted at time of final payment according to ITT’s bank selling rates. Please double check the final ZAR amount with us on day of payment. All services are subject to availability at time of booking and subject to the General Terms and Conditions of ITT Inspirations Travel & Tours (PTY) LTD.
