An Iceland Road Trip
Our trip to Iceland was split into two parts: Our five days based in Reykjavík, which you’ve been reading about thus far, and our three days road-tripping around The Golden Circle and the Snæfellsnes Peninsula. For us, this was the perfect combination of urban exploring and hitting the open road! Those three days in our little rental car would bring us from wild adventures like snowmobiling on a glacier to poignant ones like standing in front of the most dramatic vistas these eyes have ever seen.
After completing the Golden Circle route, on day one, we set off north of Reykjavík through the scenic Hvalfjörður Fjord. It was the perfect introduction to what would become a theme of the trip — staring silently, jaws slacked and slightly drooling at the views through the windshield until one of us would invariably state that it was the most beautiful thing we had ever seen.
I was most interested in this area because it is home to Iceland’s largest whaling station — a site of great controversy — but security is apparently extremely tight because we couldn’t even find the place. Our consolation prize was this bizarre tiny “Whale Museum” attached to the side of a petrol station.
We were passing many charming little towns and hike-able mounts, but it was for good reason. Don’t let the light in the photos below deceive you, it was nearly 9pm when they were taken! The twenty-four hour summer sun did benefit us in that we never had to worry about driving in the dark in an unfamiliar country.
Our destination for the night was the waterside town of Borgarnes, a convenient stopping point en route to the Snæfellsnes Peninsula.
While we were overwhelmed with options for luxury accommodation in Reykjavík, finding hotels of the same standard outside the capital was more of a challenge. In Borgarnes we stayed at the Hotel Hamar, a very efficient and Scandinavian-feeling golf hotel. Golfers we are not but we did enjoy the lush views and the hot tubs — features ubiquitous at many Iceland hotels.
In the morning, we set off for the Settlement Center — a museum so raved about that it convinced us to make Borgarnes our stopping point for the night. We donned headsets that walked us through both of the center’s fantastic interactive exhibitions while obviously violating the no camera rule.
The Settlement Center lived up to the hype. I left with both a better understanding of the history of Iceland and its Sagas as well as a major respect for whoever put together such a fantastic museum in a little town in West Iceland. Also, the restaurant served us one of the best meals we had in all of Iceland. Get thee to the Settlement Center!
From Borgarnes we drove straight through to the Snæfellsnes Peninsula. We had chosen this area for our mini road-trip because it was small and close to Reykjavík, meaning we could spend just as much time out of the car as in it. With only a few days we did not have time to circle The Ring Road, one of the most famous road trips in the world. However, Lonely Planet Iceland assured us that Snæfellsnes would offer “a cross section of the best Iceland has to offer in a very compact region.”
And so our first stop was quaint Stykkishólmur, the largest town on the peninsula with a population of 1,100 residents. The hamlet was a charming combination of colorful maritime houses, a harbor surrounded by basalt islands, and a peculiar futuristic church.
This was certainly a different side of Iceland to the cosmopolitan lifestyle we had encountered in Reykjavík. Walking through this somewhat isolated and provincial town, we speculated what life was like for its residents.
One thing I was delighted to finally spot was a nod to Iceland’s elf culture. Polls of Icelanders are consistent in showing that the majority of citizens do in fact believe in the existence of elves, and roads and building projects are often adjusted so as not to disturb the supernatural beings. It’s a fascinating yet touchy subject that The New York Times did a fantastic job of writing about.
Eventually we wandered off the streets and into The Library of Water, a permanent exhibition by American artist Roni Horn. Housed in what was once the town’s actual library is an installation of 24 floor-t0-ceiling columns, each filled with water from 24 unique glaciers. Today the space is used not only as an exhibition space but also for small concerts, gatherings and even yoga classes.
The small room is filled with thousands of different viewpoints as the water reflects and refracts whatever is on the other side — people, views out the window, other columns. Each column is dedicated to a single glacial source, and a chart allowed us to find which columns held parts of glaciers we had seen or were going to see on our trip. Despite having a Bachelor’s of Fine Arts, I’m often unimpressed by installation and conceptual art. But I felt the artist’s deep love for Iceland, and being here amongst parts of glaciers from all around the country was a truly unique experience.
Our next stop in Stykkishólmur was Noska Húsið, the oldest building in the area and home to the municipal museum. Built by local merchant Arni Thorlacius in 1832, this was the first two-story house in Iceland and for many decades it was the largest.
Because Iceland has almost no sources of natural timber, Arni personally traveled to Norway to fetch the building materials and also hired an architect from Copenhagen, both facts contributing to the nickname “The Nordic House”. Today, the building has been restored to show a typical upper-class home in 19th century Iceland.
I was eager to hop on one of Seatours‘ wildlife-spotting boat trips around the bay and its many islands. However my mom and sis were a bit boated out, so in the spirit of compromise we instead hiked up to Sugandisey, a basalt island that is home to the town’s lighthouse and great views of the by.
Sometimes compromise works out pretty well.
Eventually we tore ourselves away from Stykkishólmur, as we still had another drive before reaching our hotel for the night. In Iceland, even the shortest stretches of road are guaranteed to hold some sort of curiosity or adventure. Not ten minutes after getting back in the car I called for a photo-op when we passed some particularly punky-looking Icelandic horses, resulting in some of my favorite images from all of Iceland.
Also along this route we drove through Bersekjahraunsvegur (not a typo), a moon-like landscape created by eerie lava fields.
At the far end of the Bersekjahraunsvegur we ran into the Bjarnarhöfn Shark Museum. This smelly attraction is where tourists go to learn more about the Icelandic tradition of consuming rotting shark flesh. Sorry, does that not sound appetizing to you? The museum owners would be happy to change your mind with a free sampling of hákarl!
The Icelandic delicacy of hákarl is Greenland shark, a species so inedible that is must rot underground for six months before it can be digested by humans. My mom, extremely sensitive to smell, wouldn’t even get out of the car. Olivia and I paid the entrance fee and wandered around inside, but there wasn’t really much to see. I think the real draw here is the free tasting — and for once I felt totally comfortable not getting my money’s worth.
As we pulled away from the smelly sharks and towards our destination of Grundarfjörður, I was again quieted by Iceland’s immense beauty.
In one day we had explored Iceland’s history, delved into its modern art scene, sighed at its natural beauty and learned about its elf-and-shark-loving quirks. I could only imagine what tomorrow would bring.
You really should be an equestrian photographer Alex, your photos of horses are always so unbelieveable! Looks magnificent, the image you took in the water museum are spectacular, they should definitely be buying them for their brochures 🙂
Thank you so much Sarah! I love photographing animals but usually they are so darn uncooperative. These horses on the other hand were so laid back… they loved it!
This trip looks perfect and I love the idea of a few days urban experience and a few days outside of the city. I am seriously looking into Iceland for a trip next summer and 8 or 9 days is about all my husband wants to take in the summer. So it’s great to see that it can be done! Is there are anywhere in Iceland that you regret not seeing?
Hi Susan! I hope you end up choosing Iceland, it’s such an amazing destination. My only regrets from our little road trip was that we passed tons of great hiking opportunities but we didn’t really have the time to take advantage of them. And in Reykjavik I wish we had had more time to check out the museums and galleries. We were so busy doing activities all the time we didn’t really have much time for the city’s sights! Hope that helps 🙂
I love that you wrote “Not a Typo”. So many of the Icelandic words I don’t even read – I just skim my eyes over because they befuddle my brain! haha Great article and it is always so hard to believe that the sun stays so bright all hours of the day! GREAT for sightseeing! Never limited to specific times!!
Oh my gosh I know what you mean about the names. I was so embarrassed of my pronunciation, anytime we were talking about the peninsula we were visiting I would refer to it as “Snay-fell-blah-blah!” People generally knew what I was referring to, ha.
Awesome road trip Alex!!! Though somehow I don’t think our upcoming road trip will be quite as glamourous (but can you come along and be our photographer?!) 🙂
Oh my gosh I would love to! I bet India is a photographer’s dream…
I loved this post because of the variety. Couple of comments, I did not think the church was ‘peculiar’. It was a aspirational statement for the congregation. I found it very appealing. Second comment, you will see the same eerie lava landscape when you are on the big island in Hawaii. Finally, I liked the water exhibit which truly I doubt you would see anywhere else on our planet
Good comments 🙂 Iceland is known for its…. interesting churches plopped in the middle of very traditional towns. We loved spotting them! And I’m looking forward to seeing that lava landscape again on Big Island! It’s such a unique look.
I love your horse pictures! And I can’t imagine how bad the rotten shark smelled, haha. I don’t think I would’ve eaten it either.
Yeah I don’t eat seafood or especially shark to begin with (I don’t think we are meant to eat the world’s top predators!) but the whole rotting thing didn’t help either!
The horse pics? Amaaaaazing! Seriously they belong in a magazine!!! Your posts are making me want to return to Iceland so badly. PS Love your outfit!
Thank you so much Andi! I’d love to get into selling my photos and prints but I just have no idea how to get started. And thanks for noticing my outfit! It was nice to feel put together while traveling… when I was in Asia with the same bag for a year I got SO sick of my clothes!
Wow Iceland should be paying you for the amount of posts you are churning out haha. Love it!
Also how exciting that you’re going to Hawaii soon (tomorrow?). Cant wait to read about it.
I know! I think at the end I’ll have written fourteen posts — for an eight day trip!
Does it ever get warm in Iceland?? You and your sister look so cute in your warm fall outfits but it’s crazy that that’s the summer wear there!
Actually the day we left home, New York was in the middle of a heat wave so it felt GREAT to us! Ha. I think the look of my outfit might be a little deceiving, in reality both the leggings and the top were very thin. I was really concerned about the weather but on the warmest day it got into the 70s! Nights were chilly but a jacket was sufficient.
Iceland looks so beautiful, Alex! The landscapes are not to be believed, they are so lush and gorgeous. Thank you for sharing all of these inspiring pictures with us!
Aw, thank you so much Steph! Iceland was really inspiring for me photographically.
Wow Alex, your photos just get better and better. I absolutely LOVE all of these, especially the Library of Water shots – amazing 🙂
It was such an amazingly unique place! I love seeing what creative people are up to all over the globe.
Your photos are beautiful. What kind of camera do you use?
Hey MC, you can find descriptions and reviews of all my camera equipment on the Gear and Products page… let me know if you have any other questions!
Hi Alex, You probably won”t remember me,but I took care of you and your sister as infants at Riverview Daycare.Seems like yesterday. I ran into your Mom today at a craft show I was doing.,and she said to drop you a line and check out your site.Wow! You can sure see your love for photography! My Youngest son shares the same intrest and going to school for that now.Well it was so nice to see your Mom and fine out about you and your Sister,be safe in your travels.Sincerly,Susan Reed
Susan, thank you so much for taking the time to check out the site! I really appreciate that and your kind words. I’m sure it’s funny to compare the bratty toddler you last knew to the voice writing this blog 🙂
Fascinating to see pictures of Iceland in the summer, thanks for sharing. We went in winter to try and catch the Northern Lights and had a fantastic time driving around the golden circle and the southern shores. Also had some giggle as the Phallological museum in Reykjavik!
Ha, I gave that one a miss… not sure my mom would have loved it 😉
Hi Alex!
I bumped into your blog a few months ago when I was planning my trip to Santorini and MYkonos, so now I decided to come back and check out the rest! 😉 I really am in awe of the life you lead and if I had the chance to talk to you in person I would spend days listening to your extraordinary travel experiences! 🙂 My trip to Iceland dates back to 2007, but the memories are still very much alive …it is one of those places that will stay etched in your soul forever and ever! It was an organized tour so we got to do all the Ring Road, and I must tell you you HAVE TO go back and cover the north, east and south part of the island as well! The peninsula you wrote about in this post is the only part we missed, but your Icelandic picture will not be complete until you check out the Myvatn and Krafla areas in the north, the Namaskard site, and the Vatnajokull and its iceberg lagoon in the south! 🙂 I know you’ve traveled extensively and must be kind of jaded by now, still those places are bound to take your breath away all the same, I promise!
I don’t have a blog but you can check out my pictures on intagram if you want…:) there’s some from Iceland as well! I’m silzysland on there.
Ok then, I’ll go back reading now…;)
Thanks for making me mind-travel with you! 😉
xoxo – Silvia
Hey Silvia! Your Iceland trip sounds amazing. I don’t think I could ever get so jaded as to ignore Iceland’s beauty… I absolutely plan to go back someday. What an amazing country! I’d love to go to Airwaves and to drive the Ring Road! Thanks for reading my dear!
Your pictures are really astonishing, just love your blog and especially Iceland. I ‘ll hope to be able to get back there soon !
Tell me about it! I’d love to return to Iceland!