Iceland has always sounded like a fantasy, make-believe world with unimaginable scenery. As a landscape photographer, it has always been a dream destination that felt impossible to go to due to the insane costs and the extended distance between Iceland and Hong Kong. Thus, when I decided to take a gap year and move to London, it seemed to me that it would be a perfect opportunity to finally visit this magical land. Two weeks in Iceland were absolutely not enough to explore everything this country has to offer, but here is my road trip itinerary.
Two-Week Iceland Road Trip Itinerary
DAY 1
Going to Stansted Airport itself was already a challenge. Our train got cancelled, and somehow, it wasn't due to the train strike but some technical issues with the overhead cable. We opted for Uber at the end after failing to get on any airport buses. The ride cost more than my flight ticket, but what could we have done? The flight was delayed and much bumpier than our Easyjet flight to Italy. We didn't get window seats, so we had no idea about the views. It was a daytime flight anyway, and I was only interested in having a window seat if we had the chance to see Aurora. The flight time was short, but it was still a tiring transit for us from London to Reykjavik. At least getting our rental car was a smooth process. I'll talk more about renting a car in Iceland in upcoming posts.
SKY LAGOON
Our bodies still hadn't recovered from our Dolomites trip yet. We were due for a relaxing experience. Out of all the hot springs available near Reykjavik, I chose Sky Lagoon as Blue Lagoon seemed too touristy for my taste. The landscaping design and aesthetic at Sky Lagoon from the videos resonated with me more. It did not disappoint. We pre-booked the cheapest package. Everything is super new with modern design. The ability to unlock a locker using our bracelets fascinated me. Watching the sunset at the horizon from the infinity pool that stretched out into the ocean was the highlight for me. The experience of going to a hot spring in Iceland differs immensely from going to one in Japan. In Japan, we are all naked and separated into male and female onsens. In the touristy ones in Iceland, there is a bar, and everyone there is holding a drink and socialising.
We stayed in the Igdlo Guesthouse in Reykjavik for the night.
DAY 2
REYKJAVIK
As we arrived at Reykjavik late on the weekend the previous day, most of the stores were closed, and we didn't get to see much. So we spent our first morning here in Iceland exploring its capital. We arrived at Rainbow Street early with hopes of getting better photos with no crowds, but we failed. It was a bit weird to shop for souvenirs before our trip even started. But nevertheless, we found cute graphic tees in a store named Rammagerdin. I also knew I needed an extra sweater for this winter, and I got a nice one from The Handknitting Association of Iceland. It was pricey, but I was able to fit in kid-sized sweaters and was able to save a bit of money.
We continued along Rainbow Street and reached Bæjarins Beztu Pylsur, a renowned hot dog stand. The lamb sausage, mixed with ketchup, mustard, fried and chopped onions, makes an exceptional combo. Next, we visited the Sun Voyager, Harpa Concert Hall and Conference Centre, and Hallgrimskirkja. It was pleasant to walk around, but I don't think anyone comes to Iceland just to visit Reykjavik.
GOLDEN CIRCLE
We left Reykjavik by midday and headed towards the Golden Circle. I had no expectations heading into the Golden Circle as I knew more exciting landscapes lay ahead. But it's on every itinerary I saw online, so why not do some warm-up before the real stuff? Our first stop in the Golden Circle was Kerid Crater, the only stop of the day that needed a parking fee. It is a volcanic crater lake where you can walk around the rim and down to the lake level. I personally enjoy the views of a crater from a bird's eye view better, but drones were prohibited there.
The next stop was Geysir, a geothermal area with active geysers & boiling mud pits. With the amount of tourists there, it felt like the geothermal areas I've visited in Japan or New Zealand. The main attraction there was Strokkur, a geothermal geyser that erupts every 8–10 minutes and reaches heights of 20 meters. It was a nice quick stop just next to the main road.
Gullfoss, translated to "Golden Falls", is where the Golden Circle got its name from. It has two drops, one measuring 11 meters and the other 21 meters. There are multiple walkways, letting you both overlook this majestic waterfall from afar and approach the splash zone close up. I always loved the immersive feeling you get when getting thoroughly soaked by a waterfall. Standing there, you can really feel how powerful it is. It was a great introduction to all the waterfalls we would see these two weeks.
All of the attractions in the Golden Circle are accompanied by visiting centres, restaurants, and gift shops. I personally enjoy more rugged and untouched landscapes more. Thus, I was looking forward to leaving all the gift shops behind after this.
We stayed in Laugaras Homestay these two nights.
DAY 3
One of the reasons we drove the Ring Road in an anti-clockwise direction was to maximise our chances of hiking in the highlands, which, in my humble opinion, is the best part of Iceland. We got our first taste of driving on F-roads heading into Kerlingarfjoll. The highlands can only be reached via F-roads, rough, unpaved gravel roads, closed during winter and only accessible in a 4×4 SUV vehicle. Driving on F-roads itself was a unique and thrilling experience. As we headed deeper into the highlands, the scenery became increasingly otherwordly. We were surrounded by vast emptiness with an occasional lone mountain here and there.
KERLINGARFJOLL
After around 1.5 hours on F35, we arrived at Kerlingarfjöll, my favourite place in Iceland. With its dazzling coloured rhyolite peaks and rising steam from the geothermal activities, this dramatic landscape was a paradise for photographers. Hiking trails lead up to various peaks in Kerlingarfjöll. With a telephoto lens, other hikers on opposite peaks created great subjects, and the steam made exciting framing.
There were multiple hiking trails available for different levels of hiking. We hiked a short loop around the area as we still had days of hiking coming up. In this geothermal valley, we crossed several bubbling rivers and snow-covered terrain. Seeing snow was always a delightful time for me after living in a tropical region for so long. I loved how there were no railings along the trail, as it was an off-the-beaten path with few tourists around, making it an authentic hiking experience. This 4km loop took about 3 hours as we stopped at every turn to take photos of the fascinating views.
We drove back to our accommodations via F-35. We passed by the Kerlingarfjoll Mountain Resort, the Gygjarfoss waterfall, and a horseshoe bend, some stops that made the long drive back more enjoyable. For lunch, we meal-prepped hotdogs, a foreshadowing of what we would have for most of this trip.
DAY 4
LANDMANNALAUGAR
Continuing our adventures in the highlands, we visited Landmannalaugar this day, another geothermal hiking paradise with rhyolite mountains of various shades of colours. The drive to Landmannalaugar was even more exhilarating than the one to Kerlingarfjöll. You can reach Landmannalaugar via three different routes. We weren't too confident in deep river crossings, so we chose the easiest one, F-26, then F-208. They were way bumpier than the F-35, with even more mind-blowing views. We stopped by Bláhylur, a gigantic crater lake that popped up in the middle of nowhere. The volcanic red craters were one of the most otherwordly landscapes I've seen on this trip.
Arriving at the Landmannalaugar campsite, we were immediately greeted with natural geothermal baths. But we were here to hike today, so we did not go into the baths this time. We trekked the Blahnukur Brennisteinsalda Loop, a day hike summiting Mt. Brennisteinsalda, aka the 'Sulphur Wave' crater, and Bláhnjúkur volcano, aka the 'Blue Peak', where we were treated with sweeping views of mountains with a spectrum of red, green, blue, and golden yellow. To me, the views fell a bit short after visiting Kerlingarfjöll the previous da
y, but the trail was extremely lovely and made this an exceptional day hike. This 10km hike took less than 4.5 hours to finish.
More details from the hike can be seen in my vlog.
(Route gpx can be found here.)
SELJALANDSFOSS
Leaving the highlands, we continued east along the Ring Road and started our journey in South Iceland. As we drove east, we could spot the towering Seljalandsfoss from afar. Seljalandsfoss has a drop of a massive 60 meters, yet the most impressive and distinctive feature wasn't its size and power. The most distinguishing feature of Seljalandsfoss is a pathway that stretches around it. We could walk behind the waterfall and see golden rays from the sunset shining through the splashing water.
GLJUFRABUI
Not far from Seljalandsfoss is Gljúfrabúi, another waterfall hidden in a narrow valley. If you didn't get soaked from walking behind Seljalandsfoss, you definitely would by waddling through a stream to reach Gljúfrabúi. Its mysterious nature truly captivated us.
We stayed in Guesthouse Skógafoss for the night and left exploring Skógafoss for the next day.
DAY 5
SKOGAFOSS WATERFALL HIKE
I really wanted to do the renowned Fimmvörðuháls trail for this day, but we just couldn't figure out the logistics and were exhausted from the previous hikes. So we only did the Skógafoss Waterfall Hike, where we walked past more than 20 waterfalls along the Skógá River. We started early at Skógafoss as it usually becomes jam-packed later in the day. I do think that it attracts such a crowd for a reason. It was not only accessible as it was at the side of the Ring Road, but it was also by far the most remarkable waterfall we'd seen that day, with a striking height of 60 meters.
As we continued along the Skógá River, the crowd became thinner, and the moss-covered canyon grew deeper. I'm not a huge waterfall fanatic, so this hike fell flat for me. But it was nice to be away from others, and the hike was chill.
KVERNUFOSS
After we finished this 16km out-and-back hike, we visited Kvernufoss, a charming little waterfall next to Skógafoss. Like Seljalandsfoss, we could walk behind this waterfall for a cool composition.
DYRHOLAEY
The weather started to turn bad as we arrived at Dyrhólaey at sunset. We were met with strong wind and heavy rain. But the weather wasn't what disappointed me. Standing behind the railings, I couldn't really see the sea arch. I saw gorgeous drone videos of Dyrhólaey at sunset online before coming, yet drones were prohibited there. I knew why the railings and rules were necessary, but still, as a photographer, I was let down by my high expectations.
We ended this overall underwhelming day at the Barn near Vik.
DAY 6
REYNISFJARA
Just beside Vik is the world-famous black-sand beach, Reynisfjara. It is famous for its sea stacks and columnar basalt. We were spoiled by sweeping hexagonal basalt columns found at the shorelines of Hong Kong, making the ones here seem less impressive. Yet, I still had a great time running along the extensive coastline of this beach. It was also fun to run around the rock formations and caves to find intriguing photo framing. The lighting was also fabulous, as the sun was still relatively low during the early morning. Worth noting is that this beach is also famous for its deadly sneaker waves, with the latest fatality in November 2022.
FJADRARGLUGUR
We made plans to visit Þakgil afterwards, but we did not have enough fuel or time for it, so we headed directly to Fjaðrárgljúfur. Fjaðrárglúgur is a dramatic canyon about 100 metres deep and 2 km long. The walkway and viewing platforms along the ridge were well-paved, closing off fragile limbs for nature preservation. Thus, it was hard to find decent angles to showcase the beauty of this ravine properly on foot, but we could drone there when we visited, so it was still all right for photography. A parking fee was required at Fjaðrárgljúfur for maintenance of the area. Even though there were no manned huts for that, cameras were installed to ensure the fees were paid on the app. We later found out it was a standard method all over Iceland.
It was nice to have a bit of a rest before doing another hike the next day. We stayed in Hvoll Hostel these two nights.
DAY 7
On day 7, we started our adventures in Vatnajökull National Park. Vatnajokull glacier is the largest glacier in Iceland and the second largest in Europe. It covers 10% of Iceland's area and includes many of the spots we will see these few days.
GLACIER HIKE
Our first adventure here was a highly anticipated glacier hike tour, which we booked with Arctic Adventures. For over three hours on the glacier, we hiked through narrow crevasses, explored stunning ice caves, and climbed deep into the glacier. The icy blue refracted from the glacier with its everchanging formations made the landscapes here entirely different from other places we've been to. We also learned much about glaciers from our knowledgeable guide and could first-handly see how alarmingly quickly the glacier was melting. I believe walking on a glacier is an experience that everyone should try if they come to Iceland. It was also worth joining a longer tour as I felt time wasn't enough even with this 5-hour tour.
I documented my whole experience in this vlog. Go check it out!
SVARTIFOSS
The tour ended at the Svartifoss parking lot, so we also visited Svartifoss. It was a 45-minute uphill walk to reach this 20m-high waterfall tumbling down a wall of hexagonal basalt columns. It was not the most remarkable waterfall in Iceland, but it was worth the short walk since we were already there.
DAY 8
MULAGLJUFUR CANYON
Before heading back into the glacier, we took a short hike to the Múlagljúfur Canyon, which was like Fjaðrárgljúfur on steroids. After walking about 40 minutes uphill, you would be greeted with an enchanting view of a deep canyon with green mossy cliffs and birds flying through the mist. To get to the trailhead of this canyon, you needed to drive on a gravel road for a bit with no signage. The trail wasn't clearly marked either, making this spot still quite a hidden gem. There were not as many tourists as in other spots; we could roam around freely to indulge in its magical views without the restraints of ropes and fences. This, together with Kerlingarfjöll, was probably the only place that truly exceeded my high expectations in Iceland.
GLACIER LAGOONS
Continuing eastward on the Ring Road, we visited more products of the Vatnajökull glacier. Fjallsárlón and Jökulsárlón are two glacier lagoons close by. We were able to see icebergs and them breaking off from a distance. The weather did not do these two lovely places justice, but the sapphire blue icebergs still looked gorgeous.
DIAMOND BEACH
At the junction of Jökulsárlón and the ocean was Diamond Beach. I really wanted to shoot the sun sinking from the horizon with diamond-like ice in the foreground, but it turns out that your experience at Diamond Beach really depends on your luck. We actually had already visited Diamond Beach the evening before, but there were minimal iceberg fragments on the beach. Luckily, our fate changed the next day. There were enormous chunks of dense icebergs taller than me and small ones that glistened like diamonds.
KAYAKING
After a warm meal of fish and chips from the food trucks at Jökulsárlón, we headed to Heinabergslón for a kayaking trip with Iceguide. We had kayaked a lot back in Hong Kong, but it was our first time kayaking in the cold. Paddling on a frozen lake and breaking through the ice were a unique experience. We also got to see icebergs and caves up close without the presence of other tourists. It was raining throughout the 2.5 hours we were on the lake, but the dry suits kept us warm and dry. I also documented my kayaking experience in the vlog.
We planned to watch the sunset at Vestrahorn that evening, but the weather worsened, and we thought there would be a better chance of actually seeing the peaks if we went the following morning. So we headed to Old Airline Guesthouse in Höfn for the night and hoped the clouds would clear up.
DAY 9
VESTRAHORN
I guess we lucked out by having sunshine and a clear sky in the highlands because the rain got worse and did not stop until a few days later. It was still a good decision to visit Vestrahorn this morning rather than the previous evening. We couldn't even see the mountain right before us when we looked out of our hostel window last evening. The sky was grey with no layers this morning, but at least we could still see the striking mountain clearly with its reflection. An entrance fee per person was required to enter the site, even if you were walking. I did not get the photos I planned for, but it was better than nothing.
We didn't stay long as we had a long driving day ahead. I bookmarked a few spots along the east fjords of Iceland, like Krossanesfjall and Búlandstindur. But we couldn't see anything through the heavy rain, so we continued without stopping. We took road 939 as a shortcut towards Egilsstadir, a steep mountain road which felt like being back on an F-road.
HENGIFOSS
It led us to my favourite waterfall in Iceland, Hengifoss. Tucked in the highlands of East Iceland is this spectacular waterfall. At around 128 meters tall, it is the 2nd highest waterfall in Iceland if we don't count the waterfall in the Morsárjökull glacier. But what captivated me wasn't its height but the layers of basaltic strata with thin layers of red clay between the layers accompanying it. Something about seeing red highlights in nature made it extra otherwordly, like the red craters in the highlands. We could also walk up close to the base of this majestic fall to truly see how tall it was. Reaching the waterfall took us around 40 minutes of walking on slippery rocks, but I really enjoyed it.
We stayed in Hjartarstaðir Guesthouse, right outside Egilsstaðir, for tonight.
DAY 10
STUDLAGIL CANYON
I saw a photo of Stuðlagil Canyon on Pinterest long ago with a turquoise blue glacier river flowing between straight basalt rock columns. That basically represented what Iceland looked like in my mind for a long while. It didn't really stand a chance against my expectations under the weather like this. We visited the east side of the canyon, which allowed us to get down to the basalt columns. Despite the number of tourists there, this was probably the only hike I felt unsafe on because the rocks were super slippery under the rain, especially with the glacier river rushing by in great force. I encountered people climbing down those rocks in sneakers instead of good hiking boots. It would be a much better experience if the weather wasn't that bad. We were miserably soaked in the rain after the hike. With some sunlight, the water would actually be turquoise instead of the dull colour we witnessed, and we could have flown our drone there. It would be an entirely different experience.
DETTIFOSS
Driving along the northern part of Iceland, the tourist spots became more sparse. The next stop was the east bank of Dettifoss, the most powerful waterfall in Europe. We could get quite close to the waterfall from the east side and appreciate its full power as water thundered down the cliff. The cliff was understandably fenced off now, so we couldn't get right up to the waterfall, as I've seen in other blogs.
It was worth walking a bit further into the valley to Selfoss, a more graceful waterfall with way fewer people. It was a much wider waterfall with an ensemble of smaller falls along the long edge. Again, I'm not a huge waterfall enthusiast. These two weren't the most incredible waterfalls we've seen on this trip, but it was nice to have some views to break down the long drive.
LAKE MYVATN
We stayed in the area of Lake Mývatn that night. There were a few spots we'd like to see before heading to the guesthouse, but heavy downpours returned. We skipped Mývatn Nature Baths, Grjótagjá, and Krafla Viti Crater and only visited Hverir, a geothermal area that resembles a mini Kerlingarfjöll. In front of yellowish-orange rolling hills were bubbling mud pools and warm steaming rock piles that you could walk right up to. It was a shame that we had to miss the other spots, but at least we had a good time at Hverir.
In Mývatn, we stayed in the Dimmuborgir Guesthouse.
DAY 11
We took a short walk at the Lava field Dimmuborgir. I am not that into folklore, which the lava caves are famous for. But I enjoyed the autumn colours, and the formations were intriguing. The area was too well-paved for my taste that we did not spend much time there.
HUSAVIK
We were then supposed to go on a whale-watching tour in Húsavík. I only found out it was cancelled due to strong wind after we got to Húsavík. The staff kindly helped us rearrange our experience to the next day in Árskógssandur, so we had a morning in Húsavík with nothing arranged. We went to GeoSea, a geothermal sea bath, for a relaxing morning. It was way less touristy and cheaper than Sky Lagoon. We were warmed up from the freezing cold breeze after this.
GODAFOSS
As we were back on the Ring Road, we arrived at Godafoss. We were finally at the tail end of waterfall encounters in Iceland, and each waterfall offered some features that the previous ones did not. For Godafoss, it was the ability to go near the water safely. It's 12 meters high and 30 meters wide, definitely not the biggest waterfall in Iceland. But it looked endearing, standing near the base of it.
It was another slow day, and we ended it in Akureyri Hostel in Akureyri. We finally dined out for dinner for the first time this trip.
DAY 12
Whale watching was scheduled for the afternoon, so we had the whole morning to explore Akureyri, a charming city on the rise. I was used to a more fast-paced travel style, but it was nice to be able to grab a coffee and chill at a cafe before continuing on our journey.
WHALE WATCHING
We booked our whale-watching tour with North Sailing and were given overalls to keep warm. We boarded a traditional wooden Iceland vessel with around twenty other people and secured the best viewing spot of the vessel. I was super excited and got my telephoto lens ready. The weather was getting better that day, and multiple rainbows showed up. The guide was very knowledgeable and taught us how to spot whales. We saw two humpback whales, which surfaced around ten times. It wasn't as extraordinary as swimming with pods of dolphins, but I think its scarceness made finally spotting one and capturing it even more special.
HVITSERKUR
Continuing along the Ring Road, we stopped at Blönduóskirkja, a tiny modern church, before reaching Hvitserkur. Hvitserkur is a 15-meter-tall basalt rock stack protruding from Húnaflói Bay. Surrounded by calm water and finally some warm sunlight, this lone sea stack made a good subject for photography. We went there during the golden hour of sunset and realised Hvítserkur faces east, and the lighting would be better if we came in the morning.
The drive to our guesthouse in Snaefellsnes Peninsula was excruciatingly long, especially in the dark, and we were getting hungry. We kept getting notifications for strong KP values these past few days, but the sky was covered by thick clouds. We finally got a clear sky that night, and I saw a faint smoke-like ribbon crossing the sky. I remember asking Robert, "Is this it? Are we finally seeing the mythical northern lights?" And we did. Shooting the aurora was easier than I thought. It was similar to doing astrophotography, but you don't need to worry about star trailing. I would have an even better foreground if we had already arrived at Kirkjufell, but for the first time, it was as magical as I had imagined.
DAY 13
KIRKJUFELL
As the weather cleared up, I knew I'd better get going and embrace my final two days in Iceland. We woke up early this day for sunrise at a landscape that I knew I wanted to do some photography work on. You could say that capturing Kirkjufell was the mission that brought me to Iceland. Thus, I gave myself two sunrises and two sunsets to encounter the ideal lighting. There was a small parking fee for visiting Kirkjufell, so I wanted to get my shot in one go. Kirkjufell is a distinct cone-shaped mountain, peaking at 463 meters. Together with the impeccably located waterfall Kirkjufellsfoss, the whole scene felt like a page from a fairytale. There was still some cloud cover that morning, but the clouds finally had layers, creating a dramatic ambience. The sun peeked out of the clouds for one moment, and one moment was all I needed. We were lucky, as the clouds grew thicker after sunrise.
We had a coffee at Valeria Specialty Coffee after a hectic morning for some recharging. In the afternoon, we drove around Snaefellsjokull National Park, which I felt like a TLDR version of Iceland. There are diverse landscapes of mountains, lava fields, waterfalls, geothermal features, and coastal formations, all clustered in a small area. But apart from Kirkjufell, I didn't find anything particularly remarkable after two weeks of touring around Iceland.
The first stop was Ólafsvíkurkirkja, another cutely designed tiny church. We went to Ingjaldshólskirkja next, a lovely church with a red roof. Skarðsvík Beach, Öndverðarnesviti, Svörtuloft Lighthouse, and Djúpalónssandur beach were all quick stops. Driving around Snaefellsnes Peninsula, I found myself wishing we had this good weather the previous few days more than right now. I felt like I was wasting good lighting, but bumping up and down on unpaved gravel roads again was fun. The stone bridge in Arnarstapi was a place that finally sparked some interest in me. Walking on it, you could feel waves crashing beneath you.
We spent the rest of the day resting in our guesthouse, Old Post Office Guesthouse, as we were getting tired from the early start. Our room overlooked Kirkjufell, so I was ready to pop back out if the sunset looked nice or if the sky cleared up for another aurora sighting. It did not, so we just stayed in for the rest of the night.
DAY 14
I realised we didn't need two days for Snaefellsnes Peninsula, but it was hard to plan ahead for photography as you couldn't predict the weather. We explored the south of Snaefellsnes Peninsula this morning. Búðakirkja, a tiny black wooden church, again disappointed me. As it was jam-packed, I couldn't find any angle to conceal the people in the photos. The ambience just wasn't there.
Our final stop in Snaefellsnes Peninsula was Ytri Tunga Beach, which is known for reliable seal sightings. I guess we were spoiled by our experience at Kaikoura Seal Colony in New Zealand. There were a few seals scattered here and there on Ytri Tunga Beach, but they were much further away, much fewer in number, and less playful than the ones in Kaikoura.
We left Snaefellsnes Peninsula early and drove back to Reykjavík as I found the Peninsula quite underwhelming. In Reykjavík, we did some last-minute souvenir shopping and went to dinner. We hit a few spots to see if we could catch the northern lights one last time before leaving, namely Hallgrimskirkja, Kálfatjarnarkirkja, and Garður Old Lighthouse. But I guess we had used up all our luck already. We spent the night driving around Reykjanes Peninsula, eventually said goodbye to our rental car, and headed to the airport. Our flight was at 6 in the morning. Slowly seeing an airport wake up and start working was interesting, as London and Hong Kong have open airports 24/7. I wish I had more time to explore some places in-depth, but I could always come back for more. Time to edit my videos and photos!
More information about my trip to Iceland
- Things to know before going to Iceland: coming soon!
Thank you for sharing the itinerary. We'd love exploring landscape and hiking too. Which month was your trip to Iceland? May I know if you booked ahead the accommodations? If we don't prep meals or we opt for campervan, are there restaurants/ supermarket along the way to get food supply? Any useful links you'd suggest for planning the trip? Thank you!