The Best Way to See Iceland - travel in a small group with knowledgeable guides
I recently took a trip to Iceland with Majestic Icelandics. I have to disclose right up front that the company is owned and operated by my sister, Jill Sture. She fell in love with Iceland a couple of years ago and wanted to share it with as many people as possible. Without her, I likely would never have travelled to Iceland and it truly is a majestic country with surprises at every turn. Since I was travelling with my sister, I left all the planning to her. I had no idea what to expect or what I was to see. Had I done the trip on my own, I would have searched for major sights and come up with Gulfoss Falls, Geysir and Thingvellir National Park. All of these are fabulous, must-see places and I am sure I could have filled my days and enjoyed them, however, Jill had arranged for several days with 3 amazing tour guides: Gunnar Helgason, Bjork Jakobsdottir and Oli Gunnarsson.
The tour I was part of was a group of 6 ladies and we all met up early on a Monday morning. Our guides took us for lunch at a local restaurant where we dined on fresh seafood and tasty soups. It was very reasonably priced for Iceland. Iceland is exorbitantly expensive. After lunch, Gunnar took the group on an unexpected tour of the local area of Hafnarfjordur, a town on the outskirts of Reykjavik. We started at Perlan Museum where we walked around amazing displays of volcanoes, glaciers and geo-thermal wonders interspersed with the history of Iceland. The museum makes use of technology to bring it all to life, including the ability to walk through an ice-cave. On the roof are several telescopes that give a 360 degree view of Reykjavik. Amazing
I could have spent longer at the museum but there were other surprises in store. 5 minutes from Perlan is a small beach on the Atlantic with the standard Iceland “Hot Tub.” The beach has various hot tubs of various temperatures. A dip in the icy Atlantic is a recommended pre-requisite before entering the warm hot tub. I had heard about all the swimming pools and hot tubs in Iceland but had no idea what to expect. A rectangular, 3 foot deep pool, approx, 6 feet wide filled with bodies of all shapes and sizes awaited us. Prior to entering the pool everyone must shower naked to eliminate sweat, body lotions and shampoos. Icelanders take their water cleanliness seriously. Yes, Men and Women have their own showers but the change rooms are just a big room. There is no room for modesty. The Icelanders just don’t care what you look like and to be honest, when in that environment, even I felt comfortable. People do not stare. Sitting in a hot tub is not really my thing, but many people find this very relaxing.
It was now quite late in the day although you would not know it looking at the sky. The sun sets around Midnight in the summer. We all dressed and eagerly headed to our hosts house for a typical Icelandic Christmas Dinner in July. We were greeted with champagne and then sat down to an amazing lamb dinner with decadent blue cheese sauce! We sat around the table getting to know each other, enjoying the camaraderie and excited about the days ahead.
We headed back to the Viking hotel where some guests decided to take another dip in a private hot tub and others retired to their rooms to watch the midnight sun go down.
After a restful sleep and a delicious typical Icelandic breakfast of cold cuts, cheese, yogurt and fruit, our wonderful guides picked us up for the day adventures. We were travelling to the famed Golden Circle. We made various stops on our way to Thingvellir park. With a small group of 6, it was easy to stop, get out, snap some shots and get back on our way, all while being entertained with Icelandic folklore as told by our funny and animated guides, Gunnar and Oli.
Had I visited Thingvellir park on my own or with a bus tour, we would have walked the typical path with everyone and admired the views, but with our knowledgeable and fabulous guides, they knew which route to take to give us the best views explaining the Icelandic history along the way. Thingvellir National Park was actually the gathering place to conduct political business. Over the hundreds of years, there are many stories. The park is stunning and as a group we decided to stay a little longer and were rewarded with the amazing waterfall and babbling brook. I could have sat there for hours. The rain ended our stay there and our guides had cleverly figured out how to move the cars to pick us up at a different point so we did not have to waste time traveling over land we had already seen. Bus tours just don’t do that. We were able to see twice as much as a regular tour and there was no waiting for a bus load of people to return only to then wait longer while they all visited the restroom.
We took advantage of the rain and ate our packed lunches in the cars. The guides felt bad about the situation but none of us minded the car picnic adventure.
Onwards we travelled to the stunning Gullfoss Falls followed by the fascinating Geysir. Both Icelandic icons and not to be missed.
Wherever we went, the guides ensured we didn’t have to backtrack, always arranging to meet us at the other end so we wouldn’t waste time and could get the most out of the day. In these high tourist locations there are always stores. I cannot imagine waiting for 30 people to complete their shopping.
We had walked several kilometers by this point and it was time to stop at the Secret Lagoon, a popular, very large natural hottub. This is the oldest public hot tub in Iceland and has a natural stone bottom. Surrounding the hot tub are many little geysirs and boiling water pools. The hot waters run into the river close by. I have seen nothing like this anywhere else.
We spent a couple of days at the hosts summer house with the choice of riding or hiking. Nights were spent around the bonfire , sharing the events of our day and listening to stories from our hosts learning about the Icelandic culture. Before returning to the city, we had the pleasure of spending a day with Bjork visiting the iconic waterfalls. There were a few surprising stops on the way. A hunt shed built into the mountain, a farm rebuilt after the 2010 Eyjafjallajökull volcano eruption that disrupted air travel for days, an amazing fish and chip lunch from a local food truck, black sand beaches and mountain top glaciers Those travelling in Bjork’s car were treated to a private concert. She’s quite the singer.
It was an exhilarating day seeing more of the beauty of Iceland narrated by an entertainer and sharing with now close friends.
The week from beginning to end was astounding. I never knew what the next day was going to bring. I would not have seen half of what I did had I travelled alone and would have seen even less had I been on a bus tour. The small group allowed us to make changes on the fly, take unplanned side trips and unscheduled stops. We never had to wait for the missing person and we heard folklore tailored to our group and how the day went. There was no script, it was 100% ad libbed, totally interesting and entertaining.
A knowledgeable guide can make all the difference to a tour but It’s not just about their knowledge. Personality, ability to read your guests and the smarts to change it up to adjust to the group is what makes all the difference.
In my case, Gunnar Helgason, Bjork Jakobsdottir and Oli Gunarsson fit the bill and absolutely made my trip the all-round complete experience.
A huge thanks to my sister, Jill Sture, Owner, Majestic Icelandics
