By eevenden
Hæ vinir! (Hey, friends!)
This week I am going to write about my experience travelling around Iceland outside of Reykjavik (on a student budget). Since a number of people I know will be coming here to visit me or traveling to Iceland on separate trips, I figured it would be best to condense my knowledge and advice into a blog post in order to makes sure everyone’s trips are, one, safe, and two, relatively affordable.
Over the past two months, I have been on three day trips outside of the city to see some of Iceland’s famous natural landscapes! All of these trips have involved renting cars and planning a route for the day, which I will discuss later. My first trip was to the Snaefellsnes Peninsula in the North (#1 on the map below), a very scenic, mountainous area which is a bit colder and snowier than Reykjavik. The second trip (#2) was along the South Coast, as much as you can reasonably see in a day, which is famous for its farms, waterfalls, and black-sand beaches. Today was my third trip out of the city, around the Reykjanes Peninsula, home to the Capital and the Keflavik Airport, where almost all international flights arrive. This area is known for its tectonic and geothermal activity. In two weeks, when my boyfriend is here, we will drive further along the South Coast to Höfn (provided the weather is good) and spend three days exploring an area known for both its volcanoes and glaciers (see pink, hashed line). When planning trips in Iceland, it is worth asking yourself “what kind of sights do I want to see”, because it will differ a lot depending on where you go.
In this blog post, I will discuss the process of renting a car and driving in Iceland from a tourist/student’s perspective, since it is the cheapest way (and therefore only way) I have traveled throughout the country. There are a number of tour companies which can make your experience less of a hassle, but those trips will be more expensive, limiting, and crowded. So, unless you are very limited on time or don’t feel like researching and planning a trip, I wholeheartedly recommend driving yourself.
My road trips around Iceland so far
For reference, the mountains of Snaefellsnes
A waterfall (Seljalandsfoss) along the South Coast
Hot geyser (Gunnuhver) in the Reykjanes Peninsula.
Weather and Road Conditions
The first and most important thing to consider when traveling around Iceland is weather. Though Iceland is relatively mild temperature-wise (considering its latitude), the weather changes extremely quickly, especially in the winter (which lasts until April). Here are two websites that will be your savior:
Road Conditions: http://www.road.is/ (This website lists the road conditions for all major roads in Iceland. Do not follow GoogleMaps blindly, know the conditions of the roads ahead and change your route accordingly.)
For reference, since it can be difficult to judge what the different codes mean without prior knowledge.
Weather: http://en.vedur.is/weather/forecasts/areas/ (This is the official website for weather in Iceland, do not trust your phones for accurate predictions if you are planning a trip.)
Just in case, for emergency rescue, call 112. (Iceland has a voluntary emergency rescue team that will come get you if you are stuck somewhere. These people are on-call 24/7, 365 days of the year. However, they are not paid and much of their funding is sourced from their local community, SO do not be stupid and get stuck somewhere or do anything dangerous. Use your judgment!)
Though Iceland has upscaled its road infrastructure significantly since it became a major tourism hotspot ten years ago, it is important to remember that the country is mostly small towns and farmland beyond the capital-area. This means that roads are not necessarily cleared, and some roads (specifically in the highlands) are closed or out-of-service during the winter. It can be very difficult to get to the northern part of the country during winter, and some places are inaccessible without a larger, AWD car. In addition, limited infrastructure means there are almost no gas stations, bathrooms, or cafes between towns, so plan accordingly.
In general, flexibility and knowing your driving comfort-level are key for planning a day trip. It may be best to have two possible destinations in mind and decide the night before. Flexibility means checking road conditions and weather both several days, immediately before, and during your trip. Doing this will ensure that your trip is less stressful and safe 😀
Car Rental
Luckily for me, the minimum age to rent a car in Iceland is 20 years old. However, not all models are available to-rent to young people. As a general rule, AWD-cars and SUVs are available to rent if you’re 23 or older. Therefore, I am personally limited to small hatchbacks and some compact SUVS. The type of car you rent will definitely change what types of activities you can do, but generally a small car is okay for sightseeing.
In addition, in order to rent a car, you typically need a credit card. Some places will accept debit cards with or without a deposit (which they return to you), but you need to know where to go. My friends and I have been using Geysir Car Rental (because there is no deposit for debit cards, and the cars are in good condition), but some other services students have used are Sad Car, Pro Car, and Firefly. Keep in mind, the deposit for debit cards (which can be cash or electronic) can be very, very expensive, up to $1400. Know your debit card’s spending limit if you plan to use a car-rental service which requires a deposit. For my friends and I, renting a car has cost between $30-45 a person (for 4-5 people) depending the car’s model, gas-refills, and parking/tolls. Remember, the default rental car’s transmission will be manual in Iceland, so make sure to pick a car with an automatic transmission if you don’t drive manual cars. Automatics will be a slightly more expensive.
You should know that all car rental services are required to give you winter-tires (not necessarily with spikes) from November 1st to April 14th in Iceland. Make sure to check that you have them! I have heard several horror stories of students trying to drive with regular tires because they did not notice until it was too late! As a rule of thumb, always take photos of your rental car beforehand, and go with the company person when they check your car on return so that they do not mark you down for a scratch you didn’t cause.
On a related note, when you are picking insurance for your car rental, I would choose the “insurance bundle” (which includes sand-and-ash protection, windshield protection, and extra collision insurance) or just extra collision insurance (if you are doing a short trip and the weather will be good). Though it may be a bit more expensive up-front, it will limit how much you have to pay if there are damages.
Finally, gas is expensive in Iceland. As of now, the price of regular fuel is approximately 210kr per liter ($7.93 a gallon). Approximately 50-60% of the cost of gas is a tax which goes directly to the Icelandic government, which is why it is so expensive.
Planning a route
Honestly, the easiest thing for foreigners to do when planning a road-trip route in Iceland is to google “tourist attractions” in the destination-area, then add stops as you see something interesting. Not all popular spots will be accessible during every season, so sometimes you will need to skip sites. Just a reminder, since I have read a number of books and articles about tourism in Iceland, do not stop or park your car in random spots in order to get out and take pictures. Always use a large pull-off or designated parking lot.
I hope this blog post is helpful for any students (and non-students) travelling to Iceland for school or vacation. Tune in next week for my next post!