bthotugigem05 said:

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Just announced today.

In related news, I'm flying to Reykjavik tomorrow night, will report back.

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you booked a flight that quickly?!

I actually already had it booked, I was going under the remote work visa scheme they announced in December, but now I'll just be on a regular tourist visa I think.

c'mon, rest of europe!

schmendeler said:

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c'mon, rest of europe!

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https://onemileatatime.com/biden-lift-travel-restrictions/

We'll see. I'm painfully optimistic as I can't imagine they want to last another summer without American tourists.

Wow! That's more impressive than what I used to see in Alaska.
Thanks for sharing the pic and the info about the trip.

I've watched a few Icelandic TV shows and Movies and would definitely like to go there someday. And of course their 4WD club guys are legendary.

If you go at the right time of year, is it a pretty sure thing to see the lights if you are in a dark enough spot and weather cooperates?

Depends on solar activity but I've seen them on every trip so far.

Seeing the northern lights is a bucket list thing for me so was curious how much luck is involved.

I went to Iceland February 2020 right before everything closed down.

You can stalk my Facebook www.Facebook.com/lorriedo I recently reposted my Iceland pics. One of my favorite places.

Lorrie Ortega '11
www.aggiechick.com
210-370-7721
Lorrie.ortega@cruiseplanners.com
Twitter & Instagram @txaggiechick

Tell me about food prices in Iceland. Can you get quick grab and go breakfast/lunch? Would it make sense to get a cooler and get stuff from a grocery if you're doing the ring road in summer?

They have Costco stores in Reykjavik, eating out can be eye-wateringly expensive. I grocery shop when I go there for most of my meals, with the exception of a microbrewery in Vik on the southern coast.

(A beer, burger, and fries at that microbrewery run about $38, for perspective)

bthotugigem05 said:

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They have Costco stores in Reykjavik, eating out can be eye-wateringly expensive. I grocery shop when I go there for most of my meals, with the exception of a microbrewery in Vik on the southern coast.

(A beer, burger, and fries at that microbrewery run about $38, for perspective)

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after tip?
That's not bad really. I mean a higher end beer place in my little Denver burb town is $18 burger and $7 beers. $30 after tip.
Not that there isn't a cheaper option nearby though.

They don't really tip in Iceland. Maybe 5-10% if anything.

Yeah, no tipping there. But I have a tip: try the fermented shark!

Returning to normalcy is always great news.

schmendeler said:

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Seeing the northern lights is a bucket list thing for me so was curious how much luck is involved.

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More of a winter thing. We went at peak summer time in August and you most likely won't see them then. We did not.

That pic above is spectacular.

I can't recommend Iceland enough. It's badass.

i assumed it was seasonal? but maybe that far north, it's always kind winter, lol.

Northern Lights season is October-March, in Iceland it can stretch into September and April but definitely not in the summer months because the light lasts so long into the nighttime hours

schmendeler said:

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i assumed it was seasonal? but maybe that far north, it's always kind winter, lol.

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It is.

Summer is raging hot there. Peak summer in mid-August gets highs in the low '50s.

Thinking of going in June, spending about a week. Top things to do? Obviously have to go to the volcano, dive the continental divide, and checkout the lagoon. What else? Worth renting a car and driving around the island?

The entire island is a lot to do in a week. I'm working on a generic 4-5 day itinerary for people, but definitely rent a car, driving there is easy, if not slow.

rebelag62 said:

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Thinking of going in June, spending about a week. Top things to do? Obviously have to go to the volcano, dive the continental divide, and checkout the lagoon. What else? Worth renting a car and driving around the island?

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As long as you're okay with roundabouts, driving in iceland is very easy. But I wouldn't drive the ENTIRE country if you're there around a week because you'll be rushing too much.

rebelag62 said:

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Thinking of going in June, spending about a week. Top things to do? Obviously have to go to the volcano, dive the continental divide, and checkout the lagoon. What else? Worth renting a car and driving around the island?

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You pretty much have to if you want to see any of it. The whole island in a week is too much. You will be in the car 6 hrs a day.

We focused on Reykjavik area and over to Vik. Stay part of your trip in Reykjavik and part of it VRBO somewhere in the south or East.

I highly recommend doing one of the all day super jeep tours. It will take you off-road and see geography you otherwise wouldn't see or know about. Basically a dude picks you up in a souped up 4x4 (Ours was a full size van with like 6 ft tires on it - so badass) and drives you into the interior of Iceland. Few roads go there.

Ya, I made that mistake in Ireland.

That sounds awesome, I'll definitely look into that

We globe warmers have $.

Posted a 5-day sample itinerary for a first-time visit to Iceland on the blog today, hopefully it helps some of you thinking of going: https://andystravelblog.com/2021/05/04/iceland-guide/

Bumping this. Wife and I never had a chance to go on our honeymoon due to COVID last year. We were going to do a Mediterranean trip, but have adjusted to now planning a trip to Iceland/Greenland during this summer. The link directly above me was a great read!

I don't get many chances to tell this story....one of my friends at church is from Iceland. I walked in one Sunday morning and this was the conversation:

ME: Hey, I watching curling last night - isn't that y'all's national sport?

HIM: Nah. Dwarf tossing.