Iceland: it’s one cool holiday
Are we? Are we? It was day three of my Iceland adventure and we had our tour guide Thor driven mad with our questions. But there was no flapping him. “This is the best job ever,” he said, “I’d do it, even if I wasn’t paid to.”
There aren’t many jobs you could say that about, but I imagine driving across some of the world’s most spectacular scenery with awe-struck passengers isn’t exactly going to challenge your stress levels.
Unless, of course, you don’t like driving on glaciers, or sliding backwards on snowy hilltops, or following your colleagues along slippery tracks the Ice Road Truckers would baulk at. But it’s all in a day’s work for our Icelandic superhero Thor. There was a big gasp from everyone (except the superhero) as the little black arrow on the satnav — representing our feisty Defender jeep — left land and drove on to the Langjokull glacier — a first for all of us.
Hours earlier we were gazing into the geysers of the Haukadalur valley, waiting for their unscheduled explosions of steam into the air, trying to catch them on camera. Boy, do they make some entrance when they do eventually surface. Before that, it was a stroll through the national park at the site of the world’s first parliament, at Pingvellir.
For fans of the country’s magnificent geothermal landscape, the trip to Pingvellir may in fact be the most memorable of the Golden Circle tourist trail. It was here that Thor explained we were standing in the valley between the Eurasian and American tectonic plates — in a split that runs the length of the country. The gap is growing larger by about an inch every year — meaning, as Thor put it, “Iceland is getting bigger all the time”.
Another pit-stop was at the magnificent Gullfoss waterfall, the largest-volume falls in Europe. Iceland’s location, with one half of its landmass on the American plate, and the other on the European, accounts for the huge amount of volcanic and geothermal activity right across the island.
The dramatic landscape we were enjoying, all within a few hours of the capital, changes rapidly from black soil flatlands, to lava fields, to green farms populated with the donkey-sized Icelandic horses, to steamy geyser towns, snow-capped mountains and stunning ice-blue sea. In fact, the word Reykjavik means ‘smoky bay’.
It was back to the sea the next day for my trip on one of two Elding whale-watching boats. We didn’t see any actual whales, but did we see dolphins. Once we had left the bustle of Reykjavik far behind us, we started to notice little black fins appearing all around our boats, and when the boats were settled far from shore, the playful mammals put on a magnificent display all around us, zipping in and out of each other’s paths, and ‘surfing’ in unison past the bow of our boat.
A large poster grabbing your attention as you leave the boat implores guests not to eat whale, as the country sadly recommenced the horrible practice of whaling in 2007.
But with tourism and fishing representing two of the most important chances for the country’s recovery, it’s no surprise the city has been gaining a great reputation as a food destination, especially for fish fans. In recent years, a number of stylish fish restaurants have sprung up, both in downtown Reykjavik, and near the uber-trendy Hotel Marina.
It’s hard to get a seat even on some weekday nights in Icelandic Fish and Chips, a traditional sit-down but very trendy organic eaterie on the quayside, which boasts of its spelt-and-barley batter and handcut chips. Just a short stroll away is the hugely popular and very reasonable Tapashouse bistro, which provided us with the most delicious meal of our trip — mouthwatering fish, vegetable and meat bite-sized thrills, followed by wonderfully indulgent desserts.
A few nights later, after a rejection earlier in the week, we finally secured a table at the ultra cool new eaterie Grillmarkadurinn (‘The Grill Market’).
Striving to source all its ingredients locally, the restaurant is a great advocate for the fishermen and artisan producers of Iceland. From the off, it was a very special meal. The table’s rye bread was served on a wooden slab, with a delicious black salt. When I enquired further, I was told this was ‘lava salt’, produced exclusively for the restaurant by a local lady. Needless to say, I came home with a little jar of the wonderfully exotic ingredient, which is still thrilling my visitors.
As Reykjavik is about the size of Galway, the entire city can be traversed in minutes, and a short stroll will bring you from the quays back up to the main drag at Laugavegur, a hilly street which is dotted with cafés, bookshops and restaurants. Off a side street, you will find Kaffebarin, Damon Albarn’s addition to the city’s nightlife in the late 90s, which is still a popular drinking spot for students and tourists. But there are plenty more options, even a ‘Dubliner’ pub, complete with Viking ‘boat’ counter upstairs.
There is so much to do in this modern, yet culturally grounded country of just 320,000 inhabitants, that a week, or even two, can’t really do justice to the myriad unique tours on offer.
However, there is a holy trinity of trips that should be on every visitor’s ‘to-do’ list, starting, of course with the aforementioned Golden Circle tour of south island hot-spots.
After that, it would be a shame to come this way and not venture out in search of the Northern Lights. The Aurora Borealis are putting on a stunning display this year, and there are several local tour groups offering trips to catch them on clear nights in all their glory.
En route back to the airport is the best time to take a detour to the Blue Lagoon. This top tourist attraction is today a magnificently developed geothermal spa and skin clinic, located in a lava field on the Reykjanes peninsula.
Here you can lounge for a few hours in your bathing suit, in a large steamy pond with mud-ladel stations which allow you to make your own face mask, hot fountains and poolside saunas to splash or relax in, and even a beer counter in the centre of the ‘lake’. On one of my earlier trips here, I observed snow falling and evaporating before hitting the water around me. Is it any wonder Iceland has found itself the chosen location for so many spectacular movies — from Bond thrillers to the current Tom Cruise sci-fi tale Oblivion?
This was my fourth visit to our nearest northern neighbour, and it gets better all the time. What was even better on this occasion, was the value for money, thanks, unfortunately, to the 2008 financial crash which saw its three main banks go bust, and a resultant weak krona.
Although, with flights included, it may not be as cheap as a week in Lanzarote, but whether you find yourself lounging in lava, or skipping between two tectonic plates, this is one cool holiday that will live long in your memory.
Icelandair flies year round from four UK airports direct to Iceland, with connections to USA and Canada. Return flights from London start from £203. Packages from £299. www.icelandair.co.uk. WOW air’s direct route between London Gatwick and Reykjavik costs from just £95 one way, which includes taxes and hand luggage allowance (one bag measuring 56cm x 45cm x 25cm), plus handbag and duty-free shopping bag. www.wowair.co.uk or call +354 590 3000. My tip on arrival in Keflavik airport would be to either take a taxi the 45 mins from the airport to the city, or befriend a local on your flight who will help you negotiate your way onto the bus. I would have found it very stressful without such help, as there was little info on which bus, or where to find it, after our late-night flight.
I stayed at the Hotel Borg in a very smart square beside the parliament building, less than five minutes from the main street. The Borg is one of the world’s finest hotel examples of Art Deco, and has been authentically upgraded recently. While the staff could be a little bit more friendly, they are certainly efficient. The smart Café Paris across the street proved a great meeting spot, and we loved their coffees. An overnight stay in a double room at Hotel Borg starts from €140 per room, per night, including breakfast. www.hotelborg.is.
The Golden Circle Tour is a good way to see the highlights straight off – the national park with the Pingavellir parliament, the geysers and the stunning Gulfoss waterfall. We loved the efficiency, but also the fun attitude, of the superjeep.is guys, and they have a great website where they upload the pics afterwards. There are many options for seeing the Northern Lights, or you could just rent a car and seek them out yourself.
The krona has fallen, but tourist items are still pricey, like traditional Nordic jumpers, (think Sarah Lund in The Killing), and trinkets bearing vikings and puffins.
It’s fast gaining a reputation for fusion food and with a particular focus on fish, especially around the trendy docks area. We loved the whale-watching company Elding’s brand new quayside restaurant Mar, just a short stroll from their boats.
CONNECT WITH US TODAY
Be the first to know the latest news and updates
