Ring Road Travel Tips

Now that we've traveled the entire Ring Road (Hringvegur), here's a compilation of everything I've learned for those of you looking to plan a trip!!

GO. If you have been thinking about going, book it. If it is on your bucket list somewhere, move it to the top. I had wanted to visit Iceland for about 5 years or maybe even longer. It exceeded all my expectations and far and away surpasses the images. Iceland is big right now and I have a feeling it will continue to grow in travel appeal.

Duty Free. Everyone mentioned how expensive drinking or purchasing alcohol in Iceland is. It is definitely smart to take advantage of duty free at the airport. Yes, it is expensive to drink in Iceland but even more so I appreciated not having to think about it once we reached a remote destination. This way you can have a beer at the top of Fjaðrárgljúfur Canyon, a glass of wine with your hearty gas station lamb stew lunch, or a vodka-soda night cap in the hotel room. Despite how I just made it sound, we did not drink a lot on this trip. Compared to other vacations it was the least amount of drinking. (Obviously, since most of it was spent on the road!) 

Car or Campervan?!?! We went back and fourth. The campervan is such a unique-to-Iceland deal since you have the freedom to pull over anywhere and spend the night! Our ideal length of time for camping tapped out at a three day road trip. For five days on the road, creature comforts and hospitality won out. I love hotels and Airbnbs as a part of the travel experience and the planner in me enjoyed having a set destination at the end of every day. It all comes down to personal preference on this one!

Gas Stations + NU Car Rentals - If you do rent a car, we loved NU. They are not located at the airport but we easily spotted the friendly man wearing an NU shirt at arrivals who was there to shuttle us to downtown Keflavik. 

Now, I'm not sure what other car rentals offer but in all my a) times renting cars and b) Iceland blog reading, I hadn't come across any that offered / mentioned such nice perks! We were given an Olis Gas Station discount card and a map of the country calling out all their locations. Not only did the map come in super handy when planning our drives, the discount card gave us:

• Free coffee (kaffi)
• 10% discount at their restaurants
• 3 ISK Discount off every liter of gas
• Free Wifi

We quickly learned that even the gas stations serve damn good coffee. (You are in Europe, after all!) And in Iceland the gas station culture is one of clean restaurants / seating areas serving tasty fast food meals - from breakfast plates to cheeseburgers and fries to the notorious hot dogs.

I also recommend renting a 4 wheel drive vehicle and opting in for gravel insurance. Besides the gravel section of Ring Road in East Iceland we encountered plenty of other gravel roads hitting destinations off route 1. The majority of Ring Road is beautifully paved and we saw a lot of smaller cars make it just fine. (If you're not driving the entire country or planning a lot of detours you don't necessarily need to spend extra here.) We did not encounter snow or harsh road conditions due to weather but that was another consideration in favor of 4WD. 

My final driving and gas station related tips: 1) If you're under 1/2 a tank and see a gas station, it is a good time to fill up. 2) Prepare for spending - gas is super expensive ($7/gallon). 3) Make sure your credit card has a 4 digit pin to pay at the pump. If there isn't an option to pay inside, you'll need it. 4) Download the Iceland 112 app which can use your location to track in case of emergency. 

Planning Your Route. In my research it seemed more typical for first time travelers to settle in, spend a day or two in Reykjavik, drive the Golden Circle first, and then drive at least parts if not all of Ring Road. I talked to a number of travelers who drove the southern coast first, turning around at Jökulsárlón. If you have vacation time to spare and are debating, I'd go for the full drive. Thinking back to the moments leaving the glacier lagoon, I would have been so sad to turn around! 

I also read a lot about how you need at least x number of days to drive Ring Road  - x was anywhere between 7-10. We decided to drive Ring Road first, in five days, traveling east / counterclockwise. (And spent 3 days in / around Reykjavik after.) We debated a lot on this point. Sure it has been done, but is 5 days enough time? Will we feel rushed?  Will we be driving too much? Less important but still a decision - what's the best direction?

The heavier driving days (2, 3 + 4) averaged five hours a day, while days 1 + 5 were both under three hours. We did not book any planned excursions or tours, it was all about the drive and taking in the majestic and dynamic landscapes, while obviously stopping for hours at a time to explore. If you have more time and want to stay longer in locations where there is more to do (South Iceland or Mývatn for sure) that makes sense!! But if you don't - it can still be done in five days at relative leisure. I did not feel rushed, was content with our pace, and I loved all the driving we did! As far as the direction - for whatever reason instinct told me to go east first so that was that! 

We did not drive the Golden Circle even though we left enough time on the back end to decide on a whim. We "missed" a couple big attractions (Gullfoss, Thingvellir, Geyser) - but I don't feel like I missed out. We saw SO much! As with any new place, you will miss some stuff. You can't see it all. It is important to do the research to pick and choose what interests you the most even if for a rough idea.
One of my favorite things, unexpectedly, was staying in and / or driving the through all the remote small towns. To be immersed and soak in the neighborhoods and the houses, the churches, the waterfront views, to imagine the lifestyle, the quietness of it all, I was enthralled. Everyone we met on our journey was really friendly. 
Weather. As far as time of year, I am biased towards September - it is dark at night for potential Northern Lights viewing with a chance of lovely fall weather. I believe any shoulder season month would have similar chances for decent weather + lights.

I was prepared for clouds and rain but if you've seen all my other posts we had anything but. It was incredible at the beginning of our trip, which is why in retrospect I'm an advocate for being flexible and driving when the weather is forecast to be the nicest, if at all possible. Exploring outdoors, chasing waterfalls, hiking to hot springs, black sand beaching, aurora sightings, not to mention pleasant driving and road conditions felt like a dream with blue skies to lead the way. I might never stop thanking the universe for it. 

I had read about this howling wind (car doors almost blowing off) and was certainly prepared for but not able to comprehend it until we did get a round of the craziest wind I've ever experienced once we were in Reykjavik.

I think that should cover all my Hringvegur trip recommendations! If you've driven it or been to Iceland, what did I miss?! 

Akureyri + Beyond

After our third day of driving from East Iceland to the North and exploring Dettifoss, Mývatn and Goðafoss along the way, we reached our home for the night in the village of Svalbarðseyri.

Stay: This Airbnb at Sunnuhlíð farmland - 12km from Akureyri. I was obsessed with this tiny house. I wanted to move in. It was perfect.

Dinner - Rub 23 in Akureyri is a refined Icelandic restaurant that highlights ingredients from local fisherman and farmers. We loved our meal here. Notably - the arctic char sushi, creative maki, and the bento box with reindeer carpaccio, duck salad, seared scallops and langoustine tempura. I also had a really good coffee/Frangelico/Baileys drink for dessert that came in a fancy chalice.

Northern Lights - I was so disappointed. On the 1-9 point scale we were at a 5. We came home from dinner, set up shop in front of the big window...and....nothing. We stayed up late, too. Considering our wild show the night before, I shouldn't have been too disappointed, but I couldn't help it! This time we were ready with a Northern Lights iphone app and my camera with the correct (?) settings. Ah well. 

Breakfast - The city center is home to a number of sophisticated coffee shops; we wandered into Bláa Kannan and grabbed a caramelized onion and red pepper quiche with croissants, cheese, and jam for the road.

The drive on day four showed off an enchanting landscape with farms and small towns nestled in between handsome mountains. It was drizzling on and off, and out of nowhere appeared a huge rainbow. I didn't pull over, but I'll never forget how it sprawled all majestic alongside us. 

Everything is so different now from what we've seen in the south and the east and even yesterdays northern points. I know I keep saying that. It is one of the best things about Iceland. You're ready for what's next and what's next never disappoints. 

Our route to Stykkishólmur lead us off Ring Road - which was a welcome change of pace. We took 61 to 59 to 60 to 54 to 58! These routes are not all paved, but most are well sealed so you can keep your speed. At the crossroads of 60 and 54 we detoured two miles to the sleepy little town of Búðardalur for gas plus an exciting lunch of gas station hot dogs at N1. I had read all about them as a popular Icelandic meal, so it was finally time to try one. The soft bun is loaded up with ketchup, mustard, raw onions, crispy fried onions and cradles a fresh dog topped with an earthy sweet remoulade. It was good!  Aside from the hot dogs, Búðardalur was also special because I bought my wool sweater here. We came upon the cutest little shop run by a sweet older woman. I tried on about eight sweaters and finally found the one.

NORTH ICELAND

We are on day three of our Ring Road Trip! Here's a look at where we explored. 

Dettifoss - Pure power this one. The most powerful waterfall in Europe! Wild and fierce among a raw and rugged landscape - Dettifoss crashes hard into Jökulsárgljúfur Canyon. Located in Vatnajökull National Park, I consider it a can't miss detour if you're driving through North Iceland. You take 864 for the east bank, which is a harsh gravel road. All along we had left this detour open for a game time decision - so we originally passed by the turn but immediately pulled over to decide. After the jaw dropping views and that overhwleming but also incredibly humbling feeling where you become a teeny tiny human in the earths presence, there should never have been any debate. Go. To. Dettifoss.

Donuts - Driving back down 864 our stomachs started rumbling. All we'd had to eat today was some skyr and granola bars from the grocery store in Djúpivogur and the ham and cheese croissants from the bakari in Fellabær. The donuts from said bakari were still sitting in the backseat - salted caramel and coconut, both with luscious chocolate frosting. So I don't know if it is because these were our late lunch or if they were actually the best donuts I've ever tasted. Let's go with the latter. That bakari find was a true gem. 

Mývatn Geothermal Area - There is a lot to explore in this active volcanic region such as Lake Mývatn and Grjótagjá Cave. We stopped at the base of Mt. Námafjall where some wild geothermal activity occurs - gray bubbling mud pools, boiling pits and and steaming rocks. The sulfur fumes were rather overwhelming but I'm glad we checked it out. Otherwise, it was all about the Myvatn Nature Baths; also called the "blue lagoon of the north" which was super relaxing. I wished we had a little more time in the area overall, but we were pushing to make it to Akureyri before dark to have a nice dinner and settle in for a (fingers crossed) Northern Lights Show. 

Selfies - Einstock Icelandic Arctic Pale Ale - brewed in Akureyri (Iceland's second largest urban area, 60 miles south of the Arctic Circle) this quickly became my favorite beer in Iceland - along with their Icelandic White Ale. And just for fun: a quick shout out to three of my favorite brands / Sunglasses: Sunski - Dipsea Emerald Tortise / Bikini: Kiini - Tuesday Bikini Top + Bottom / Socks: Smartwool.

Goðafoss - Oh yea!! Another waterfall on my road trip list that I somehow forgot about until we spotted her. You can see Goðafoss right from the Ring Road - no crazy detours or gravels roads to treck. The sun had just ducked behind the mountains in the distance, leaving us a little golden hour light to hop across the submerged rock trail out to the multiple sets of falls. Another beauty right here!!

Akureyri next!