📝 This is roughly the itinerary for my trip to Iceland in July 2024 (anything I did that I wouldn't recommend would be omitted!). We started and ended our trip in Reykjavík, and rented a car in between. Hope this guide helps you plan your trip! 

Scroll to the bottom for some more useful/practical tips.

We arrived very late (flight delays, unfortunately ☹️) so we stayed at the Student Hostel the first night before exploring Reykjavík on the official Day 1 of the trip. Downtown Reykjavík is super walkable!

Snæfellnes peninsula is on the west coast of Iceland, often nicknamed "miniature Iceland". Some people do this as a day trip, but we stayed here two nights so that we had a more relaxed full day driving around it.

We visited the three main attractions on the Golden Circle. We were surprised how much time we spent at each of them, so there were other stops along the circle that we didn't get a chance to visit, unfortunately.

We were originally hoping to stay in Vík but didn't manage to book any accommodations. However, we actually really enjoyed where we ended up staying, Hótel Skógafoss. It's a 30-minute drive to Vík from there!

We chose to do the Ingólfshöfði puffin tour over one of the puffin tours in Reykjavík as it sounded like a more unique experience (hay cart ride over black sands, light hike up a beautiful cape, sitting on the cliff sides with puffins... what more could you ask for?). It also supports an Icelandic family-owned-and-operated business. 

On our last day in Reykjavík we checked off a few more things on the list as well as spent some time souvenir shopping.

We went during the summer, when there was around 20 hours of daylight each day. This means you have more time to fit more attractions into your day before it gets dark. Just be wary of losing track of time if you still want to maintain a regular sleeping schedule! 

PLAN AND PREP
- As Canadians, we did not need a visa to travel to Iceland for stays up to 90 days. Please check entry requirements for your country.  
- We rented a hotspot for internet on the go - it was easy to pick up and set up and the connection was fantastic: https://iceland.trawire.com/

TRANSPORTATION
- We took the FlyBus between the airport and Reykjavík: https://gyg.me/DzSytWF8
- We rented our car from Blue Car Rentals. No issues with them, they were great! https://www.bluecarrental.is/
- Make sure you learn about some of the basic rules and safety tips for driving in Iceland so you don't look like a bad tourist! 

MONEY
- We did not have to use cash anywhere during our trip
- Iceland is expensive, as you probably already know. Some people save money by renting a camper van to travel around the country. You can also get your food at grocery stores instead of eating out (Bónus and Krónan are affordable options and are everywhere). 
- Note that most of the natural attractions do not charge admission fees but do charge parking fees