Things to Know Before You Go to Iceland
Iceland gained its place at the top of many traveler’s bucket lists thanks to its utterly alien landscape and its feature on the TV juggernaut Game of Thrones. In fact, Iceland is so popular that in 2019 it had about 2 million foreign visitors. That’s not bad for a country of just around 300,000 people. I was fortunate enough to go to Iceland before the Game of Thrones craze, and before you go see a glacier or eat some hot dogs, consider these things.
Image created by Blair using a stock image from canva.com
People Are Very Friendly
When my travel buddy and I arrived at one of the AirBNBs where we’d booked an attic room, we hit a snag. No one was home to let us in, and there were no instructions about a spare key. We knocked on the door and called the host’s home phone number, to no avail. A neighbor saw us looking distressed, and asked what was wrong. “We can’t get in,” we said. The neighbor looked at us like she had never encountered two people so slow.
“Just go inside. The house is not locked.”
Iceland is routinely ranked the safest country in the world and is one of the happiest countries in the world. Everywhere you go, people are warm, welcoming and helpful. Every time we made a silly mistake (which was a lot) the people we encountered went above and beyond to help us. The language and the landscape are intimidating, but thanks to their helpfulness, the locals rescued us (and our trip) time and time again.
The Weather Is Unpredictable
Image via Luke Stackpoole on unsplash.com
Iceland’s weather is a study in contrasts. In the winter, winds of up to 150 miles per hour fresh off the North Atlantic Drift Current can cause crippling blizzards. Yet, the average temperature in the winter in Reykjavik (the capital city) is a relatively mild (for the Arctic) 30 degrees Fahrenheit (0 Celsius).
When I was there (in early June), the temperature was only 58F, and children were playing outside in the sprinklers because it was plenty warm enough to them.
Make sure you bring lots of layers and waterproof gear and clothing - even if you go in the summer. If you’re going out on a boat, hiking a glacier, or doing any other sort of outdoor activity, make sure you listen to the locals if they tell you it’s not safe to go out. After all, they know all too well that avalanches are possible in July.
Tourist Season Is Very Short
In part due to the weather, and in part due to the phenomenon of the midnight sun, Iceland has one of the shortest tourist seasonsd in the world, lasting from only about June 15 - August 15. If you’re trying to travel on the cheap, this is great news. Airfare to Iceland is inexpensive, even during peak season, and by staying in private AirBNBs instead of hostels and making a lot of our own food, my weeklong trip only cost me about $1,200 including everything. Food can be pretty pricey in Iceland, so we ate a lot of $1 hotdogs and ice cream cones.
Unfortunately, a large chunk of that was taken up by the fact we had to take a $200 taxi ride to Thingvellir National Park, because the bus we planned to take didn’t start running until later in the month (a fact that was mentioned nowhere online). The downside of Iceland’s shortened tourist season is that many of its most famous sites are simply not as accessible by inexpensive transportation. Which leads me to my next point…
Consider Renting a Car
This is the one thing I would absolutely change about my trip to Iceland. Typically I prefer to make do with public transportation whenever possible on a trip. Due to Iceland’s isolated towns and remote natural sights, don’t make public transport your first choice. We could’ve rented a car for about what we ended up spending on bus and taxi fare (thanks to being slightly out of season) and it would’ve made a huge difference in our freedom and flexibility.
The city of Reykjavík has a population of about 120,000 people, or the size of your average college town in the US. It is by FAR the biggest city in Iceland. If you’re going to spend a lot of time in Iceland, the city gets boring pretty fast. Truthfully, while Reykjavík has charm coming out of its ears, Iceland’s landscape constitutes its main appeal for most people. Iceland simply does not have the national transportation infrastructure of other countries. If you want the freedom to visit as many dramatic waterfalls as you want, renting a car will prevent a lot of headaches.
The Water Smells Like Sulfur
There is no way around it: because of Iceland’s huge amount of volcanic activity, the water smells faintly like sulfur. When you shower, the smell does not linger on your skin, but drinking the water can be difficult to swallow (hardy har) if you’re not used to it (even though it’s completely safe and doesn’t taste like sulfur). If it really weirds you out, I recommend buying a water bottle with a filter (like this one) so that you don’t have to rely on bottled water, but can remove the sulfur smell.
Practice Pronunciation
I will admit: before I went to Iceland, I was pretty cocky about my language skills. As a trained opera singer, studying languages was a huge part of my education and I’ve always had a good ear for them. Icelandic handed me the big ol’ slice of humble pie I needed.
Icelandic is like early German, Danish, English, and some other stuff put together in a stew and left to boil for 10 centuries or so. The result is a language with similar roots to others that is totally unique in its pronunciation. Look up the pronunciation of the streets your accommodations are on, the restaurants, parks, and attractions you want to see, and practice them. Practice, practice, practice. It will prevent your taxi driver from laughing at you when they finally realize what your actual address is (not that this happened to me…).
Respect the Wildlife
Image via Vladimir Riabinin on unsplash.com
Similarly to Australia, the climate and ecosystem of Iceland are really unique. You can get on a boat and see puffins nesting, or spot sharks and whales on ancient migratory journeys. If you have a powerful fear of snakes, never fear; Iceland has no native reptile species. Even the plants are totally unique; Iceland is famous for schnapps made from local moss called fjallagrasa (and Iceland has a LOT of moss).
The native species in Iceland are uniquely suited to its awe-inspiring landscape and as such, are really sensitive to intervention from humans. Justin Bieber really stepped in it a few years ago when he didn’t respect this fact (I am not sorry for the pun). Icelandic horses (descended from horses the vikings brought in in the 800s) are so unique that if one is taken off of Iceland, it can never return in case it brings back a disease that could devastate the rest of the Icelandic equine population.
If you want to help preserve the amazing natural integrity that makes Iceland so special, please respect the instructions on signs, from park rangers and tour guides, and stay in the areas marked for safe passage as best you can.
An Eye Mask and Ear Plugs Are a Must
From the end of May to the end of July, the sun does not fully set in Iceland. Instead, it dips just below the horizon, creating a sort of hazy dusk that returns to full sun the following morning. As I mentioned above, Iceland also has about 80 native species of birds. Why do I bring this up? Because, as most people know, birds do not sleep when the sun is out.
In practice, this means the birds will continue to call and sing, full volume, all. night. long. Many Icelandic homes and hotels are outfitted against the summer sun with blackout shades, but the birds outside your window will call all night. If you are camping, this effect is amplified tenfold. I have been told I could sleep through a marching band, and the birds really got to me. Make sure you bring an eye mask AND ear plugs if you go to Iceland in the summer, just in case.
Jet Lag Might Wreck You
Reykjavík is only a 3 hour flight from New York City. Thanks to the short flight and the time zone change, we left New York at 11 p.m. and got to our AirBNB at around 8 a.m. The best way to avoid jet lag is to stay awake until you can go to bed at your normal bedtime in the country you’re visiting (so even if you’re wiped when you arrive at 1 p.m., wait until 9 or 10 p.m. to go to bed).
Iceland provided the biggest test of this I’ve ever encountered, because the flight is too short to get anything resembling a full night’s sleep, and as I mentioned above, it is difficult to fall asleep and stay asleep. When planning your trip to Iceland, sleep hygiene should be a huge priority. Work it into your itinerary and pack whatever you need to ensure a good night’s sleep (even if it feels a little silly and precious). You will not regret getting more sleep.
It’s More Beautiful Than You Can Even Imagine
A gentle tributary at Þingvellir national park
One night, when we were camping at Þingvellir national park, my travel buddy and I decided to go on a hike at midnight, out across the mossy fields. The sky was a soft grey above, and our path was only about as wide as a deer trail. Underneath the rolling green moss and tiny pink wildflowers at our feet, huge crevasses opened in the earth, revealing vents with jagged black rock walls that went down much further than any eye could see.
There’s an old viking epic poem about a valiant young man, who is pursued on the way back to his home (presumably from the parliament) by the dark elf queen. He spurs his horse on faster and faster as the queen draws closer on his heels. We had heard a song based on the poem at a concert the night before, and talked about the vivid imagery of the song set against our current backdrop.
With a gentle black mountain our only landmark, we ventured further into the wide expanse of sage and grey. The steady light filtering over the horizon, and the moss dampening all sound gave the effect of being in a sensory deprivation tank, suspended in time and space. As we walked, the legend seemed to take shape around us; you could almost hear the moss-dampened hoofbeats and feel the elf queen sweeping in on the wind.
After a much shorter hike than we had anticipated, we turned back towards camp. Whether it was because it was late and we were tired (as we told ourselves) or because we had bought into the Icelandic belief in the huldufólk (elves), doesn’t matter. We left the wild and wonderful Island with thousands more secrets for us to uncover.
Learn more from more of my mistakes! Read Things to Know Before You Go to London.
