When I see these deals, sometimes I am a bit skeptical on whether or not it is a legit deal. This particular deal came open and within a few weeks, I figured it was good enough to try and booked it.
A couple of definitions that may help you to better understand me before you read any further: I am frugal most of the time but will splurge on experiences or something I deem valuable. For me, being frugal looks at what I place value on (whether it is a restaurant or amazing hotel or experience) and being cheap looks at the least expensive tour or least expensive hotel in the area.
What You Should Know Before You Go to Iceland.
- Need a passport
- It is cold even in the summer
- Food is expensive
- Endless beauty
- This trip is amazing and you will love it. Thank me now!
What You Should Know About the Wow Air Flight:
WOWAir offers 5 hour non-stop flights from Baltimore to Reykjavik at $99.00 fare each way. It is important to know that you do not get a carry on, personal item, and luggage with this airline. WOW Air has certain restrictions on luggage and even personal item (the size and weight) so make sure that you read that information instead of showing up at the airport and paying more than you should.
Leaves the United States in the evening; arriving in Reykjavik in the early morning hours.
What We Did:
I had a personal item and checked bag only. I wore my coat on the plane and also wore my Sorel heavy boots while my tennis shoes were packed in the suitcase. All of my heaviest items were worn on the plane. I live in Ohio and based on the deal; drove 6 hours to Baltimore to catch the flight. Gas cost $99.00 roundtrip from Columbus, Ohio to Baltimore, MD.
What You Should Know About Iceland
You can spend very little in Iceland if you rented a car, paid for gas, and stayed at the least expensive hotel/ Air BNB/ hostel.
Airfare including bags, taxes, and seats: $283.00 per person roundtrip
Rental Car: Blue Car Rental for a Land Rover SUV with insurance including the wind, volcanic ash, etc. coverage for 4 full days was $767.12 USD This included a wi-fi transmitter in the car so we could talk on WhatsApp and use the google map feature on the cell phone with no additional costs.
Day 1:
Drive from Airport to Glacier Lagoon with stops along the way at waterfalls and at Vik. (7 hour drive) Hotel Stay Expenses: Fosshotel Glacier Lagoon: $146.30 USD. Pictures from Day 1 below. Hotel was very nice; the dinner at the hotel was very expensive. $60.00 USD per person.
Day 2:
Drove from Jokulsarlon Glacier Lagoon to the Golden Circle and then to Hotel Husafell; on the way stopping along the Golden Circle and the Solheimasandur Plane Crash! It was a long walk to the plane and there are no restrooms along the path; maybe close to 5 miles roundtrip. The Solheimasandur Plane Crash is 10 miles from Skogafoss and 17 minutes from Vik. Look for stopped cars.
Hotel Husafell was a wonderful hotel $263.61 for the night and it included a viewing of the Northern Lights. The hotel is located near the Glacier and is removed from most lights; absolutely stunning location. We arrived late and dinner was no longer served, however, the chef brought us some food anyway. Highly recommended.
The next morning included an excursion: Into the Glacier (for 2 people: $344.80) riding in a NATO missile truck with wifi that will climb the glacier so you can see the inside. It was incredible. We walked next door to board the truck for our excursion.
After the morning spent on the Glacier, we packed up and did the Golden Circle Tour for a second day.
We headed toward our next hotel: Ion Adventure Hotell for $345.23 a night; close to our next morning’s excursion. Included a geothermal pool experience (Northern Lights can be viewed if it is clear) and the accommodation was quite spectacular.
Guide to Iceland Silfra Fissure included a Dry Suit to experience swimming in the Silfa Fissure (snorkeling between tectonic plates between North America and Europe). for $300.36 for two people. The Dry Suit allows you to float; you can see me floating on my bottom and see the pictures from the GoPro.
After the excursion, it was time for a ride into Reykjavik to explore the city and take in some of the shopping. Our hotel was the Fosshotel Reykjavik for $202.32 for the night. It was centrally located.
Our last day was spent in the morning at the Blue Lagoon before boarding the plane to return to Baltimore. $108.19 for two people. There are several price points with the Blue Lagoon; we opted for the least expensive and brought our own travel towels and had flip flops. It saved us around $100.00.
Travel Insurance $144 for 2 people.
This trip is absolutely amazing and while we could have gone much cheaper; it was a quality vacation with above average accommodations. Book the trip and Go!
Questions, Just Ask!
It looked like an amazing trip! When I see those airfares to Iceland I am tempted to go. May I ask how much you ended up spending and how long you were there?
The hotels, car, airfare, trip insurance, and excursions were 1310 per person USD and there were two of us. Our food costs and gas was around 600.00 total. We ate out for most meals. We were there Monday thru Thursday. (Left Sunday night from BWI and arrived back late Thursday evening). It was definitely a good amount of time. I enjoyed it so much I went back about 2 months later on a stopover for 24 hours.
If you wanted to do things cheaper; you definitely can….just make sure you go during the fall or spring (rental cars and hotels are less expensive) we went in the spring and rates were decent; we did splurge on hotels and the rental car. Keep in mind there is ice on some roads and I have an SUV at home; so my preference was an SUV. Lessen the cost of hotels, rental car selection, eating out, and excursions; you could probably trim 1,000 easily off this trip.
Hope this helps.
Yes, thank you for all the info. A trip to Iceland is on my bucket list!