Things We Want To Do In Reykjavík
Next month we head on our next trip which starts in Reykjavík, the capital of Iceland. We’ve got four days in the city before we join our cruise which spends a few days exploring other areas in Iceland. I’m so excited for this trip as Reykjavík specifically has been on my bucket list for years. And there’s so much I want to do in Reykjavík while we’re there.
Here are some of the things we want to do while we’re in the city.
Explore the city via a hop-on-hop-off bus
A city break wouldn’t be complete for me without seeing everything from the perspective of a hop-on-hop-off bus. This is one of the things we’re hoping to do on our very first day to get our bearings. We’ll be able to see all the immediate sights and find out a bit more about the area. Plus we have a super early flight so this will help us see Reykjavík without wearing us out.
See the Northern Lights
This would be an ultimate bucket list thing to get ticked off, and to be honest I think we’ll have better luck on our sea day on the cruise. But during our first full day in Reykjavík we have a Golden Circle & Northern Lights trip booked so fingers crossed.
The Northern lights aka the aurora borealis is caused by the interaction of particles from the sun with the upper atmosphere near the North Pole. Our tour is three hours long and takes us out of the city for the best chance of seeing the lights. So fingers crossed we manage it first time, if not we’ll have a few more chances around our trip and the cruise.
Waterfalls, geothermal spots and all the nature
For us the biggest pull of Iceland is the amazing natural landmarks. I want to see all the waterfalls, geothermal spots, glaciers etc that I can.
During our Golden Circle tour we’ll visit the Geysir geothermal area to see Strokkur that errups every 4-8 minutes, shooting a column of water over 40m in the air. We’ll see Gullfoss waterfall which is part of a glacial river and falls into a crevice 32m deep. Then the UNESCO world heritage site of Þingvellir. This is one of the few spots where you can see the North-American and Eurasian tectonic plates above ground.
We have a second trip booked to the Diamond Beach and Glacier Lagoon which will give us plenty more chances to see some amazing landmarks.
Visit the Lava Show
I had no idea this existed until I did a bit of internet browsing. But the Lava Show recreates a volcanic eruption by superheating real lava up and it’s the only live lava show in the world. The lava used originates from the 1918 Katla eruption which in itself is mad.
The idea of the show is just insane and I don’t think my trip would be complete without experiencing it for myself.
Soar over Iceland at FlyOver
During more internet browsing I discovered FlyOver. You hang suspended with your feet dangling (like in a rollercoaster) over a 20m spherical screen to feel like you’re flying. Andlike a 4D movie there’s wind, mist, scents and motion to add to the atmosphere.
Without physically being able to see the whole country this feels like a good second best. From volcanoes and glaciers to Vikings and trolls, I can’t wait to experience this.
Do you have any Reykjavík recommendations?
17 responses to “Things We Want To Do In Reykjavík”
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All About Me
Rhian Westbury
Travels and Destinations
Nothing currently planned
This is my dream place to visit and we want to do all you have planned as well. We did nearly visit years ago but sadly never got there. Will be looking forward to your post after you have visited
I’d love to see the Northern Lights. I’ve always wanted to see them, and I’ve heard Reykjavik is the perfect place for it.
A hop-on-hop-off bus sounds like a great way to visit the city. No navigation or worrying about getting lost!
Exactly, you can sit back, listen to the commentary and see the sights x
omg I wanted to do to Reykjavik right before covid, you’re gonna enjoy it so much. Iceland is so beautiful.
You will love Iceland. We had the best time. My tip would be to hire a car as it’s so easy to get around and you will cover much more ground
We’re going to do that when we do a full country trip, but for Reykjavik we have two full day tours planned and then the rest of our time in Iceland is on a cruise x
The Northern Lights are on my bucketlist! Reykjavik sounds like such a fantastic place to visit.
Reykjavík sounds like a wonderful place to visit. All the very best for your trip!
I would love to see the northern lights. Never heard of the Lava show until today. I will have to look into that
It just looks so mad, I don’t think you’d know about it unless you were going haha x
This is so cool and Iceland is on my bucket list too! You have a great list of things to do when there and I already pinned the post to come back to when I finally get to go myself. Such a beautiful country!
I have Northern lights in my travel bucket list. Hope you have fun there.
It’s been on mine for as long as I can remember x
Iceland is such a beautiful country. I’ve always wanted to go after I had a friend visit and show me pictures and tell me all about it. I’ve always wanted to see the northern lights. Thanks for sharing!
Yeah photos always look amazing don’t they x
I would love to visit Iceland one day, can’t wait to hear about your trip.