Iceland in February is truly the land of fire and ice. Steaming geothermal heat surrounded by illuminated white snow. There’s so much to see and explore, so pack your coat, and have the perfect 5-day itinerary!
Getting There
One of the best elements of flying to Iceland is the way you can take advantage of the time zones. We left at 6pm, and after a 6 hour flight from Baltimore, arrived at 6am Iceland time! This meant we had the whole day to explore, but just be aware, you’ll likely need a nap.
Day 1
Since we landed so early, we picked up our rental car and went straight to the Blue Lagoon for the 8am opening slot. This is a super ideal way to freshen up after a red-eye flight, and probably the best time to visit the lagoon. There’s minimal crowds, you can watch the sun rise, and it feels so peaceful. We spent about 4 hours there (I’d recommend you go for the upgraded package), then went for a fun drive before checking in to our hotel.
There’s a few cool spots to visit as you drive from the lagoon to the capital, including the Gunnuhver Hot Spring Geothermal Area, the Krysuvik Cliffs, and the bridge between two continents in Reyjansbaer. We also stopped at Bonus, our favorite grocery store on the trip, for some lunchtime sandwiches!
We stayed at the Hilton Canopy in Downtown Reykjavik and loved every minute of it. The rooms were clean, stylish, and in such a convenient central location. We then took the rest of the day to walk around the city. We grabbed a famous hotdog (which I wasn’t a fan of, but my husband loved), poked around the Penis Museum (you read that correctly), explored the rainbow road and the Hallgrimskirkja, and popped into shops. We also went to Einstok’s happy hour–our favorite brewed beer on the trip, and ate a delicious dinner at Reykjavik Fish and Chips. These were the best fish and chips I’ve ever had!
This was a full day and we were running on 3 hours of sleep, so we went back to our hotel and got some rest for our next exciting day ahead.
Day 2
After a delicious hotel breakfast, we hopped in the rental car to make our way to the Snaefellsnes Peninsula. About a 2 hour drive from Reykjavik, this peninsula is a beautiful, remote glimpse of Icelandic nature. There’s one road that pretty much circles around the peninsula, so we used that as our main route and went to a variety of pins we researched in advance. I’d suggest researching where you’d like to stop, but we enjoyed checking out the Búðakirkja black church, Olkelduvatn mineral spring, and Snaefellsjokull National Park. This is definitely the kind of place you play around on the map, you drive, and you stop and discover! Also, if you’re a Game of Thrones fan, be sure to stop at Kirkjufell.
We stayed and ate dinner at one of the few hotels on the peninsula, the Hotel Snaefellsnes. It was clean, warm, and had all we needed, and the fish stew was out of this world!
Day 3
After another incredible hotel breakfast, we got out early to make our way to the Golden Circle. This was more of a driving day for us, so we kept it pretty relaxed, yet still made it to some exciting destinations. We stopped at the Olfus geothermal area as we made our way towards Selfoss. In Selfoss, we went to Skyrland, an awesome museum experience that taught us the history of skyr and ended with a treat! We learned quite a bit about Icelandic dairy culture, and I think it’s worth a stop on your visit. We then strolled around the rest of Selfoss, which was an idyllic town. We finished off our exploration with the Kerid Crater, which costs $7 per person and is a really cool, quick hike.
We checked into Frost & Fire Hotel, located on the Varmá river in Hveragerdi, complete with stunning views, clean rooms, and geothermal hot tubs overlooking the river. After settling in and having some hot tub time, we drove to Ingólfsskáli Viking Restaurant, where we had house-made mead in a horn cup and viking food with a gourmet flair.
Day 4
Day 4 was our big, Golden Circle day. Strap in, because we had quite the adventure. The day started at Thingvellir National Park. This, in my opinion, is the most overrated spot on the circle, and I would encourage you to not spend too much time there. We parked at the visitor’s center and did a bit of the walk, but it just wasn’t our favorite spot and it was filled with tourists.
We then made our way over to the Fontana Geothermal Bread tour. This was incredible! They taught us how they harness the geothermal energy to bake delicious rye bread, and we very much enjoyed the taste test. They also have hot springs you can visit, if you’re interested in a swim. Make sure to walk across the parking lot to the small, third spring that has both Christian and Viking significance.
We needed a mid-day pick me up, so we grabbed coffees at this cow cafe called Efstidalur. You can enjoy hand-crafted drinks (and ice cream) with their milk, and sit in the most incredible area with glass to see the cows! As a cow fanatic, this was thrilling. After our afternoon coffee, we went to see the Geysir. This erupts every 6-10 minutes, and we found it was enough to walk around and watch it erupt twice.
Perhaps my favorite part was Fridheimar, the geothermal tomato greenhouse restaurant. When you walk in, you are instantly transported into a garden wonderland. Tomato vines are running everywhere, and it is so warm and bright. We made reservations for a late lunch, and enjoyed bottomless tomato soup and house-made bread, alongside tomato beers! For dessert, we had green tomato ice cream. This was a one of a kind meal, from food to ambiance. A must visit on the circle!
We walked off our lunch at Gulfoss Falls, which were beautiful frozen over at the time and a truly magical spot. If you ask me, this is the best site on the Golden Circle tour. I’d also suggest checking out their gift shop, I found it to be reasonably priced with some unique items!
Day 5
Our fifth day was left open to catch up on anything we didn’t get to, or maybe to visit another hot spring. Unfortunately, it was a cold and incredibly rainy day, so we checked out of our hotel and went to the grocery store! We actually went to 3 different grocery stores, and this was our day to stock up on the treats and snacks we wanted to bring home.
We decided to stroll around Reykjavik one last day, and we did some more shopping, grabbed an incredible pastry from Braud & Co., and went down by the water to see the Sun Voyager statue and Harpa Concert Hall. We checked into Hotel Viking, and had a pretty relaxed evening getting set before we flew home the next morning.
This trip was incredible, and we have Iceland on our list to return! While we were unable to see the Northern Lights, we were exposed to such incredible natural beauty and wholesome eats. While 5 days was enough to see plenty, we barely scratched the surface on this country. If you’re thinking about planning a trip to Iceland, let me know in the comments below!
All thoughts and opinions are my own. We purchased everything ourselves.