ICELAND

If you've been following along for the travel part of this blog, you'll know that we love a good flight deal. So when WOW Air announced cheap direct flights from certain North American cities, it didn't take us very long to pull the trigger and book. With minimal vacation days left to take, we decided we'd rather go for a short amount of time, then not at all, so we piggy-backed an extra 2 days onto the May long weekend, packed our tiny carry-ons and set off for Iceland.

Our plan was to spend 2 nights in Vik, followed by 2 nights in Reykjavik, and see as much as we could without spending an excessive amount of time in the car. We landed in Keflavik super early (5am!), and though we were sleep deprived and totally confused as to what time of day it was, we hopped in our rental car and headed east.

The following four days were filled with some of the most spectacular landscapes and natural sites I've ever seen. We snuck behind waterfalls and got totally drenched; we walked along black sand beaches gazing up at the beauty of basalt columns; we fought over the last bite of blueberry skyr cake; we drove past lava fields, that looked more like giant pieces of ginger then hardened lava; we spent the better part of a day watching vibrant blue icebergs float out to sea; we relaxed in one of Iceland's oldest natural hot-pools, nestled at the base of snow capped mountains; we took in all the sites, and all the bites, on our afternoon in Reykjavik; we charmed some horses into letting us trespass in search of the "blue waterfall"; we lounged in a natural hot spring surrounded by steam and mini geysers; we tasted rye bread baked in a geothermal hole; and relaxed pre-flight at the ever enchanting blue lagoon.

It was pure magic.

TO SEE + DO //

 seljalandsfoss - be sure to sneak around the back of the fall
gljufurarfoss - waterfall within a cave (just past selfalandsfoss)
skogafoss - another waterfall totally worth pulling over for
reynisdrangar / reynisfjara - black sand beach and beauty basalt columns
dyrholaey - peninsula with epic views back onto reynisfjara
seljavallalaug - natural hot pool / hidden gem
jokulsarlon - glacial lagoon, be sure to stop on the ocean side too
gamla laugin / secret pool - more of a public pool vibe, but totally relaxing and fabulous
laugarvatn fontana - spa and geothermal rye bread baking experience
bruarfoss - vibrant blue waterfall worth seeking out
blue lagoon - worth it

reykjavik
harpa concert hall
church of hallgrimur
stroll along laugavegur street
check out the oh so lovely home store, hrim

TO EAT + DRINK //

halldorskaffi, vik
sudur-vik, vik

reykjavik
donuts from bakari sandholt
grilled fish skewers from saegreifinn - even though they're lobster bisque gets all the buzz
coffee from reykjavik roasters
casual fish & chips at icelandic fish & chips
dinner at forrettabarinn - get the lamb
cocktails at kol
beers at mikkeller & friends

TRAVEL TIPS //

rent a car, preferably a 4x4 - you never know when you're going to hit a dirt road, or want to cross a river

pack warm, wind and rain repellant clothes - the wind is fierce and nothing is worse then spending the day in damp clothes

pack alllll the snacks, and lunch if you can - towns are few and far between, don't risk getting hangry while traveling
pre-book - iceland has become a super popular tourist destination, when possible, pre-book accommodations, reserve at restaurants, etc.

NEXT TIME //
west fjords
snaefellsjokul national park
muster up the courage to try a shot of black death