Hello! Welcome to my blog where you’ll find photos of weddings, interiors, and some personal travel. The purpose of this specific post is to help anyone who is thinking about traveling to Iceland with a young kids(s), and to help my family remember all the fun things we did 🙂 Let me start by saying that our trip would have been completely different had it just been my husband and I without our son. In the past, we’ve loved taking more adventurous, long, strenuous hikes/activites (see Banff). But this specific Iceland itinerary is great for traveling with littles (under the age of 5).

I’ll share our itinerary below… what we planned to do, what we actually did, what we skipped, and what I wish we skipped. I’ll run through the whole thing and leave some notes and pretty pictures to share. It’s long and full of details only I probably care to remember so buckle up!

A few notes I had for myself at the top of my itinerary that you may find helpful in planning your trip:

• Central time is 6 hours behind Iceland time
• Emergencies dial 112
• Bring fishing gear? – you can get a $75 fishing license at N1/Olis Gas Stations, online, post office
• Bring lots of children’s Dramamine for the long driving days (Jax occasionally gets carsick).
• There are public bathrooms nearly everywhere and they are almost always clean. They’re free in the less touristy areas but in the more popular parts you do have to pay (can tap to pay).

TUESDAY, JULY 22 – 23  – TRAVEL DAY // Our flight left ORD at 10:15pm. It was a 6 hour flight so with the time difference we landed at 9:20am KEF the next day. This was perfect timing for our 3 year old son (Jax) – he was asleep before the plane took off and asleep until after we landed. Tip: Buy alcohol (if you drink) at Duty Free in the airport because alcohol in Iceland is heavily taxed. Try Brennivín, Iceland’s signature distilled liquor (hints of caraway). WEDNESDAY, JULY 23 – We rented our small SUV from SixT (you have to take a shuttle from the airport to SixT rental car) but once we arrived it was fairly easy and quick. I highly recommend getting a small SUV or whatever car can handle terrain. From there it was about a 45 minute drive to Reykjavik.

I planned to do these things on the way but didn’t…

• Grab breakfast/snacks on the way
• Quick groceries at Bonus Market (the cheaper grocery store)
• Thrihnukagigur Volcano (you can go inside?)

We went straight to our hotel to check in (Kvosin Hotel, Kirkjutorg 6, Reykjavik, 101, Iceland (stayed here on IHG reward points). We loved it here (only stayed one night) – it was centrally located, walking distance to everything, and had the best shower of the entire trip (things you value as you get older?).

PARKING: There are 14 street parking spaces directly in front of our hotel. These spaces are in a P1 zone so charges apply and there is a maximum stay of 3 hours during the day. If you are arriving during the day we recommend unloading your luggage in the P1 zone and then park in a P2 or P3 zone close to our hotel. Here is a  map of parking areas we recommend close to our hotel and here are the  street parking rates and times for each parking zone. Underground car parking garages are also available across the city. You can also download the Parka.app for a fast and convenient way to pay for parking across Iceland. Highly recommend downloading the Parka app because you’ll use it all over Iceland.

Originally I wanted to do a self guided food tour (all the spots I wanted to hit are below), but we got to Reykjavik later than expected and went straight to get an Icelandic hot dog from Baejarins Beztu Pylsur and walked around to Rainbow Road and got ice cream before our whale boat tour. The Icelandic hotdogs were delicious – and we probably got one at every gas station throughout the week (they are just as good from the gas station as they are from the famous hot dog stand). They were lamb based (I think), with raw and crispy onions, ketchup, a sweet brown mustard, and another yellowish aioli. Highly recommend at least trying it once.

Walk around Reykjavik – Self Guided Food Tour– these are the places I wanted to go but didn’t have time.

• Sandholt Bakery
• Messinn – we tried to pickup dinner here later at night but they didn’t do carry-out and Jax was already asleep. I’m still dreaming about getting the Arctic Char though – it sounded amazing.
• Baejarins Beztu Pylsur  (~10-20min line)
• Sægreifinn (The Sea Baron)(~15min line) – famous lobster soup. We walked in here but they didn’t have much else to eat for Jax so we went next door to Old Harbour House and it was just fine.
• Café Loki (~5min) – was told to try the rye bread ice cream.

Other things to explore Reykjavik: Hallgrimskirkja church; Whale, Nature, or Perlan Museum

Speedboat Whale Watching Tour – I booked this but didn’t realize it was a HIGH speed boat and you’re actually harnessed into your seats in a wetsuit so not ideal for a 3 year old. The captain and the company were really nice though and said he ‘would take Jax out and risk it if we wanted to, but didin’t recommend it’ – so we took his advice and skipped it (they gave us a full refund).

Instead, we took scooters to the Perlan Museum which ended up being awesome. We learned a lot about how Iceland formed, saw a cool video on the volcano that just erupted, went in an ice cave, and even got a sneak peek into the new volcano VR experience they’re about to start offering (think of it like the Sphere in Vegas – completely surrounded by screens, even on the floor underneath you, but going down into an active volcano… it was actually incredible but Jax got really scared and cried, so not recommended for young kids!).

THURSDAY, JULY 24  ~5 hours driving total to Snaefellsbaer Peninsula + stops

The next morning I walked to Baka Baka and brought back every pastry that they make, haha. They were all DELICIOUS (except the Kleina – which is a traditional Icelandic donut… but to be fair I just don’t like the taste of caraway/anise/fennel – if you like those flavors then try it!). Then we hit the road as we traveled up north towards the Snaefellsnes Peninsula.

Things we did on the way… 

Hraunfossar and Barnafoss Waterfalls (~ 2 hours) – SKIP. These were fine, but given that they were a little out of the way and we saw better much waterfalls later in the trip, I would rather spend less time driving. By the end of the trip, you’re almost ‘waterfalled out’ so these were definitely skippable.

Gas station snacks for the win…

Grabrok Volcanic Crater – 45 minute hike (~45 minutes) – could go either way on this one. It was cool at the moment (very windy!), but we saw a different crater that we liked later on in the trip that was less out of the way and slightly better. If you have time and you’re in the area, maybe go see it… but I probably would not call this a must see. It was a nice easy hike with a 3 year old though. Note: It was nice that it was pretty empty and much less touristy than other more popular spots (more popular for a reason though).

Landbrotalaug Hot Spring – if you like ‘off the beaten path’ this is a MUST DO! Super super tiny hot spring, not very crowded. But very cool and not built out like a spa or anything so makes it feel very natural and less touristy. The actual hot spring only fits 2-3 people, so we only sat in it for maybe 15 minutes because there were people waiting after us… but there is also a larger hot spring nearby that you can hang out in. We sat in the larger one first then made our way to the smaller one.

We were supposed to have lunch in Stykkisholmur (cute fishing town from Secret Life of Walter Mitty) but by the time we got there with all the stops it was 10pm. Luckily, it doesn’t really get dark in the summer so we were able to pick up food from Skippers (BEST fish and chips I had the entire trip, Dan had an amazing burger with ‘Doritos’ on it, too) and did a short hike up to the Súgandisey Ssland Lighthouse to enjoy our dinner.

We finally made it to our tiny home around midnight, Kirkjufell View Cottages – this was a cool place to stay with a gorgeous view. Perfect for one night (shower was tiny).

FRIDAY, JULY 25 – Drive Around Snaefellnes Peninsula

Grundarfoss Waterfall – 20 min hike, 10 min from where we stayed. This was more of a walk along a horse farm to the waterfall. It was a little bit longer with Jax and I wish we could have gotten a little closer like we did at other waterfalls. It was nice that it was empty, but if you’re strapped for time you could skip this one.

Kirkjufell Mountain – Game of Thrones (~10 minutes) – Kirkjufellfossar waterfall – this is a very popular spot. Lots of tourists, pay to park in the lot… you basically walk out of the parking lot and walk 2 minutes down to the waterfall/mountain view. It’s pretty and a nice quick stop that isn’t too far of a walk for kids before seeing anything cool.

Bugsfoss Waterfall (~15 minutes away) – we skipped this because we were all starving and went for lunch in Ólafsbraut to Sker. Surprisingly good pizza and delicious burrata app (the breadsticks with it were so good). Read: Iceland makes good bread.

Snæfellsjökull Hike? (~15 minutes away) – skipped

Skarosvik Yellow Sand Beach (~17 minutes away) – skipped

Saxholl Crater ~20 minute hike up metal stairs then you walk around the top of the crater – we were going to skip this but it was right off the road so we stopped because it looked cool. We liked this crater more than Grabrok. Both were basically stairs hiking up/down.

Djúpalónssandur black sand beach (~15 minutes from Saxholl) – this was one of our favorite stops of the whole trip. There were other people there, but not as crazy as Reynisfjara (more on this later) or some of the other popular spots. Jax loved playing with the rocks here and watching the waves (which are very unpredictable – BE CAREFUL HERE and do not get too close, the under current is very real). We spent a good hour or so here just walking around, listening to the waves, letting Jax play with the rocks (far from the water), and just climbing on everything. Below is the view from the top as you’re walking down towards the beach.

I love my little climber!

Arnastapi – Basalt Sea Stack Hike ~20 minute hike (~16 minutes away) – Jax was pretty tired after playing on the beach so he fell asleep and we let him rest. We went to a lookout point while he slept in the car and took turns checking it out.

We picked up some food from Stapinn and ate it on the drive to the Gerouberg Basalt Cliffs while Jax slept the whole drive. Sidenote – we found these treats at a gas station and had to get them because they looked delicious and they were also hilariously called ‘Florida.’

(Other places on my list for food in Arnastappi that we skipped: Samkomuhusid, Frista, Snjofell Restaurant)

Gerouberg Basalt Cliffs (~1 hour drive from Arnastappi) – You could maybe skip this, but it was the perfect short climb/hike for kids/Jax. It was getting kind of late so there was nobody there. We parked and almost immediately started climbing up the cliffs – Jax loved climing vs. just walking on flat land so this was perfect for us. It was a quick vertical climb and at the top people had built cairns/rock stacks so we hung out for a bit while Jax built one.

Sleep in Bogarnes – Private Summer 2BR Apartments: Brákarbraut 8 Ground floor, 310 Borgarnes – this was a nice stop to break up the drive down to the south side of the Island. Our apartment was huge and also had laundry which was needed. In the morning, I picked up yummy pastries for breakfast from a cute bakery right on the water (Geirabakarí) and then grabbed some groceries from Netto.

SATURDAY, JULY 26 – 4 hours driving

Our first stop was Thingvellir National Park (~1 hour drive from Bogarnes) – Thingvellir National Park is where the North American and Eurasian tectonic plates are pulling apart. It is the only place where two tectonic plates are visibly separated on land. But very cool to see. We hiked for about 1 hour (would have been 20 minutes without a child). Very touristy, lots of people. From here on out, everywhere we stopped on the south/east part of the island was super crowded.

Geysir Geothermal Field ~ 1 hour drive. Very cool to see all the geysirs and geothermal pools all in one place, but also VERY crowded. We probably only spent an hour here, if that.

We typically don’t eat at the restaurants right at the tourist spots, but when your kid is hungry, you eat. Surprisingly enough, the Gesir Cafe had a great pizz and fish soup (and nice views).

Gulfoss Waterfall (east and west side) ~ 10 minute drive – it was raining HARD when we got here and Jax wasn’t having it so we took turns going down to see the waterfall quickly.

Secret Lagoon (maybe swim, kids free) ~ 30 minutes drive from Gulfoss. We skipped because it would have been closed by the time we got there.

We stayed here for the last 3 days of the trip: Sleep in Seljalandsfoss on a Farm, Ormskot, 861 Hvolsvöllur. It was perfect, had a hot tub, gorgeous views, and close-ish to everything for the rest of our time in Iceland.  

SUNDAY, JULY 27 – 2 hours driving

We finally had a slower day, a home base, plus less driving so we made breakfast at home with the groceries I had picked up. Stuffed pizza bread must be a thing there because I accidentally bought 2 different kinds that I thought were plain bread, haha. Delicious though!

First stop of the day (and one of our favorites of the trip) 15min away:  Seljalandsfoss Waterfall: Very touristy but very cool how big it is, and the fact that you can go behind it and come out the other side. Jax was a little scared at first but ended up loving playing in the area behind the fall. The coolest part though is if you walk another 1/4 mile along the trail farther from this waterfall (to the left if you’re looking at the main waterfall), there is another “hidden” waterfall in a cave. Lots of people still come back this way to it, but you could easily miss it. We ended up grabbing sandwiches from the cafe and having a little picnic to dry off after getting soaked in the waterfalls.

Jax to the picture above (right) of Dan/Me/the waterfall. He even moved his little feet over so he could see the waterfall behind us in the photo – I was a proud mama 🙂

Solheimajokull Glacier (~1 hour) – skipped but we could see it in the distance.

Dyrholaey Promontory – Jax was asleep so we took turns here, too.

Our last stop for the day was Reynisfjara Black Sand Beach and Basalt Columns – again, we loved it here (another one of our favorite stops). Jax was a big fan of the beaches/rocks so we were able to just let him run around and enjoy which was more relaxing for us. The waves here are also super dangerous (a little girl drowned here just a few days ago while visiting with her family so – BE CAREFUL). The basalt columns were also really cool here and fun to climb. Very crowded, but really pretty.

We had dinner at Gamla Fjosio – I don’t remember why but I REALLY wanted to eat here. It was just fine. Smaller menu, my steak sandwich was pretty good. They also had homemade pies and Jax obviously loved the chocolate one.

MONDAY, JULY 28 – 3 hour drive – on the road by 6am! 

I read to get up early and go to Diamond Beach before our boat tour to have it to ourselves (across from boat tour) – but we were so tired at this point we couldn’t do it. We arrived at 9am for our glacier boat tour with Jokulasarlon Lagoon Boat Tour. We toured the Fjallsarlon Lagoon on a boat that had wheels to drive on ground too (Jax loved this)… we saw lots of glaciers and even a seal sunbathing on an glacier.

Then we walked over to Diamond Beach… it was really cool to see the glacier pieces washed up on the black sand beach but it was VERY crowded. If you’re up for it – I do recommend getting up early to have it to yourself!

By the time we got back we were starving so grabbed some food from the trucks in the lot. Pizza (again) was delicious and the lobster roll was good but not what I expected (it was more like an Icelandic hot dog with the toppings but with lobster).

Mulagljufur Waterfalls (~20 minutes) – we skipped

Fjadrarjlijvfur Canyon (~1 hour) halfway point on the drive home – Jax was asleep so Dan hiked down and saw it.

We had dinner in Vik overlooking beach at Strondin. The fish stew was really good.

TUESDAY, JULY 29 – TRAVEL DAY ~4 hours to KEF

On our last day in Iceland, we woke up and had breakfast in our beautiful home.

Things we were supposed to do on the way to the airport but skipped: Fridheimar Farm (has horses), Kerid Crater, Thermal River, Fagradalsfjall Volcano.

On the way to the airport we stopped in Selfoss at The Old Dairy Foodhall and it had really good options. We got chicken thighs, a shrimp taco, and Dan got his favorite burger of the whole trip (also had tortilla chips on it, must be a thing). We were hot dog/fish/pizza/fish stew’d out at this point I think!

We decided to end our Iceland trip with a visit to the Blue Lagoon. We originally weren’t going to do the Blue Lagoon at all because it was very touristy, we had a young child with us, etc. But last minute we decided to do it on the way to the airport as the last thing before getting on the airplane, and it was awesome. After a week of driving, hiking, staying in different places, etc. it was the perfect way to end the trip feeling rejuvenated. Jax loved the water (they did require he wear a floaty), it was crowded enough that we didn’t feel wierd having a loud child with us (it’s also separated into little pockets/areas so you get some privacy), and honestly it felt great to use spa products and a nice shower before the long flight home.

We got out of the Blue Lagoon around 330/4pm so we could slowly shower, get dressed, and get to the airport around 5. The drive in/out of Blue Lagoon was really cool too beacuse it was all black hardened lava. Anyway, when we dropped our car off to SixT, they actually drove us to the airport in our car and dropped us to the gate. Airport security was quick, bathrooms were super clean, and we had a smooth flight back home! Bonus – it was really clear so we were able to see Greenland!

If you’ve made it this far, I’m impressed! I hope you find this helpful and I hope we remember this trip forever 🙂

Reminder to pack:

• Winter Hat
• Baseball Hat (it was much sunnier than expected)
• Sunglasses
• Good rain coat
• Good rain pants
• Good rain boots (the amount of people we saw in soaking wet jeans and sneakers amazed me)
• Hiking bag that can get wet
• Swim Suits
• Quick Dry Towels