1. Hot pools/ geothermal springs.
The most well-known is the Blue Lagoon which is near Rekyavik airport.
It is beautiful, being seemingly in a natural setting. There are bars on the edge so you can drink and soak.
BUT, it is very very expensive and you need to book ahead. Well ahead if you want to go during the day.
However there are many many more hot pools around the island, most towns have one. And Reykjavik has several.
These are relatively cheap to visit. Indeed the locals go there all the time to socialise.
It is a ritual for them.
And speaking of ritual...there is a strict protocol for entering the pools. You need to have a shower,
with soap which is supplied, in the nude. Yes! And there are attendants who make sure you do. There are cute little signs in the showers telling you which bits to wash if you are confused.
In the pool we went to in Reykjavik the showers were communal, but at the Blue Lagoon there are cubicles for us shy foreigners.
Some pools are outdoors and some indoors.
I wish we'd had time to visit more!
2. Volcanoes.
Some of them active, some about to blow, some recently blown....
And the result of all that volcanic activity is an amazingly beautiful landscape.
The wonderful thing about the glaciers in Iceland is that you don't have to go up high to see them.
If you travel around Iceland, you don't even have to get out of your car to see them!
And there is one very special place where the glaciers calves into a lake which empties into the sea and the icebergs get washed up on the beach!
Where else can you see that, eh?
4. Puffins.
We were too late to see puffins. Sad.
These cute little guys land to nest in April and leave again in mid August. They spend the rest of their time out at sea.
5. Food.
Ok, so food is fairly expensive in Iceland as they have to import a lot of things.
So we stuck mainly to fish, lobster, and vegetarian food as we don't eat meat.
They grow a lot of crops in enormous greenhouses which are heated by geothermal heat.
Tomatoes, cucumbers, capsicum, greens and even bananas are grown.
There is great bread...we loved the bread and fresh warm buns at Braud & co.
6. Knitted items.
It will come as no surprise that there is much knittery when you see the number of sheep here!
If you are after a warm sweater then this is the place.
Also very tempting wool shops so you can make your own.
7. Scenery.
At first G was disappointed by the countryside as he was expecting snow-covered hills and crags.
But get up into the highlands and that's when you will gasp!
Drive around and you will see fjords and cliffs and bays and multi-coloured hills and and and....
8. Northern lights.
It's on everyone's wish list, right?
But, you have to go in the winter, and you have to have a clear sky and you have to be away from artificial lights.
We were lucky - we saw some on the second night of our trek just after sunset. It was mostly greenish shimmers but we got one brief rainbow curtain, which even our guide said was lovely.
9. Whale watching.
A much better thing to do that whale-eating.
Quite a few different whale species visit the waters around Iceland.
Go on a cruise to see them.
In summer.
10. Outdoor activities
From mountain biking, hiking, horseback riding, glacier tours, kayak, river rafting, caving, whale watching, birding and elf hunting (yes, elf hunting).
11. Waterfalls.
Why are there so many amazing waterfalls in Iceland?
Sure they may not be the highest or the widest but they sure are beautiful. It may be because of the water flow.
And the location.
And the rock formations.
How long do you need there?
At least 2 weeks.
Spend a few days in Reykjavik and 10 days or more the drive around the island.
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