50 Iceland Itinerary Ideas In Under 15 Minutes

I am going to show you a few places you  must visit on your trip around Iceland. My name is Karl. And I am a  native Icelander. Let's Go! This was our itinerary. However you say that word. There are no stops here. This is not because there  is nothing to see there. This is just because we   have been there on so many occasions before.  And because some of it is in the middle of the   ocean. I will cover this area in more detail  in other videos so make sure you subscribe. Let's start this journey with a short but  a worthwhile trip around the Snæfellsnes   peninsular. The home of Iceland's only  serial killer and a melting glacier. For a mere two hundred krona you can  taste water carbonated naturally.   It tastes like toothpaste. Disgusting! This is where Iceland's only serial killer  lived in the 16th century. He killed   travellers for their possessions.  It is a guesthouse now. Welcome? Have you ever wanted to walk into a big wet  crack? Better be worth it! Then Rauðafeldsgjá   is the Gorge for you. Make sure you read the  folklore surrounding it. It’s about a 20 minute   hike from the road. Bring waterproof shoes like  we meant to and enjoy the view on your way back. Arnarstapi is like one of those  towns from a kids adventure movie,   grab a coffee and head out for an  easy hike to Gatklettur. The hike   to the hole in the ground is just  as impressive as the destination.   It has a number of impressive stops along the way  including Stone Bridge. Careful not to fall in. We stopped at Laugarbrekka just to admire the  view. There is an art piece there dedicated   to Guðríður Þorbjarnardóttir born in 980. She  went on 8 sea-voyages. I have been on zero. I   once got seasick on my way to Westman Islands  while the ship was still tied to the dock. Speaking of ships. Djúpalónssandur is a large  black sand beach with massive waves. On the beach   there are the remains of the fishing trawler Epine  from Grimbsby. It wrecked there March 13th 1948.   You can get details in the Hnjótur Museum  in the west fjords. More about that later.   The pathway down to the beach is very  instagram friendly. This guy is not. Skarðsvik is a beautiful red beach which  will tempt you to take your shoes off.   And it has a cave. Don't go  in there, it is full of poop.   If you get caught doing your business  there, be prepared to eat your own… At this point the day was almost over so we  headed to one of the most beautiful towns you   will ever find called Stykkishólmur. We went  to bed and watched the very mediocre movie,   Secret Life of Walter Mitty which  is in part set in Stykkishólmur. There are plenty of places left to explore  on the way and we have not even covered all   stops on the itinerary however you say that  word. So stick around for the west fjords. Autolanded! Where are you?   Silly drone!   Watch out for the wind. West fjords are like a country  of their own. Some skip them   because the distances you need to drive are vast   and the roads are not always great. But if you  have the time you must go to the west fjords. Our first stop in the westfjords is the witchcraft  museum in Hólmavík. It has a nábrók on display or   necropants. It is not as bad as it sounds. It is a  pair of pants made out of the skin of a dead man!   It is an excellent museum highlighting how our  ancestors were into witchcraft wholeheartedly.   And they have great coffee. Recommended 100%. From Hólmavík we drive to Flókalundur. Flókalundur   is like a fancy old folks home. Except, it has  an awesome natural pool just up the road. It is   very small, but it is also free and you  can go in the ocean if you need more space. On our way to Hnjótur Museum we saw this  massive thing. It’s not a shipwreck,   it was put there for display. It  is Iceland's oldest steel boat.   I was not allowed to climb aboard  because it would make me seasick. Hnjótur museum is worth the  stop. It’s full of old farming   and fishing crap. The outside is just  as impressive. You can get the details   of the Epine shipwreck and the heroic  rescue effort in a short movie inside. Don’t buy a puffin in a puffin store. Grab  one here for free. You can just use a net.   This is Látrabjarg. It is a bit of a  challenge to get there. But it is worth it.   It is the largest seabird cliff in Iceland  and one of the westernmost parts of Europe. Usually I won’t make you sit through any more of  my footage than you have to for me to get my point   across. And when it comes to red sand beach it  is really hard to leave out a stunning drone shot   or a walk on the beach. That is why I put this  rant into that script. So I could show you more   footage. There is a little road that will take  you right up to the sand. Proceed with caution   and remember offroad driving is illegal and taken  very seriously. Careful of the jellyfish. They   are all over and they will sting. Peeing on it  will only get you a fine for indecent exposure. Our last stop for the day was the  stunning town Patreksfjörður. We   had some delicious food at a restaurant  with a gorgeous view across the fjörð. And now for the creme of the crop. Dynjandi.  It is hard to overstate how beautiful it is.   My favorite waterfall in Iceland bar  none. You absolutely must take the 20   minute hike all the way to the top. No  picture or video can do this experience   any justice. There are many smaller  waterfalls all the way to the top. There are many scary roads and places  to stop. We did a few quick stops here   and there including Flateyri. It  is a bit off track when you are   heading to Ísafjörður. But worth  it if you like stunning beauty. Ísafjörður is the largest town in the westfjords.  It is, like most other towns in Iceland,   absolutely gorgeous. It is barely touched  by modern architecture. It has many great   restaurants. These tourists chose this one. I  can only assume it is very good. We sat by the   dock and watched the sunset way early behind  the large mountain overshaddowing the town. I skipped sooo many places! But we made it over  the west fjords without driving off a cliff. Now   to the North. If you are getting some value from  this video, how about hitting that like button? Hvítserkur means White Berserk. It  is basically a rock in the ocean that   looks like it is covered in bird poop.  Perhaps that is how it got its name? I   don’t know. I'm not a geologist. It  kinda looks like a dragon… I guess. Imagine you were a paranoid viking hiding from  the dragon you just saw in the ocean and then   you came across this place! This place  is called Borgarvirki or City Fortress.   It is a natural fortress that likely formed  during a volcanic eruption in the ice age.   It has been altered somewhat by humans  throughout the centuries. It has a rich   history which I highly recommend you  read. The view up there is awesome. Our next stop was a rather  unconventional one but worth it.   This area is littered with massive  canyons and sketchy bridges. Glaumbær is a fantastic museum. It exhibits old  crap from rural daily life in Iceland in the   18th and 19th century. The day we were there  was very gloomy. The day was perfect to read   about Sólveig from Miklabær. She is said to have  haunted the manor in the 18th century because she   was refused a burial in a proper graveyard. She  was eventually buried in a graveyard in 1937.   Only after she had made the reverend  disappear. A little too late if you ask me. I know I say this a lot. But this time I  mean it. Hólar is the most gorgeous little   town you will ever see. Here I found  out that some Icelandic people still go   to church on a sunday. Even if there is  no beer afterwards like after weddings.   It is a place so rich in history that I could  never do it justice. Let's just say the good   christians of Iceland dragged tha last remaining  catholic bishop south to Reykjavík and chopped off   his head. Not because he was catholic, but  because he was being an annoying catholic. If you fancy a swim, make sure you stop  off at Hofsós. The swimming pool has an   excellent view of my finger. This is the truth about this swimming  pool. It is crowded and loud. From there we drove to Siglufjörður. But not  without stopping a few times to admire the   beauty in the ever changing landscape. We went  there twice because I managed to forget the box   I used as a landing pad for the drone. I realised  in Siglufjörður which is about 30 miles away. You   know what I am going to say about Siglufjörður.  The most bea… nevermind. You get the point. When this one guy in the year thousand decided  we shall all be christian now after a nap   he decided to symbolise his decision by  littering Goðafoss with an idol of the old gods.   Goðafoss means waterfall of the gods. It  is one of Iceland's most famous waterfalls. Play Yaya Dingdong is probably the only thing you  will hear in Húsavík. The home of eurovision. We   watched that movie there. I noticed this polite  note to not go into the tower on my way down.   I'm sorry Jebus. There is a beautiful lake just  outside the town where you can get a great view. Ásbyrgi is said to have been formed when Odin's  eight-legged horse, Sleipnir, touched one of its   feet to the ground. I doubt that this is true. I  have never seen a horse with more than five feet.   Ásbyrgi is the home of thousands of elves if  you believe coo coo people. It is however not   a myth how stunningly beautiful the cliffs  are and the valley is teaming with life. Hljóðaklettar are a number of cliffs and caves.  Their unique shapes echo sound in a strange way.   I recorded the audio diligently on  my camera only to find out when I got   home that my microphone does not work  with the camera. I guess you will just   need to stop there and experience for  yourself. It is worth it, I promise. Dettifoss is said to be the  most powerful in Europe.   I am not sure how a waterfall rules a whole  continent. It is a fifteen minute hike from   the parking lot but definitely worth it. You can  approach it from two sites. We came from the west. Mývatn is a planet of its own. I  covered that in a separate video   I suggest you watch after this one. So we move on. We are officially in the East of Iceland now  in one of the hottest new tourist destinations   in Iceland Stuðlagil. Careful navigating  to Stuðlagil while using Google. Google   knows everything except the best route  to Stuðlagil. If you have ever logged on   to instagram even for a second you  will have seen photos of Stuðlagi. There is a lot of driving in the east. But it   is OK because everywhere you look you  will see something new and beautiful:   Terrible roads high up the mountains are  rewarded with the occasional viewpoint. We went to one of the most beautiful towns you  will ever see. Seyðisfjörður. And this was the   road that Walter Mitty skateboarded down. We were  fooled into hiking to this thing. An art piece   that left us somewhat disappointed. Half an hour  hike up the mountain. At Least the view was great. We stayed the night at the Wilderness  Center. I did a full review of it   in another video so we will move on again. We are on the home stretch. The south. Here is  a pro tip. The south is very dense in points   of interest. You should consider going counter  clockwise instead of clockwise like we did because   at this point we are very tired. It's  OK for us. We have been here many times.   So we kind of powered through. I will do  a deep dive video into the south later.   But here are our highlights from this trip. Jökulsárlón is insane. Suck on an iceberg  They are full of microbes so you get  a disease from the ice age… probably.   There are a bunch of other stunning glaciers.  In fact, this whole area is one big glacier. Having seen about a million waterfalls by  this time we were not excited to hike to   Svartifoss. It was very hot and the hike  was about 45 minutes each way. We saw it,   great. Snapped a few pictures from  afar and wobbled back to the car. Dverghamar. Is a nice picnic spot. It has some  interesting folklore stories attached to it.   Fjaðrárgljúfu has been renamed Bieber  Canyon I guess. A short hike from the   parking lot. Tourists were making what looked  like sheep paths all over. So we fixed it with   this natural looking scrap metal path. After  seeing canyon after canyon the whole circle   then this one appears just  mediocre at best. Still stunning. Hjörleifshellir is most famous for looking  like that green slob from Star Wars.   It is really cool and you  can drive right up to it. I did a short video on Vík I suggest  after this one. So we move on. We have a bunch of waterfalls now. Skógarfoss is  my favorite. I remember seeing it for the first   time as a child. I thought it was just like in  the cartoons. Perfect. I still do by the way. Seljarlandsfoss is a unique experience  because you can go behind it. It gets   very wet and the path is not for everyone.  It is very slippery and quite steep. So be   careful: I fell there once on my back.  It didn’t hurt but it was embarrassing. Speaking of embarrassment. I was however  old when I shot this video when I found   out about Gljúfrabúi. It is a waterfall right  next to Seljarlandsfoss but it is much more   interesting because it is inside its own canyon.   It has a rock there that was probably  designed for instagram photos. I went way too fast. That is even an  understatement. I hadn’t started a YouTube channel   when I shot these videos. I shall have to go again  with the sole purpose of making a video for you.   So make sure you subscribe. I will also add more  in depth videos about the various places I visit. So what places did you miss the most  from this fast round trip around Iceland?   Put it in the comment and I will  try to include it in my next one.   And make sure you share this video  with everyone you are travelling with. Have a great trip!

Channel: Time Warp Iceland

Views: 8,476

Keywords: iceland, iceland guide, iceland travel guide, how to travel iceland, how to do the ring road, iceland ring road, iceland ring road trip, iceland ring road guide, ring road trip, ring road guide, guide to iceland, iceland itinerary, what to do in iceland, things to do in iceland, ring road iceland, visit iceland, travel iceland, going to iceland, travel tips iceland, iceland travel, iceland travel tips, iceland road trip, iceland itinerary ideas, itinerary iceland

Id: BekqiDqEvro

Length: 13min 29sec (809 seconds)

Published: Tue Jul 20 2021