Compare All about Iceland by Hurtigruten vs Iceland In-Depth featuring the Northern Lights by Tours of Distinction
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| Trip |
3.5 | Average
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5 | Excellent
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| Duration | 11 days | 8 days |
| Price From | $ 5,291 | $ 3,699 |
| Price Per Day | $ 481 | $ 462 |
| Highlights |
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| Trip Style | Small ship cruise | Small group tour |
| Lodging Level | Premium | Luxury |
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| Flights & Transport | Ground transport included | Ground transport included |
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| Meals Included | N/A |
6 Breakfasts | 3 Lunches | 5 Dinners |
| Description |
Mythical Iceland is the land of ice and fire, with glaciers and volcanoes side by side. The unspoiled nature offers stunning landscapes, geysers and impressive waterfalls. You will see a variety of islands, towns and settlements, spectacular views and interesting sites, always accompanied by our knowledgeable Expedition Team. Discovering the wilderness, wildlife, history and settlements During this 11 day expedition cruise where you circumnavigate Iceland, you will enjoy hikes through lava fields, breathe the fresh Icelandic air, swim in natural hot spas, visit one of the many museums or simply walk around on your own and chat with the locals. To enhance the experience you can participate in our wide range of excursions – taking you even closer to it all. |
Iceland is one of the world’s ultimate islands of contrasts… fire and ice; long nights with colorful northern lights and daylight for 20 hours; glaciers and steaming hot geysers, waterfalls galore, pretty puffins, and magical elves. It is a fierce landscape of volcanoes, plains of mossy, craggy cliffs, and black sand beaches. It is an island still being formed by water, ice, and fire and closer than you believe. |
Day 1: Reykjavik
A lot of visitors are puzzled when landing in Iceland, because the airport is located in a part of the country that looks like an arctic desert with lava rocks, moss and mountains. 45 minutes later you find yourself in Reykjavik, a charming and vibrant town with lots of restaurants, museums and shops on narrow streets.
Embarkation from 16:00 hours.
Day 2: Circumnavigation Iceland
The West region of Iceland is often named “The Sagaland”. Here you can enjoy Stykkishólmur and Grundarfjörður‘s diversity with lava and rock formations, glaciers, volcanic activity, hot and cold springs. Snæfellsnes shelters tiny fishing harbours with dark cliffs of columnar basalt protecting them. All the colours of the northern summer seem to be caught between the ocean and the pristine slopes of the Snæfellsjökull glacier. Our wide range of excursions will surely enhance the experience of being here.
Stykkishólmur
Stykkishólmur has beautiful and well-preserved old houses in the town centre. Here you can find various interesting museums, as well as Iceland’s oldest meteorological station, dating back to 1845. The church in Stykkishólmur makes a beautiful landmark both from land and sea. The view from the church over Breidarfjordur is spectacular. When we land in Stykkisholmur we have several optional excursions, like boat tour with stunning views, or if you wish to be more active both kayaking, hiking and horseback riding is available.
Bjargtanger/Latrabjarg bird cliff
Látrabjarg, is a promontory and the westernmost point in Iceland. The cliffs are home to millions of birds, including puffins, northern gannets, guillemots and razorbills. It is vital for their survival as it hosts up to 40% of the world population for some species e.g. the Razorbill. It is Europe's largest bird cliff, 14km long and up to 440m high.
Day 3: Circumnavigation Iceland
One of Iceland’s best-kept secrets is the Westfjords. Ísafjörður is the largest town, with a centuries-old history as a major centre of commerce and trading, all based on fish. We invite you to take a stroll around to see its architecture or join our wide range of optional excursions.
Day 4: Circumnavigation Iceland
The Hornbjarg cliff is one of the greatest seafowl habitats, and we will take a closer look, and hopefully make a landing.
Day 5: Circumnavigation Iceland
Siglufjörður offers facilities for both recreation and sightseeing. A few hours in the rugged landscape give you the chance to savour the peace and tranquillity. Grímsey is where the Arctic Circle touches Iceland, and we will use our Polarcirkel boats to reach this island.
Day 6: Circumnavigation Iceland
Akureyri is a lively and energetic town. It is the most populated community outside the Reykjavík area and the centre of trade, culture and services for the north of Iceland. Akureyri is close to many of Iceland’s most renowned natural beauty spots and the town itself is a popular destination. Enjoy an optional hike or join an excursion to the impressive Goðafoss waterfall.
Day 7: Circumnavigation Iceland
Today we visit Husavik, and sail by the Langanes peninsula in the evening. Húsavík is the oldest settlement in Iceland. The Museum House at Húsavík houses a maritime museum, natural history museum, folk museum, district archives, photograph archives, and an art gallery. And of course Húsavík is also home to the Whale Museum. Cultural life is flourishing, the active and enthusiastic drama society being among the best amateur theatre groups in Iceland. Husavik has many optional tours to offer for those interested in a deeper understanding of the area.
Day 8: Circumnavigation Iceland
Bakkagerdi is the main settlement in Borgarfjörður. This area is known for its natural beauty and is “the land of the elves”. There are a lot of puffin colonies in the fjord, so it is a popular place for bird watching. Bakkagerdi is off the typical tourist track, and offers peace, quiet and nice views. If you prefer more action, you can join us for an optional tour to the natural forest of Hallormstadur. Seyðisfjörður is distinguished by its Norwegian heritage. The colourful Norwegian-style wooden houses date from the early 20th century and render this village unique in Iceland. Explore the town, join a hike or take an optional excursion out to Skálanes.
Day 9: Circumnavigation Iceland
On the east coast you will find pine forests, lush farmlands and a variety of colourful fishing villages and vibrant seaside communities. The Vatnajökull glacier is the largest glacier of Europe and a spectacular sight. From Djúpivogur you can join our optional excursion to Vatnajökull lagoon, or stay and hike in the beautiful surroundings of town.
Day 10: Circumnavigation Iceland
Surtsey is a volcanic island, formed by an eruption starting 130 meters below sea level and reaching the surface in 1963. Heimaey is the largest of the Westman Islands and is dominated by magnificent bird cliffs. The Vestmannaeyjar is located off Iceland’s south coast. Most of the islands have steep sea cliffs and is a habitat for extreme amounts of birds, including puffin. This is also a great place for spotting whales.
Day 11: Reykjavik
Our voyage of discovery and adventure ends in Reykjavik. If you have the time, join our exciting post programme Golden Circle and Blue Lagoon.
Day 1 - Depart for Reykjavik, Iceland
Transfer to the airport and check-in for your overnight flight to Reykjavik.
Day 2 - Reykjavik
Arrive in Reyjakvik and head toward the famous Blue Lagoon. The lagoon is a geothermal wonder of nature, with pleasantly warm mineral rich geothermal seawater in the middle of a lava field. The high natural levels of silica, minerals and algae give the Lagoon its rich blue colour – hence the name Blue Lagoon. Later, a city tour will show us the highlights of the capital.
Welcome dinner and overnight at your Reykjavík hotel.
Day 3 - Iceland Countryside
After breakfast, we drive north out of Reykjavik and through the tunnel under Hvalfjordur, one of the country’s longest fjords. We make a visit at the Settlement Center museum in Borgarnes. We continue through the pretty lake-dotted valleys of the Borgarfjördur district where the ice-age glacier covered the area about 10,000 years ago. We will then make a brief stop at Deidartunguhver, Europe’s largest hot spring, where around 200 liters of 97C hot water flows from the earth every second. Enjoy our short stop at the beautiful waterfalls of Hraunfossar and Barnafossar in the river Hvítá before returning to Borgarnes.
Lunch and dinner and overnight in Borgarnes.
Day 4 - Iceland Countryside
The first highlight of the day is Thingvellir, the great lava arena in a rift valley, where the divide between the Eurasian and the North American tectonic plates is clearly visible. Founded by the Norse settlers in 930 AD in Thingvellir, you will see the world’s oldest still-existing national parliament. Get ready to visit Gullfoss, which is often described as Iceland´s most beautiful waterfall, and the famous Geyser area, Strokkur, the world´s most active, is likely to spout several times. We make our final stop at Friðheimar, known for using geothermal heating for cultivation of tomatoes and cucumbers – come and enjoy their famous tomato soup.
Light lunch in Frioheimar. Dinner and overnight in Selfoss.
Day 5 - Iceland Countryside
Today we will drive along the south coast and visit the magnificent waterfall of Seljalandsfoss. It is a narrow and high waterfall which plunges over the mountains of West Eyjafjöll. From there we head to Vík, a village east of Mt. Reynisfjall in Myrdal. In Vík and the neighboring coastline, there is a wealth of contrasts and landscapes renowned for their natural beauty. Mt. Reynisfjall and its cliffs have few rivals in Iceland for richness of vegetation and bird life and the black sand beach Reynisfjara is a large breeding colony for the Arctic tern. According to local folklore, three rock stacks rise up to 66m from the sea: Skessudrangar, Landdrangar and Langhamrar and are said to be trolls turned to stone at sunrise. Then we continue towards Kirkjubæjarklaustur, which in the old days was known as „Kirkjubær“ (Church Farm) and was an important farming village.
Day 6 - Iceland Countryside
From Klaustur, we travel along the south coast to Skaftafell. Skaftafell National Park was designated as one of Iceland´s three National Parks in 1967. Towering mountains, imposing glaciers, gulches with clear brooks and beautiful waterfalls, birch woods, a wealth of wild flowers and lush vegetation give credence to its status. The most majestic of its several waterfalls is Svartifoss (“Black Falls”) that cascade over a wall of symmetrical columnar basalt that resembles an organ. En-route to our stop for the evening, we visit glacier lagoon Jökulsárlón and the museum Þórbergssetur in Höfn. The museum is dedicated to one of Iceland‘s most significant twentieth century author, Þórbergur Þórðarson.
Day 7 - Iceland Countryside - Reykjavik
Today, we start by making a stop at the breathtaking waterfall Skógarfoss, which is 60m high and one of the most impressive waterfalls in the country. After, we experience the Folk Museum at Skógar before continuing to the power plant Hellisheiðarvirkjun for a Geothermal Exhibition about geothermal energy in Iceland.
Overnight at your Reykjavik hotel.
Day 8 - Depart Reykjavik
Say goodbye to Iceland this morning as we head to the airport for our flight. Upon arrival in the USA, transfer home.
