Trek to the thunderous Glymur Waterfall, up the river valley of Reykjadalur and along fault lines in Thingvellir National Park
Hike the blue Sólheimajökull Glacier and the volcanic sand beaches and basalt sea stacks of Black Beach
Experience the iconic natural gems of Geysir, Gullfoss and Skógafoss and kick back in geothermal pools at your lakeside base
Day 1
Your host will meet you at the airport, pop you in the van and drive for 90 minutes to your accommodation in the small village of Laugarvatn - your base for the next three nights. Meet up with the rest of your group and your guide will run you through the plan for the next few days.
Day 2
Take a short drive to Hvalfjörður - the Fjord of the Whales - and hit the trailhead for the hike to Glymur, the second-highest waterfall in Iceland at 198m. The falls are only accessible by foot, over rivers and past caves, with amazing views to the top. Head back down the other side and drive on to the Thingvellir National Park to hike along the fault lines that mark the mid-Atlantic rift of the earth’s crust, before reaching Öxarárfoss Waterfall. In the evening there's the option to head to Fontana Geothermal Spa (entrance fee not included - ISK4500 per person) on the edge of Laugarvatn Lake for a soak in the baths and steam rooms - brave souls can take a cold water plunge in the lake itself.
Day 3
Today's adventures are packed full of glaciers, waterfalls and volcanic sand beaches on Iceland's beautiful southern coastline. First up is Sólheimajökull Glacier, where your guide will lead you out onto the glacier itself, hiking with crampons through a frozen wonderland of white, blue and crystal clear ice. You'll get up close and personal with deep crevasses and water cauldrons as you make your way across the glacier. Later on, you'll drive a little to the east to visit Reynisfjara, a wild stretch of coastline with volcanic sand beaches and spectacular basalt sea stacks. You'll stroll along Black Beach (yes, the sand is black!) to see the spooky plane wreck there. On the way back to Laugarvatn, you’ll stop to admire the waterfalls of Skógafoss and Seljalandsfoss, completing your waterfall trilogy for this part of Iceland.
Day 4
Check out of your base this morning before heading to two of the Golden Circle's absolute must-sees; the spouting hot springs of Geysir and the mighty Gullfoss Waterfall. Drive on to the village of Hveragerði to begin your hike up the Reykjadalur Valley. Climb into the hills, meander past small volcanic craters and hot springs before taking a dip in the thermal river of Reykjadalur. Later you'll drive back to Reykjavík and head into town for your final evening.
Day 5
Check out of the guesthouse and head back to the airport in time for your flight home. Or use your spare time to explore some more of the land of ice and fire.
Expert, English-speaking guides
4 nights in hotels in Laugavartn and Reykjavik
Breakfast throughout
Airport transfers from Keflavik Airport to Laugarvatn and all transfers between hikes
You know your own spending habits best, so please budget an appropriate amount for things like optional meals and drinks, shopping, optional activities, and laundry.
All breakfasts are included in the trip price but lunch and dinner are down to you. Breakfasts will be buffet style with bread and jams, granola pots, juices, teas and coffee. You'll need to buy a packed lunch to take out on the hikes with you on Day…
Kelly August 2022
Ruth July 2022
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For solo travellers looking for their own space, an optional private room can be booked for an extra charge. See Optional Extras for the price. Please request this at the time of booking (this is subject to availability).
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For up to date advice on the entry requirements related to COVID-19, have a read of the UK Foreign Office pages here.
This isn't a point-to-point trek so luggage storage isn't an issue. Each day, you can leave your main bag in your room at the accommodation in Laugarvatn or if you prefer you can store it in the van; you'll only take a day pack out with you each day.
Sure can! Over 70% of our travellers travel solo, it’s a great way to meet like-minded people.
Our team of Adventure Hunters co-create exclusive adventures which are run by highly vetted, specialist hosts. The trip is run by our trusted host partner in the destination. We only work with independent, local, in-destination experts who know the very best places to explore and how to stay safe. Read more information about the local teams we partner with. You’ll be introduced to the host straight after making a booking via the Much Better Adventures platform.
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All of our group adventures are specially designed for adults to enjoy as we want these adventures to bring together outdoorsy people who are truly like-minded. You must be over 18 to join one of our trips.
You're always in good company on one of our adventures.
Our trips typically consist of a mix of solo travelers and small groups of 2 or 3 friends, with most in their 30s-50s.
Our sociable adventures are solo-friendly by design and naturally attract outdoorsy people with a shared mindset; a love for adventure, a desire to push themselves, and meet awesome, like-minded people along the way.
It’s this camaraderie that has so often turned a great adventure into a life-changing one.
Don't just take our word for it:
See here for more info about the Much Better Adventures tribe.
We partner with the World Land Trust to ensure this trip achieves Net-Zero emissions. We also support their Buy an Acre program, helping local communities to buy and protect natural habitats in perpetuity.
What's the number?
It works out on average at 95kg of CO2 emissions per person, including all local transport, accommodation, food, activities, guides, staff and office operations.
The only thing it doesn’t include right now is flights and travel to the destination. We do make an overall estimate across all our customers separately, but as we don’t book flights, have customers from all corners of the world, and no way of reliably knowing their travel plans, we simply can’t include an individual number in the figure on display here. We’ve got a goal to fix that, so that when you book, there is a way to measure and mitigate the carbon emitted by your flight too.
But what does the number mean?
Yep, hard to picture eh? To give you an idea:
What are we doing about it?
Our trips are relatively low-carbon by design, and we're working with all our hosts to develop long term carbon reduction plans. We partner with the World Land Trust to ensure this trip achieves Net-Zero emissions. We also support their Buy an Acre programme, helping local communities to buy and protect natural habitats in perpetuity, ensuring the protection of the reserve and its wildlife.
Want to know more?
Amazingly, no international travel company has ever publicly published their carbon measurements before, as far as we know. We believe that must change, quickly. So we’re openly sharing the method we used in the hope that other companies will be able to more easily follow suit and build on what we've done so far. You'll find it all here.
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