Iceland is rapidly growing in popularity with solo female travelers, and after spending 5 days there in December it’s easy to see why!
Who: 2 days solo adventure, 3 days with friends
What: Roadtrip
Where: Reyjavik, Golden Circle, Selfoss, Vik
When: December ’16
Why: To see if it’s worth all the hype (spoiler: it is!)
How: Plane, Edinburgh- Reykjavik, Easy Jet £98 return ( +Car Rental approx £35 a day)
DOES WELL
1. Jawdropping Scenery. Driving through Iceland, at times I felt like I may have been on another planet. Going beyond the postcard perfect capital city of Reykjavik and enjoying the stunning landscape is an essential element of any true Icelandic adventure. Everywhere you turn there’s a new horizon to take your breath away. Some of the most well known waterfalls and geysers can be seen in a day trip from the city in what’s known as the ‘Golden Circle’ which is easily accessible by car or tour bus. Journey further along the south coast to marvel at the black sand beaches in Vik or head north for hikes to more remote waterfalls (recommended for summertime months only!)
2. Equality. Iceland wasthe first country in the world to elect a female head of state (in 1980), a leader in equal pay and paternity leave rights for working fathers and the first country in the world to have an openly gay Prime Minister! As a gay woman myself, walking around a foreign city and stumbling upon rainbow doorways and unicorn street art gives me so much joy and confidence that I was in a place where I could safely be 100% myself.
3. A naturally occurring phenomenon. Iceland is one of the countries in the world lucky enough to play host to the Aurora Borealis (commonly known as the Northern Lights). There’s no guarantee that you will see them on your visit, but if you’re lucky enough to experience of of the wonders of the natural world you won’t be disappointed. While I usually try to avoid tour buses whenever possible, this is one occasion when travelling with an expert is worth the extra money as they take you to the spots where you’re most likely to have a successful sighting.
DOES NOT SO WELL
1. Being Cheap. Be under no illusion, Iceland is not easily a budget destination. It is however possible to keep costs low(er) by staying in self catered accommodation and cooking rather than eating out and travel with others or team up with people in your hostel for car rental to split costs. Not to mention, Iceland’s greatest asset is the scenery which is entirely free to look at!
2. Daylight. Now this one is entirely dependent on the time of year that you visit. As Iceland is so far north is experiences both extremes of dark winters and winter solstice. I would love to return in the summer and experience 12 hours of daylight, but I visited in December where it stayed dark until 11am and the sun set again by about 4pm. While I tried to embrace this as all a part of travelling and a new authentic experience, it did make seeing all that we wanted to see in 5 days quite a challenge.
3. Vegetarianism. I found eating in Iceland quite a challenge. If you’re up for trying all sorts of meats and fish then Iceland is the place for you. I got around the limited menus by mostly cooking in our apartments and the night we ate out we found an amazing Indian restaurant (Ghandi) in Reykjavik which I’d highly recommend.
MY FAVOURITE SPOT
Its hard to pick a single favourite spot in Iceland because there were so many gorgeous sights, but the place that truly took my breath away was Bruarfoss. Possibly because I was literally breathless from the hours hike through hail, rain, river banks, fields and wind to get there but the journey was entirely worth it. I drove and then hiked there with two guys I met in my Reykjavik hostel the night before and it was one of the most spontaneously yet rewarding travel experiences I’ve had to date. The water was a shade of blue I’ve never seen naturally occurring before and (perhaps due to the challenge of finding it) we were the only ones there.
