Self-Launched Iceland Circumnavigation: Mountains, Volcanoes & Waterfalls

Fly into Keflavík International Airport and take the Flybus or Strætó public bus to central Reykjavik (approx. £20–25). Check into your hostel or guesthouse in the city centre. Spend the afternoon exploring the old harbour, Hallgrímskirkja church, and the colourful Laugavegur street. Pick up your rental car this afternoon or tomorrow morning — booking in advance through companies like Sad Cars or Geysir Car Rental saves money. Grab dinner at a local spot like Sægreifinn (Sea Baron) for budget-friendly langoustine soup.

🚌Flybus from Keflavík Airport to Reykjavik BSÍ terminal (~£20). Rental car from approx. £50–70/day (4WD recommended).

🛏Kex Hostel or Loft Hostel Reykjavik — dorm from £30–40/night or private room from £70–90/night

• →Explore Hallgrímskirkja church and surrounding streets
• →Walk the old harbour (Grandi district)
• →Visit the Harpa Concert Hall (free exterior)
• →Pick up rental car or campervan

Set off early northwest towards the Westfjords — Iceland's most dramatic and least-visited peninsula. The drive from Reykjavik to Ísafjörður takes approximately 6–7 hours (around 450km), but the winding fjord roads are part of the adventure. Stop at Hvalfjörður (Whale Fjord) en route. Arrive in Ísafjörður — the main town of the Westfjords — in the late afternoon. This charming fishing town has cafés, a small museum and dramatic surrounding peaks.

🚌Self-drive Ring Road northwest via Route 1 then Route 61 into the Westfjords (~450km, ~6–7 hrs)

🛏Gamla Guesthouse or Heydalur Country Hotel — private room approx. £80–110/night

• →Scenic drive through Westfjords fjord roads
• →Stop at Hvalfjörður viewpoints
• →Explore Ísafjörður old town and harbour
• →Visit Westfjords Heritage Museum (approx. £8)

Today is one of the trip's highlights. Drive south to Dynjandi, Iceland's most spectacular tiered waterfall, tumbling 100 metres in a fan shape — completely free to visit with a short hike to the base. Afterwards, return to Ísafjörður and book a boat trip to Vigur Island (runs from Ísafjörður, bookable locally or via West Tours). On Vigur you'll encounter puffins, eider ducks, Arctic terns and seals, and can visit the island café — this is the same private island featured in the Exodus itinerary.

🚌Self-drive to Dynjandi (~90km south on Route 60), return to Ísafjörður for island boat trip

🛏Gamla Guesthouse or Heydalur Country Hotel — private room approx. £80–110/night

• →Hike to Dynjandi waterfall (free entry, short trail)
• →Vigur Island boat tour from Ísafjörður — eider ducks, puffins, Arctic terns (~£50–60pp, book via West Tours)
• →Walk Vigur Island's birdlife trails
• →Optional sea kayaking from Ísafjörður (~£60–80pp)

Explore the remote southwestern tip of the Westfjords — one of the most isolated and beautiful corners of Iceland. Drive out to Látrabjarg, the westernmost point in Iceland and Europe's largest seabird cliff. In summer it hosts millions of birds including puffins, razorbills, guillemots and gannets — you can get incredibly close. Nearby Rauðasandur (Red Sand Beach) offers a surreal landscape of rust-red and golden sands, utterly unlike anywhere else in Iceland.

🚌Self-drive Route 62/63 to Látrabjarg (~160km round trip from Ísafjörður area)

🛏Guesthouse Bjarmaland or similar in Patreksfjörður — private room approx. £75–95/night

• →Látrabjarg bird cliffs — puffins, razorbills, guillemots (free, self-guided)
• →Rauðasandur red sand beach (free)
• →Patreksfjörður village stop for lunch
• →Scenic coastal photography

Leave the Westfjords and head east and north along the coast towards Skagafjörður. This fjord is famous for Icelandic horse breeding and dramatic birdlife on the island of Drangey — sheer 180m cliffs hosting guillemots, kittiwakes and puffins. Book a Drangey Island boat trip from Sauðárkrókur (approx. £50–70pp). Continue north to Siglufjörður, a beautifully preserved herring-era fishing village at the end of a dramatic fjord. Don't miss the award-winning Herring Era Museum.

🚌Self-drive from Westfjords via Route 1 and Route 76 (~320km, approx. 5–6 hrs with stops)

🛏Sigló Hótel or Guesthouse Hvammur, Siglufjörður — approx. £85–110/night

• →Drangey Island boat trip from Sauðárkrókur — seabird cliffs (~£50–70pp, book locally)
• →Herring Era Museum, Siglufjörður (~£12pp)
• →Walk Siglufjörður harbour and old fishing town
• →Scenic Tröllaskagi peninsula drive

Drive east to Húsavík — Iceland's whale watching capital and one of the best spots in Europe to see humpback, minke and occasionally blue whales. Book a 2–3 hour whale watching tour directly with North Sailing or Gentle Giants (approx. £70–85pp). Afterwards, continue south to Lake Mývatn, a surreal volcanic landscape. Explore the lava formations of Dimmuborgir (featured in Game of Thrones), the pseudocraters at Skútustaðir, and the bubbling mud pots and fumaroles at Hverir. Swim in the Mývatn Nature Baths at sunset (cheaper and less crowded than the Blue Lagoon, ~£35pp).

🚌Self-drive Siglufjörður to Húsavík (~180km), then south to Mývatn (~55km)

🛏Vogafjós Guesthouse or Sel-Hótel Mývatn — approx. £90–120/night

• →Whale watching tour from Húsavík (~£75pp, book via North Sailing or Gentle Giants)
• →Dimmuborgir lava formations walk (~free, small parking fee)
• →Hverir geothermal mud pots and fumaroles (free)
• →Skútustaðir pseudocraters walk (free)
• →Mývatn Nature Baths (~£35pp)

An epic day of waterfalls and a genuine polar milestone. Start early and drive to Dettifoss — Europe's most powerful waterfall, thundering with raw volcanic energy. The viewpoint on the west bank (Route 862) is paved and easily accessible. Continue to Goðafoss, the 'Waterfall of the Gods' — one of Iceland's most historically significant and photogenic falls. In the afternoon, take the Air Iceland Connect flight from Akureyri to Grímsey Island (~£80–100 return, book in advance) — the only part of Iceland inside the Arctic Circle. Walk across the Arctic Circle marker and collect your certificate, see puffin colonies, and return in the evening.

🚌Self-drive to Dettifoss and Goðafoss, then to Akureyri Airport for Grímsey flight

🛏Guesthouse Akureyri or Icelandair Hotel Akureyri — approx. £85–110/night

• →Dettifoss waterfall, west bank viewpoint (free, small parking fee)
• →Goðafoss waterfall (free)
• →Day trip flight to Grímsey Island from Akureyri (~£80–100pp return via Air Iceland Connect)
• →Walk across the Arctic Circle marker and receive certificate
• →Grímsey puffin colony walk

Spend the morning in Akureyri — Iceland's northern capital and a charming town of botanical gardens, art galleries and excellent coffee culture. Visit the free Akureyri Botanical Garden (open summer). Then begin the long but spectacular drive east along Route 1 towards the East Fjords. The route takes you through remote highland passes, vast lava plains and along the coast of the fjords. Stop at Stuðlagil Canyon — a stunning hidden basalt canyon accessible via a short hike, only recently discovered and not yet on the mainstream tourist radar.

🚌Self-drive Akureyri to Egilsstaðir area via Route 1 (~310km, ~4 hrs)

🛏Wilderness Center or Guesthouse Eyvindartunga near Egilsstaðir — approx. £75–100/night

• →Akureyri Botanical Garden (free)
• →Browse Akureyri's cafés and Ráðhústorg square
• →Stuðlagil Canyon hike — basalt column gorge (free, ~1hr hike each way)
• →East Fjords scenic coastal drive

Drive the stunning 27km road from Egilsstaðir over the mountain pass down to Seyðisfjörður — arguably the most picturesque fjord town in Iceland, with colourful wooden houses, cascading waterfalls and a thriving arts scene. Visit the Skalanes Nature and Heritage Centre at the head of the fjord — a remote research centre where local scientists and naturalists share the area's biodiversity. Trails of varying difficulty lead through birch woodland and along the fjord edge; scan the hillsides for reindeer and Arctic foxes. Return to Egilsstaðir for the night — explore Hallormsstaðaskógur, Iceland's largest forest, nearby.

🚌Self-drive Egilsstaðir to Seyðisfjörður and back (~54km round trip)

🛏Guesthouse Egilsstaðir or Héraðsskóli Guesthouse — approx. £75–95/night

• →Scenic drive over the mountain pass to Seyðisfjörður
• →Skalanes Nature and Heritage Centre visit — guided nature walks available (~£20–30pp)
• →Seyðisfjörður town walk, Rainbow Street and Blue Church
• →Hallormsstaðaskógur forest walk near Egilsstaðir (free)
• →Watch for reindeer and Arctic foxes

Today is the glacial centrepiece of the trip. Drive south and west along Route 1, with the vast Vatnajökull ice cap looming to your left. Stop at Jökulsárlón Glacier Lagoon — a breathtaking ice-blue lagoon filled with drifting icebergs calved from the glacier. Take a zodiac or amphibian boat tour on the lagoon (approx. £40–55pp, book directly with the lagoon operators). Walk across to Diamond Beach — the black sand shore studded with luminous ice blocks washed up by the sea. Optionally, book a guided glacier hike on Vatnajökull with a local company such as Glacier Guides or Local Guide of Vatnajökull (~£55–80pp).

🚌Self-drive east Fjords to Jökulsárlón via Route 1 (~260km, ~3 hrs)

🛏Fosshotel Glacier Lagoon or Guesthouse Skaftafell — approx. £90–120/night

• →Jökulsárlón Glacier Lagoon zodiac or amphibian boat tour (~£45pp)
• →Diamond Beach black sand and ice walk (free)
• →Optional glacier hike on Vatnajökull (~£65pp via Glacier Guides)
• →Skaftafell Nature Reserve walk in Vatnajökull National Park (free)

Drive west to Landeyjahöfn and take the Herjólfur ferry to Heimaey, the main (and only inhabited) island of the Westman Islands — approx. 35 minutes and £25–30 return. Heimaey is home to one of the world's largest puffin colonies; walk to the island's southernmost cliffs in the afternoon to see them nesting. Explore the 1973 volcanic eruption site and the lava fields that still cover part of the town. Visit the Eldheimar volcano museum — built over a house buried in the 1973 lava flow — for an immersive look at the disaster. Spot the entrance to Klettsvík cove, the former home of Keiko (Free Willy). Return ferry to the mainland in the evening and drive towards Reykjavik.

🚌Self-drive to Landeyjahöfn (~170km west on Route 1), ferry to Heimaey (~35 mins, ~£25–30pp)

🛏Guesthouse Hamar, Heimaey or return to Reykjavik — budget hotel approx. £75–95/night

• →Herjólfur ferry Landeyjahöfn–Heimaey (~£25–30pp return, book via Eimskip ferries)
• →Walk to puffin colonies at island's southern cliffs (free)
• →Eldheimar volcano museum (~£15pp)
• →1973 lava field and eruption site walk (free)
• →Klettsvík cove — former home of Keiko (Free Willy)

Drive back into Reykjavik (approximately 2 hours from the ferry port). If time allows before your flight, detour via the classic Golden Circle route: Þingvellir National Park (tectonic plates meeting, free entry), the Great Geysir and Strokkur geyser (free to watch), and Gullfoss waterfall (free). Return the rental car at Keflavík Airport. These are spectacular additions that cost next to nothing and are perfectly placed on the way. Head to the airport for your departing flight with memories to last a lifetime.

🚌Self-drive Reykjavik to Golden Circle and onward to Keflavík Airport (~190km total)

🛏N/A — departure day

• →Þingvellir National Park — tectonic rift walk (free)
• →Strokkur Geyser eruption viewing at Geysir (free)
• →Gullfoss waterfall (free)
• →Return rental car at Keflavík Airport