The Iceland Golden Circle is one of the top day trips to do from Reykjavik. It’s an easy day trip from the city that takes you to some of the top attractions in Iceland.
I’ll go over the top three things to do on your Golden Circle route with some extra worthwhile stops along the way.
Psst! This blog post contains affiliate links in it which sends me a bit of extra money if you use them… at no extra cost to you!
How To Get Around The Iceland Golden Circle?
There’s no way around it, the best way to see the Iceland Golden Circle is with a car.
You can either rent a car and drive it yourself, or go on an organized tour. Each of course come with their own set of pros and cons…
The main difference is the balance between how stressful vs. how flexible you want your day to be.
Driving will be more stressful but also more flexible. And going on a tour is the complete opposite!
Driving The Golden Circle From Reykjavik
If you’re planning on self driving the Iceland Golden Circle, you will definitely need to rent a car.
We rented our car from the airport at Blue Car Rentals (and I would highly recommend them, see their website here).
You might also be interested in reading…
Renting A Car In Iceland: The Who, What, Where, Why &… Why Not!
But there are also rental companies in Reykjavik if you’re looking for renting for one day at a time. We always opt for Enterprise when we can, and they have a location just outside the city centre.
Driving in Iceland was one of the better driving experiences we’ve had in Europe. And driving the Golden Circle route was no exception.
You have to add in extra cost for gas and some parking lots were paid along the Golden Circle route.
One of the main benefits of driving though is that you can get to the popular attractions before the crowds.
Iceland Golden Circle Organized Tours
If you aren’t comfortable driving in Iceland (which is very understandable) you can opt to go on an organized tour of the Golden Circle instead, like this one on Viator.
This is way less stressful, but of course you lose some of that flexibility you had with driving. Your whole day will be completely planned out for you.
Because the Iceland Golden Circle is so popular, there are quite a few tours to choose from, each with a slightly different schedule, see all the options on Viator here.
Classic Iceland Golden Circle Organized Tours From Viator
Classic Golden Circle full day tour from Reykjavik →
Small-Group Golden Circle Tour and Secret Lagoon →
For more organized tours around the Golden Circle, Iceland, click here.
All the Iceland Golden Circle tours bring you to the three main attractions (more on those in a bit!). But, some will also add in an extra stop along the way, giving you some flexibility based on what you want to see.
For example, this one from Viator adds the Secret Lagoon at the end of your day. Or, this one from Viator that stops at the Fridheimar greenhouse. Or even this one from Viator that takes you horseback riding!
How Much Time Do You Need For The Golden Circle Route
You can drive the Golden Circle route in as quickly as three hours. But I recommend taking the entire day for the route.
There are so many places to stop (more than just the top three!). We spent more than our fair share of time at each location and added a lot more on the way.
We left our hotel at 7:30 in the morning and were only back at 7:30 that evening!
If I can recommend anything it’s to get an early start to your day if you’re driving yourself. This way, you can beat some of the crowds (as I said, this is one of the most popular routes to drive in Iceland!).
What Is The Famous Golden Circle Route? (The Three Main Attractions)
Finally! The information you’ve all been waiting for!
As I said, there are three main stops on the Iceland golden circle route: Thingvellir National Park, Geysir (Strokkur), and Gullfoss falls in Iceland.
The golden circle was made to connect these three stops. And to confuse you just a bit, they don’t even make a circle… (but don’t worry, I have stops for your route back!).
But these are the three stops you cannot miss and your route should essentially be planned around seeing them.
Drive The Golden Circle From Reykjavik – The Route!
Stop 1: Thingvellir National Park (Main Attraction)
Thingvellir National Park is the same as Þingvellir and Þingvalla. It’s one of the main stops on the Golden Circle route and probably the biggest.
I think we spent the most amount of time here out of any of the stops.
Let’s just say it’s the most historical, but also the scariest, and most beautiful stops of the day. And, you definitely don’t want to miss it.
Thingvellir National Park is the site of the oldest parliament in Iceland (they began meeting here in 930 AD!).
You’ll want to make sure to see at least two viewpoints at this stop: Oxararfoss Waterfalls and Peningagjá.
Peningagjá is what makes this one of the scariest places to visit in Iceland. This is one of the best spots to see the fissures the separation of the tectonic plates cause.
There are tons of these fissures throughout the park, so it’s important to stay on the trail.
This is also one of the spots where you can go scuba diving between two continents in Iceland. Check out the tours here.
The main thing to do in Thingvellir National Park is to actually walk from Oxararfoss, pass the old Parliament, and end up at Peningagjá. The entire walk (there and back) will take about an hour and a half (not including stops for pictures).
Go Snorkeling In Silfra Tours With Viator
Top tour: snorkel between two continents in Silfra
(with underwater photos included!) →
For more organized tours around the Golden Circle, Iceland, click here.
Pro Tips For Visiting Thingvellir National Park
If you’re driving the Golden Circle from Reykjavik, stop at the visitors centre before heading in to the park.
At the visitors centre, you can get a park map, and an employee can properly show you the walking route (if you’re interested). Plus, you can also pick up some food, souvenirs, and go to the bathroom while you’re here!
But! If you’re short on time (or want to save your energy for later), you can actually drive most of the walk (at least all the boring parts anyway!).
First you’ll want to park in P2 where you’ll have a short walk to Oxararfoss Waterfall. Take in the views and then walk back to the car to drive to P5 (instead of walking!).
From P5, you can walk straight to the second viewpoint (Peningagjá). You’ll walk past the bridge to a small walking trail along the river. You’ll see the church, and the old parliament in the distance before reaching your final viewpoint
So essentially, instead of walking from P2 to P5, we drove and parked again.
FYI
For this driving hack to work, you’ll have to get here earlier (we arrived just before 9:00 A.M.). By the time we made it to P5 the lot was almost full already!
You do have to pay for parking, but it will carry over to the second parking lot (you don’t have to pay twice!).
You’ll miss walking by the old parliament by driving, but today it’s just a mound with a flag on top (we saw it in the distance and that was good enough for us!).
Stop 2: The Cave People (Most Unique Stop & My Favourite!)
We weren’t really sure what we were getting ourselves into, but we are really happy we stopped here. It even ended up being one of the highlights of the trip for us!
The Cave People is a short guided tour through a cave that was used as a house, not once, but twice!
The tour is only about 20 minutes and gives you good taste of Icelandic folklore and beliefs which was neat (yes, there are hidden people stories involved!).
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Tips For Getting To The Cave People…
The Cave People is about a 5 minute drive off the main road (on dirt and gravel). So, if you don’t have a raised car, I would recommend skipping this stop (but also recommend getting a raised SUV for driving in Iceland!).
This is one of those occasions were Google also might try to drive you off the road entirely. The original route was a sharp turn off the highway onto a dirt road. As it turns out, this was the old road which was mostly closed… and no one uses anymore!
You can pretty much take the highway the entire way there. There will be signs for the Cave People museum leading up to the correct turn.
Stop 3: Laugavartn Fontana Bread & Spa (Optional)
This is one of those multi-faceted stops along the Golden Circle drive.
There are two main attractions here: the bread and the spa itself. Now you probably never thought you’d see those two in the same place!
So, let’s start with the bread. Rye bread is one of the top things to eat in Iceland (see more in my post here!). As it turns out, this spa has a very unique way of baking that bread (although these days it’s more gimmicky than practical!).
They bake the rye bread by digging a hole in the sand and using the geothermal heat from the ground to cook it. Neat right!
P.S. This tour on Viator is a full day trip from Reykjavik to the highlights of the Golden Circle with a stop at Laugarvatn Fontana Geothermal spa.
They offer tours to show you how they make it with tasters at the end. They only run three tours a day though so be sure to book in advance.
If you miss the tour, you can walk out to see the bread mounds by yourself and buy the bread to taste it. There’s also a plaque on the beach describing the entire process (so I’m not really sure how necessary the tour really is!).
As I said, you can also go to the spa here which is located on the lake! They also use the heat from the lake as their source for the sauna.
You can also just dip your toes in the lake where they bake the bread!
P.S. there will be another chance for a spa later in the day as well!
But depending on when you started your day, this is a good spot for lunch! They have an unlimited soup option and delicious rye bread of course! The next two stops will also have food and bathrooms as well if you aren’t ready for lunch just yet!
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Stop 4: Geysir Hot Springs (Strokkur) Main Stop!
If you want to see a Geysir explode in Iceland this is the place to come.
Although, don’t expect to see the namesake Geysir (yes, Geysirs got their name from this Geysir in Iceland).
Geysir used to go off every three hours. Now, it hasn’t gone off for 5 years… and I don’t think they’re expecting anything to happen any time soon.
But! Not to worry! There’s another geysir called Strokkur just a short walk away that goes off every 3-10 minutes.
And as I mentioned, this is another good spot for lunch, bathrooms, and souvenir shopping.
Fun Fact!
Strokkur actually stopped erupting as well after an earthquake. They had to drill a hole into it to get it to explore again. I guess they had all this infrastructure set up here for Geysir, and people wanted to see a show when they came!
Stop 5: Gullfoss Falls In Iceland (Main Attraction!)
Gullfoss Falls in Iceland is THE main waterfall in Iceland … well one of them at least!
We found the best view was when you walked down the stairs and turned right (there were way less people there). Plus, this way we didn’t get wet from the falls.
This might also be your last chance for bathrooms and food, depending on where you’re stopping next.
Fun Fact!
Gullfoss means golden waterfall in Icelandic and gives the name to the Iceland Golden Circle.
An Even Funnier Fact!
It’s actually not in the circle at all! In fact, it’s the only part of the drive that requires some back tracking.
Stop 6: Brúarhlöð (Optional)
This is a quick pit stop for the views. There’s a free parking lot and then it’s a short walk to the main viewpoint.
It’s also good rest spot if you need a bit of a break on your drive. We saw people sitting here with a book and it looked quite relaxing.
We also thought it would be a good spot for a picnic lunch. You can even pick up some food from Gullfoss and bring it here to enjoy. This way you can also escape some of the crowds!
This is also a good spot to actually see and appreciate the colour of the water in Iceland. It’s all melted glacier water which gives it a greenish blueish hue.
If you can believe it, this is the same water that came from Gullfoss and goes all the way to Selfoss before meeting the ocean!
Stop 7: Faxafoss (Optional)
This is another waterfall stop on the Golden Circle route.
We actually skipped this one because we just felt a tad waterfall-ed out at this point. Especially after seeing the main waterfall in all of Iceland.
So we opted to skip it and spend more time at our next stop.
But just a heads up if you are interested in stopping here, apparently, there is a small fee to pay for parking here.
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Stop 8: Friðheimar (Optional, But Another Favourite!)
I’d say this is another must stops on your Golden Circle route. And you’ll want to come here with an appetite.
Friðheimar is a unique restaurant experience that focuses on everything tomatoes! But the best part, you’re actually eating in the greenhouse where they grow their vegetables!
There are actually three restaurants at Friðheimar.
The main restaurant is in the green house, and it’s a sit down meal. This section of the greenhouse will close at 4:00 P.M.
In the greenhouse, you can also just head to the bar, and this tends to stay open an hour or two later!
We were too late for the restaurant so sat at the bar instead. Don’t worry, you can still get a cup of delicious tomato soup here! And you have to make sure to try one of their tomato drinks. My partner ordered a tomato beer, and I ordered an Icelandic Birch Schnapps… which was served in a tomato!
I can’t say I’ve ever had a drink out of a tomato before!
And don’t worry if you come past 5:00 P.M., you can head to the third restaurant – the wine house (called Vínstofa Friðheima). They open at 1:00 P.M. and only close at 10:00 P.M.. They have tapas, and of course, classic cup of soup.
This is the perfect stop for food, a light drink, and to get off the road for a bit before you continuing your drive back.
Don’t Want To Drive But Still Want To Visit Friðheima?
Viator offers several Golden Circle tours with a stops at Friðheima as well! Find the best one for you:
Simple full day tour from Reykjavik: Golden Circle & Friðheima Greenhouse →
Stop 9: Secret Lagoon (Optional)
I did promise another lagoon option on your Golden Circle route, and here it is!
The Secret Lagoon is a tad out of the way, but it still makes a nice circle (and an even nicer evening stop).
You can also relax here for a few hours before continuing your drive back to Reykjavik, or you can even opt to stay the night.
You can book your entrance ticket in advance here. Or check out Garður Stay Inn is right next door for an overnight stay – check out rates and availability on Booking.com here.
This is a unique lagoon in Iceland because it’s actually the oldest!
If you’re interested in booking an organized Golden Circle tour that stops at the Secret Lagoon, check out this one on Viator here.
Nearby: Hrunalaug Hot Spring
You can also opt to head to the even more natural hot spring, Hrunalaug.
This is actually on someone’s farm, so please be respectful and also pay the small donation fee they ask for!
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Stop 10: Kerid Crater (Optional)
The Kerid Crater is another stop on the Golden Circle route that you can make as quick or as long as you want it to be.
There is a small entrance fee to pay, but it’s worth it to see this wonder.
They’re not actual sure what the Kerid Crater formed from, but it’s a part of a series of craters in the area. The rocks are a unique red, purple and orange colour. And the water is a vibrant blue – which shines even brighter when the sun is out.
You can actually walk all the way down to the crater, and all around it if you have the time. We just walked to the base and then back up.
For organized tours that bring you to the Kerid crater, click here.
This was also our last stop on our Iceland Golden Circle drive before we headed back to Reykjavik for the night. But, I’ll give you a few more options if you aren’t ready to head back just yet…
Stop 11: Selfoss (Optional)
On your way back to Reykjavik, you’re actually driving right through Selfoss.
Depending on the time of day, you might be able to enjoy the Skyrland museum. It’s a short self guided 30 minute museum that brings you through the history of Skyr.
At the end of the museum, you also get a delicious taster! The museum closes at 6:00 so be mindful of the time if you want to make it here!
Selfoss is also a great place to stop for dinner with a food hall and some restaurants!
P.S. If you’re into chess, you can also check out he Bobby Fischer museum in Sefloss.
Stop 12: Reykjadalur Valley Hot Spring Hike (Optional)
This is one of the best experiences in Iceland. It’s a hike to a natural hot springs in the mountain!
I’m only adding it to my Golden Circle route because you are driving right by the parking lot on your way back to Reykjavik. But, this can be a a day trip from Reykjavik on its own.
If you want to include a stop at Reykjadalur, please be mindful of the time. You will need at least three hours for this (it’s an hour hike each way!). As I said, you can always come back to do another day as it is only 45 minutes from Reykjavik.
Organized Tours To Reykjadalur Valley From Viator
You can read my full guide for what to expect on the hike here.
Stop 13: Open Air Museum (Optional)
This is very close to Reykjavik, so if you have time before arriving back in Reykjavik, you can check it out.
This is a museum with different examples of Icelandic homes and buildings that have been rebuilt to create the museum. Apparently this was the school trip for many Icelanders growing up!
But it also makes a great thing to do if you’re traveling with kids in Iceland!
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My Iceland Amazon Must Haves
Back In Reykjavik – Need A Place To Stay?
We stayed in Reykjavik our whole time in Iceland at the Skuggi Hotel by Keahotels. They offered free parking (upon availability), breakfast, and a modern room. Check updated prices and availability on Booking.com.
If you’re interested in spa services at the tip of your fingers, ( I mean, you’re in Iceland after all!), stay at Midgardur by Center hotels. My parents stayed here and highly recommend it. Check updated prices and availability on Booking.com.
If you’re staying in Reykjavik for one night before heading out to drive the Ring Road, my sister stayed at the Hotel Frón and would recommend it for a one night stay. Check updated prices and availability on Booking.com.
Or, check out more hotel options in Reykjavik, Iceland
Read More Related Posts
- 10 Easy Day Trips From Reykjavik In Iceland
- Reykjadalur Hot Springs: How To Hike It & Is It Worth It?
- 10 Important Tips You Should Know Before Driving In Iceland
- 23 Icelandic Food You Need To Try Or Skip Entirely
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Last update on 2024-05-07 / Affiliate links / Images from Amazon Product Advertising API