Iceland 2015 - Holidays & Travel

In July John and I had a wonderful holiday in Iceland. We stayed in Reykjavik and took the Golden Circle Tour where we visited Geysir, Gullfoss waterfall and Thingvellir National Park. Another highlight was a day at The Blue Lagoon. We also dined at some great restaurants.

Reykjavik

Austurvoller Squar Reykjavik

Austurvoller Square in the city centre is a lined with several outdoor cafes and the Althing Parliament Building.

Parliament Building, Reykjavik

Government House, Reykjavik

Nearby is the Government House.

Fiona wearing an Icelandic jumper outside City Hall, Reykjavik

The City Hall is located next to Lake Tjornin.

Lake Tjornin, Reykjavik

sculpture at City Hall, Reykjavik

Walking around the lakeside we admired the views and came across some interesting sculptures.

Lake Tjornin, Reykjavik

Hallgrimskirkja Church and Leif Eiriksson staute, Reykjavik

One of Reykjavik's main landmarks is the Hallgrimskirkja Church. The statue of Leif Erikson, who discovered America in 1000 stands in front of the church.

Reykjavik waterfront

On the waterfront is Harpa, the architecturally striking concert hall and conference centre.

Harpa Reykjavik Concert Hall and Conference Centre

midnight in the summertime in Reykjavik

Looking across the harbour around midnight.

Perlan Reykjavik

The Perlan is another imaginative building.

Perlan Reykjavik

On top of geothermal hot water tanks sits a glass dome,

revolving restaurant Perlan, Reykjavik

in which an upmarket revolving restaurant offers amazing 360° views of the city and the surrounding area.

Perlan revolving restaurant, Reykjavik

After dinner we took a leisurely stroll outside on the panoramic viewing deck.

summer sunset in Reykjavik

Glorious summer sunset.

summer sunset in Reykjavik

Golden Circle

The popular Golden Circle Tour in South Iceland includes the Geysir geothermal fields, the Gullfoss waterfall and the Thingvellir National Park.

Geysir

Geysir is the namesake for all other global hot springs.

Golden Circle tour, Geysir

Stokkur, however is currently the key geyser to watch.

Strokkur hot spring, Iceland

It spouts scalding water every few minutes

Strokkur hot spring errupting

sometimes to a height of 40m.

getting close to the spouting geyser, Strokkur, Iceland

Gullfoss waterfall

With stunning surrounding scenery and volcanoes in the distance this dramatic waterfall is definitely worth seeing.

distant snowcapped volcanoes at Gullfoss waterfall

Gullfoss waterfall

The Hvita River falls over two waterfalls.

Gullfoss waterfall, Iceland

into a deep canyon

Gullfoss waterfall, Iceland

The path allows visitors to get close to the action.

Gullfoss waterfall, Iceland

Thingvellir

Thingvellir National Park, Iceland

Thingvellir National Park is a UNESCO world heritage site and is where the North American and Eurasian tectonic plates meet and drift apart about 2cm a year causing the land to subside.

plate tectonics in Iceland

Looking over the lava plains deep fissures can be seen in the rift valley floor. Some of these cracks are veritable canyons and some are submerged under water and are famous diving sites.

Deep fissures in the rift valley in Iceland

THe rift valley at Thingvellir in southern Iceland

Althing Iceland's parliament established here

Iceland's open-air parliament established here in 930 is thought to be the world's oldest parliament. (Tynwald, the Isle of Man parliament established in 979 claims to being the world's oldest continuous parliamentary assembly).

Blue Lagoon

This geothermal spa is located in barren lava fields with volcanoes visible in the distance.

lava fields near the Blue Lagoon, Iceland

Blue Lagoon, Iceland

Waste water from a nearby geothermal power plant creating electricity containing various minerals is diverted to the Blue Lagoon.

The Blue Lagoon outdoor pool, Iceland

The water is 37 - 40°C all year round.

outdoor spa, Blue Lagoon Iceland

Having a relaxing time in the sunshine.

In the Blue Lagoon

Blue Cafe, Blue Lagoon, Iceland

After bathing it's important to rehydrate, so we dutifully visited the Blue Cafe and sampled the local beer. Skál!

cafe at the Blue Lagoon, Iceland

Recommended Restaurants

Austur- India Fjelagid

http://www.austurindia.is
One of the finest Indian restaurants in Iceland.

Grillmarkadurinn (Grillmarket)

http://www.grillmarkadurinn.is/en/
Good quality local produce. The bread with the volcanic salt was delicious. Contemporary decor featuring natural wood and lava.

Perlan Restaurant

http://perlan.is/?page_id=497&lang=en

Fine dining with interesting flavour combinations. Revolving restaurant in an impressive setting under a glass dome. Amazing 360° views.

See other restaurants I recommend.

See photos of other holidays we've enjoyed