A Thoroughly Enjoyable Tour Of This Majestic Island A thoroughly enjoyable tour of this majestic island. Our first day out took us to some of the tourist hotspots – the huge Gullfoss waterfall, geysers, the growing fault line between the North American and Eurasian continental plates and the site of their 1100-year-old parliament. Thereafter our 1000-mile journey around the island was largely free of other tourists (it was February). The snow conditions were good (it covered the island, but wasn’t too deep for walking), with little rain (probably lucky for the time of year). Our only challenge was the wind, which did curtail our itinerary when we got to the west of the island.
I had researched about Iceland and the places to be visited but had not anticipated the scale of the island and the grandeur of the scenery. The weather was not as rainy as was forecast but it was windier than I expected, the weather suited the landscape and the experiences on the trip. Our guide was excellent - full of information and stories - never a dull moment.
Wow-an amazing experience! Solvi was an excellent host and guide. Always giving us native insights about the people and culture added immensely to my appreciation for the journey. The natural beauty of Iceland ranks up at the top of places I've been fortunate to visit including Patagonia (Condor trip), Alaska, Hawaii and more. One thing that could have been better--it would be nice to have had a better description of the accommodations at the huts and what to expect. For example, I think several of us were a bit surprised to be sharing a single room with all 17 guests and limited showers and restrooms. Also, letting folks know that their full baggage was available each night at the huts was great but not knowing that ahead of time, I thought we'd be lugging more on our backs during the treks through the fjords. No real complaints here!! Thora joined us as a second guide during the last few days as well and was quite delightful--really enjoyed her view on things as well.