craz

Thats doable in my book, any idea what the sidewalks are like? some places where its cobble-stones its not gonna happen, is it smooth enough to handle the wheels to the rollerboard?

dabee69

It is walkable in good weather.

Buses are very good in Iceland. You may want to play around with journey planner http://s.straeto.is/journeyplanner/enterJourneyPlan.do

I was very satisfied with the bus service to/from airport and Blue Lagoon.

dabee69

Try google earth. You may not find somebody here who did it already.

I moved from Hilton to Radisson 1919 in a rental car. Hilton is by far the best hotel on the island with good lounge. They serve decent food and spirits. Food and beverages are extremely expensive in Iceland.

fassy

there is a side walk all of the way of concrete plates. Not a nice/scenic walk, but managable.

craz

I plan to use the buses bet KEF and the city and to/from the BL as well. Looking at that planner it seems there is no direct bus but one walks a few mins then the bus for a stop and then walk again. Pays to simply walk

craz

If I wasnt staying with CCs B1G1 I most likley would have looked into then Hilton

jbeckett

Walking is no problem, sidewalks all the way and mostly through a residential area. In the direction from 1919 to Saga it is slightly uphill. There is a bus for 400 ISK that goes from right in front of the Saga to a main road maybe 3 minutes walk from 1919. This would be a better choice on a rainy day. If you buy the Reykjavik City card it includes the bus. I stayed 10 days at the two hotels in June, changing every 2 days with no trouble going back and forth.

craz

Weatherwise it was a great day in Rey. I follwed the directions from some posters and it took apx 15 mins (a bit longer since I stopped to take a few pics). Thanks everyone for your help

I know its now 70k vs 44k but 1919 cant be beat. Saga is worn and needs a renov very badly, but even if it didnt you cant beat walking out of 1919 and being smack in the middle of where everything is. So on 1st day after walking around I stepped back in (1919) and took a nap and then back out, not as easy walking back and forth to Saga

Just wanted to add now that I spent 2 nights at the Saga.If I was never in Rey then I would spend my 1st 2 nights @ 1919 and then move to the Saga. When I go back, since I took in then town already Id probably just save the pts and stay at The Saga. Heading in over a Fri/Sat night then maybe 1919 since its smack in the middle of it all, but this week (M-Th) it was pretty empty every night

centrifuge41

Radisson Blu Saga is an ok property, but not great. Lobby is nice, and clean. Breakfast buffet is absolutely amazing (but you have to get the business class room to have it). The spa is fine. There's a sauna and a hot tub that seats 3-4. No swimming pool.

Rooms and furniture aren't so great. 2 twin beds rather than 1 king = they tend to slip apart and create a gap. Floors are a bit scraped up because the beds move around. End rooms don't get great wifi. They resolved this by providing an access point that goes over cellular data. Works well enough, but probably not the best solution. Overall, property is definitely not a 4 star.

Edit: 15 minute walk to downtown. Very easy walk, and quite relaxing, since you go through a good looking neighborhood (or you can walk next to the lake, but there are mosquitoes). Probably as close as you can get to downtown and have free parking.

craz

I skipped the breakfast since I had a 7am p/u both mornings that I stayed. On my last morn(checking out) I asked if I could grab an OJ and she said go ahead. I will agree with you they put out a very nice spread.

There are a few restaurants as well, then again unlike 1919 if you dont eat in you arent stepping out fora bite since theres nothing nearby till you get DT.
I changed to a room facing DT and can say all the furniture was badly scraped up and looked as if it was taken off a junk pile. Mattress was great, a/c non existent had to leave the window open. Since I basically only showered and slept a few hrs (was out on day tours), it served its purpose and again if I didnt need to be DT I would save the pts or $$ and stay @ The Saga again

Firewind

What is DT? I know most FlyerTalk and this board's abbreviations, but I honestly don't know. A Carlson thing? A Radisson thing? This hotel's thing? How did you get it? And are you saying that if you get it, you shouldn't take it? Thank you.

jbeckett

DownTown (where all the lights are bright)

Firewind

Ohhhhh ... Thank you, jbeckett. craz, is that what you meant?

craz

yep and if you had checked where both hotels are located you would have known that

edbyu

We finished up a two night stay in both the 1919 followed by the Saga last week.

We much preferred the 1919 to the Saga. Downtown location, a much cooler room, and a little more character.

Neither property had air conditioning. Perhaps it was luck of the draw, but our room at the 1919 didn't get blasted with as much direct sunlight. We didn't eat breakfast at either property. Took advantage of the minibar fridge and a trip to the local grocery store.

We had a east facing room at the Saga and by 7 AM we left sweating upon waking up. At night time, several west-facing rooms near us were literally sleeping with their doors open trying to get room cool air from the hallway. It was pretty sad. Clearly this is a summer time problem.

One plus of the Saga, is nearly unlimited (and free) car parking. This hotel seemed to cater to the bus tour groups and as such plentiful parking existed in the hotel's own lot. It appeared the Saga hotel has started the above mentioned renovation. I'm not sure how many rooms are out of service as I didn't ask.

The 1919 didn't have on site parking and you had to park on the street (metered) or go to find a lot.