Farm Holiday sites
 

Thanks agai so much for the price specifics - it helps to be prepared. The article about the Ring Road was great - the excitement about this trip is building and I have yet to find a single person who has not loved their travels to Iceland - I hope you get back soon too!

What should we expect for breakfasts at the B&B's and small hotels?

Here is the list of the farms we will be staying at which all appeared on the FarmHolidays website - prebooked by Icelandic Air in the package:

Hotel Hekla - # 685, 20 km from Fluor (spelling approx due to english keyboard)

Hotel Hofoabrekka # 638 - outside Vik

Smyrlabjorg # 592 - 45 km south of Hofn

Skiplaekur # 530 - Fellum, near Eglisstadir

Narfastadir #405 - 45 km before Husavik

Stadarskali # 240 - 34 kms from Hvammstangi

We wil be staying at the Park Island Inn in Reykjavik one night after arrival and then when we return from the RingRoad before departure. We are looking for a special restaurant in the city to both welcome and celebrate our trip - is the "Perl" at the water tower too overdone? Please share any suggestions to make our few short days in Reykjavik. Thanks again.

sbagal

Translation help - "dagsin"
 

The link to the menu was great - getting it both in English and Icelandic. I have printed out both so I can start learning how to read a menu.

One word I have run into but can't figure out (w/o a dictionary now) is "dagsin" -- can anyone help me here.

sbagal

I think you're referring to "dagsins", which is the genetive case of "dagur" = day. E.g. Fiskur dagsins = fish of the day.

Breakfast
 

I hate to keep posting, but I just love this topic.

When we stayed at the cabin on the farm several years ago, we were on our own for breakfast. But almost all hotels offer a breakfast, and this is what I have found to be fairly standard:

Bread and rolls, luncheon meats, sliced cheeses, cold cereals, cold fish of some sort...(herring, salmon), butter and jam-type spreads for the bread, cottage cheese, tomatoes and cucumbers, and some kind of pastry.

It really is pretty hearty, depending on your food preference. I have known people to make a sandwich "to go" from the breakfast buffet, which served as a light lunch.

You asked for some thoughts for a nice place for dinner to begin and end the trip. Is your flight to KEF out of SFO or some other gateway city? I ask because the SFO flt arrives in the afternoon, while all others are early morning. As your flight will be all night (however, this time of year almost the entire flight will be in daylight) an afternoon arrival will not give you much opportunity to rest at the hotel before dinner.

As I just have a hard time sleeping on planes to begin with, when you add in the 2 am daylight, I end up being a basket case the first night in Iceland. If you are really tired, you may want to save the nice dinner for later, when you are rested and will enjoy it so much.

That being said, I have 2 favorites: Cafe Opera and the Grillid.

Cafe Opera is on the second floor of an old building that is at the center of downtown Reykjavik. Nice service, good food, and when you are done, you can do a leasurely stroll around the downtown lake, take in the scenery, watch locals feed the ducks.

Here is a link to their menu:


http://www.cafeopera.is/en/offer.php


The Grillid is on the 8th floor of Hotel Saga. The food is great, you get an excellent view of the entire city, but prices are a bit steeper, but it is also more formal in nature.

http://www.discover-the-world.co.uk/...?id=restaurant

http://eng.grillid.is/GrillidEnglish/TheGrill/


The Pearl restaurant is nice, but IMHO, a bit too tourist oriented. Consider going to the cafe one flight down from the restaurant, having coffee and pastry, and then walking outside on the deck the encircles the Pearl. You get the great view of all of Reykjavik without the expensive meal.

Hamburger? Go to where the locals go......Habborgarabullan. It is about 2 blocks from city center, but the burgers are great. Here is a list of Iceland restaurant reviews, in case you don't have this link:

http://www.virtualtourist.com/travel...land-BR-1.html

Your trip really looks interesing. I'll have to check out the package deals on Icelandair.com and look into the ring road trip. Looks like it give you the freedom to see what you want, when you want, within a structure of knowing where you will be each night (and knowing that there is a place reserved for you).

You can go crazy trying to plan all this out. There is a lot to see and do, but I have found it all to be fun. You are going to have a great time.

Donna, Keep talking!

This is great information - the kind that never shows up in the travel books. Please post away and yes, our flight leaves from SFO and your advice is sound - we will be wiped out and enjoying dinner sounds better at the end of our trip, rather than our first night.

Thanks for the info about the breakfasts too - that helps our planning for meals which will be our major expense along with the gas.

sbagal

Sbagal,

We're all counting on a day-by-day account of your trip! Can't wait for the stories and adventure details. Enjoy!

Derek

Sbagal,

Another link that might help you with on-the-spot Icelandic-to-English translation, before your trip:
http://www.translation-guide.com/fre...h&to=Icelandic

Also, if you run into translation problems while you are there, several shop, cafes, and even banks offer free internet service. You can go to a translator site and get the neccessary answers there. Not much help out on the ring road; but it helps that most Icelandic people are super friendly and speak English!

Glad to help
 

I love to do this, as in searching, I always find something new. It also gets me wanting to go back, and I'm even starting to search for fares to a summer visit.

A lot depends on how you feel when you get to Iceland.

The SFO flt gets in about 3pm, so with passport control, walking to baggage claim, duty-free (if so inclined - worth a look while you wait for the luggage), and driving in to Reykjavik, you will get to the hotel about 5pm or so.

Depending on the flight, being able to get some sleep and such, you may want to take a nap and then head out. It will light the entire time so that is not a factor. While there is a sunset time, it never really gets dark this time of year...just dusk.

Here is a link to a map of Reykjavik that shows your hotel:

http://www.icelandair.com/files/file...ile5380429.pdf

On the map, the Park Island Inn is #29. The map index lists #29 as the SAS Island Inn, but it changed names a while back. It will give you an idea of your location in Reykjavik.

If you connect the dots 6-35-13-21-10, you get an idea of the main area for downtown Reykjavik, with what I would call ground zero the park in front of the National Assembly near #9. The big church (Hallgrimskirkja) is by #13, a tourist info spot by #44.

Laugavegur is the main shopping street, and there are many, many nice restaurants with menus in the window on this street as well as nearby side streets.

I would make it a point to get into the downtown area on your first night, just to get a feel for the area, and pick some places for further exploration on your last night. Consider stopping by the tourist info to pick up additional free info for the places you will be traveling to during the week.

This is peak tourist season, and with unlimited daylight, everything is open late. In the mornings, central Reykjavik seems dead until 10am or so, so if there is something to see/buy/do, it would be best to do it the night of your arrival, rather than wait for things to open on your first road trip day. So many things to see and do....

I have gone to the Google satellite and tried to duplicate the map link above with a satellite photo:

http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&hl=e...24783,0.131321

On the photo, on the far right side look for an oval racetrack. This is in the park area near your hotel, which is on the curved street just below the park. The arrow points to a location about 3 blocks southeast of the church, and the main shopping/tourist area is just above and to the right of Lake Tjornin, visible on the left side.

This area is not far from your hotel, about 2km, but as you will be walking a lot in the city, you may want to consider taking a bus or cab to the area, and save your energy for exploring the city area. There is not much that I would find interesting between your hotel and the central area....just offices, businesses and such.

My experience has been that most everyone has a good time in Iceland, a few hate it but many more fall in love with the place (as I have) and keep wanting to go back.

The best comments I have seen concerning this come from a post on TripAdvisor, which I'll include here:

******************************************

You are right, Iceland is addictive. After our maiden visit we have become committed Icelandphiles, with an ardent desire to return soon. I view this visit as the first round at a buffet table, where you survey the range of items and load your plate with modest amounts of everything. Then, wiser from the sampling, you go back for more with a directed, but more intense, focus.
I shall make no grand pronouncements of the sort "Icelanders are < insert your favourite drib of insight>" like many are wont to do. Understanding the nuances of a people and their culture takes a great deal of time spent in their company. Casual observations as visitors won't do. That said, there are many qualities of Iceland and Icelanders that are prima facie admirable, but that evaluation has to be shaped by individual experience and must be subject to alteration following new experiences & knowledge. The following are the initial impressions we formed _as tourists_.
- Iceland is one huge eye candy store. There is no point in my oohing and aahing about everything like the "nature nannies" we get to hear from nowadays.
- The quality of tourist services is exceptional. Prices are high but you get value for money spent. Thr private guides we had were more than mere professionals doing their job, going through the day's chore. They seemed to genuinely like their metier and it was as if we were out with an old friend.
- The quality of the hotels we stayed at was good (clean & functional), but not exceptional. I don't think there exists a true international 5-star hotel in Iceland. This is meant as an observation, not criticism. Hotel Centum in Reykjavik and Hotel Ranga in Hella were standouts.
- No baggage handlers at hotels in Iceland. And the concept of tipping (and the expectation of a tip) is virtually non-existent. I can't even begin to describe how civilised all this is.
- Vegetarians need not fret about being in Iceland. At every place we asked for sandwiches to be made without meat and we were invariably fixed a delicious toasted veggie&cheese sandwich. The quality of ingredients was excellent and consequently the taste (if you live in America, the difference in taste in the produce will at once be obvious). Furthermore, the Indian restaurants in Reykjavik are superb and Austur Indía Fjelagið (http://www.austurindia.is/home.html) is highly recommended. I was also shocked to tears of joy to find, of all things, Goan food in Reykjavik! The cuisine of my hometown Goa is now available in Reykjavik at The Indian Mango! See http://www.indianmango.is.
- Driving in Iceland calls for some preparation, especially for those used to the world-class American roads. While signage is adequate, you don't get as much advance notice (sometimes none at all) as you do on American roads. Speed limits are nominal; it pays to assess the road conditions and drive accordingly. Do NOT exceed the speed limit no matter how tempting it may seem in the wide, open spaces. You never know when a herd of sheep will get in your way (there have been many fatal accidents involving tourists in recent years). And the extra caution required at the transition from paved to gravel road cannot be underscored. Also know that some turnouts can be tricky. We stopped for a photo op at a small turnout and while making a circle to get back to the Ring Road our car got mired. Fortunately an Icelandic couple in a big jeep stopped and hauled the car out using a tow rope. Just one example of how unpredictable - and exciting - Iceland can be.

*********************************************


I think the idea by bnladiesfan of a trip report is great. I'd really like to know how your trip works out.

The more I look at all of this, the more I want to get back there.

360 panorama
 

I ran across this link in my Iceland bookmarks.

It has 360 degree panorama views of Reykjavik, and 5 other locations in Iceland. The view of Reykjavik is taken from the walk around deck at the Pearl. There is a nice cafe inside on this level, which is a floor below the restaurant.

http://www.flippi.net/themen/panoram...hingvellir.htm

It gives a good preview of a bit of Iceland.

Here's some sample prices from the trip. Prices were for two people.
Blue lagoon: $45.50 (3400 ISK)
Laugardalur thermal baths: $14.75 (1160 ISK)
Einar Ben restaurant (anniversary dinner) 4 course meal with wine tastings: $248.90 (18650 ISK) Pretty good deal as they kept refilling our wine glasses :D
Nordica Hotel + breakfast: $193.50 (11500 + 3000 ISK)
Saga Museum (at Perlan): $22.90 (1800 ISK)

July 1 - Weekend Travel Crush?
 

Thanks to all for the really good information and great links - all very helpful. While part of the fun of travel is discovery, the helpful hints ahead of time will only serve to create an even better trip - things like prices and seasoned travel trips are not something to "discover" on one's own. Many thanks.

Now here is another one - realized we are starting our driving trip around the Ring (counter clockwise - going east first) on July 1 - which your reading tips claim to be the busiest weekend of all. Our first pre-booked overnight July 1 is in the middle of the Golden Circle (Iceland for Beginners) area, and the second night - Sunday July 2- near Vik.

That appears to put us right in the middle of what may be a very impacted tourist area for two days.

Any hints on how to best manage this - more out of the way places in this area to explore with a 2WD car?

Thanks again - and looks like a walk into town and the Opera Cafe is going to be perfect our first night. Nice to learn how late businesses will be staying open.

Keep all this good advice coming - leaving next Thursday (June 29) - I can hardly wait. And while we are at it - what is a good wardrobe --besides my full LLBean Gortex rain suit?

sbagal

Busy,but no road congestion
 

Getting close to "go time" for you. Wow.

While this is the peak of the tourist season, there should not be any congestion on the roads. Perhaps a lot of people at the sites, but a good deal of folks take tour busses and do not do the drive themselves.

There will be a lot of folks walking up and down the streets in Reykjavik, but that is just part of the summer hussle and bussle.

You should be fine on clothing with something to fend off rain. The temp will be between 40-60, overcast to bright sunshine, no wind to strong (20-25mph) wind, and periods of intermittent rain. Basically, everything.

But it always changes, and in short order. So you can be in the rain, wind, with clouds and 40's and feel cold. The next hour will bring calm, brite sunshine, temps feeling much warmer. Dressing so as to adaptable is a good way to go.

I don't know if you have any maps of Iceland yet, but it looks like you most likely do Thingvellir, Geyser, Gulfoss and head for your stay at Hotel Hela.

Here is a link to the Iceland road commission, with maps of Iceland showing major roads, conditions and such, with yellow boxes that point to sensors they have along the road to report wind and traffic.

This is a link to your first day area, but you can change it by clicking on the map, top left corner:


http://www.vegagerdin.is/english/roa...nd/south1.html

On the left side, you see a lake. The Thingvellir area is at the top of the lake. Then you will probably head for Geyser by taking the road directly east, thru Laugarvatn (nice little town with a fuel station with food), and continue on to Gulfoss. They have a yellow road box labled "Gulfoss" with a connecting line to the area.

From there you might head down Hwy 30, thru Fludir to get to your hotel. Just past Fludir, there is another road to the east, Hwy 32 which goes to Arnes, which is another nice community with a small eating establishment in the communit center. Nice place and we went there when we stayed at that cabin. This whole area is really beautiful.

FYI, the ring road, Hwy 1, leaves from Reykjavik, thru Hveragerti, Selfoss, Hella, down the coast to Vik. Just to give you an idea of your travel the nextday.

If you can, it might be worth it to see Selfoss. It is fairly large...maybe 10,000, with a nice shoping area by the river with a nice path for walking. There is a great little coffee shop across the street, but on the same side as the shopping area (the only big grocery store in the area, if you need something before heading out on the road) and it was nice to sit outside with coffee and pastry/sandwich and watch Iceland pass by.

If you need it, the Iceland wx office link:

http://www.vedur.is/english/

I think you will have a great time.

Wanted to add that the road from just past Thingvellir to just before Laugarvatn (about 20km) is gravel, but this is the only gravel stretch we encountered.

I would not worry too much about it being busy on the road - there is a lot of space to be shared between few people! Although the summer inevitably gets busier with tourists nothing compares to the first weekend of August. That's the biggest bank holiday weekend in Iceland and you can expect the roads being absolutely blocked with cars. Personally I would not choose to travel then but many like the general atmosphere of this weekend. You will be fine though travelling in July. Hope you have a great trip!

icebird

Traffic website is a winner - what care and detail this country has to offer - countdown begins - 4 more days to go! Thanks for the reports on the weekend we arrive that it will not be their most congested weekend. Whew!

Thanks again for all the great links and hints and prices --- to all.

sbagal

Have a great time! Let us know how your trip worked out.

I just read Daily News from Iceland and it looks like there will be a former President there at the same time.

http://www.icelandreview.com/iceland...6-B7A0FA9F3CF6

06/27/2006 | 14:38

George Bush sr. to visit Iceland in July
Icelandic National Broadcasting Service, RÚV, reports that the former president of the United States George H.W. Bush plans to visit Iceland in early July.

According to RÚV, Mr. Bush is in Iceland to fish at the invitation of the North Atlantic Salmon Fund. George Bush visited Iceland as vice-president of the first Regan administration in the early 1980's and used the opportunity fish for salmon at the invitation of the then foreign minister.

The president of Iceland, Ólafur Ragnar Grímsson, will host a dinner party for Mr. Bush and his company on the US national holiday, Independence Day, July 4.

George H.W. Bush served as president in 1989 when the former Soviet countries collapsed in the wake of a popular and peaceful uprising in East-Germany. At the time, Ólafur Ragnar was the chairman of the now-defunct People's Alliance, the political successor to the Icelandic Communist Party.

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