Northern Lights · Tour
Golden Circle and Northern Lights Small Group Tour from Reykjavík, 11 Hours
Eleven hours, two halves and a break in the middle. The daylight half covers the Golden Circle: Thingvellir National Park, a UNESCO World Heritage site; the spouting geysers of the Geysir hot spring area; and Gullfoss waterfall, where most people use up their camera batteries. When the dark comes down, the second half starts and the group goes hunting for the northern lights. Iceland's winter night is long enough for both halves to fit inside one day, which is the only reason this combination exists at all.
What's included
- Transport minibus
- Professional guide
- Hotel pickup and drop-off (select hotels)
Itinerary
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Reykjavik
The Golden Circle day begins with a pickup in Reykjavik and covers the classic stops, Thingvellir, Gullfoss, Geysir and the Keríð volcanic crater, with a few smaller sites added along the way.
Thingvellir National Park
The first stop is 40 minutes from Reykjavík city centre. Þingvellir National Park sits inside a rift valley where the Eurasian and North American plates are pulling apart, and the ground shows it. The geology is only half of it. The Althing, Iceland's first national parliament, met on this ground. The park also holds the Silfra fissure, the Almannagjá rift and the view out over Þingvallavatn lake.
Gullfoss Falls
Gullfoss, the golden waterfall, sits at the very edge of the Icelandic Highlands, inside the canyon of the Hvíta River and fed by the Langjökull glacier to the north. It falls in two tiers, dropping 32 metres into a gap that hides the bottom from where you stand, which is why the water seems to disappear into the ground. It holds up in any season.
Geysir
Next is the Geysir geothermal field, which gave every geyser on earth its name. The ground here bubbles: hot pools, clear geothermal springs and steam vents, with a decent chance of an eruption while you are standing over it. Geysir itself is dormant now, though it once held the record as the tallest geyser in history at 122 metres (400 ft). Its smaller neighbour Strokkur does the work these days. As the most active geyser in Iceland it erupts every 4 to 10 minutes, so nobody leaves without seeing it.
Reykjavik
After the Golden Circle the bus drops you in Reykjavík with time for dinner and the city, before the evening pickup for the northern lights hunt.
Iceland
Collected again from a designated pickup spot, the group heads out to the quieter countryside places the guides keep to themselves. Green and yellow are the usual colours, sometimes white and blue, occasionally violet, purple and rose. None of it is guaranteed, since the aurora is a natural phenomenon, but the guides watch the aurora and weather forecasts and weigh conditions and KPI data before choosing where to stop. Once there, photographs are taken of you under the lights, hot chocolate and chocolate treats come out, and wool blankets keep the cold at arm's length. The tour is back in Reykjavík around midnight, dropping you at or very near your hotel.
Not included
- Food & drinks
- Gratuities
Good to know
- Suitable for all physical fitness levels
- Please note that this is a combo tour. After the Golden Circle tour we will drop you off at your original pickup point. You will have free time to get some dinner, and then we will pick you up again from your original pickup point for the Northern Lights adventure.
- From 1st of October to 28th of February, the pickup for the Northern Lights portion is at 20:30 PM
- From 1st of September to 30th of September, and from 1st of March to 15th of April, the pickup for the Northern Lights portion is at 21:30 PM
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- Minimum age requirement for this tour is 6 years old.
- Children must be accompanied by an adult
- Operates in all weather conditions, please dress appropriately. Wear Warm layers, weatherproof top layer, headwear, gloves, scarves, and hiking or sturdy shoes. Spikes which fit on your boots are useful in icy conditions if you have them.
- Up to 15 travelers per booking.
- Mobile or paper ticket accepted
- Guiding available in: en.
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