Golden Circle: day tour from Reykjavik | Iceland
We went on an 8-hour Golden Circle tour by bus from Reykjavik. Are you curious about what you can see along the Golden Circle in December? Keep on reading!
Iceland’s Golden Circle is a popular route between 3 of Iceland’s most visited attractions. Starting in Reykjavik, you’ll drive into the southern uplands and back, visiting Þingvellir National Park, Geysir geothermal area, and Gullfoss waterfall. Many tour routes take in extra attractions along the way depending on the tour. You could visit a geothermal greenhouse on one trip, or a natural hot water spa with another.
We booked our Golden Circle tour with GetYourGuide.
Check out my Instagram page for more photos and videos!
1) Volcanic Crater Lake Kerið
Kerið Volcano Crater is 3000 years old and has a small lake at the bottom. The rocks surrounding the crater are in red, orange, black, and green if the snow doesn’t cover them. Walk around the crater for some beautiful views. We walked up during sunrise with the moon still shining on the other side!
2) Gullfoss Waterfall
We continue to one of Iceland’s most iconic features at the Gullfoss Waterfall (“Golden Falls“) where we can see the glacial River Hvítá plummeting down into a 32-meter deep crevice. As it was frozen we couldn’t walk to the edge of the waterfall but during the summer months, this is possible!
Fun Fact: From this viewpoint, you can admire the Langjökull glacier.
Fun Fact: In the summer you can also raft the Hvita River.
Freezing Fact: It was -15°C when these photos were taken!
3) Icelandic Horses
Stop along the way to visit Icelandic Horse farms and have some fun taking photos with these horses!
4) Geysir
Continue to the spectacular Geysir area to see some geysers. You’ll find 2 geysers in Strokkur: Great Geysir and Strokkur Geysir. The Great Geysir is the oldest documented geyser in European literature, and is over 10,000 years old! It is inactive now so you won’t see any action from this geysir. The Strokkur Geysir spits steaming water 30 meters into the air every 5-10 minutes! As you walk through the surrounding Haukadalur Valley, you can admire many hot springs, smaller geysers, and bubbling mud pots.
5) Þingvellir National Park.
Enter Þingvellir National Park, where the North American and Eurasian tectonic plates are pulling apart at a rate of a few centimeters per year. Þingvellir is also the birthplace of the Rock of Law, the first Viking parliament (and the world’s first parliament!)
Fun Fact: Þingvellir (pronounced ‘Thingvellir’) is Iceland’s first National Park and a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
Þingvallavatn, Iceland’s largest natural lake.
You can snorkel between the tectonic plates at Silfra, one of the world’s top 10 dive sites!
Langjökull glacier
Spot the second-biggest Glacier of Iceland in the distance if you didn’t spot it when you were at Gullfoss Waterfall!
Game of Thrones Film Location
Game of Thrones has scenes filmed in Iceland. One of the scenes is the hike to the high Eyrie filmed in the Almannagjá gorge (the walk of Aria & the hound, the battle between Brienne of Tarth & the hound, the walk of Sansa & Littlefinger).
Fun Fact: The valley is the only place in the world where the Mid-Atlantic Ridge is visible on land or the cliff that’s the corner of the North American continent.
Want to do this trip as well? Find this tour on GetYourGuide!
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5 Comments
Matt
A must do tour when visiting Iceland!
Life of a Passion
Totally agree that you can’t miss Golden Circle when in Iceland Matt!
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Alison
Great overview what to expect along the tour:)
Life of a Passion
Thanks Alison! 😀