Iceland has skyrocketed in popularity as a tourist destination in recent years, with numbers more than quadrupling since 2010. Most visitors are drawn to the country’s striking natural wonders as we were for our recent five-day South Iceland road trip. The words “pretty” and “amazing” stopped having meaning we used them so often during our stunning 5 days in Iceland. With so much awe-inspiring scenery waiting around every turn, I must say it is one of the few places in the world that has truly taken my breath away.

Line standing in front of the little-known marvel, Bruarfoss in Iceland. Image © Line Oldager

5 Days in Iceland

When to Travel to Iceland

Contents

Summer is the peak season for visitors to Iceland with around 30% also now touching down in Winter.

We decided to spend 5 days in Iceland in Autumn (late September) which meant there was a greater chance we would see the Northern lights.

While all the sights were still accessible, avoiding peak season meant we also avoided the biggest tourist swell.

From October, several areas and roads are closed due to bad weather conditions.

Walking a glacier in Iceland should be on your bucket list. Image © Line Oldager

South Iceland Road Trip

I travelled to Iceland with a good friend of mine from Los Angeles.

With only 5 days in Iceland, we wouldn’t have made it to all the sights we wanted to see without a lot of careful planning.

Following this self-guided South Coast Iceland itinerary means, you will spend a lot of time driving. You’ll eat lunch in the car or at a scenic rest stop. But you will also cover a lot of spectacular Iceland sites.

Iceland Itinerary 5 Days

Day 1

Thingvellir National Park | Bruarfoss | Geysir & Strokkur | Gullfoss | The Secret Lagoon

Day 2

Landmannalaugar – In the Iceland Highlands

Day 3

Fjaðrárgljúfur Canyon | Hike on Svínafellsjökull glacier in Vatnajökull National Park

Day 4

Jökulsárlón | Svartifoss in Skaftafell

Day 5

Hjörleifshöfði Cave | Skogafoss | Seljalandsfoss | Gljufurarfoss

How to Get to Iceland

We landed at Reykjavik international airport late in the evening. From there we took a Grayline transit bus to Reykjavik city (a 40-minute drive) and checked into a hotel, excited to start our Iceland adventure.

The first stop on Line’s incredible Iceland road trip, Thingvellir National Park. Image © Line Oldager

5 Days in Iceland: Day 1

The Golden Circle and the Northern Lights

We got up early, excited to get started, and picked up our rental car; a regular 4×4. If you want to drive into the highlands of Iceland you will need a 4×4. Book one with high suspension as you might be crossing small unbridged rivers.

After picking up our rental car, we went grocery shopping so we would have something to eat on the road. There are not many shops on this 5-day road trip around Iceland, so make sure you carry enough food and water with you and ensure you fill up with gas when you pass through a village.

We chose the road from Reykjavik towards The Golden Circle, which is a sightseeing route near Reykjavik where you’ll find several sites very close to each other.

Weaving through the landscape in the Thingvellir National Park, Iceland. Image © Line Oldager

Thingvellir National Park

The first stop on The Golden Circle route is Thingvellir National Park. Here, the two tectonic plates; ”the North American” and the ”Eurasian” plates have created a massive crack in the landscape.

You can take a guided dive in between the plates, the Silfra fissure, but this will take about three hours of your time and you’ll need more than a day to cover the Golden Circle as well.

Bruarfoss

Our next stop was Bruarfoss. Getting there was a bit tricky as Bruarfoss isn’t well-known, just yet. But, we had seen pictures of this beautiful waterfall and had to see it in person.

From Reykjavik, driving towards the Geysir on route 37, take a left on a road, which leads up to a summerhouse area. The turn is just after route 355 connects to route 37. When driving up towards the cottage area, there is a small parking area. Park there and walk further up the road, keeping to the left. You will come to an open area with bushes.

Keep walking straight on the small path between the bushes. Then, you will arrive at this sign by a bridge. Cross the bridge and stay on the path. You will find several paths between the bushes, which are higher than yourself.

Ignore them and just keep going, but stay to the left. Keep going left. Then, you’ll suddenly hear the noise of a cascading waterfall. The walk takes about 10 to 15 minutes.

Once you park in the small carpark walk keep walking straight. You will arrive at this sign with by a crossing bridge that takes you to Bruarfoss. Image © Line Oldager

The icy blue colours of the river running through a deep cut in the landscape were so mesmerising that we spent far more time at Bruarfoss than we had planned. The waterfall in itself wasn’t spectacular, but it was that blue melting water and rough stream that was so fascinating.

We went down to take a sip of the water and more pictures before leaving. As this waterfall is not well-known yet you will likely only be enjoying this scenery with a handful of tourists.

Geysir and Strokkur

Geysir (where all geysers get their name) isn’t a very active geyser these days. But Strokkur, which is right next to it, goes off every 5-10 minutes so you are guaranteed a show. I had never seen a geyser before, so this was my first time experiencing this phenomenon.