Take an amphibian boat tour on Jokulsárlón for a water-level perspective on the lagoon’s floating icebergs. See the varied shapes and colours of ice that has broken from nearby Breiðamerkurjokull glacier.

The boat brings a different sense of scale to a lagoon otherwise viewed from its shore. Ice slowly travels towards the sea through this changing glacial landscape. This Optional Experience is at additional cost and bookable on tour.

• 8 Breakfast (B)
• 5 Dinner (D)

• Hand sanitizer is freely available on board for you to use throughout the day.

• Húsavík: Bathe in naturally heated seawater drawn from coastal boreholes, collected in outdoor infinity pools on the cliff edge. Views stretch across Skjálfandi Bay and surrounding headlands, while the layout shows how Iceland uses geothermal gradients for seawater bathing in a town better known for its fishing and whale-watching harbour.

Insight Vacations

• Business class coach with extended leg room
• Top-rated dining, from farm-to-table to local restaurants
• Premium regional accommodation

Meet your Travel Director and fellow travellers over small bites in Reykjavík. This hosted gathering offers a relaxed introduction to the people sharing your small-group journey.

Iceland’s capital sits beside Faxaflói Bay, where a working harbour, low-rise streets and geothermal-heated buildings give the city its distinctive character. The welcome gathering is an opportunity to settle in and hear more about the landscapes and communities you’ll encounter around the island.

Visit Friðheimar’s tomato greenhouses to see how geothermal heat and artificial lighting support cultivation throughout Iceland’s dark winters. Learn about the controlled growing conditions and taste tomatoes grown on site.

This working farm reveals a practical connection between Iceland’s volcanic resources and everyday food production. The visit supports more responsible approaches to growing and consuming food, making it a distinctive encounter with the ingenuity behind a year-round harvest.

Explore the Geysir geothermal area and watch for hot water erupting from the ground amid steaming vents and mineral-streaked earth. The active Strokkur geyser provides a close view of the heat beneath Iceland’s surface.

The site lies on the Golden Circle, a region where geothermal activity is especially visible. Its namesake, Geysir, gave the English language the word “geyser”; the surrounding landscape shows how heated groundwater finds its way through fractures in the rock.

View Gullfoss as the glacial-fed Hvítá River drops in two stages into a rugged canyon. From the viewing area, take in the broad upper cascade, the narrower plunge and spray rising above the rock.

One of the Golden Circle’s defining sights, Gullfoss makes the power of Iceland’s meltwater rivers tangible. Its flow changes with the seasons, while the canyon exposes the layers of rock through which the river continues to cut.

Explore the Lava Centre’s interactive exhibits in Hvolsvollur to learn about the earthquakes, eruptions and tectonic forces behind Iceland’s landscapes. Displays give context to the volcanoes and lava fields visible across the island.

South Iceland lies near active volcanic systems, including Eyjafjallajokull. This museum visit helps connect the scenery with the processes beneath it, making glaciers, ridgelines and volcanic plains easier to understand as parts of a changing environment.

Visit Seljalandsfoss and Skógafoss, two waterfalls along Iceland’s south coast. See water spill over high cliffs at Seljalandsfoss and the broad, forceful curtain of Skógafoss, where spray often hangs near the base.

Both falls descend over cliffs connected to the coast’s geological past, although each has a different profile. Together, they show how rivers from Iceland’s highlands and glacial landscapes have shaped the southern edge of the island.

Visit Víkurfjara Black Sand Beach at Vík and take in the contrast between dark volcanic sand and the North Atlantic surf. The shore offers a direct encounter with the material produced by Iceland’s volcanic activity.

On this exposed stretch of south coast, waves continually reshape the shoreline. Pause to observe the sea and the surrounding coastal landscape while keeping a safe distance from the water: Atlantic waves here can be powerful and unpredictable.

Discover the Skaftafell area of Vatnajokull National Park, where views towards outlet glaciers meet broad plains and volcanic terrain. Take in a landscape shaped by ice moving down from Europe’s largest ice cap.

Glacial rivers, older lava and the traces left by retreating ice reveal the interplay of Iceland’s two dominant natural forces. The area offers a striking sense of scale, from the edges of the ice cap to the open land below.

Watch icebergs drift across Jokulsárlón, a lagoon fed by ice breaking from Breiðamerkurjokull glacier. At nearby Diamond Beach, look for pieces of ice washed onto black sand by the sea.

The lagoon’s floating ice and stark contrasts made it a filming location for the James Bond film Die Another Day. Together, these shores show a glacier’s changing edge: ice moves through the lagoon towards the Atlantic and returns in fragments with the tide.

Pause at the Herðubreið viewpoint to see the flat-topped volcano rising above the lava fields of Iceland’s interior. The open terrain around Móðrudalur makes its distinctive outline especially clear.

Herðubreið is a table mountain formed when volcanic activity met the ice that once covered this region. Its steep sides and level summit offer a visible reminder that glaciers and eruptions have repeatedly worked together to shape the highlands.

Explore the Lake Mývatn area, a northern landscape known for volcanic formations, geothermal activity and birdlife. Depending on the visit, you may see the lava formations at Dimmuborgir, pseudocraters or the steaming vents and sulphur-coloured ground around Námaskarð.

These varied features show the results of eruptions and the interaction of heat, water and rock. The lake and its surroundings bring several of Iceland’s geological processes into one compact region.

Bathe in GeoSea’s warm seawater pools on a cliff above Skjálfandi Bay. Relax outdoors while looking across the water towards the surrounding headlands and Húsavík’s coastal setting.

The baths use naturally heated seawater drawn from coastal boreholes, giving this geothermal experience a different character from a freshwater hot spring. The combination of mineral-rich warmth, sea air and an open bay view connects Iceland’s underground heat with its North Atlantic coast.

View Goðafoss as the Skjálfandafljót River spills over a curved rock ledge into a broad basin. The waterfall’s horseshoe shape gives a clear view of the river’s movement across the northern volcanic landscape.

Its name means “waterfall of the gods” and is linked to stories surrounding Iceland’s adoption of Christianity around the year 1000. Natural force and national storytelling meet here at one of North Iceland’s best-known falls.

Join your Travel Director for an orientation of Akureyri, North Iceland’s principal town. See the harbourfront, central streets and Akureyri Church, which stands above the town at the head of Eyjafjorður.

The orientation introduces a community shaped by fishing, education and its role as a regional centre. With mountains and fjord waters close to the town’s everyday streets, Akureyri offers a different perspective on Icelandic life from the capital.

Visit Hólabak dairy and equine farm to see how milk production and Icelandic horse breeding share the work of a small farm. Hear about herd management, milking and grazing while learning more about this protected native breed.

Icelandic horses have remained isolated for centuries; a horse that leaves Iceland cannot return under rules designed to protect the breed from disease. The visit offers a grounded look at farming decisions behind two familiar parts of the rural landscape.

Visit the Kidka wool factory in Hvammstangi to see Icelandic fleece turned into knitwear using modern machinery. Learn how familiar lopapeysa-style patterns are adapted for contemporary production.

Icelandic sheep have a dual-layer fleece that helps provide warmth and weather resistance. Seeing the manufacturing process gives context to knitwear that has become a symbol of the country, while revealing the work and practical materials behind the finished garment.

Explore Snæfellsjokull National Park at the outer tip of the Snæfellsnes Peninsula. Take in coastal lava fields and views towards the glacier-capped volcano that dominates this western landscape.

Snæfellsjokull entered literary history through Jules Verne’s Journey to the Centre of the Earth. Beyond that imagined journey, the park offers visible evidence of volcanic activity meeting the Atlantic, with ice, rock and sea defining the peninsula’s character.

See the black church at Búðir standing against a coastal lava field, and walk the sea cliffs at Arnarstapi. Look for basalt formations, rock arches and nesting seabirds along this section of the Snæfellsnes coast.

The two stops offer contrasting views of the peninsula: a solitary landmark in a lava landscape and a shoreline cut into intricate forms by the Atlantic. Together, they reveal both the human and geological character of western Iceland.

Walk at Djúpalónssandur, a black-pebble bay framed by lava formations on the Snæfellsnes Peninsula. See traditional lifting stones once used to test fishermen’s strength and rusted remains of a British trawler wreck on the shore.

These traces of working life give the beach a history beyond its volcanic scenery. The exposed Atlantic setting recalls the risks faced by fishing communities along this coast; take care near the water, where waves can be unpredictable.

Ride a modified glacier vehicle onto Langjokull, one of Iceland’s largest ice caps, and walk through man-made tunnels inside the glacier. With a Local Expert, examine compacted snow, ash layers and blue ice from within.

Hear how the glacier forms, how its changes are measured and how its meltwater feeds rivers. Travelling onto the ice and entering its interior offers an unusually close perspective on a landscape that is often seen only from a distance.

Meet Icelandic horses at Sturlureykir, a family-run breeding farm near Reykholt. Hear about the breed’s long isolation and five recognised gaits, including the smooth tolt.

The visit also reveals another way local people use geothermal heat: a nearby hot spring bakes dense Icelandic rye bread. Taste the bread on site while learning how horse breeding and the practical use of natural heat remain part of farm life.

Share a hosted farewell dinner in Reykjavík with your Travel Director and small group. Gather around the table to reflect on the glaciers, volcanic landscapes and working communities encountered across Iceland.

Unlike an independent evening meal, this is a shared close to the group experience. Reykjavík provides a fitting setting: the island’s capital is both a coastal city and a meeting point for travellers returning from Iceland’s more remote regions.

Visit Beljandi Brewery, a microbrewery housed in a former fish plant in the Eastfjords village of Breiðdalsvík. Explore a small-scale local enterprise in a building with roots in the region’s fishing economy.

The setting connects a newer craft trade with the working history of Iceland’s eastern coast. It offers a closer look at village life beyond the fjords and mountains. This Optional Experience is at additional cost and bookable on tour.