This self-drive tour includes Iceland’s famous Golden Circle and a whale watching boat trip, with a stay at Hotel Ranga which is a great spot for seeing the Northern Lights.
This lovely relaxed break allows you to enjoy some of the stunning volcanic highlights of Iceland at your own pace, as well as have the excitement of a Northern Lights Hunt.
Being remote and away from any artificial light, aurora watching is excellent in the countryside and especially at the location of Hotel Ranga.
Location
Iceland
Duration
3 Nights
Available dates
Dec - Mar
Price per person (excl. flights)
from £2,000
Overview
Highlights
- 2 Nights at Hotel Ranga situated close to the Golden Circle, and in a great area for the Northern Lights
- Golden Circle at your own pace seeing Strokkur Geyser, Gullfoss Waterfall, Kerid Caldera and Thingvellir
- Whale Watching Boat Trip
- 1 Night at the Blue Lagoon Silica Hotel so you can experience the Blue Lagoon without the crowds
What’s included
- 2 nights B&B at Hotel Ranga
- 1 night B&B at Blue Lagoon Silica Hotel with one entrance to the Blue Lagoon
- Car Hire
- Whale Watching Tour
A note on flights
While flights are not included in the holiday price, our team will happily provide a quote and arrange them for you. Simply ask one of our Travel Experts for details of the available options.
Day by Day Itinerary
Day 1
Arrive into Reykjavik, Self Drive to Hotel Ranga and enjoy the evening looking out for Aurora!
Arrive into Keflavik Airport, pick up your 4WD hire car and drive to Hotel Ranga. This hotel’s remote setting away from all artificial light makes it a prime spot for northern lights viewings.
Seeing the magical Northern Lights is something you will not so easily forget. The stunning display of this delicate sheet of white, green, yellow or even red lights dancing across the starry sky is a true wonder of nature.
Return to the hotel for your overnight stay.
Day 2
Drive the Golden Circle visiting Strokkur Geyser, Kerio Crater, Pingvellir mini rift valley and Gullfoss waterfall
Enjoy breakfast before a self drive adventure exploring Iceland’s famous Golden Circle including the beautiful UNESCO Site of Þingvellir National Park and Lake Thingvallavatn.
During the day, experience the dramatic mini rift valley created by tectonic plate movement, gaze at the thundering Gullfoss waterfall which can totally freeze in winter, look down at the beautiful Kerio Crater, and marvel at the Strokkur Geyser which erupts every 5 minutes. We would also recommend a visit to Thingvellir, the location where the first democratic government in the world was founded by the Vikings in the 9th century.
Overnight at the hotel.
Day 3
Reykjavik with Whale Watching
This morning, drive into Reykjavik and spend some time in the old town and choose one of the excellent restaurants in which to enjoy an early lunch. It is a quirky old town with lots of unusual shops and museums.
Afterwards, head down to Reykjavik harbour to join the afternoon whale-watching boat tour. The south coast of Iceland is host to a wide selection of sea life and various whale species are present including killer whales who hunt herring off the coast of Iceland.
The captain and crew take you to their favourite spots and give interesting information about the different kinds of whales and seabirds you can expect to see.
The guides also take specimens from the ocean on each tour and show them to the passengers via an onboard screen using special microscopes. Here the ocean comes to life as you get to see and feel objects such as baleen plates, whale teeth and whale bones. Warm overalls are provided to keep you warm and dry.
Afterwards, drive to the Blue Lagoon Silica Hotel set in the heart of a stunning lava landscape just ten minutes’ walk from Iceland’s most famous attraction, the Blue Lagoon.
Overnight at the Blue Lagoon Silica Hotel.
Day 4
Relax at Blue Lagoon prior to flight home
After breakfast you have time to enjoy your complimentary entrance to the Blue Lagoon, and benefit from the warm geothermal waters which are particularly good for the skin.
Bathe in the warm bright blue waters, put Silica mud on your face or try out the Sauna and Steam rooms which are carved into the lava.
You can easily while away a couple of hours soaking up the atmosphere or have a meal in a choice of restaurants with lovely views of the Lagoon. We would also recommend the in-water massage treatments which are just heavenly!
Drive to the airport (20 minutes), drop off the hire car and catch your flight home.
Meals Included: Breakfast
If this is not perfect for you try the Northern Lights Paradise Break or we can tailor-make a Northern Lights Holiday for you.
We have an extensive Northern Lights Information Hub if you need further information
Covering popular topics such as:
Where You'll Stay
Hotel Ranga
Hotel Ranga offers luxury and relaxation in Iceland’s countryside. There are 51 luxurious and cosy rooms in this serene setting without external lighting interference to spoil the Northern Lights. It is Iceland’s only member of the “Special Hotels of the World”, and is also a member of Small Luxury Hotels of the World.
Its gourmet restaurant has an excellent reputation offering typical Icelandic dishes, as well as a few unusual surprises. We would highly recommend you take a drink and sit in the outdoor hot tubs and watch the skies for the Northern Lights. A splendid way to pass the time.
Although there is never any guarantee, this is one of the best places in Iceland to see the Aurora Borealis. They have also recently built an observatory so you can view the stars and Northern Lights up close. An expert is in there to guide you through the use of the computerised telescope on clear nights.
Hotel Ranga also has the most incredible range of themed suites. Take your choice from 2 levels with the themes being Africa, Asia, North America, South America, Australia, Antarctica, Royal Suite.
Blue Lagoon Silica Hotel
Set in the heart of a stunning lava landscape the Blue Lagoon Silica Hotel is just ten minutes’ walk from the Blue Lagoon, and 1 admission is included in your room price.
The hotel has 35 bright and spacious rooms. All rooms offer a veranda with breath-taking views of the surrounding lava fields.
All rooms are equipped with private bathrooms and a shower and the hotel has its own private bathing lagoon, available only to guests at certain hours of the day.
The Blue Lagoon Silica Hotel has won several design awards as it is built in harmony with the surrounding landscape, offering an oasis of calm, relaxation and healing.
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Reviews
See what our clients say
We had a fantastic 4 nights that included glaciers, waterfalls, geysers, the aurora borealis and more! Lovely hotels, especially Hotel Ranga. We filled every moment and felt thoroughly invigorated on our return.
Frances Harrington
An amazing trip and excellent service provided by all involved. Great value for money too. Food was excellent. Accommodation was wonderful and the trips booked were outstanding. An amazing trip
David Watson-Cammock
This was a bucket list trip. The company are specialists and I’ve valued their advice. Everything from the when to go for the best opportunity to see the lights and equipment needed and provided.Our activities included, the Ice Hotel, night photo shoot, snowmobiling, guided walk and the sky station meal. All excellent and well run by knowledgeable experts and guides. The Abisko Lodge is warm comfortable and relaxing the food is excellent and the staff welcoming, friendly and very helpful. I would highly recommend if you’re looking for a different and exciting experience.
Jean Lavender
1. Gourmet Cabins was excellent and Johan was a friendly and knowledgeable host. The food, cabins, hot tub and sauna were brilliant.
2. Dog sledge was a fantastic experience and we were given the opportunity to drive our own sledge
3. Snow Mobile – really got off the beaten track and into the spectacular mountains
4. Saw the Northern Lights twice in two days. There is no description that can really do them justice
Nigel Longton
Thank you for arranging a fabulous holiday, we had a really enjoyable time and would love to return in the future. Hotel Ranga is a lovely place to stay and the owner greeted guests in the restaurant, which was an unexpected welcoming touch. We didn’t see the Northern Lights due to the weather and the trip to the Eyjafjallajokull glacier and volcano was substituted by an excursion to Thorsmork, also due to the weather, which we thoroughly enjoyed; the brochure description doesn’t do it justice. We found Iceland and the people there really charismatic. Although the wind and snow cut short the amount of travelling we could do, we still covered a reasonable amount of what we wanted to see and our appetites are whetted for a return, perhaps in Spring or Summer. We found a couple of great places to eat near the Hotel in Reykjavik. Messin does tasty fish dishes and the Icelandic Street Food restaurant was excellent, offering simple but hearty soups with refills included in the price – great value.
Nigel Goadsby
Thoroughly enjoyed the trip. The Abisko Mountain Lodge was fantastic, every member of staff was friendly welcoming and charming. Accommodation, upgraded room was excellent. The food in the lodge definitely deserves the high reviews. Good breakfast, great hime made lunch soups and extremely tasty evening dinners.
The included trips were great. The only let down was the camera night, couldn’t see the lights no one fault, but we were walked through thigh high snow to be left on a frozen lake for the duration of the trip. There was no warning of the difficult walk and we had a 91 year old with us and I have hip problems! That said the guide was great, as were the ones on the skimobile and husky rides. We went up to the sky station in a snow storm with high winds, added to the experience!
Would go back in a heart beat.
We had little communication with Weekend a la carte, no need as all communications were clear and contained all the information we needed. Very informative emails
Would use again if going back
June Day
An excellent holiday which was enjoyed by all. The super jeep ride on the second day to the Eyjafjallajokull volcano was memorable and thanks to our driver Margaret who proved to be a really good guide. We thoroughly enjoyed the facilities in the hotel Ranga. The staff were very helpful and we managed to see the Northern Lights. The Hotel Reykjavik Centrum was very nice with amazingly helpful staff. All in all, the whole holiday was brilliant.
Brian Coombs
Brilliant short break. Hotel Ranga was lovely, excellent food. Managed to see the Northern Lights as well! Iceland on the whole was quite expensive but a lovely place to visit, the people were very friendly.
Linda Palmer