By Gemma Tedaldi | Published: 3rd December 2017 | Updated: 7th January 2024
So we all know by now that Iceland is pretty cool. With its volcanoes and hot springs, mountainous icy landscapes and glaciers, national parks and beautiful waterfalls, it’s on people’s bucket lists and it deserves to be! So how should you spend 5 days in Iceland for your first trip?
Ever since meeting 3 lovely Icelandic lads in China a couple of years ago, I have wanted to visit Iceland. (Having it as a 3-hour stopover from America is just not long enough). Luckily we had the pleasure of spending 5 days in Iceland just before Christmas, with twinkling fairy lights lining the streets in Reykjavik and Jólaglögg at every corner.
Unfortunately no snow, it was particularly mild the Icelandic’s kept telling us, but even so, Christmas made the Icelandic experience even better.
We managed to do a lot of the main sights and attractions that you would want to for your first trip including the Golden Circle, Blue Lagoon, Reykjavik sightseeing, black sand beaches, waterfalls and of course the Northern Lights! So bobble hats at the ready here is our guide on how to spend 5 days in Iceland.
📍 5 days in Iceland- Day 1: Reykjavik
📍 5 days in Iceland- Day 2: The Golden Circle & Blue Lagoon
📍 5 days in Iceland- Day 3: Reykjavik & Northern Lights Tour
📍 5 days in Iceland- Day 4: South Iceland Coast
📍 5 days in Iceland- Day 5: Reykjavik
Planning Your Trip? Use our favourite travel resources below:
Accommodation: We recommend Booking.com
Rental Car: We recommend Rentalcars.com
Flights: We recommend Kiwi.com
Tours: We recommend Get Your Guide
How to Spend 5 Days in Iceland Map
How to Spend 5 Days in Iceland
5 Days in Iceland – Day 1: Reykjavik
Upon arrival anywhere new the plan is always to figure out the local neighbourhood by getting completely and utterly lost in it. In this case the beautiful city of Reykjavik.
We wandered around taking in the artwork and sculptures everywhere alongside the natural scenery of snow-peaked mountains. We also ventured into the Christmas markets that were there at the time, bumping into the world-famous Coca-Cola vans with music blaring and Christmas lights blinking.
Then to finish off our short first day in Reykjavik we drank some of the traditional Christmas drink Jólaglögg, (basically a mulled wine), along with eating an absolutely delicious hot dog from a tiny window along a street in the town centre. Believe me, the outside is not much to write home about but boy do those hotdogs taste amazing!
As with most hotels, you stay in whilst in Reykjavik, our hotel gave out Northern Lights updates as to whether they were likely to be seen / if any tours were going out to chase them. This being our first night there we jumped straight on a minibus and went out to search for them.
Little did we know that 15 minutes into stopping, at a normally good vantage point, the clouds would roll in and the rain would begin to fall. Needless to say, we didn’t get to see them on our first night, we just got a bit cold and wet.
5 Days in Iceland – Day 2: The Golden Circle & Blue Lagoon
For our second day in Iceland, we embarked on the Golden Circle Route. This is a great opportunity for first-time visitors to Iceland to truly experience the nature that makes Iceland so unique. Visiting in December meant we had limited daylight and a pretty sunrise hue for the entire day too, so we were making the most of the light and getting out exploring.
Haukadalur
First stop along our Golden Circle Route was the geothermal area of Haukadalur with its two famous geysers called Geysir and Strokkur.
The first thing you will notice upon arriving at Haukadalur is the weird moon-like landscape with steam flowing out of cracks and vents in the ground. Then, of course, that delightful smell of rotten eggs! You can wander up and around the bubbling mud pools and bright blue pools of boiling water, winding your way up to the main attraction, Strokkur geyser.
The original erupting geyser, Geysir, no longer erupts but Strokkur explodes out of the earth shooting boiling water 30 metres into the air roughly every 10 minutes… roughly. Well, it will erupt just when you don’t expect it to and have turned away! Even on a wet winter day, you won’t feel cold with all the white billows of steam surrounding you.
Gullfoss Waterfall
Next stop on our Golden Circle adventure was the famous Gullfoss Waterfall.
After having a traditional Icelandic lamb stew for lunch we ventured back out into the wintery weather and headed towards the roaring sound of water. From here we descended a long staircase, from the open landscape above, along with the edge of the roaring waterfall.
The Hvítá River is mighty and fast-moving and you get up close and personal with it so bringing waterproofs is a must! It disappears into a deep ravine throwing up a thick white mist and masses of rainbows, but even with the rain and wind when we were there, it was an incredible experience.
Þingvellir National Park
The last stop, but most certainly not least, was Þingvellir National Park. You could wander through the wintery wonders of this beautiful Icelandic landscape for hours on end and believe me, we did. Þingvellir or Thingvellir National Park is the location of Iceland’s first Parliament, which started back in 930 AD. It is also where you can see the North American and Eurasian tectonic plates slowly pulling apart from each other.
This creates deep cracks in the ground. Silfra, one of these fissures, is full of icy cold super clear water where you can snorkel or scuba dive and be able to touch both USA and Europe at the same time! We didn’t get to chance to dive this for ourselves but we did get in some much warmer water…
With snowfall-dusted mountains in the distance, we walked along wooden pathways with white waterfalls falling over black rock alongside us creating a truly incredible landscape you will never want to leave.
The Blue Lagoon
After a long day walking around the incredible sights along the Golden Circle, we fancied a bit of relaxation, where better than the Blue Lagoon?! Just a short journey out of the centre of Reykjavik, these geothermal waters are the perfect place to soothe those sore feet after a busy day exploring.
Grab your silica mud mask and a drink and swim your way around the warm waters, exploring the waterfall and hidden sauna caves. If you’re lucky you may even catch the Northern Lights!
A short way into the journey back to Reykjavik the bus driver pulled over and pointed out some faint aurora activity above us. Unfortunately, it was just too cloudy and such a pale light that we had to abandon the idea of seeing the Northern Lights for the second day running, not cool aurora, not cool.
Planning your own trip to Iceland? Make sure you check out our Travelling Tedaldi Amazon Store Travel Guides for all your guidebooks and maps. (We’ve done the hard work for you and linked all the things we used to plan our trip!)
5 Days in Iceland – Day 3: Reykjavik & Northern Lights Tour
Today was a day of exploring Reykjavik. The architecture, the art and the food. First stop, just a short walk from our hotel…
Sólfarið – Sun Voyager
Visiting the Sólfarið or Sun Voyager is a must on many travellers bucket lists and you can see why. This huge stainless-steel sculpture of a boat by Jón Gunnar Árnason sits beside the sea looking out to the ocean and mountains beyond.
With just a short walk along the waterfront from our hotel, we were at the sculpture, which is surprisingly big! I’m not a tall person but this made me look tiny! It’s thought that the Sun Voyager is a Viking boat, however, it is actually a dreamboat and an ode to the sun, dreaming of hope, progress and freedom. Kind of poetic don’t you think?
Hallgrimskirja Cathedral
After venturing to the Sun Voyager we walked into the town and to the tallest structure for miles around. The Hallgrimskirja Cathedral. This concrete tower can be seen from almost everywhere in the city and was designed by Guðjón Samúelsson in 1937, who was inspired by the shapes and forms created when lava cools into basalt rock. The perfect thing when you’re in Iceland surrounded by volcanic landscape!
Climb to the very top of the building, believe me, it is worth it! You will be rewarded with views for miles, from the colourful rooftops of the town below over and out to the snow-peaked mountains beyond. From the Cathedral we walked back through the main town, taking in the impressive graffiti and green-roofed houses, then all the way around the waterfront along to the concert hall.
Visit Harpa Concert Hall
You can not miss a chance of getting out of the wind and into this incredible building. Both inside and out it is an architect’s dream. Overhanging the North Atlantic Ocean on one side and reminding me of an igloo, with multicoloured glass windows, mirrored ceilings and lighting to rival the northern lights.
Northern Lights
Now you can’t come for 5 days in Iceland and not want to see the Northern Lights. After attempting to chase the elusive northern lights for two nights in a row with cloudy rainy weather dampening our spirits on ever seeing them. Then third time lucky the weather conditions were perfect and after travelling down to the south of the island, out of the reach of any light pollution, we stood watching, waiting and hoping for a rare glimpse at the Aurora Borealis.
One thing you must do is set a timer on your camera and just let it take the shots for you. You need to, and definitely should, get out into the deep Icelandic darkness and just fully engross yourself in watching the lights flicker and dance across the sky all around you. It is something so beautiful and unbelievable it just takes your breath away. We were lucky enough to have a good half an hour viewing with little to no people around us.
We finally saw the elusive Northern Lights! The third day in Iceland was definitely a hit, so what’s in store for day 4?
Enjoying this Iceland itinerary? Make sure you check out our post on Iceland – Top 10 must do experiences
5 Days in Iceland – Day 4: South Iceland Coast
After the joyful yet very late night, we decided on a little more sightseeing out of Reykjavik, this time a bit further out to as far south as you can get in Iceland. This meant an early start but a good 2-hour drive/nap before our first stop! We went on a few different tours during our 5 days in Iceland, and this one was amazing.
Sólheimajökulsvegur glacier
The first stop was at a Sólheimajökulsvegur glacier, near the Eyjafjallajökull volcano that stopped air traffic over Europe in spring 2010. It was just a quick stop as we were passing by, but the eerie quiet on a misty morning along with the occasional creak and crack from this vast amount of ice is not to be missed.
Reynisfjara Beach
The next stop was Reynisfjara Beach with its black sand, crashing white waves and howling wind. With the volcanic sand as far as the eye could see and a stormy winter sea, we wandered around in amazement at the sheer beauty of the beach. The waves would smash into the rock faces and fly up the beach covering the black sand with white foamy bubbles. The waves were enormous though, seriously we were warned by a local that the waves are strong enough to pull you out to the sea never to be seen again!
Unique basalt column rock formations line the edge of the black pebble sand, (similar to what you can see at the Giants Causeway in Northern Ireland), and with the Reynisdrangar offshore rock formations, it makes this beach an unimaginable almost alien landscape. It also makes this beach a must-visit in any weather, the wind and rain we had almost made it more unique!
Vik
After our soaking at the beach, we headed a short distance away to the remote seafront village of Vik. With its colourful houses and old wooden church, Reyniskirkja, dating to 1929 overlooking the village it was a perfect stop for a bite to eat and a hot beverage.
Skógafoss
After Vik, we headed out to the first waterfall stop of the day, Skógafoss! This waterfall can be seen from the road so there are a few tourists around, but don’t let that stop you going!
Nothing beats the crashing sound of water hurtling over metres of stone to a misty abyss below. We climbed up the side of the waterfall for an incredibly high vantage point, if not a tad scary! There are views for miles from the waterfall mist out to the ocean in the distance.
After taking in the views we descended the side of Skógafoss and headed for the base of the waterfall. The sound of the water crashing at the base is unbelievable, the closer you get the better the experience, but yes we got absolutely soaked!
Seljalandsfoss
Seljalandsfoss. Possibly my favourite waterfall we visited in Iceland, purely because of how close you can get to it and you can walk right up and behind it. Not many people seem to visit this one either, it is almost overshadowed by the bigger flashier waterfalls, so it all adds to the feeling of being out in the middle of nowhere surrounded by nature.
You walk from a small car park along a gravel path to the base of Seljalandsfoss where you can either stop there or, as we did, get adventurous and walk up and behind it. From here the rushing water and dripping rock cover you in spray, but that’s all part of the experience! You can then walk even further around the back of the waterfall and on up to a high viewpoint. You just have to visit this waterfall if you go to Iceland!
Traditional Icelandic Platter
After a long day exploring we decided to head out and on the look for some traditional Icelandic grub! Why not when you’re nearing the end of your 5 days in Iceland? Let’s just say the food we ended up with was an experience… If fermented shark, dried fish and sheep’s head sounds like your idea of great grub then head to Iceland! It was surprisingly not as bad as it sounds but needless to say we headed back to the hotel via the hotdog stall…
When at the hotel we headed to the rooftop bar for views out over the city on our last night. The opera house was lit up and putting on a great performance of what the Northern Lights look like, when low and behold the Northern Lights begin to dance away right above our heads! The tell-tale bright green we had seen the night before wound its way above the city lights and out over the bay before disappearing as quickly as it has appeared.
5 Days in Iceland – Day 5: Reykjavik
For our final day in Iceland, we continued our bumbling around Reykjavik centre, popping in and out of shops for warmth and wandering around the parks. Being the world’s northernmost capital it was cold but still beautiful.
Sculptures, Graffiti and Street art
Instead of double yellow lines, how about a yellow blue and white line? It may not be well known but street art in Reykjavik is big. Whilst we were wandering through the town centre we bumped into some seriously amazing artwork and it is not just tagged, (although there are some), it’s extravagant full building/wall murals!
Where to stay in Iceland
For your first 5 days in Iceland, we would highly recommend staying in Reykjavik rather than further out. For our trips to Iceland, we have stayed in both city centre hotels as well as HI Hostels, and both have been great. There are such a wide variety of accommodation options in Reykjavik so check out the below links for the best rates for your stay.
5 Days in Iceland FAQs
Are 5 days enough to visit Iceland?
For a first visit to Iceland, 5 days is the perfect amount of time. With a couple of days to explore the capital and a couple of days for either hiring a car and driving out to the south or hopping on a tour or two. If you want to see more of Iceland than just what is local to Reykjavík or the south coast, then you are going to want a few more days.
We spent a week exploring the ring road of Iceland, check that out here.
Can you drive the Ring Road in Iceland in 5 days?
We wouldn’t recommend trying to see too much in Iceland in just 5 days, so definitely don’t try and drive the ring road in that amount of time! A couple of days out along the south coast or to the west coast, (both of which are a couple of hours’ drive away), would be enough assuming you want to spend some time in Reykjavík too.
Best time to visit Iceland
We have visited Iceland in both early December and mid-April and honestly, both were amazing times of the year to visit. Both were technically in the shoulder seasons in Iceland as well, which means fewer tourists, so for any trip to Iceland try to plan to not be visiting around the holidays or in the peak season.
Hiring a car in Iceland – Is driving necessary for 5 days in Iceland?
If you want to hire a car in Iceland then we would recommend going through Rentalcars.com for some of the best rates, however, driving isn’t necessary for 5 days in Iceland.
We spent our first 5 days in Iceland exploring the capital on foot and taking tours out from the city to the nearby south coast and Golden Circle, this way its less stressful and less hassle trying to get used to driving in a country that is quite often very snowy, and you can relax a bit more with someone else doing the driving. You also get the chance to learn more about the history and culture of Iceland as well, the perfect thing to do on your first trip.
Is the Blue Lagoon worth it?
The Blue Lagoon can be pricey, and there are definitely quieter and less touristy hot springs you can visit throughout Iceland, but we would say for the experience on a first trip to Iceland you should visit the Blue Lagoon. It makes a great stop on the way to or from Keflavík Airport too.
Book your Blue Lagoon tickets here
Is Iceland expensive?
Iceland is often seen as being notoriously expensive, especially if you are visiting from a country that isn’t already in the Nordics or Switzerland. That being said, there are numerous ways you can reduce your costs in Iceland, especially if you plan on driving the Ring Road. Check out our post dedicated to how to have a budget friendly trip to Iceland for all the details.
Is it worth visiting Iceland in winter?
100% yes! It is always worth visiting Iceland, whatever the season, (we have visited in both winter and the end of spring into summer), but winter in Iceland is the best time of year if you want to witness the Northern Lights, which we would highly recommend!
How to spend 7 days in Iceland?
Check out our 7 day Iceland Ring Road itinerary for exactly how we would suggest to spend 7 days in Iceland, but in short, if you have 7 days in Iceland hire a car and get out exploring the Ring Road.
Can you spend 5 days in Reykjavik?
For our first trip to Iceland we stayed in Reykjavík for 5 days, but we ventured out on tours from the capital during this time as you only really need a day, maybe two, to explore everything Reykjavík has to offer. We wouldn’t suggest spending all your time in Reykjavík and not exploring other locations that Iceland has to offer.
Does Iceland have day and night?
Yes, Iceland does have day and night but, as with other Nordic locations, night or darkness is much longer during the winter months when the sun barely rises some days, and during the summer the sun doesn’t fully set, so night doesn’t really happen.
Check out tours from Get Your Guide for some of the best options:
Conclusion: How to Spend 5 Days in Iceland
So that’s it, how to spend 5 days in Iceland, the perfect itinerary for first-timers. Iceland we will be back, not only to see you in all your midnight sun summer glory but to see the northern lights again in the snow-dusted landscape that only you can provide.
Gemma Tedaldi
Gemma is the owner and author of The Travelling Tedaldi, a travel blog helping travellers to discover the best road trips and travel itineraries throughout the UK and Europe. When she isn’t writing about her favourite travel destinations, she can often be found out exploring local hikes or planning future trips.
