Iceland Road Trip: South and West

Your Iceland Road Trip starts in the country's fantastic capital city, which is located close to the main international airport. You'll find vibrant arts, food, and design scene, as well as numerous attractions worth visiting. Check out the National Museum, the Maritime Museum, the Harpa Concert Hall, or the Saga Museum, if you're interested in learning about native elves and trolls!

Take a walk behind the astonishing wall of water at Seljalandsfoss waterfall. Visit Skógafoss waterfall, which is one of the most famous and tallest waterfalls in Iceland. Head to Cape Dyrhólaey for a mesmerizing viewpoint. Visit nearby Black Beach with its dark scenes and dramatic vistas and the Skaftafell National Park. Take a short hike to the picturesque Svartifoss waterfall. Continue to the Europe's largest glacier, Vatnajokull and Iceland's highest peak, Hvannadalshnjukur. Be sure to visit Diamond Beach, where the icebergs fill the lagoon and wash up on land.

Drive back along the south coast of Iceland. If you want to relax outdoors in thermally heated waters, you should take a bath in the oldest swimming pool in Iceland, which is now known as the Secret Lagoon. After your swim, continue your journey to the majestic Gullfoss waterfall, one of the most famous and recognizable attractions in Iceland. A few miles down the road, you will find the Geyser hot springs, which erupts every ten minutes and has a fascinating visitors' center. You will spend one night in the Golden Circle area.

Thingvellir National Park, the holiest historical site in Iceland, awaits you. The area is very interesting from a geological point of view, because here is the place where you can see the North American and Eurasian tectonic plates drifting very slowly apart. Continue into the Borgarfjörður area and visit the medieval site of Reykholt, Deildartunguhver hot spring, and Hraunfossar waterfall. If you're an adrenaline junkie, take a monster truck tour from Húsafell Into the Glacier, a man-made tunnel that stretches nearly half a mile into the Langjökull glacier.

Continue around the Snæfellsnes Peninsula for truly epic scenery comprised of distinctive landscapes, striking cliffs, and impressive lava fields that Game of Thrones fans will recognize (scenes from the popular series were filmed here). If you're interested, this area is also a good place to do a whale watching tour.