Iceland Family Journey: Geysers, Glaciers, and Fjords

Welcome to Reykjavik–your arrival transfer to the hotel is included. Check in and get excited to meet your fellow travelers during a welcome meeting this evening where all families can bond before the Journey ahead. Hotel accommodation in Iceland is very limited and rooms/facilities can be fairly simple with few amenities. Hotels are chosen for their location and access to the wondrous landscapes and natural wonders of Iceland. Hotels are often remote, all the better to enjoy the beautiful natural setting.

During winter months (generally November through early March) the itinerary and inclusions are highly subject to change based on weather conditions and less "daylight "hours. Your Expedition Leader will go over the schedule and advise you of any alterations on a daily basis. We appreciate your flexibility and understanding. Please note that due to high demand there may be limited availability when booking optional activities during the tour. Many of these can be pre-booked and we recommend that they are purchased in advance in order to secure space as they are quite popular. See the Available Extras below for details and add them in the Tour Extras section when confirming your trip.

Included Experiences

• Welcome Moment - Meet Your Expedition Leader and Group: Your opportunity to meet your National Geographic Expedition Leader and fellow travellers, and learn more about your tour. Opt to join the group for a local meal afterwards. Don't forget to see the notice in the lobby (or ask reception) for the official time and place to meet up with the group.

Start the morning at the Perlan museum, which showcases Iceland’s geological forces through exhibits on volcanic eruptions, explosive geysers, and more. After a classic Icelandic hot dog lunch, hop aboard a ship for a whale-watching expedition on Faxaflói Bay. Search for minke whales, humpback whales, dolphins, and porpoises diving through the waves, and learn about the incredible diversity of sea life in Iceland’s waters. The rest of the day is free for relaxing at your hotel or exploring Reykjavík. Our travel time today includes our many stops along the way.

Included Experiences

• Perlan Museum Visit: Visit the Wonders of Iceland exhibit at the Perlan museum, where you can see and feel all of Iceland's natural wonders under one roof. Walk through a 100m long man-made ice cave to experience what glacial environments are like, and how global warming affects this part of the world. Top your visit off with an unparalleled 360° view of Reykjavik and surrounding areas from the observation deck.
• Icelandic Hot Dog Lunch: Enjoy a traditional Icelandic hot dog for lunch. Typically made with lamb, and a bit of pork and beef, these hot dogs have a natural casing that give a satisfying snap when you bite into it. They're often topped with raw white onions, crispy fried onions, capers, mustard, ketchup, herbs, a sweet brown mustard called pylsusinnep and remoulade, a sauce made with mayo. Walk up to the stand and order "one with everything"!
• Whale Watching From Reykjavik Harbour: Take a boat ride into Faxaflói bay to try and spot minke and humpback whales, dolphins, and porpoises. Each tour has an expert guide to maintain safety at sea and answer any questions you may have.

Optional Experiences

• Reykjavik City Hall Visit: Reykjavik City Hall is located along the picturesque waterfront of Lake Tjörnin, a tiny lake in the centre of town. Here, locals see over 40 species of friendly Icelandic water birds such as terns, arctic sea ducks, geese, and swans, just about as often as people. Inside city hall, check out an enormous 3D relief map of the island, with lots of information on local geology.
• Hallgrímskirkja Church Visit: Though it can be seen from almost anywhere you are in Reykjavik - step inside and get a closer look at the Hallgrímskirkja Church. Designed in 1937 by architect Guðjón Samúelsson, this masterpiece took nearly 50 years to complete. Enjoy some time to walk around and explore the church on your own - notice that the columns are meant to reflect the basalt columns found on Reynisfjara black sand beach in Vik.

Set off on a hike through an area dotted with hot springs, stopping to soak your feet in steaming pools along the way. Travel to a vast lava field and enter one of the longest lava tunnels in Iceland, where we’ll explore the amazing inner workings of a volcanic eruption. Then head to a traditional Icelandic horse farm to meet the friendly equine residents and learn about this special breed. Icelandic horses are small, hardy, and have a unique ambling gait called the tölt. Get to know the horses amid the beautiful backdrop of surrounding hills before gathering for a homemade lunch at the farm. This afternoon, continue to our hotel in Hveragerði, a town built around its own bubbling hot spring.

Our travel time today includes our many stops along the way.

Included Experiences

• Hike the Reykjadalur Trail - Hot Springs: Hike along the scenic Reykjadalur trail. Walk along the rolling hills and pools of bright blue water. Follow the steaming pools that line the footpath until you come to the hot springs - natural pools heated by geothermal activity.
• Horse Farm Visit: The Icelandic horse is a very unique breed. Although small and at times pony-sized, Icelandic horses are long-lived and hardy. Tour this working farm and learn all you need to know about the Icelandic horse, with a focus on its gait and unique character.
• Lava Tunnel Visit: Experience the otherworldly beauty of one of Iceland's most spectacular features, the lava tunnel. Formed by enormous lava flows during a volcanic eruption, these tunnels boast a twisting labyrinth of passageways, filled with unique formations and underground waterfalls.

Discover the celebrated Golden Circle, a circuit that will take us to some of Iceland’s most amazing natural treasures. Hear the roar of the mighty Gullfoss waterfall and visit the Geysir hot spring, the namesake of all the world’s geysers. Continue to Thingvellir National Park, where the North American and Eurasian tectonic plates collide. Then visit a geothermal bakery to watch bakers digging pots of fresh bread out of hot black sand. Taste a slice still warm from the ground, and get the recipe for a loaf of rye. In the late afternoon, opt to stop by the Laugarvatn Fontana Spa for a soothing soak in geothermal waters. Our travel time today includes our many stops along the way.

Included Experiences

• Gullfoss Waterfall Visit: Discover one of the most impressive waterfalls in Iceland, Gullfoss, and complete the circuit known as the Golden Circle. This massive waterfall cascades over three “steps” before spilling into a large crevice. Fed by a glacier lake, the water passing through the falls can be a dark grey depending on how much sediment gets pushed through the river.
• Geysir Visit: See a variety of geothermal pools and the erupting hot spring Strokkur. Geysir is one of the oldest geysers recorded in the world, but is most often dormant. Strokkur erupts a spray of boiling hot water straight into the air about every ten minutes.
• Thingvellir National Park Visit: Stop at Thingvellir National Park, a UNESCO world heritage site, to see the tectonic faults created by North American and Eurasian tectonic plates shifting apart. The Oxara river cuts through the largest rift in the valley, Almannagja, and leads to the Oxarafoss waterfall. Iceland’s parliament was also established in the area in 930. The park was later created to protect the remains of the open-air assembly grounds.
• Geothermal Bakery: Watch first hand as bakers dig out a pot of fresh bread from steaming black sand. Taste the bread, served hot from the ground, with some butter and take home the recipe for Iceland's famous rye bread.

Optional Experiences

• Laugarvatn Fontana Spa: Embrace the healing powers of the geothermal springs. Relax and soak in a natural mineral baths, visit the steam rooms, and enjoy a walk along the black sand beach and take a dip in the cooling lake.

Explore Experiences

Today, explore Iceland’s amazing history, from the Viking era to the industrial revolution. Visit a traditional turf-walled dwelling, and step inside a 20th-century schoolhouse while learning about Iceland’s architectural heritage, folk crafts, and modern technology. Then take a short walk to the Skógafoss waterfall, one of the biggest falls in Iceland at more than 80 feet across. Enjoy lunch at the Skogafoss Bistro. This afternoon ramble on one of Iceland’s legendary black-sand beaches. Our travel time today includes our many stops along the way.

Included Experiences

• Skogar Open Air Museum: Visit Skogar Museum and take a tour of one of Iceland's most iconic sights, a traditional turf house. Named after the turf used to create the walls and the roof, these cheap but effective houses helped the early Icelandic people to survive the region's harsh seasons. Learn about the construction of these homes, the families who lived there and how a unique culture evolved out of these humble communities.
• Skógafoss Waterfall Visit: Visit Skógafoss, one of the largest and most recognizable waterfalls in Iceland. The 60m (200 ft) high falls forms a constant mist that floats in the air, if viewed in the sunlight the mist can create rainbows. The sound and view of the thundering water cutting through the green hills make the falls a must-see on any trip to Iceland.

Explore Experiences

Leave the mainland behind and voyage to the Westman Islands, a volcanic archipelago off Iceland’s southern coast. Go ashore on Heimaey, the only inhabited isle in the archipelago, and wander among the white wooden buildings of the single tiny town. Learn about the island’s recent volcanic history, view parts of the town buried by lava flows, and hike up the slopes of the Eldfell crater, where the ground is still warm from geothermal activity! Search for adorable puffins and other seabirds nesting on the island’s steep cliffs, then sail back to Vík—the southernmost village in Iceland, known for its black-sand beach and strange rock formations.

Included Experiences

• Westman Islands Excursion: Take a tour of the rugged coastlines of the Westman Islands. Formed by underwater volcanoes, some of these islands surfaced as late as 1963, and feature an exciting array of caves, monoliths and sheer cliffs. On top of the beautiful features, these islands boast the world's largest populations of Atlantic Puffins (before September) and a high potential to spot breaching whales like Orcas or Fin whales.
• Ferry: Get to the next spot on your route aboard a convenient and efficient ferry boat.

Return to Reykjavík this morning, stopping along the way to visit Seljalandsfoss, one of Iceland’s most spectacular waterfalls. Step behind the curtain of the falls into a hidden cave filled with mist, and enjoy one of the best photographic opportunities in Iceland. Continue to the oldest natural swimming pool in Iceland, the Secret Lagoon, to soak in the hot spring’s blue waters. Continue to Reykjavík and enjoy a farewell dinner. Our travel time today includes our many stops along the way.

Included Experiences

• Seljalandsfoss Waterfall Visit: Seljalandsfoss is a 60m (196 ft) tall waterfall located along the popular ring road. Behind the flow of water is a path, allowing visitors to peek behind the curtain of water cascading over the rocks above.
• Secret Lagoon: The Secret Lagoon natural hot springs are the Golden Circle's best kept secret. The pool's natural surroundings and steam rising into the air gives the place a magical feeling. Warm water stays at 38-40 celsius all year. There are several geothermal spots and a little Geysir which erupts every 5 minutes. Swimsuit and towel rentals are available.

Depart at any time.