Yes! You can self-drive or go on guided tours to both the Golden Circle and Skogafoss in October. If you do not want to drive yourself, you can go on guided tours that leave from Reykjavik. Check out the Golden Circle Tour and the South of Iceland Full-Day Tour.

While not technically in Reykjavik, you can’t visit Iceland without a dip in the famous geothermal Blue Lagoon. It’s located about an hour away from the city center, closer to the international airport. Visiting the lagoon is expensive, but worth it.

With it being our first time in Iceland, we wanted to make sure we left enough time to explore the capital city of Reykjavik. Below are a few of the sites you can visit during a free day in Reykjavik.

You may be wondering what parts of Iceland we recommend in winter since we don’t recommend the Ring Road and the Highland roads are all closed. Don’t worry! There are many parts of Iceland you can visit safely in Winter.

The winds that we had been warned about the day before never really came, instead waiting until about 7 AM the next morning when I looked out the window and saw thick fog and felt the howling wind against the window. I never thought those things could go together before!

The Blue Lagoon only opened at 8:00am on the day we were visiting. Our airport transfer from KEF departed at 7:30am, giving us enough time to get to the Blue Lagoon right as it was opening.

The most amazing activity in Iceland has got to be chasing Northern Lights. If you visit Iceland in Winter – from October to March – you have a pretty good chance of seeing them. If you want to maximise your chances, you can join a trip from Reykjavik.

If you haven’t figured it out by the map above, Iceland’s Ring Road encircles the entire country covering over 800 miles on Route 1.

Most of day five was spent on foot rather than in a car, which was a welcome change from the day before which was quite the opposite.

There’s no right or wrong direction to head on the Ring Road. You can go north or south, but we chose to go south first because we were chasing clear skies for a chance to see the northern lights, a plan that paid off. Check the aurora forecast if you’re in Iceland at a time of year when you will have some dark skies (not in the summertime) and plan accordingly.

Although Jökulsárlón Lagoon and the nearby Diamond Beach are technically two separate destinations, they’re so close to each other that you should visit the two together.

Part of the much larger Vatnajökull National Park, hiking in Skaftafell is guaranteed to come with a side of some serious views. Hikes vary in distance, from the short hour-long jaunt to the impressive Svartifoss Waterfall, to long multi-day hikes in the Morsárdalur valley and more.

At the bottom of the Breiðamerkurjökull glacier sits a large glacier lake called Jokulsarlon lagoon, created by melting ice from above. It’s full of blue-tinted icebergs that have broken off the base of the glacier.

It may be summer in Reykjavik but, temperatures can range from 55° F to 44° F, which is equivalent to fall or winter in some other parts of Europe. And with Iceland’s unpredictable weather, it’s safe to say, packing for Iceland can be tricky. But fear not, I have a blog post on How To Pack for Iceland - Winter or Summer.

I love this little Timberland house (shop) here.  It looked as if it didn’t fit in at Laugavegur Shopping Street, but yet had such a lovely quaint architecture that I could not help falling in love with it.

Today’s drive is a stunning one that will leave you wondering if you’ve landed on the moon. Start the day visiting the Dyrhólaey promontory, then spend some time playing on the black sand beaches of Vik and Reynisfjara.

Hallgrimskirkja Church: This unpronounceable church is the most iconic building in Reykjavik. The cost to go up the tower is 900 ISK (about 8 USD) and is totally worth it – the views you get of the city are spectacular!

To truly experience Iceland, you should visit at least one of the country’s thermal baths, but do not come just for the baths. Think what else you can see and do when you will not be soaking. The Myvatn Lake and its entire surroundings are world-famous for their beauty.

The location of Iceland’s first Parliament, and where the North American & Eurasian tectonic plates are slowly splitting apart from each other. You can spend a lot of time here, walking the trails. This is also where Silfra is, where you can go snorkeling or scuba diving between the plates.

The Westfjords are a remote, underrated area of Iceland. Dramatic scenery, quiet roads, and amazing hiking trails can be found here.

Pulling back onto Route 1 you’ll soon get to the Myvatn Lake area in Northern Iceland. Volcanic activity is high, with some fun hot springs & other geothermal features to explore. One such place is Námafjall Hverir geothermal area [MAP]. You can get up-close-and-personal with boiling blue mud pits or steaming fumaroles.

September is great everywhere in the world, and it’s no different for Iceland. It’s when the fall colors start to show off and the temperatures are comfortable, making it the best time to visit Iceland. You may start to get a little rain, but nothing that should hold you back from visiting Iceland. Most tours run at least until the end of September and we found that every single big campsite was still open for campers and camper vans until the 30th. Days begin to grow shorter in September so .....you stand a chance to see the Northern Lights. Show less

Probably the highlight of the city is the view from Hallgrímskirkja, the church that looks like it’s been made of Lego or something. Inside is quite spectacular, but the view even more so. I’ll leave that to speak for itself.