How many days do you need to drive around Iceland?

Seven days is enough to complete the loop and see the key sights, but it is an intensive plan with early starts and few pauses. Ten days lets you cover the same route with the extra attractions and much less time pressure, and the same itinerary stretches to thirteen days without getting boring.

How long is the Ring Road and how much driving is that per day?

Route 1, the Ring Road, is 1,336 km or 830 miles long. With the detours in this itinerary the route comes to about 2,100 km or 1,300 miles, which is roughly 300 km or 190 miles a day over seven days. The longest single stint is day five, from Reykjahlid by Myvatn to Grundarfjordur on Snaefellsnes, at 450 km or 280 miles.

Should you drive around Iceland clockwise or anti-clockwise?

Anti-clockwise from Keflavik. You see the most famous places first, which helps you appreciate the quieter ones later, and Reykjavik and the Snaefellsnes peninsula end up at the end of the trip, where they work as a buffer if bad weather or a breakdown costs you a day.

When is the best time for a self drive around Iceland?

Late spring, May and June. The days are long, campsites are open, there are fewer tourists than in high summer and prices, car rental above all, are lower. Expect cool weather all the same: in May the average maximum in Reykjavik is just above 10 degrees Celsius, or about 50 degrees Fahrenheit.

Do you need a 4x4 to drive around Iceland?

No. A regular two-wheel-drive car handles the whole of this route, and even the smallest models are fine for two people. A four-wheel drive is only needed for the interior and for shortcuts such as road 939, a gravel road that zigzags on a 17 percent incline.

Where should you sleep on a trip around Iceland?

Campsites are the cheapest and by far the most flexible option, because nothing has to be booked in advance and you can decide where to stop as the day goes. Hostels and guesthouses are more comfortable and easy to book on the day outside the season, but from June onwards the good places fill up months ahead.

Is the Camping Card worth buying for a week in Iceland?

Not on a seven-day loop. It costs more than it saves and hunting for the specific campsites that accept it eats into your day. On a trip of ten days or more it does pay off, which is why this itinerary marks the campsites that honor it.

What does a trip around Iceland cost?

The three big items are flights, car rental and accommodation, and all three swing hard with the season. Everything is cheaper before May and after September, everything peaks in July and August, and June usually strikes the best balance between price and weather. Food and admission fees come on top and depend on whether you cook for yourselves.

What is worth adding if you have more than seven days?

In order of appeal: the Katla ice cave near Vik, which can be visited year-round, a whale watching tour from Husavik combined with the Asbyrgi canyon, the Westfjords, the hike to the Glymur waterfall, trekking in Skaftafell and the Vestmannaeyjar islands.

What can you skip if you are short on time?

Sightseeing in Reykjavik. Hallgrimskirkja is the one thing there genuinely worth seeing, and an hour or two in the center gives you the essence of the city. Skipping the Snaefellsnes peninsula also saves a day, but only as a last resort, because Kirkjufell, Budakirkja, Raudfeldsgja and Ytri Tunga are top attractions in their own right.

Is Grindavik open to visitors?

Grindavik reopened to visitors in October 2024, but it sits in an active volcanic area and some of its services have not returned. The latest eruption on the Sundhnukur crater row beside the town ended in August 2025 and the Icelandic Met Office still measures magma gathering under Svartsengi, so check the current situation before you set off.

Can you drive the full loop around Iceland in winter?

It is not recommended. Winter driving on the full ring means snow storms and very icy roads that are sometimes impassable for more than a day. A winter visit is better spent in the south and south-west over three to five days, or seven at most.

Snaefellsnes attractions

The Snaefellsnes Peninsula is a region of Iceland north of Reykjavik where Snæfellsjökull National Park is located.

The peninsula has been called a miniature Iceland, as you will successfully find all of the country’s distinctive elements and natural landscapes in the area.

Make sure to find time to gloat over the view of the local volcano and glacier. Snaefellsnes’ highlights certainly include Iceland’s most beautiful mountain, a charming black church, beautiful granite cliffs, perhaps the island’s narrowest canyon, and, well, beaches full of seals.

It’s impossible to list all the attractions of this region, but be sure to learn more about it so you can get to many of the most interesting places!

Iceland

w Iceland - 7 September 2026

Around Iceland – a 7 to 13-day Itinerary for Spring to Autumn [Complete Self Drive Guide]

This guide is for those who want to drive around Iceland and see all the key and most beautiful places in the shortest time possible. The basic version…

Iceland

w Iceland - 19 September 2026

Grabrok – Volcanic Crater Surrounded by Houses

Grábrók is an interesting volcanic crater that can be easily accessed from a nearby parking lot. The beauty of Iceland's rugged nature Grabrok volcano is part of the…

Iceland

w Iceland - 19 September 2026

Gerduberg – a Basalt Wall on the Snaefellsnes

Gerduberg (Gerðuberg) is a row of perfectly shaped hexagonal basalt columns that look like a fortified wall. They run along a cliff on the south side of the…

Iceland

w Iceland - 16 September 2026

Eldborg – a Jagged Walls Crater

Eldborg, at the foot of the Snæfellsnes peninsula, is - according to experts - a beautiful example of a spatter cone crater. Formation and appearance of Eldborg Eldborg…

Iceland

w Iceland - 16 September 2026

Eiriksstadir – Awake Your Inner Viking!

Eiriksstadir (Eiríksstaðir) - Viking Longhouse is a reconstruction of the former home of the Norse outlaw Eiríkur Þorvaldsson, better known as Erik the Red. Taste of Viking life…

Iceland

w Iceland - 15 September 2026

Budakirkja – Iceland’s Most Beautiful Church

The black wooden church of Búðakirkja stands in Búðir, a hamlet that was once a busy trading post. It is known for its exceptionally pleasing appearance and its…

Iceland

w Iceland - 19 September 2026

Bjarnarfoss – an Ornament of the Snaefellsnes Peninsula

Bjarnarfoss (literally: Bears' Waterfall) is a slender two-tier waterfall in the southern part of the Snæfellsnes peninsula. You can easily spot it from road 54, without even slowing…

Iceland

w Iceland - 19 September 2026

Berserkjahraun – a Drive-Through Lava Field

Berserkjahraun (literally: the berserkers' lava) is a beautiful and remarkably accessible lava field on the Snaefellsnes peninsula. See how to get there and where its name comes from.…

Iceland

w Iceland - 12 September 2026

Arnarstapi – Picturesque Cliffs on the Snaefellsnes

Arnarstapi is a small village in the southwestern part of the Snæfellsnes peninsula. Surrounded by picturesque landscapes and a number of attractive tourist sites, it is a popular…

Iceland

w Iceland - 18 October 2026

Ytri Tunga – a Seals’ Beach

Ytri Tunga is a beach located at the farm of the same name on the Snaefellsnes peninsula. Ytri Tunga beach boasts beautiful golden sand, but that's not what…

Iceland

w Iceland - 14 September 2026

Vatnshellir – The Tunnel to the Center of the Earth

Vatnshellir is one of Iceland's oldest lava tunnels. It lies in the western part of the island, on the Snæfellsnes peninsula, in the Purkholahraun lava field north of…

Iceland

w Iceland - 15 September 2026

Stykkisholmur – a Charming Town on the Snaefellsnes

Stykkishólmur is a town of about 1,200 people on the northern shore of the Snæfellsnes peninsula. Surrounded by wild Icelandic nature, it makes a good base for visiting…