Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
1
ACTIVITIES
Reykjavík offers a host of activities, including some for the truly adventurous.
Whale-watching
and
pu
n-spotting
tours
, and
sea angling
trips, depart from Ægisgarður, the main jetty in Reykjavík harbour, between Geirsgata and
Mýrargata. Other activities include
horseriding
and
trips out to the southwest's
glaciers
aboard a super jeep. If you're
here during the winter months, there are also excursions to see the
northern lights
.
of the country without your own transport. The nine-hour
tours take in the Langjökull glacier, Iceland's second largest,
alongside some of western Iceland's other attractions. You'll
head first for Hvalfjörður fjord, before cutting inland to the
Deildartunguhver hot spring and the Hraunfossar waterfalls,
and taking the Kaldidalur interior route towards the glacier,
where a super jeep (the ones with the supersized tyres)
takes you to the top of the ice-sheet. There's also a stop at
Þingvellir before the return to Reykjavík.
Activity Group
T
580 9900,
W
activity.is.
Tours run
daily May-Aug, and cost 29,700kr.
WHALE WATCHING, PUFFIN SPOTTING
AND SEA ANGLING
Whale watching
Tours
leave year-round (16 departures
daily depending on season), sailing for Faxaflói bay north
of Reykjavík. You're most likely to encounter minke whales,
orcas, humpbacks and dolphins, although, occasionally,
blue, fin and sei whales also put in an appearance.
Pu
n spotting
Between mid-May and mid-August
(after which the birds head out to sea for the winter
months), there are twice-daily tours around the islands of
Lundey and Akurey, where pu
ns gather to breed in the
summer and which play host to some 30,000 birds.
Although it's not possible to go ashore, you'll have a great
view of the cliffs and grassy slopes which make up the
islands' sides, and the burrows where the pu
ns live.
Sea angling
Between May and September, sea angling
tours also depart daily from the harbour (11am), giving you
a chance to try out your deep-sea skills - you get to keep
anything you catch.
Elding
Ægisgarður
T
555 3565,
W
elding.is.
Whale
watching 8000kr; pu
n spotting 5000kr; sea angling
10,500kr.
Special Tours
Ægisgarður
T
892 0099,
W
specialtours
.is.
Whale watching 8000kr; pu
n spotting 4000kr; sea
angling 9500kr.
HORSERIDING
Several companies offer horseriding all year round, with
excursions ranging from a one- or two-hour canter through
the countryside to longer excursions around the local
lavafields and even trips out to Geysir and Gullfoss (10am;
13,400kr). A 2hr tour usually costs around 9500kr. Most
companies offer pickups from Reykjavík.
Eldhestar
Völlum,
Hveragerði
T
480
4800,
W
eldhestar.is.
Íshestar
Sörlaskeið 26, Hafnarfjörður
T
555 7000,
W
ishestar.is.
Íslenski Hesturinn
Surtlugata 3, Reykjavík
T
434
7979,
W
islenskihesturinn.is.
GLACIER TOURS
For sheer exhilaration, it's hard to beat a glacier tour in a
super jeep, and although the ticket price is high, it's worth
splashing out - especially if you're intent on seeing this part
NORTHERN LIGHTS TOURS
The Northern Lights, or Aurora borealis, are most commonly
seen between October and March, and one of the best ways
to take them in is to take a boat trip from Reykjavík harbour,
SWIMMING IN REYKJAVÍK
The
swimming pool
is to Icelanders what the pub is to the British or the coffee shop to
Americans. This is the place to come to meet people, catch up on the local gossip and to relax
in divine geothermally heated waters. The abundance of natural hot water around the capital
means there's a good choice of pools, which are always at a comfortably warm 29°C, often
with hot pots at 39-43°C.
Opening hours
vary greatly but are listed at
W
itr.is, under the
swimming pools link. Bear in mind that because pool water in Iceland doesn't contain large
amounts of chlorine as is common in most other countries, you must shower without a
swimming costume before entering the pools and thoroughly wash the areas of your body
marked on the signs by the showers.
Laugardalslaug
411 5100.
Iceland's largest outdoor swimming complex, with a
50m pool, four hot pots, a jacuzzi, steam room,
waterslide and masseuse.
Sundhöllin
Barónsstígur 45A
T
411 5350.
The 25m
Sundlaugavegur
pool here is indoors, but has two outdoor hot pots, plus
single-sex nude sunbathing terraces.
Vesturbæjarlaug
Hofsvallagata
T
411 5150.
A 25m
outdoor pool plus three hot pots, a sauna, steam bath
and solarium.
T
FROM TOP
LEIFUR EIRÍKSSON STATUE
P.66
; LAUGARDALSLAUG POOL
P.80
; RÁÐHÚSIÐ
P.61
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