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New Years & Northern Lights in Iceland

5 days
4 nights

Rates

Dates

Rates:

USD
EUR

PER PERSON:

Budget accommodations
$ 1,875.00 (double / twin )
$ 2,130.00 (single occupancy)
Comfort accommodations
$ 2,110.00 (double / twin)
$ 2,760.00 (single)

Dates:

Dec 29, 2024 - Jan 02, 2025 

Hotels:

Budget Category
Day 1 – Hotel Cabin (standard room is 10m²) 
Day 2 – Stracta Hotel (standard room is 18m²)
Day 3 – Stracta Hotel (standard room is 18m²)
Day 4 – Hotel Cabin (standard room is 10m²) 

Comfort Category
Day 1 – Hótel Klettur
Day 2 – Stracta Hotel (studio room 24m²)
Day 3 – Stracta Hotel (studio room 24m²)
Day 4 – Hótel Klettur

Included:

• 4 nights accommodation, rooms with private shower/wc
• 3 days escorted coach tour with an English-speaking guide/driver-guide
• Arrival & departure airport transfer by Flybus shuttle (no guide)
• Bonfire & New Year’s celebration tour
• Daily breakfast
• Festive dinner on the 31st of December
• Fine dining at a restaurant in downtown Reykjavík on January 1st including transfers
• Blue Lagoon with entrance and use of towel
• Skógar Folk Museum & Turf houses

Highlights & Experience:

  • Explore Reykjavík, the lunar landscapes of the Reykjanes peninsula, and the Golden Circle route
  • Relaxing soak in the famous Blue Lagoon
  • Travel to South Iceland, a region with glaciers, waterfalls and black lava beaches
  • Golden Circle including a greenhouse & horse stable visit
  • Discover and experience how Icelandic countryside people celebrate New Year's Eve
  • Fine dining at a restaurant in downtown Reykjavík
  • Optional hotel upgrade

Itinerary:

Experience a guided tour that embraces the Icelandic New Year's Eve celebration in a laid-back and authentic manner in countryside. Discover the capital city of Reykjavík, the amazing landscapes of the Reykjanes peninsula, and the famous Golden Circle route featuring Thingvellir National Park, Gullfoss waterfall, and Geysir hot springs. Explore the South Iceland with its glaciers, waterfalls, and black lava beaches. The itinerary also includes a rejuvenating soak in the renowned Blue Lagoon amid the winter chill.

This casual New Year's adventure includes stays in modest hotels and cottages in Reykjavík and South Iceland, all equipped with private bathrooms. Spend two nights in Hella, a quaint village in South Iceland, and partake in the authentic New Year's Eve festivities of the local countryside. Despite the informal setting, rest assured that the meals and beverages will be exquisite. And let's not forget the enchanting Northern Lights—accommodations in Hella provide an excellent location in a spacious, dark garden, offering optimal conditions to witness the Aurora Borealis. Your knowledgeable tour guide will tell you about the Northern Lights and share tips on capturing this natural phenomenon through photography. To conclude the journey, enjoy a refined dining experience at a downtown Reykjavík restaurant on January 1st.

Join us for a unique and memorable New Year's celebration in the heart of the Icelandic countryside!
Day 1  : Arrival in Iceland (31 mi)

Individual transfer by Flybus shuttle bus from Keflavik airport to your accommodation in Reykjavik. You may explore Iceland’s capital city on your own if time allows.

Overnight in Reykjavik.

Day 2  : Reykjavik City Tour, Blue Lagoon & Reykjanes Peninsula (137 mi)

At 09:00 meet your tour guide in hotel lobby. After a city tour of Reykjavik, continue to the Reykjanes Peninsula with its hot springs, mountains, moon-like landscape, bird cliffs, lighthouses and fishing villages.

In the afternoon relax in the Blue Lagoon, then drive along the south coast to arrive in the village of Hella where we stay for two nights in simple cottages.

In the evening, we hear about the Northern Lights from our tour guide. Naturally, once darkness falls, you are out in the garden waiting for the Northern Lights.

Overnight in Hella (B)

Day 3  : South Iceland & New Year's Celebration (124 mi)

Today we explore the south coast. We reach the area beneath the Eyjafjallajökull volcano and glacier, stop at Seljalandsfoss waterfall and visit Skógar folk museum of early Modern Iceland with its turf houses. At lunch, we visit the Skógarfoss waterfall.

In the afternoon we offer an optional glacier hike. The hike is on the Sólheimajökull glacier tongue which extends from the great Mýrdalsjökull glacier. 

If you don’t book the glacier hike, then the tour continues further south where you walk on the famous Black Lava Beach at Reynisfjara, observe the Cap of Dyrhólaey and the Reynisdrangar Sea Cliffs before visiting the charming village of Vík. 

In the evening we celebrate New Year the Icelandic way. Before dinner, join a guided bus tour to visit the bonfires in the villages of Hvolsvöllur and Hella. The traditional Brenna bonfires of New Year’s Eve had their origins in the Middle Ages when people built bonfires to burn the old things they no longer needed. In Iceland, there are bonfires all around the country where inhabitants gather, shoot off fireworks, sing and dance as they wait for the New Year to come in.

Your festive dinner starts around 20:30 and is served at Stracta Hotel in Hella, which is a small village in South Iceland. Afterwards, we walk through the village and celebrate New Year’s with a bang when at midnight the sky opens with thousands of fireworks set off in the village by the local inhabitants. This is an experience of a lifetime; you will never forget. Drink a toast of sparkling wine as you enjoy a real special Icelandic New Year’s celebration.

If the night is clear, you might be lucky enough to see the Northern Lights swirling in a wild and carefree dance across the heavens in dramatic shapes, colours, patterns and sizes.

Overnight in Hella (B, D)

Day 4  : Golden Circle & Culinary Experience (124 mi)

In the morning we learn about the Icelandic horses and their unique qualities. Then we visit a geothermal greenhouse. We travel the Golden Circle route, see steam rising from the Geysir geothermal fields and admire the double waterfall of Gullfoss. We end the afternoon at Þingvellir National Park, the location of the ancient Viking Parliament and UNESCO World Heritage Site.

The program includes a culinary treat at a restaurant located in the heart of downtown Reykjavík. Return transfer included.

Overnight in Reykjavik (B, D)

Day 5  : Farewell to the Land of Fire and Ice (31 mi)

Individual transfer by Flybus shuttle bus from your accommodation in Reykjavik to Keflavik International Airport. (B)

Notes:

  • Northern lights are dependent on weather conditions, and sightings are not guaranteed
  • Please advise us at booking time if you have food allergies or dietary preferences
  • We reserve the right to alter routes without prior notice due to road conditions
  • There is no required dress code for the New Year's Eve celebration, but we suggest Casual Elegant
  • Minimum age - 8 yo; we do not recommend this tour for young children due to the late-night activities on New Year's Eve