Christmas & Northern Lights Adventure
Experience a laid-back Christmas adventure while staying in modest hotels and cottages in Reykjavík and South Iceland. All accommodations feature private shower and WC facilities. Enjoy a two-night stay in Hella, a quaint village in South Iceland, where you can immerse yourself in the local traditions of how the Icelandic countryside celebrates Christmas. The Árhús cottages in Hella are located in a spacious, dark garden in the countryside, which provides excellent conditions for viewing the Northern Lights.
Our knowledgeable tour guide will share insights about the Northern Lights and offer photography tips for capturing this stunning natural spectacle. The itinerary includes a fine dining experience at a panoramic restaurant at the Pearl in Reykjavík on December 26th. We eagerly anticipate celebrating Christmas 2019 with you in the beautiful Icelandic countryside.
Tour Itinerary
The Flybus shuttle brings travellers from Keflavík International Airport to Hotel Cabin in Reykjavík where you spend one night. We provide you with ideas on how to explore Iceland’s capital on your own.
Hótel Klettur 
Transfer to the Hotel
At 09:00 meet your tour guide who shows the group the Christmas spirit of the capital and the Reykjanes Peninsula with its hot springs, mountains, moon-like landscape, bird cliffs, lighthouses and fishing villages. At the end of the day, we get to soak off our travels in the warm blue waters of the famous Blue Lagoon. We stay for two nights in simple cottages in South Iceland.
In the evening we celebrate Christmas the Icelandic way. Before dinner, we join a guided bus tour to visit the Christmas lights in the villages of Hvolsvöllur and Hella. The traditional Christmas lights had their origins in the Middle Ages when people needed to keep the lights in their abodes during the Winter Solstice. In Iceland, the tradition finds its roots in the Pagan Old Norse beliefs when people would keep the fire alive inside the central pit of the Viking longhouses to keep the darkness of the Winter Solstice outside.
Your festive 4-course dinner starts around 19:30 and is served at Árhús Restaurant on the river banks in Hella, which is a small village in South Iceland. Drink a toast of sparkling wine as you enjoy a real special Christmas Celebration. Naturally, once darkness falls, you are out in the garden waiting for the Northern Lights.
Breakfast / Festive 4-course dinner - Stracta Hotel (Comfort version, studio room 24m²)
220km / 137mls
Today we travel along the south coast. We visit the state-of-the-art educational Lava Centre and experience volcanic eruptions in a cinema auditorium! We continue to the area beneath the Eyjafjallajökull volcano and glacier and stop at Seljalandsfoss waterfall. At lunch, we visit the Skógarfoss waterfall.
In the afternoon 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.
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, colors, patterns and sizes.
- Breakfast
- Stracta Hotel (Comfort version, studio room 24m²)
- 200km / 124mls
In the morning we learn about the Icelandic horse, its unique qualities and history and visit a geothermal greenhouse. Then 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.
Overnight at Hotel Cabin. The program includes a culinary treat at a traditional restaurant located downtown Reykjavík. Return transfer included.
- Breakfast / Fine Dinner
- Hótel Klettur
210km / 130mls
Individual transfer to Keflavík Airport.
- Breakfast
- Transfer to Keflavík Airport
Customer reviews
Sandy, California
Monica, UK
I wanted to thank you for such a nice trip to Iceland over the winter. It was a lovely break from reality and getting to explore such a magical place was a lot of fun. The scenery of that country is unreal. The hot springs, mountains, glaciers, and geysers were so beautiful. The fireworks show was something right out of a movie! The hot spirngs and bubbling pools were so great. The national park was cool and learning about the Icelandic horses was something I found particularly interesting since I used to ride horses as a girl. Thank you again for making this trip so wonderful.
Sharon Wolff
We're back from our Iceland tour and wanted to tell you how much we appreciated your help! The New Years tour was so much fun! We We had an amazing time thanks to your help. The hotels were great, the service was superb, and the guides were all so well educated. Again, thanks for making this Iceland trip so successful!
