Iceland

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Introduction

To Iceland with the family

Iceland is still on our wish list, for when the boys are a bit older. But waterfalls, geysers and warm swimming pools in every town already excite them now.

Iceland needs good preparation: rapidly changing weather, strict rules for campers and roads that are only open in summer.

Researched by Arjan from Zuidlaren, so you don’t have to · Sources: Umhverfisstofnun (Environment Agency of Iceland), Safetravel.is · updated 24 October 2026 · About this page

• Language: Icelandic; English almost everywhere
• Currency: Icelandic króna (ISK)
• Driving: Drive on the right, dipped headlights compulsory during the day too
• Wild camping: Not allowed with a vehicle outside campsites

Internet on the road: Iceland is part of the EEA, so “Roam like at home” usually applies. Note: on ferries and at sea, maritime networks apply, and they are not included.

Days out

The 4 best days out around Reykjavík

From Reykjavík you can see whales, walk behind a waterfall and go to the swimming pool, just like Icelanders do. We’ve done the research for you: prices come from the providers themselves, and we calculated distances from Utrecht.

🎯 Whale watching from Reykjavík (Elding)

📍 Location: Reykjavík (old harbour)🏷️ Type: Boat trip · whales

💶 Cost: Classic Whale Watching adults: ISK 14,500 (± € 106) · child 7–15: ISK 7,250 (± € 53) (source)

From the old harbour in Reykjavík, Elding sails into Faxaflói Bay to look for whales and dolphins. The published prices apply from 1 April 2025 to 31

Find out more

March 2027.

All prices: Classic Whale Watching adults: ISK 14,500 (± € 106); child 7–15: ISK 7,250 (± € 53); child 0–6: free

Distance: you reach Iceland by car via the Smyril Line ferry from Hirtshals (OSRM, 21 Oct 2026)

The button takes you to a comparable tour on GetYourGuide.

Prices according to elding.is, checked on 21 Oct 2026 · Euro amounts converted approximately at the Norges Bank rate of the same day.

👉 See current prices & availability

Also via Tiqets · official website · location on the map

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🎯 Seljalandsfoss

📍 Location: south coast🏷️ Type: Waterfall · nature

💶 Cost: Car parking, full day: ISK 900 (± € 6.61) · the waterfall itself: no admission (parking only) (source)

Seljalandsfoss is a waterfall on Iceland’s south coast, where a path lets you walk behind the curtain of water. It’s close to the car park, and the path there is good.

Find out more

Distance: you reach Iceland by car via the Smyril Line ferry from Hirtshals; ± 128 km from Reykjavík (± 2.0 hrs) (OSRM, 21 Oct 2026)

Prices according to checkit.is, checked on 21 Oct 2026 · Euro amounts converted approximately at the Norges Bank rate of the same day.

👉 See the location on the map

Also via official website

🎯 Perlan (Reykjavík)

📍 Location: Reykjavík🏷️ Type: Museum · indoors

💶 Cost: current price at GetYourGuide

Perlan stands on a hill in Reykjavík and has a glass dome. Inside you walk through an artificial ice cave, see exhibitions about volcanoes and glaciers, and there’s a planetarium show about the northern lights.

Find out more

Distance: you reach Iceland by car via the Smyril Line ferry from Hirtshals; ± 3 km from Reykjavík (± 0.1 hrs) (OSRM, 21 Oct 2026)

👉 See current prices & availability

Also via Tiqets · Location on the map

Advertisement · affiliate link

🎯 Laugardalslaug swimming pool (Reykjavík)

📍 Location: Reykjavík🏷️ Type: Swimming pool · outdoors

💶 Cost: no fixed price list published

Laugardalslaug is Reykjavík’s largest public swimming pool, with heated outdoor pools, hot pots and a slide. Showering beforehand with soap and without swimwear is compulsory.

Find out more

Distance: you reach Iceland by car via the Smyril Line ferry from Hirtshals; ± 4 km from Reykjavík (± 0.1 hrs) (OSRM, 21 Oct 2026)

👉 See the location on the map

Some buttons take you to a partner such as GetYourGuide or Tiqets. If you book through them, we receive a small commission; you pay nothing extra. If there’s no suitable product, we simply link to the official site.

More highlights with kids

• Seljalandsfoss and Skógafoss
• Geysir and Gullfoss (Golden Circle)
• Public swimming pools in almost every town
• Whale watching in Húsavík
• Jökulsárlón glacier lagoon

Camping

⛺ Campsites in Iceland: a first selection

A first selection to go with the regions and days out on this page. The details come from the campsite’s official website or from Booking.com.

We only fill in “Who for” and “Setting” when the source says so; otherwise you’ll see –.

We haven’t (yet) found a campsite for this group where a source says so. Choose “All” to see the whole list.

Amounts in Icelandic krónur (ISK), as the providers give them. As a guide: on 21 Oct 2026, 1 euro was about 136 ISK (derived from Norges Bank mid-rates). Prices read on the official websites on 22 Oct 2026 (days out: 21 Oct 2026).

Checked on 22 Oct 2026. The button goes to Booking.com (affiliate link); the campsite’s own website is listed below it. We haven’t (yet) stayed there ourselves.

Rules for wild and free camping are on Camping in Iceland. An overview by country: camping in Scandinavia.

Tolls & bridges

🛣️ Tolls, bridges and tunnels

There are hardly any barriers: cameras read your number plate. Handy, but good to know what’s coming on the route. With Smyril Line from Hirtshals you reach the ferry without Danish toll bridges (OSRM route, 21 Oct 2026). In Iceland itself we found one toll road at the official source: the Vaðlaheiðargöng tunnel.

Amounts checked on 21 Oct 2026 (bridges, Transportstyrelsen, AutoPASS) and on 22 Oct 2026 (veggjald.is and the Øresundsbron, AutoPASS and EPASS24 websites).

Everything about AutoPASS, EPASS24 and the Swedish charges is in the guide Tolls and AutoPASS/EPASS24; we compare bridges and ferries in Ferry or bridges?

Roads in Iceland: for road conditions and notices see the official website (Vegagerðin).

On site

💡 Prices & good to know on site

How expensive is Iceland in the supermarket or a restaurant, and do people still pay cash? We looked it up at Eurostat, the central banks and the official bodies. More figures in the cost guide.

Buying alcohol

Alcohol is only sold in shops at the state-run Vínbúðin stores (ÁTVR). Minimum age 20 years, bring ID.

Source: Vínbúðin

Photo: Schwarzenfelder · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Photo credits

💳

Card or cash?

On Strætó buses in the capital area you can no longer pay in cash since 1 June 2025.

Source: Strætó

Northern lights & midnight sun

Northern lights: September to April, most active around the equinoxes (Visit Iceland).

Source: Visit Iceland

Photo: AstroAnthony · CC BY 4.0 · Photo credits

⛺

Wild camping

Not allowed with a motorhome or car outside campsites.

Do you notice while planning that Iceland is blowing your budget? On our sister site Oost-Europa Reizen you’ll find cheaper destinations with wild nature and mountains, in the guide Nature & mountains on a budget.

Food & drink

🍽️ Food and drink in Iceland

Skyr with blueberries, a warm lamb soup after a wet hike and a hot dog with everything: in Iceland people eat hearty food, and the kids are amazed by the catch of the day. These are the dishes the official tourist board recommends itself.

🛒 Shopping

According to its parent company Hagar, Bónus has 33 stores: 20 in the capital area and 13 elsewhere. Krónan, which calls itself a discounter, had 26 stores plus an online shop according to the Festi annual report 2025. Samkaup has just over sixty shops around the country, including Nettó, Kjörbúðin and Krambúð. So you’ll find big supermarkets mainly in and around Reykjavík and in the larger towns.

Source: Hagar (Bónus), Festi, annual report 2025, Samkaup, checked on 22 Oct 2026.

What a holiday costs is in our guide What does a family week in Scandinavia cost?, with our own measurements and the price levels for groceries and petrol

Good to know

🧭 Plan further

Our guides are available in English. The day-out guides and some practical pages are so far only available in Dutch; the prices, maps and links in them are still easy to follow.

🧖 Warm lagoons? Blue Lagoon, Sky Lagoon and Mývatn with the age rules: see Sauna & wellness.

More ideas

🧭 Routes and travel ideas

• 🗓️ Travel ideas by season
• 📚 Camping guides
• 🥾 Hiking
• 🚗 Car hire
• 🚆 By train

References

📚 Sources

Every figure and every rule on this page has a source. Here they all are at a glance, checked on 21 and 22 October 2026.