A summer-focused trip with nine nights, including stops in Höfn and Egilsstaðir, two nights at Mývatn and a final night in Reykjavík. Allow extra days for longer walks or disruption.
North Atlantic · Published planning example
Open a day to read the plan and its spending notes.
Leave the airport, reach your room and keep the first outing near the harbour. Collect the rental car when it suits the actual plan; if you collect on a later day, arrange the airport transfer separately. Stay in Reykjavík.
Chosen allowances: €150 for one whole private room, €45 food and €10 extras. Divide only the room when sharing. Car rental, cover, road-use charges, fuel, parking, tolls and paid visits are separate; count the car once for the party. No local-transport amount is included. These are adjustable examples, not available offers.
Estimated day spending: €205.00
Visit Þingvellir, the Geysir area and Gullfoss at a comfortable pace, then finish near Selfoss. Select the paths for the weather and leave a bath as an optional booking. Stay in the Golden Circle region, using Selfoss as this plan’s base.
Chosen allowances: €165 for one whole private room, €45 food and €10 extras. Divide only the room when sharing. Car rental, cover, road-use charges, fuel, parking, tolls and paid visits are separate; count the car once for the party. No local-transport amount is included. These are adjustable examples, not available offers.
Estimated day spending: €220.00
Travel east with time for selected waterfall walks and lunch. Follow the current Reynisfjara warnings if visiting the beach. Reach Vík in time to shop and eat. Stay in Vík.
Chosen allowances: €175 for one whole private room, €45 food and €10 extras. Divide only the room when sharing. Car rental, cover, road-use charges, fuel, parking, tolls and paid visits are separate; count the car once for the party. No local-transport amount is included. These are adjustable examples, not available offers.
Estimated day spending: €230.00
Allow a full day for the road east. Choose a manageable Skaftafell walk and a Jökulsárlón shore visit, or make one booked activity the main event and shorten the rest. Continue to your Höfn-area room. A longer glacier activity may justify an extra southeast night.
Chosen allowances: €180 for one whole private room, €45 food and €10 extras. Divide only the room when sharing. Car rental, cover, road-use charges, fuel, parking, tolls and paid visits are separate; count the car once for the party. No local-transport amount is included. These are adjustable examples, not available offers.
Estimated day spending: €235.00
Use the main Route 1 coastal approach and take proper breaks. Avoid an unchecked mountain-road shortcut. End the day in Egilsstaðir, with dinner and supplies arranged for the next stage. Stay in Egilsstaðir.
Chosen allowances: €155 for one whole private room, €45 food and €10 extras. Divide only the room when sharing. Car rental, cover, road-use charges, fuel, parking, tolls and paid visits are separate; count the car once for the party. No local-transport amount is included. These are adjustable examples, not available offers.
Estimated day spending: €210.00
Check the road and forecast before the westbound drive. Add Dettifoss only if the access road, conditions and time suit. Settle into your Mývatn room and choose a short nearby outing. Stay at Mývatn.
Chosen allowances: €180 for one whole private room, €45 food and €10 extras. Divide only the room when sharing. Car rental, cover, road-use charges, fuel, parking, tolls and paid visits are separate; count the car once for the party. No local-transport amount is included. These are adjustable examples, not available offers.
Estimated day spending: €235.00
Choose Dimmuborgir and another lake or geothermal stop, with time for lunch. Stay on marked paths at hot areas. Earth Lagoon is an optional dated booking. Keep the same Mývatn room so you can arrange the day around the weather.
Chosen allowances: €180 for one whole private room, €45 food and €10 extras. Divide only the room when sharing. Car rental, cover, road-use charges, fuel, parking, tolls and paid visits are separate; count the car once for the party. No local-transport amount is included. These are adjustable examples, not available offers.
Estimated day spending: €235.00
Travel towards Akureyri, adding a Goðafoss stop if conditions allow. Check the toll payment if using Vaðlaheiðargöng. Leave your bags in town and choose a harbour walk, garden visit or pool. Stay in Akureyri.
Chosen allowances: €145 for one whole private room, €45 food and €10 extras. Divide only the room when sharing. Car rental, cover, road-use charges, fuel, parking, tolls and paid visits are separate; count the car once for the party. No local-transport amount is included. These are adjustable examples, not available offers.
Estimated day spending: €200.00
Use Route 1 for the long drive south, allowing roughly five and a half hours of basic driving plus breaks and any chosen stop. Leave Snæfellsnes for a separate extension. Stay in Reykjavík before the flight day.
Chosen allowances: €150 for one whole private room, €45 food and €10 extras. Divide only the room when sharing. Car rental, cover, road-use charges, fuel, parking, tolls and paid visits are separate; count the car once for the party. No local-transport amount is included. These are adjustable examples, not available offers.
Estimated day spending: €205.00
Leave enough time for the approximately 50 km airport journey, fuel or charging, rental return and airline check-in. Keep any final city outing short and dependent on your flight time.
Chosen allowances: €0 for one whole private room, €45 food and €10 extras. Divide only the room when sharing. Car rental, cover, road-use charges, fuel, parking, tolls and paid visits are separate; count the car once for the party. No local-transport amount is included. These are adjustable examples, not available offers. No hotel night is included on departure day.
Estimated day spending: €55.00
Use this order: Reykjavík, Selfoss in the Golden Circle region, Vík, Höfn, Egilsstaðir, two nights at Mývatn, Akureyri and Reykjavík. This gives the southeast and east their own travel days, with a full day around Mývatn between the two lake nights.
This is an active, summer-focused circuit. Ten days leaves several substantial driving stages and limited spare time for disruption. Add nights if you want a long glacier outing, several hikes or more time in the fjords. In winter, choose a smaller region and flexible stays; do not assume this circuit works unchanged because a road is usually open.
Days one to three cover arrival, the Golden Circle and the road to Vík. On day four, travel from Vík to Höfn, choosing a manageable Skaftafell walk or booked activity and a lagoon visit that fits. A long guided excursion may need an extra night near its meeting point.
Day five follows the coastal Route 1 approach to Egilsstaðir. Keep mountain-road shortcuts out of the plan unless checked for the vehicle and conditions. The next day continues to Mývatn, with any Dettifoss detour considered separately.
Two Mývatn nights give day seven to the lake area. Choose Dimmuborgir and a contrasting geothermal or lakeside stop, then leave room for lunch and an optional bath. You can arrange the outdoor visits around the day’s weather instead of moving luggage again.
On day eight, continue to Akureyri, with Goðafoss if conditions suit. Day nine is the long return to Reykjavík. Keep the final night there or deliberately rebook near Keflavík for an early flight. Snæfellsnes is an extra two-night extension, not a final-day detour in this plan.
The chosen whole-room allowances total €1,480 across nine nights: €150, €165, €175, €180, €155, €180, €180, €145 and €150. Ten days of food at €45 and extras at €10 add €550. The result is €2,030 for one traveller, before the vehicle and paid visits.
Two adults sharing the same rooms keep the room total at €1,480 and double the other daily amounts to €1,100. That is €2,580 together, or €1,290 each. Day ten has no hotel allowance. These are chosen examples, not available accommodation prices; replace them with quotes for your dates and party.
As a separate illustration, choose €900 for the complete rental with selected cover and road-use charges, €180 for fuel and €70 for parking and tolls. This €1,150 is a chosen vehicle allowance, not a published quote. Adding it gives €3,180 for one traveller, or €3,730 together for two sharing, before paid activities. For two, that is €1,865 each.
Replace the vehicle amounts with your actual booking, route distance, fuel or charging and stop charges. Rental companies may bill the 2026 road-use charge differently; do not add it again when included. Longer detours and an extra night change the totals. A glacier tour, lagoon boat trip or spa visit is normally a separate per-person booking, in its stated currency.
Check traffic conditions, the regional forecast and travel alerts before leaving each base. If a stage becomes unsuitable, contact the next accommodation and change the plan. Do not rely on making up time by driving faster or moving onto an unchecked road. Flexible booking terms and spare time are more useful than a guarantee that every listed stop will happen.
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Driving times are approximate and exclude sightseeing, meal breaks and disruption. Use the stage guides and current road conditions to plan each day.
Car · About 1 hour direct to Selfoss; sightseeing needs the full day
The direct Reykjavík–Selfoss journey is roughly 60 km. The itinerary instead gives the main Golden Circle sights a full day before the Selfoss overnight. A car is a shared trip expense, not a fare for this leg.
Compare this journeyCar · About 2 hours driving, plus stops
Drive from Selfoss towards Vík on Route 1, roughly 130 km before waterfall or beach detours. Allow the full sightseeing day and check the actual starting address. Car costs remain separate from the daily subtotal.
Compare this journeyCar · About 4 hours driving, plus visits
Follow Route 1 east, roughly 260 km before sightseeing detours. Choose Skaftafell and Jökulsárlón visits to fit a full travel day. Stay in Höfn; rental and running costs are shared once for the trip.
Compare this journeyCar · About 4 hours driving, plus breaks
Use the main coastal Route 1 approach through the Djúpivogur and Reyðarfjörður areas, roughly 220 km. Check the route and weather; avoid unchecked inland shortcuts. Stay in Egilsstaðir.
Compare this journeyCar · About 2½ hours driving, plus stops
Follow Route 1 west to Reykjahlíð, roughly 165 km. Add any Dettifoss detour only after checking access and time. Stay at Mývatn for two nights; the regional marker uses Reykjahlíð.
Compare this journeyCar · About 1½ hours driving, plus Goðafoss
Drive from Reykjahlíð towards Akureyri, roughly 85 km before detours. Check Vaðlaheiði tunnel payment if using it and allow separate time for Goðafoss. Count the toll once per vehicle.
Compare this journeyCar · About 5½ hours driving, plus breaks
Follow Route 1 from Akureyri to Reykjavík, roughly 380 km. Give the drive its own day with breaks. KEF is a further journey beyond Reykjavík, so keep a final night near departure. The rental and its running costs are shared once for the party.
Compare this journeyWith fewer days, choose the five-day southwest plan or a focused northern holiday. Do not remove the eastern overnight stops while keeping the same Ring Road sightseeing list. Snæfellsnes needs a separate extension.
Compare your room and daily spending choices in the cost calculator. Check each journey fare, including local transfers, and count tickets covered by a pass only once.
Change the days in each city, leave out stops, and update the estimate without changing the published itinerary.
