The first tour I joined when I started writing travel-blogs here on Guide to Iceland many years ago, was the most popular tour in Iceland: the Golden Circle tour.
There are many variations of the Golden Circle tour available, and I can recommend being guided by a local for the best experience.
There are so many beautiful places in Iceland and interesting things to do, but the Golden Circle is where I take all my foreign friends which I show around my country. Join me for a tour of the Golden Circle :)
Top photo: Þingvellir National Park in autumn
Þingvellir National Park
Lögberg
The first stop on the Golden Circle is one of my most beloved places here in Iceland, Þingvellir National Park. I visit it often as it is only 50 km away from Reykjavík.
There are two extraordinary things about Þingvellir:
Firstly, it has been recognized by UNESCO as a World Heritage Site.
Almannagjá gorge
Secondly, Þingvellir National Park is situated on the tectonic plate boundaries of the Mid-Atlantic Ridge, the North American, and Eurasian continents, making it a very special tourist attraction.
The tectonic plates are actually visible above ground at Þingvellir, and you can really experience the continental drift.
The land in between the 2 tectonic plates is a 3rd plate, the micro-tectonic plate Hreppaflekinn. You can read more about it on the website of Þingvellir.
Flosagjá rift
To us Icelanders, Þingvellir is one of our greatest treasures and a sacred place.
My husband and I guide our guests starting from the Hakið gorge and walk with them inside Almannagjá gorge, which forms the eastern boundaries of the North American Plate.
We tell them about the Viking history, show them where the old Viking booths were located, and tell them about the executions that took place in various locations here at Þingvellir.
You can scan a QR code with your phone and digitally see what the booths might have looked like
We then stop by Nikulásargjá rift, which we Icelanders call Peningagjá rift - the Money rift, where it is a custom amongst us Icelanders to throw in some coins - it is said that your wishes come true if you follow the coin sink through the clear water and watch it land on the bottom of the rift.
It is the only place in Icelandic nature, where it is allowed to throw in coins.
Nikulásargjá rift
In the photo above you will see Peningagjá rift - there are other rifts here where you can go snorkelling in the Silfra fissure or diving under guidance.
It is believed that by this spot the oldest parliament of the Vikings was held and that it was moved later on to Lögberg in my first photo of Þingvellir, with the Icelandic flag.
See also: A Compilation of the Viking Ruins & Pagan Burial Mounds I have visited on my Travels around Iceland
Gullfoss Waterfall
Gullfoss waterfall
Our second stop is at Gullfoss - the Golden Waterfall from which the Golden Circle tour gets its name (gull=gold, foss=waterfall).
My husband finds it very funny to stop first by Gullfoss waterfall and make the popular Geysir geothermal area our third stop.
On the way to Gullfoss waterfall, we pass the geothermal area and he points it out as in passing and our visitors always protest as they want to see it up close ;)
The thing is that there are only 10 km between these 2 locations and we don't go any further than Gullfoss and then turn back and have lunch at Geysir and spend quite some time after lunch with our visitors checking out the various hot springs.
Gullfoss is the best-known waterfall in Iceland and it is breathtakingly beautiful, 32 metres high, with two cascades, the first one is 11 metres high, and the second one is 21 metres high; they fall into the 2.5 km gorge which is up to 70 m deep.
The waterfall runs in the glacial river Hvítá (White River) which runs from the Langjökull glacier just above Gullfoss.
The frozen version of Gullfoss in the wintertime
River rafting is popular on the roaring glacial river. Here you can find river rafting tours on Hvítá glacial river:
Brilliant 3-Hour River Rafting Tour of the Hvita River | Meet On Location
Thrilling 8-Hour Rafting Tour on the Hvita River from Reykjavik
Adventure-Filled Horseback Riding & River Rafting Combo Tour from Reykjavik
Exhilarating 4-Hour Whitewater Rafting Tour on the Hvita River from Fludir
The upper cascade of Gullfoss as seen from the east bank - see how close people can stand to it
You can walk right up to the waterfall where you stand on the edge. It will make you drenched but it is a breathtaking experience.
Please remember to be careful as the path gets slippery and fatal accidents have happened here. If it is too icy in the wintertime the path is closed. Too many visitors don't pay any attention to the danger and climb over the gate :(
You can also walk up the stairs to get a better view from above.
The path leading to Gullfoss can be wet and there will be some mist
Gullfoss is state property. The recent history of the waterfall is quite interesting and startling at the same time, as the waterfall was contracted to foreigners and almost harnessed.
The daughter of the farmer who owned this land, Sigríður in Brattholt (1871-1957), put up a fight to save Gullfoss and threatened to throw herself into the waterfall if a hydroelectric power station were to be constructed.
This is a long story spanning over many years, but to make it short Sigríður saved Gullfoss and we are really grateful to her for that.
The Lady in Gullfoss
There is another lady, which I love photographing when visiting Gullfoss; it is a rock lady, which not many people notice. She is located in the middle of the upper cascade and I call her the Lady in Gullfoss :)
For more photos and a much more detailed travel-blog about Gullfoss, check out my travel-blog about Gullfoss waterfall:
The Majestic Gullfoss - Iceland's Golden Waterfall, which gives a Name to the Golden Circle
Geysir Geothermal Area
Strokkur erupting
Now we returned the same way and our fourth stop was by the eve-so-popular Geysir geothermal area. Geysir has given its name to all other erupting hot springs which are called geysers.
Although this geothermal area is named after Geysir then the "geysir" which erupts most frequently (like every 7-10 minutes), is called Strokkur.
Geysir itself stopped erupting in 1915, but it must have been a sight to see as it went up to 70 metres into the air, but Strokkur is much smaller, still very majestic.
Strokkur erupting in the Geysir geothermal area
Icelanders tried reviving it by throwing soap into Geysir and forcing an eruption and from time to time it erupted. Then after a big earthquake in the year, 2000 Geysir started erupting again some 8-10 meters into the air, but much less frequently than Strokkur.
Strokkur erupts so frequently that one is bound to get a good photo of its eruption.
Take care that this is a high-temperature geothermal area and stay within the boundaries and don't touch the water as it is boiling HOT.
The northern eye of Blesi hot spring
If you don't want to be drenched stay up-wind. I have arrived there at the very moment of the eruption and as it can get really windy I got Strokkur right in my face.
We walk leisurely with our guests and stop by various hot springs. Everybody, of course, wants to stop by Strokkur and get a photo of it erupting high up in the air.
Strokkur erupting in Geysir geothermal area
There are several restaurants by Geysir and a big shop, selling Icelandic woolen goods, etc. Here we stop and have lunch with our guests.
There is one more photo opportunity at Geysir, where we take photos with our friends - with the GEYSIR TROLL - Bergþór in Bláfell about whom we can read in Icelandic folklore :)
I have written another travel-blog about Bergþór in Bláfell where I tell you more about him: The gentle Troll Bergþór in Mt. Bláfell - Icelandic Folklore from South Iceland.
The Geysir troll
We Icelanders not only believe in the existence of elves, but we also believe in trolls, at least some of us. I have got so many photos of myself with the troll through the years - it is a friendly troll, different from some of the ones in our folklore, who eat humans.
It used to be situated right by the road next to the hotel, but a new hotel is being built and the troll was moved.
I have written a detailed travel-blog about the Geysir geothermal area:
The extraordinary Geysir Geothermal Area - Strokkur and all the other Hot Springs
Skálholt Cathedral
Skálholt cathedral
Our fifth stop is at Skálholt cathedral - the old seat of the bishops.
We stop here for a short while, long enough to have a look inside this beautiful cathedral - which is my all-time favourite here in Iceland.
Skálholtskirkja cathedral is one of Iceland's best-known historic places. Here was the centre of ecclesiastic power in Iceland and at Skálholt the first bishopric was founded back in 1056.
Inside Skálholt cathedral
It is so beautiful inside the cathedral when the sun reflects through the stained glass windows and fills the cathedral with multi-coloured light.
Even the altarpiece of Jesus then reflects the colours of the windows. It is otherwordly.
The altarpiece in Skálholt cathedral
Skálholt is a place not to be missed during your Iceland visit, in my opinion. Here atrocities took place during the reformation in Iceland when the last Catholic bishop, Jón Arason at Hólar, and his two sons, Björn and Ari, were beheaded here in 1550.
At Skálholt you can visit the small museum where the stone sarcophagus of Bishop Páll Jónsson is on display, but he died in 1211, walk through a 13th-century tunnel, and visit archaeological ruins from the 17th and the 18th century.
Skálholt and Þorláksbúð - I was dressed in the national costume for the 60th anniversary of the cathedral
You can read much more about Skálholt and what there is to see and do there in my travel-blog:
A Visit to the historic Skálholt Episcopal See in South Iceland
Hellisheiðarvirkjun Geothermal Powerplant
Hellisheiðarvirkjun Geothermal Powerplant
Our final stop on the tour with our friends is sometimes at Hellisheiðarvirkjun power plant, which is the largest geothermal power station in Iceland.
There is a Geothermal Energy exhibition at the power plant on how geothermal energy is harnessed there.
I would recommend not missing the exhibition, as it is very informative.
Inside Hellisheiðarvirkjun
I have written another travel-blog about the Golden Circle, where I include Friðheimar and Kerið crater: the Fantastic Golden Circle - the most Popular Day Tour in Iceland.
If you want to take a guided tour of the Golden Circle then there is a myriad of tours to choose from. There is such a great variety of tours to choose from that I include a link to all of them so that you can compare them and choose the right Golden Circle tour for you:
The best Golden Circle tours in Iceland
Have a lovely time on the Golden Circle of Iceland :)
