Golden Circle Iceland Itinerary – Best Things To See, Map & Route

Last Updated on 9th May 2024

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Iceland is one of the most sought-after road trip destinations in the world and the Golden Circle tour is one of the best routes to enjoy.

With a population of just over 300,000 and almost 2/3 of those people residing in or around Reykjavík itself, Iceland may be small in terms of population, but it’s certainly mighty when it comes to what it can offer both locals and tourists.

When composing an itinerary for our trip to Iceland, I knew that I wanted to go on the Golden Circle and Northern Lights Tour.

The awesome PR team at Attraction Tix very kindly offered a collaboration for our time in Iceland and we were very kindly gifted two tickets for the Golden Circle and Northern Lights tour, as well as transportation to and from the airport.

If you’re planning a trip to Iceland, I’ve put together the perfect Golden Circle route so that you can plan your itinerary.

In my ultimate guide below, you’ll find everything you need to know about the best Golden Circle Iceland itinerary, including all the top sights such as Þingvellir National Park and Gullfoss Waterfall, as well as the perfect Iceland Golden Circle map, route and more!

Golden Circle Iceland map

Above, you can see the full Golden Circle Iceland map and route. If you’re embarking on a Golden Circle day trip from Reykjavík, the drive will take approximately four hours as a round trip.

However, this doesn’t include all the stops you’ll be making along the way, so you should allow plenty of time to complete the full Golden Circle route. 6-8 hours should be more than enough time to complete the full Golden Circle route in Iceland.

Golden Circle Tour Iceland – Best things to do and must-see stops!

The Golden Circle Tour was organised for our first full day in Iceland which was also Matt’s birthday so it seemed like the perfect opportunity to spend a wonderful day exploring and celebrating!

When booking a Golden Circle Iceland tour, you can choose several different time slots. The tours usually start at 8 AM, 9 AM and 10.30 AM and depending on exactly which tour you book, will depend on what time you’ll be picked up and how long the tour lasts.

Best Golden Circle tours in Iceland

Below, I’ve compiled a list of the top 5 Iceland Golden Circle tours from Reykjavík, ranging from a simple tour that takes you to the best Golden Circle highlights to tours in Iceland that also include a visit to the infamous Blue Lagoon, Kerid Crater and even a snowmobiling experience!

Reykjavik: Golden Circle Full-Day Tour with Kerid Crater – This is one of the most popular Golden Circle tours in Iceland with almost 6,000 reviews and 4.7*! It’s an 8-hour tour that will take you around some of the best stops on the Iceland Golden Circle itinerary, including Gullfoss Waterfall, Geysir and a bonus stop at Kerid Crater.

Reykjavik: Golden Circle, Kerid Crater, & Blue Lagoon Tour – This 4.9* rated tour includes all the best bits of a Golden Circle Tour in Iceland with an additional stop at the world-famous Blue Lagoon. This is an awesome tour if you want to experience as many of Iceland’s best spots as possible.

From Reykjavik: Golden Circle and Glacier Snowmobiling – With this tour, you’ll embark on a 10-hour excursion around the Golden Circle highlights and conclude with a thrilling snowmobiling adventure across the vast Icelandic landscape.

From Reykjavik: Golden Circle Full-Day Tour – This is one of the shorter Golden Circle tours, lasting between 6.5 and 7 hours and is operated by Gray Line Iceland. It still includes all the best highlights of the Golden Circle route, but it’s just slightly shorter than many of the other tours.

From Reykjavik: Golden Circle and Northern Lights Tour – This awesome two-part tour includes a full-day excursion of seeing the best of the Golden Circle during the day and the chance to glimpse the elusive Northern Lights at night.

Þingvellir National Park – Golden Circle Iceland itinerary

The first stop on our Golden Circle Iceland itinerary was the magnificent Þingvellir National Park.

More commonly known amongst tourists as Thingvellir, the UNESCO World Heritage Site is also the birthplace of the Icelandic Parliament!

The National Park is also fascinating as it resides in a rift valley on the crest of the Mid-Atlantic ridge; the boundary between the North American and Eurasian tectonic plates!

On our way to Þingvellir, our guide told us about what we could expect from the tectonic plates and the park. What we saw, however, was infinitely better than I could have ever imagined!

We spent approximately 45 minutes here, but I honestly felt like I could have stayed all day. I don’t think I’ve ever been anywhere like it; the fact that you could see the two different tectonic plates that separate two continents is something that I’ll never forget!

There are ample toilets here (make sure you head inside the restaurant to use the free ones – you have to pay for the main ones outside!). You can also grab a hot drink from inside the cafe.

Matt and I didn’t get a drink or a bite to eat here; instead, we decided to spend as much time as possible exploring the park. The canyon separates the two plates and is absolutely huge. It looks like it’s been pulled straight from a Game of Thrones scene!

It’s an absolutely fascinating area to explore and I just wish we had a little longer there to get to experience everything that it has to offer! If you’re completing the Iceland Golden Circle itinerary on your own without a tour, I’d highly recommend dedicating more time here.

Book a Golden Circle Full-Day Tour from Reykjavík here!

Gullfoss Waterfall – Golden Circle Iceland itinerary

The next stop on our Golden Circle Iceland itinerary was another hour’s drive from the National Park, taking us to Gullfoss Waterfall.

Gullfoss Waterfall may very well be one of the most spectacular, albeit coldest, sights I’ve ever laid eyes on. It truly was such a wonder to behold and it’s something that I’m not likely to forget about anytime soon.

The impressive mass of water stands at an impeccable 32m high and includes two huge drops into the river below.

While pictures and videos of the Gullfoss Waterfall look great, they don’t nearly do it the justice that it deserves; it really is hard to comprehend just how overwhelming and majestic this enormous mass of water is.

Cascading down the ‘staircase’ into the river below, Gullfoss Waterfall was probably our favourite part of our whole visit to Iceland. Despite the freezing temperatures and being splattered with (very, very cold) mist, the waterfall now truly holds a very special place in my heart.

At Gullfoss Waterfall, there are also numerous toilets, a cafe and a restaurant where you can find some authentic lamb stew soup for around 2000kr (around £12).

Matt and I skipped the lamb stew soup – although it did look truly delicious – and had a hot chocolate instead). We had a blast edging close to the waterfall to see its unbelievable drop below. However, it really was exceptionally cold which meant it was time for our third stop of the day!

Geysir & Strokkur hot springs

The third place on our Golden Circle Iceland itinerary and tour was the hot springs of Geysir and Strokkur.

Though Geysir itself has been inactive for numerous years now, it’s actually the word we use in English to describe geysers (a hot spring that ejects water upwards into the air at regular intervals). While you won’t see Geysir erupt anytime soon, you will see the mighty Strokkur, Smiður and Litli-Strokkur.

Strokkur is the one erupting in the picture above and it erupts approximately every 8 minutes. While it’s not as powerful or impressive as Geysir once was, it’s still a pretty awesome sight, especially if you’ve never seen anything like it before!

One thing that I wasn’t quite aware of before our tour guide informed us, was that the smell of sulphur would be incredibly prominent in the air…

For those of you who don’t know what hot springs smell like, imagine it to be like rotten eggs!

The steam emanating from the multiple hot springs can only be described as a warm egg sandwich hug; something which Matt found hilarious when I first said it! While the steam certainly isn’t pleasant in smell, it more than makes up for it in the heat that it produces. This was especially appreciated considering that it was so cold!

We spent another 50 minutes wandering around the hot springs and watching the larger Strokkur erupt, as well as the smaller ones attempting to!

The pretty springs and mighty juts of hot water from Strokkur will more than makeup for the smell.

While these pictures look like we were very close to the hot springs, we were still well within the little ‘fence’ perimeter around the springs.

As the water can get as hot as 80°C – 100°C, you really need to keep your distance. Our tour guide informed us that many people try and touch the water to see for themselves, but it’s been known that people have been to hospital due to injuries relating to the hot water!

It’s also a good idea to note that the nearest hospital is around 40 minutes away, so you really need to resist dipping your fingers in!

The hot springs were so cool to see and such a beautiful (albeit very smelly) stop on the Golden Circle Iceland itinerary.

Skálholt Cathedral – Golden Circle Tour

Our fourth and final stop on the Golden Circle Tour of Iceland was also arguably the least exciting. However, it was still a pretty beautiful place to see nonetheless.

We were actually supposed to head to another waterfall instead (although I can’t remember the name of it!) but we were unable to as the only road to get there was closed. Instead, we made our way to Skálholt Cathedral for our final stop of the day.

Skálholt Cathedral is relatively new and was only built in 1956. While it’s certainly not as grand as the York Minster, it was still nice to get a glimpse into Icelandic Christian history.

The interior of the cathedral contains 25 pieces of stained glass artwork by famous Icelander, Gerður Helgadóttir. It’s also home to an abstract altarpiece of Jesus, with the surrounding area of Iceland in the background.

The surrounding landscape around the cathedral was truly remarkable. There were rolling hills, fields and beautiful mountains everywhere you looked. It was a particularly spectacular place to see on our last stop on the Golden Circle Tour in Iceland.

It felt incredibly isolated in the middle of nowhere but also remarkably peaceful. While I would have loved to see the other waterfall, I really didn’t mind that this was our alternative stop.

After taking plenty of pictures of our stunning surroundings, we made our way back onto the coach for our journey home.

It took around an hour and a half to arrive back in central Reykjavík.

Our Gray Line coach promptly dropped us back at bus stop number 6 at around 5.30 PM. We then headed home to prepare for the evening of more celebrations for his 21st birthday.

The Golden Circle Iceland Tour was certainly the best thing we did during our time in the country. It’s definitely a must-do in order to see more of the beautiful Icelandic countryside.

Book a Golden Circle Full-Day Tour from Reykjavík here!

Bonus day trip in Iceland – Northern Lights Tour

As well as the epic Golden Circle route and itinerary, Iceland is also famed for being one of the best places in the world to see the Northern Lights.

Unfortunately, our experience of seeing the Northern Lights in Iceland was very limited as it was far too cloudy to see anything.

If you are lucky enough to see the Northern Lights, this is what you can expect from your tour in Iceland…

Book a Northern Lights Tour from Reykjavík here!

If it’s considered to be a ‘clear’ day, then they’ll let you know via email whether your tour will still go ahead. Failing that, the Gray Line tourist office is located right in the city centre of Reykjavík, so if you’re staying in the centre, it’s easy to pop in and check to see whether the tour is running.

Our tour was organised for the first night that we arrived in Iceland. Attraction Tix and Gray Line do this as if the tour is cancelled on your first night, they’ll easily reschedule it for the second night of your trip so that you don’t miss out (which is why I’d recommend visiting Iceland for at least two nights!).

We were collected at 8 PM from bus stop 6 and were greeted by a coach full of around 65 people who were all embarking on the same adventure. Our tour guide was incredibly lovely and she provided us with ample information about what we could expect from the tour, as well as what the Northern Lights actually were.

The first stop on our tour was a ski cabin, around 45 minutes from Reykjavík city centre. It was here that we were told that we might catch a glimpse of the elusive Northern Lights, but it was more of a stop to grab a hot drink and use the toilet.

The ski cabin was incredibly cute and cosy and certainly didn’t look out of place in the middle of nowhere. When visiting the ski cabin, it’s important to bear in mind that it won’t just be your tour bus there; there were at least a dozen other buses visiting the cabin and wanting to catch a glimpse of the magic.

We stayed at the cabin for just over an hour and a half and while you could see the Northern Lights very faintly in the sky above us, they weren’t the brightly coloured green that you expect to see. We did grab a hot chocolate from the ski cabin, however, and then made our way back to the coach for the next stop on our tour.

As it was so incredibly dark on our Northern Lights Tour, I really struggled to get many pictures of anything so the above pictures are from another day in Reykjavík, oops!

The next stop on our Northern Lights tour was essentially in the middle of nowhere, close to a petrol station. Again, there were many other buses with us at this stop, with hundreds of people desperate to snap a picture of the elusive green lights!

Unfortunately, the night sky was so cloudy and so the Lights were pretty much nonexistent. It was also freezing cold outside so we could barely stand outside for more than five minutes at a time!

Despite not being able to get a proper sighting of the Northern Lights, I’d still highly recommend embarking on the GO SEE DO Northern Lights part of the tour as it was a great experience and if you do get the chance to see the Lights, it’ll make for a truly memorable experience!

Book a Norther Lights Tour from Reykjavík here!

Pin for later – Golden Circle Iceland itinerary

Have you ever been on the Golden Circle and Northern Lights Tour in Iceland? Is it something that’s on your bucket list? Let me know in the comments or on Twitter at @imjustagirl_16.