Reykjavik 5-Day Itinerary: The Classic Iceland Week
From Reykjavik: Snæfellsnes Peninsula Full-Day Tour
Five days gives you enough time to go beyond the Golden Circle and South Coast circuit that every 3-day trip covers, and still feel like you’ve experienced Iceland properly rather than just seen its loudest highlights. The addition here is Snæfellsnes Peninsula — a 90 km finger of land that packs glaciers, volcanoes, fishing villages, and sea cliffs into a single day.
This plan also gives you time to slow down at Þingvellir, take the glacier path at Sólheimajökull, and experience Reykjavik without the rushed energy of a weekend trip.
Arrival assumed: Monday or Tuesday. Departure: Saturday or Sunday. A rental car is needed from Day 2 onwards — a 2WD manual (category A or B) handles everything in this itinerary.
Day 1: Reykjavik
Do not try to fit in a tour on arrival day. Flight delays, jet lag, and the need to orient yourself will punish anyone who books a Golden Circle tour for the afternoon they land.
Afternoon: Walk the City
Walk from your hotel to Hallgrímskirkja and up the tower (1,100 ISK / ~€7). Then walk Skólavörðustígur down to Laugavegur. The street takes about 20 minutes to walk fully. Note the cafes you want to revisit. Look at the restaurants and their prices before committing to anything.
The Old Harbour (Grandi) is a 15-minute walk west. The Mál og menning bookshop at Laugavegur 18 has good maps and travel writing about Iceland in English. The Whales of Iceland museum (2,900 ISK / ~€19) near the harbour is excellent; FlyOver Iceland (3,500 ISK / ~€24) is a fun ride but not essential.
Tjörnin pond and the city hall are free. The Settlement Exhibition (1,900 ISK / ~€13) on Aðalstræti gives you the Viking-age foundation story in an hour. See Reykjavik museums and attractions.
For a full list of free options: free things to do in Reykjavik.
Dinner
The Reykjavik food and drink guide covers the honest options. Skip the tourist-facing lobster soup places near the harbour unless you’ve specifically checked reviews. Good mid-range options: Snaps (Þórsgata), Matur og Drykkur (Grandagarður), Grillmarkadurinn (Lækjargata).
Evening: Northern Lights or Midnight Sun
Sep–Apr: Book a Northern Lights tour for tonight. It is your best chance at a city-based departure, and you have four more nights to try again if conditions are poor.
Northern Lights tour with lifetime guarantee from ReykjavikRead best Northern Lights tours from Reykjavik for a comparison of formats. The Northern Lights season guide covers KP forecasting and realistic expectations.
May–Aug: Walk the seafront at 11 p.m. See midnight sun in Iceland for the best dates and viewpoints.
Day 2: Golden Circle
Pick up the rental car before 8 a.m. and depart by 8:30. Road 36 from Reykjavik runs directly to Þingvellir in 45 minutes.
Route: Þingvellir → Geysir → Gullfoss → Kerið → Reykjavik. ~250 km total, 8–9 hours with stops.
Þingvellir National Park
Walk the Almannagjá rift gorge (free, 45 min). The tectonic divergence is visible at the surface — you’re literally standing between two continents. The Alþingi parliament met here from 930 AD in the open air, with the Law Rock as the speaker’s platform. Þingvellir became a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2004.
The water in the flooded rift sections (including the Silfra fissure) is glacial meltwater filtered through lava for decades, producing some of the clearest freshwater on earth. Snorkelling here requires advance booking and drysuit certification. See Silfra snorkelling and diving.
Silfra snorkelling and Golden Circle tour with free photosGeysir and Gullfoss
Strokkur erupts every 5–10 minutes. You need 30 minutes minimum to photograph a good eruption. The café at the Geysir Centre is overpriced; the gift shop sells volcanic rock and Icelandic wool if that’s your thing.
Gullfoss is 9 km east on Road 35. The lower viewing platform (steep path, 5 min) gets you close enough for the spray. Allow 45 minutes including the upper and lower platforms. In winter, partial ice formations around the edges add drama.
See the full Golden Circle complete guide.
Golden Circle full-day guided tour from ReykjavikKerið Crater
400 ISK / ~€3. A short detour on the return to Reykjavik. Red-ochre volcanic caldera, green lake at the bottom. Walk the rim and descend to the water’s edge. 20–30 minutes. Most tours skip it; self-drivers should not. For the full Golden Circle self-drive vs tour comparison.
Return by 6–7 p.m.
Day 3: South Coast
Depart 7:30–8 a.m. The South Coast crowds build at Seljalandsfoss after 10 a.m. and at Reynisfjara by midday.
Route: Seljalandsfoss → Gljúfrabúi → Skógafoss → Sólheimajökull → Reynisfjara → Vík → back to Reykjavik. ~440 km round trip, 5 hours driving.
Seljalandsfoss and Gljúfrabúi
The path behind Seljalandsfoss is the main attraction — wear waterproofs. Then walk 750 m east to Gljúfrabúi: a taller, more dramatic waterfall inside a canyon slot that most tourists miss entirely. Cross a shallow stream to enter. This is consistently better than Seljalandsfoss and has almost no crowds.
Skógafoss and the Valley Above
Climb the 527 steps alongside the falls for the valley view above. In June–August, puffins nest on the sea cliffs near Dyrhólaey (15 km west of Vík, mid-afternoon). The Skógar Folk Museum next to the falls is free and covers traditional Icelandic turf-house living.
Sólheimajökull Glacier
Walk to the glacier tongue from the carpark (free, 15 min). For a guided hike with crampons and ice axes on the glacier surface, two-hour tours operate from the carpark. Book in advance; summer dates fill fast.
South Coast and glacier hike from ReykjavikSee glacier hikes and ice caves for the full booking guide.
Reynisfjara Black Sand Beach
Walk to the basalt caves (Hálsanefshellir) on the right side of the beach. Do not approach the waterline — sneaker waves kill people here. Stay 30+ metres back. The Reynisdrangar sea stacks offshore are the best-photographed element after the basalt columns.
Vík
Fuel, soup, and a 15-minute stop to look up at the hilltop church. The black sand beach below the church (Víkurfjara) is slightly calmer than Reynisfjara but still requires wave caution. See Vík and South Coast destination.
Return to Reykjavik by 9–10 p.m. See South Coast complete guide.
Day 4: Snæfellsnes Peninsula
This is the day most 3-day itineraries miss. The Snæfellsnes Peninsula is often called “Iceland in miniature” — everything the country offers (glaciers, lava fields, fishing villages, sea birds, dramatic coastal cliffs) compressed into one accessible peninsula.
Drive from Reykjavik: 2–2.5 hours northwest on Route 1 then Route 54.
The full loop is roughly 270 km. Allow 10–11 hours including driving and stops. Depart 7:30–8 a.m.; return by 8–9 p.m.
Kirkjufell and Kirkjufellsfoss
The most photographed mountain in Iceland and the unmistakable outline from multiple Game of Thrones scenes (it’s the “Arrowhead Mountain”). The waterfall (Kirkjufellsfoss) in the foreground is the iconic composition. The carpark is 2 minutes from the viewpoint. Arrive before 9 a.m. to avoid the tour bus wave.
There is a moderately difficult hiking trail to the summit (1.5–2 hours up) for those who want the view from the top.
Snæfellsjökull National Park
Jules Verne sent his characters into the earth through the Snæfellsjökull glacier in Journey to the Centre of the Earth (1864). The glacier still sits at the tip of the peninsula and is visible on clear days from Reykjavik 100 km away.
Djúpalónssandur: Black pebble beach with four lifting stones (traditional fishermen’s strength test) and the rusted remains of a British trawler wrecked in 1948. 20-minute walk from the carpark; genuinely atmospheric.
Arnarstapi and Hellnar: A 2.5 km coastal walk connects these two small villages via a basalt arch coastline. Arnarstapi has a striking stone arch (Gatklettur) where fulmars and other seabirds nest. Allow 1.5–2 hours for the return walk.
For a guided day tour without driving:
Snæfellsnes Peninsula full-day tour from ReykjavikSee the Snæfellsnes day trip guide for detailed stop-by-stop logistics, and Snæfellsnes Peninsula destination for the broader context.
Icelandic horses: Several farms along the Snæfellsnes road offer riding experiences. The Icelandic horse has a fifth gait, the tölt, unique to the breed. See Icelandic horse riding guide for how to book.
Return to Reykjavik by 8–9 p.m. Last evening in the city — try the restaurant you skipped on Day 1.
Day 5: Blue Lagoon + Departure
If flying afternoon or evening, the Blue Lagoon is the natural final stop. It sits on Route 41, 45 minutes from Reykjavik and 15 minutes from Keflavík airport.
Book your entry slot weeks in advance — the Blue Lagoon does not do reliable walk-ins, and prices are non-refundable. Comfort package (€75): silica mask, algae mask, drink, towel. Premium (€130): adds more drinks, face mask service, premium changing facilities. The Blue Lagoon complete guide covers what each package actually gets you.
Time your slot for 2.5–3 hours before you need to be at the airport. The drive from the lagoon to Keflavík is 15 minutes. Airport check-in typically needs 2 hours before departure.
Alternative: If flying in the morning (Day 5) or if you’d prefer a city morning, Sky Lagoon (20 min from central Reykjavik, ~€60–80) is worth it — infinity pool overlooking the ocean with the Snaefellsnes glacier visible on clear days. Compare both in Blue Lagoon vs Sky Lagoon.
A morning in Reykjavik on Day 5 before midday departure: Kolaportið flea market (weekends only) for Icelandic second-hand goods and smoked fish, a final coffee on Laugavegur, or the National Museum (2,500 ISK / ~€17) for two hours of Icelandic history.
Airport transfer logistics: Keflavík airport to Reykjavik.
Common Planning Mistakes on a 5-Day Trip
Trying to reach Jökulsárlón as a day trip: The glacier lagoon is 380 km from Reykjavik — 4.5 hours each way. A day trip is technically possible but leaves you with about 45 minutes at the lagoon before you must drive back. It’s a 10-hour day in the car for a 45-minute payoff. Either stay overnight near Höfn (the 7-day plan) or save Jökulsárlón for a future trip.
Under-booking Snæfellsnes time: The peninsula is 2–2.5 hours from Reykjavik each way. If you start the day at 9 a.m. you arrive at 11:30 a.m. and the tour buses are already at Kirkjufell. Depart 7:30 a.m. for Day 4 or the experience is rushed. It is a long drive but the peninsula rewards it.
Skipping Gljúfrabúi waterfall: On the South Coast day, 90% of visitors walk to Seljalandsfoss and miss the superior waterfall 750 m away. Do not be in that 90%.
Over-scheduling: Five days feels like plenty until you start adding activities. A glacier hike (2–3 hours), Silfra snorkelling (half day), horse riding (half day), and whale watching (2.5 hours) are all excellent but compete with the main day structure. Pick one add-on per day maximum.
Seasonal Notes
Sep–Apr: Northern Lights possible every night. Book tours for Days 1 and 4 at minimum. If Day 4 is a late return from Snæfellsnes (~9 p.m.), a northern lights tour departing at 10 p.m. is achievable.
Winter driving: Snæfellsnes roads are ploughed but can ice. Road 54 north of the peninsula is exposed to Atlantic weather. Check road.is before departing.
Summer only: Midnight sun means you’ll want to be outside late. Build in a late evening walk on at least two of the five nights.
Practical Notes
Car: A 2WD automatic or manual (category A/B) handles everything in this itinerary. All roads are paved, all sites accessible without 4WD. Fuel up before Snæfellsnes — petrol thins out on the peninsula; Grundarfjörður is the last reliable petrol on the north side of the loop.
Budget: Mid-range 5 days: roughly 100,000–150,000 ISK / ~€680–1,000 per person including accommodation, food, car rental, fuel, and activities. See Iceland cost and budget guide.
Best time: June–August for longest daylight and full access. September–October for Northern Lights and smaller crowds. March–April for winter experiences without full darkness. See best time to visit Iceland.
Winter modifications: Sólheimajökull glacier hike still runs; Katla ice cave opens (different from Vatnajökull blue caves). Snæfellsnes accessible with winter tyres. Northern Lights possible every night. See Iceland winter vs summer.
Packing: Waterproofs every day. Glacier hike requires warm base layers even in summer. See what to pack for Iceland.
Extending to 7 Days
This 5-day plan leaves Jökulsárlón glacier lagoon, the Vatnajökull ice caves, and the Highlands untouched. The 7-day itinerary from Reykjavik adds 2 days to push east to Jökulsárlón and Skaftafell, the two sites that genuinely expand what Iceland looks like beyond the southwest circuit. Summer extension with the Highlands: Iceland summer 5-day itinerary.
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