Iceland, Day 1 (+ Departure)

We decided on taking a flight (partly due to prices) out of our choice airport later in the day. We drove down from our house (hubby and I) to my mother’s house to drop off our two pups for the week. We flew out the day after Thanksgiving, taking a direct flight to Keflavik Airport as a red eye. We departed from our home airport around 1830 CST and arrived in Keflavik shortly before 0700 GMT. After deboarding and finding our one checked bag, we found our first problem - finding our camper rental shuttle. We had opted for an eSIM through Vodafone vs. paying $30+/day for international spotty service to help us keep in touch with family as well as using Google Maps to guide us (while also watching their government sites for minute-by-minute road condition changes). The car shuttle was going and we thought maybe that was it, but we were wrong. We followed the directions given to us via the camper website and the emails about how to find the private shuttle, but after almost 2 hours of meandering around we were almost out of luck (tried a taxi, but refused due to short drive time), but stumbled across it finally. We saw what the problem was - the driver looked around for maybe 20 seconds, then left, and didn’t return to the airport until guests from their rental service needed to be shuttled back to the airport. Rest assured, it was due to the off season travelers (or lack thereof) and we were able to get to where we needed to be and get our rental camper for the next 9 days without issue. Once we received our campervan, the first stop was to a grocery store (Bonús) to get some items for the week as well as a little snacky snack for me (4 months pregnant makes you hungry all the time). We opted for not going to Kerid Crater and instead went to Haukadalur & Gullfoss for our first stops. This wasn’t a super long drive, thankfully.

After this stop, we headed to the Lava Show in Reykjavik. This was a truly unique experience. The gentleman who was doing the show was currently studying geology and volcanology at the University of Iceland and was able to explain all the elements of what was going on in the show in a way that even children could understand and kept everyone engaged. Yes, real lava really is used in the show. They melt the “leftover” cooled lava in a super furnace to reuse it throughout all of their shows. We did do the VIP experience, which included a backstage look at the furnace, a piece of lava rock, and a free drink. We also got prime seating upstairs (the view was well worth it). Adam got a beer to try and I stuck with soda.

After the Lava Show, we headed to Sky Lagoon. The first of a handful of hot springs we will visit throughout the week. When we got to Sky Lagoon, we showered (a must at each one) and then went to check out the pools. We quickly decided to get a small snack from their cafe before it closed (Ham & Cheese toastie and a bagel w/ smoked salmon). We then chose to go through the 7 step ritual they offer before we headed back out to the pools until it was closing time. The outside world definitely had a bite to it (the wind more than the air itself), so the pool was nice and relaxing. We then took another shower before getting dressed and heading off to our campsite for the night - Skogafoss. Once we got there (2 hours later, but right next to the waterfall), we parked, set up our beds and closed the blinds before changing and attempting to sleep (6 hour time change is tricky to get used to). Not the comfiest place to sleep, but it isn’t the worst either. Day 2 should be packed with fun and we cannot wait!