My Hosted Trip To Iceland

We talk a lot about 'making memories' in this job, and also about 'bucket list adventures'. I have to say, this adventure was just that, I made 100s of those magic memories.

You can pack a lot into 4 days in the land of fire and ice: Iceland - a fascinating country, full of amazing places to visit and experience wonderful adventure.

I have been to three destinations in my life where the Northern Lights can be seen, but unfortunately, they have never made an appearance. On our first evening we headed out on our Northern Lights cruise (getting out to sea is definitely the best place to see them), the chances of seeing them are graded 0 – 9 with 9 being “you will see them”. Our guide explained that the readings were showing the classification as a 2. We still sat eagerly searching the skies as it is not unusual for them to make an appearance, even with a low grading. Unfortunately they did not appear.

One of the benefits of the Northern Lights cruise we book is that you can go back a second time if sightings were not successful. We all got back on board on night number two, again full of positive thoughts that they would make an appearance to be told again that the reading was once again 2.

However, it just goes to show that what they say is right. After around 30 minutes, the sky started to change, the clouds parted and there they were and what an amazing display we witnessed!!

It is a huge "must experience" tick for me, and all my clients who were onboard were also equally thrilled! At one point, we had a Northern Lights rainbow going right over our heads (unfortunately, video does not pick them up). It was stunning

On day I and 8 of our group headed out to sea, Whale Watching. This part of the world has great marine life all year round and Whales can often be spotted in the harbour. You can often see porpoises, dolphins Humpback whales and Minke whales. It is, of course, never guaranteed you will see any as they are wild animals, but we were so fortunate! 4 different Minke Whales, which were the first to be seen this year.

After a quick lunch stop of traditional soup in a bread bowl washed down with a pint of Gull (which was delicious) we all headed off to one of the 25 Wonders of the World, the Blue Lagoon.

The Blue Lagoon is actually much bigger than I thought and it did not disappoint. There was so much space to spread out (some of the areas were very hot where the thermal springs come in) and it was great fun slapping on a silica mask and sipping some surprisingly nice sparking white wine! We spent a good 2 hours in there and to be honest, I think we could have all stayed longer, it was so relaxing.

The shower and changing facilities are excellent, no need to take things with you as everything is provided and the comfort experience is definitely worth paying for.

Day three was a full day out enjoying the stunning sights and scenery around us.

We all felt like VIPs in the £130k (!) super jeeps, swanning around the Golden Circle like celebrities!

The Golden Circle tour is a popular experience when visiting Reykjavik. However, travelling by Super Jeep takes it to a whole new level. Coaches and hire cars are not allowed past where the geysers are due to the terrain and unpredictability of the weather. Being able to travel to the Glacier was amazing and we went high into the mountains. I have always recommend this elevated experience to my clients, and now, having done it myself, I know how much better it is!

We started at the stunning Thingvellir UNESCO World Heritage site where you are between American and Pan Asia-European tectonic plates. You are actually walking on a fault line in this area and it is a beautiful. It is somewhere in the summer where you could pack a picnic and disappear off away from the main footpaths.

The fact that the majestic Gullfoss Falls was not frozen (as it normally is at this time of year) was a bonus as we saw the sheer power of the water.

It is fascinating to watch the Geysers bubbling and blowing knowing all this energy is coming from under the ground you are stood on and then the stunning blue sky from the top of the glacier as we zipped along on snow mobiles was something I will never forget

It is hard to sum up what an amazing trip this was. Hallgrímskirkja (the large church) is even more impressive than I imagined and the city is so easy to navigate on foot. The rainbow-road didn't disappoint with the sunshine making the colours even brighter

Undoubtedly, food and drinks are expensive but we found some quirky places to eat and never had a bad meal.

All the group had a great time and as above, I will definitely be hosting another group trip to this beautiful part of the world in the near future so please let me know if you would like to come along!