We arrived in Reykjavik early in the morning, and of course we are not going to waste the day! We decided to squeeze in the golden circle for our first day in Iceland. I was worried that it would be too rushed at first, but thinking back, it was a perfect warm-up for the rest of our time in Iceland and I probably wouldn’t spend more than 1 day because I felt like it is slightly overrated and the rest of the country has so much more to offer!
Þingvellir (Thingvellir) National Park - This is the first national park in Iceland and a world heritage site. The whole area lies on top of a huge fissure caused by multiple volcano eruptions, which creates a unique and interesting landscape. Besides the nature, Thingvellir also has cultural significance to Icelanders because this is where a lot of the important meetings were held and where important decisions were made.
Efstidalur II - This is a farm restaurant, which offers fresh meals and delicious ice-cream from their own livestock.
Brúarfoss - There are countless waterfalls (or foss in Icelandic) in Iceland, and this is one of the bluest ones (so I have heard). It is about 3 miles round trip to the Brúarfoss and on the way, you will also pass by a couple smaller waterfalls as well. I would recommend going earlier in the day, as the angle of sun could affect the “blueness” of the waterfall. When you searched the waterfall online, people are calling it the secret / hidden waterfall in the golden circle, but I think enough people have gone there (thanks to the internet) and now it is just one of the many waterfalls people go to. To be fair, there are fewer people compared to the other attractions but I think it is simply because this is a longer hike. We definitely saw quite a number of people and the signs / path are very developed.
Friðheimar - This is our lunch spot of the day. It is one of the 2 big tomato green houses in the country. As you can imagine, the climate in Iceland is a little harsh, and therefore it is very difficult to grow anything. Icelanders built their own eco-friendly green houses to grow things like tomatoes and cucumbers, and the products are mainly for domestic use. We ordered tomato soup and ravioli with tomato sauce to taste their delicious tomatoes!
Geysir - This is a geothermal area where you can see water sprouts out of the geysir 30 meters into the air! It is pretty cool!
Gullfoss - Another amazing waterfall, and it is only a short walk from the parking to the actual waterfall.
Faxi - It is also called the Vatnsleysufoss. We originally thought that we would be sick of seeing waterfalls after a while, but each and everyone of them are so unique in its way that I can’t seem to get tired of the waterfalls!
Fish Company - This is an amazing dinner spot that closes pretty late, highly recommended! We recommend either getting seafood or beef/lamb because those ingredients are local and fresh. Dairy product is also one other must-try around here (think about all those grass-fed sheep and cow)! We ordered two dishes (lobster and fish) and one dessert (whipped milk chocolate ganache & toasted hazelnuts, caramelized puff pastry & noisette ice-cream), and we are blown away by the food here! We always thought in Europe, if we are not in France, Spain or Italy, the food is so-so, but the food in Iceland is surprisingly good (and expensive!!!).
See below for a midnight view from our Airbnb. It looks like the sun is setting, but the sun comes up before it sets completely. So if you are not tired, you can literally be out there 24/7 to explore this beautiful country!
