Hi James,
Great advice. I'll put a car bit in first, the hire was an automatic Yaris (4dr "upgrade" from the 2dr economy manual we ordered). Maybe it's because the last auto I drove for any time was a 2.7 twin turbo Jaguar S-Type diesel, but the gearbox in that Yaris was utterly terrible. The E mode, fully automated was like driving with a drunk working the gears - changing at odd times, lurching when it did and having a swift half between gears. The manual +/- mode was better but no improvement over a proper manual. Good to travel in though, ate the 300-odd miles we put onto it no problem over a variety of roads and tracks easily enough.
We got to Gullfoss and Geyser, both very good. Thingvellir was OK but no great shakes after the other two. Would have loved to do the full circuit but the gravel bits we did we were enough for me and we only had three days.
Managed to get to the Blue Lagoon and saw the Northern Lights on the first night, quite incredible. Also saw whales and dolphins and the glacier and the Icelandic Football team. Not bad for the time we were there.
If anyone gets the chance to go over soon, I'd recommend it - the Krona is taking a dive meaning fuel is cheaper than here (crowbarring motoring links) so it's not as eyewateringly expensive as it has been in the past. I wouldn't take a taxi from the airport to Reykjavik though, it's about 60 kms....There are a lot of bored looking journalists about though.
Thanks again for all the advice
Lee
Edited by Citroënian {P} on 14/10/2008 at 00:36
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Glad you enjoyed yourself Lee! It really is a fantastic place.
Just to add one final recommendation for anyone else, the best option from the airport to Reykjavik is the bus (I think called the Flybus). There is a service after each incoming flight and it will take you to your hotel in Reykjavik. As you get on you tell the driver where you want to go and when he has everyone's destinations he will tell you the order of the stops. Very good service and quite cheap - no need to bother with taxis.
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Citroenian
we are off to Iceland on the 25th for 5 nights - booked a Grand Vitara - and we are hoping to get round as many sites as possible.
how did you get round your Euros/banks closed problem? Where all the usual places taking credit cards?
Thanks
MPZ
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MPZ
Might be an idea to take your own food; Bloomberg reported yesterday that the Icelanders were stripping the supermarkets bare. With no viable currency; they can't import anything.
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MPZ,
Everyone just uses plastic for everything - saw people buying a hotdog and coke (£2.50) with them in the brilliant kiosk in Reykjavik. We took Euros but of course the banks were closed Sat/Sun so we couldn't change them. Should think during the week it wouldn't be a problem.
Saw a few people with dollars and they accepted these at the airport but not sure elsewhere.
Shoehorning a motoring link, no problem buying petrol with chip and pin - fully automated pumps in some places, one terminal for all four pumps but they can change their language to English without too much trouble.
Grand Vitara will be good on the unpaved roads but take care as james hinted above.
You'll have a great time, we absolutely loved it. The Northern Lights are quite something.
Lee
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Been there twice this year, in August and again at the start of this month, just as the financial situation was becoming apparent. Read an Observer story online whilst I was there about panic buying of imported foodstuffs like olive oil, can't say I noticed it at all in the various supermarkets I visited though. Maybe different now, but can't see it being a huge problem, to be honest, the shops were all well stocked, and they produce a surprising amount of fruit and veg themselves, in geothermally-heated glasshouses.
Hired a car both times I was there - can be expensive, but I used comparison sites like Car Rentals and Kayak, and got a decent deal both times - the October trip saw the price fall to just 38 quid a day, and both hires were handled by Avis. Take care where you drive in your hired motor - your insurance won't cover you on roads specified as off-road (think these are prefixed with an F) unless you've hired a 4x4, and even then, no insurance cover is provided for any vehicle which is lost crossing water.
Booked cheapest category both times (3-door manual with no air con), and got a minor upgrade - 5-door Corsa first time, 5-door Subaru Justy the second, which had air con.
Corsa was standard mid-range spec, with the popular Icelandic option of heated seats! Justy was very well equipped, had a nice ride and didn't feel like a small car, but the three-cylinder, 1.0 engine (same as Aygo, 107 and C1, I believe) was rough under anything more than gentle acceleration, and felt quite gutless too. Gearbox was a bit naff also.
One thing to look out for - daylight running headlights are compulsory in Iceland, and not all cars are wired to automatically put the lights on with the ignition - drove half a day in the Justy before I realised this was the case!
Also, speeding is quite frowned upon by the police, and many of their cars appear to be fitted with some kind of forward-mounted radar, so that car on the horizon coming towards you might already be clocking you speeding before you see what it is!
Max speed limit anywhere is 90kph, although I believe there are plans to up this on the country's best road - the dual carriageway between the airport at Keflavik and Reykjavik itself (Reykjavik does have its own airport on the edge of the city, but it's for domestic flights usually - international flights land at Keflavik, some 30 miles or so from Reykjavik). This dual carriageway is still not finished along its entire length, though, and the signs and markings at contraflows is not quite up to UK standards, so be careful, especially in the dark!
The main roads around Reykjavik are generally broad boulevards of sorts, but in the old town centre, can be fairly narrow with speed bumps. Red light cameras also exist at major junctions on the broad boulevards, but I didn't see a single fixed speed camera, although warning signs are posted occasionally on the main Route 1 round the island.
Route 1 is largely single carriageway, but has overtaking lanes on gradients which can last for miles. The quality of roads is OK, but can be fairly undulating, but then, this is a geologically active country! I wouldn't say the road to Geysir and Gulfoss on the Golden Circle is unmetalled, but it does have short sections of compacted fine gravel, a bit like a country road here that's just been resurfaced. The road to Thingvellir is partially unmade, though.
I'd urge you to go beyond the main tourist route there, though, and don't be put off by the appearance from the road of towns like Selfoss and Vik - the truck stops and farm machinery showrooms soon peter out, and as you head along the south coast, you pass some spectacular waterfalls and volcanic landscapes. We headed east to Jokulsarlon, about 250 miles from Reykjavik, a glacial lagoon with floating icebergs which are carried out to sea under a suspension bridge. This was frozen for the Jag Vs Aston scene in the Bond flick, Die Another Day. You'll see some spectacular sights along the way too, such as the fingers of the glaciers coming out of mountains, and vast empty plains of black volcanic sand. Wee bit more caution advised on Route 1 here, as some bridges are single track with wooden or metal decks, and any remnants of snow, as there was a fortnight ago, can appear unexpectedly. There's a monument in the form of huge twisted girders to mark the eruption in the mid-90s of a volcano under the glacier nearby - the resultant glacial floods swept the bridge away and blocked the road for a long time.
Also keep an eye on fuel, petrol stations are few and far between in some areas. As mentioned, these can often be entirely automated, even during the day. You'll sometimes be asked to put in a max amount, just stick the highest you expect it to be, you shouldn't be charged for the whole amount if you put less in. Many petrol stations have cafes attached, which although not sophisticated, are cheapish and easy. Petrol was about 180 ISK a litre, diesel about 200.
As also mentioned, everyone pays for everything with cards - even a round in the pub. Doesn't take too much looking around to find pints (well, half litres!) for 600 ISK, about 3 quid at current rates. Check out a free paper called Grapevine, available in many pubs and shops - it's in English and has a section on what pubs are currently charging for beer!
As for cars you'll find there, it's a real curious mix - a legacy of the landscape and the American base which was still there until only a few years ago. Huge 4x4s, including giant Japanese and American models not really seen here, loads of modified examples with giant axles and tyres, a fair few old Yank Tanks, Buicks, Chevys, etc, mostly all getting on a bit. Best way to view this assortment is to hang about the main drag in Reykjavik on a Friday and Saturday night - it's just a long but narrow poky one-way street which changes names three times along its length, but the younger generation like to show off their metal at night, during what is referred to as the Runtur. This literally means something like Round Tour, and is a quaint modern equivalent of the American cruising scene of the 1950s! Nightlife is fairly raucous at weekends, and goes on till around 7am!
Standards of Icelandic driving are generally OK, but expect tailgating, and a few roadside warnings of the dangers of foolhardy driving take the form of actual wrecked cars from fatal accidents.
One last tip - buy some booze at the duty free when you arrive if you anticipate drinking outside of pubs and clubs at any point - the state-owned off licences keep short hours and expensive prices, and Keflavik is one of the few airports in the world with a duty free shop in arrivals - although the guards at customs will usually take a peek in your Duty Free bag to make sure you don't exceed the limits on the way out of baggage reclaim. Best beer for my money was called Viking!
Oh, and yes, the ladies, they are indeed fine!
Oh, another last tip - it's a very windy place, keep hold of your car door when opening it! I nearly lost mine in the car park of the Blue Lagoon, would have hated to have to explain that to the hire company!
Edited by XantKing on 16/10/2008 at 19:20
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