Iceland has always been on my bucket list of places to visit. After seeing Justin Bieber’s music videos taking place in Iceland around 2015-2016, I knew I just had to go there for myself one day.
Coming from the UK, Iceland is an easy sub 3 hour flight from London which lands you right next to Reykjavík. I’m really happy that we ended up renting a car for our trip and were able to drive around, explore and go exactly where we wanted, when we wanted.
While most tourists usually visit Iceland in the summer (you get longer days with more sunlight that are obviously warmer), it never struck me to not go in the winter to get the full Nordic effect. Because Iceland is essentially an island just made of volcanoes, the biodiversity of the country was really cool to see in person. Every half hour or so when driving the landscape would change completely from a frozen tundra, to mossy rocks, to grassy plains, and back again.
I brought my film camera with me and loaded it with Kodak Gold 200, which in hindsight wasn’t the best choice for all the low light situations I was faced with (there’s only like 6 hours of daylight in the winter time), but I was still able to make some interesting images.
Best Things to do in Iceland :
- Rent a car to get around
- 100% worth it so you can take Iceland in at your own pace
- Check out an ice cave and/or glacier
- You can’t visit an ice cave or a glacier without a professional guide for safety and conservation reasons so you definitely need to plan ahead for this one as tours book up fast
- If you can splurge for a private guided tour, I would recommend it so you’re not being rushed around
- Check out the Golden Circle if you have time
- This is a popular series of interest points that can be toured from Reykjavík over the course of a day, it’s impressive but also very touristy, you’ve been warned
- Visit as many geothermal pools as possible
- This is something I’m personally very passionate about, all the natural chemical free and mineral rich bathing you could ever want!
- The dip we had at the oldest geothermal pool in Iceland before bed was my favourite one aside from the Blue Lagoon
- Splurge on the Blue Lagoon Spa
- This is a yolo moment because let’s face it, this place ain’t cheap but for me? Totally worth it
- The silica minerals in the water make your skin feel awesome the next day and do a little face mask too if you can
- Taste the local Icelandic cuisine
- Icelandic Char, yum!
Vanessa Tam is a Vancouver, Canada based photographer, writer and digital marketer that’s currently open to new projects. Hit her up with your ideas; let’s work together!
