Week in November

You are aware that except day 1 these days have extremely long drives. - daylight is short and weather may be miserable?
You are probably arriving day 0 and flying out day 7? You are sure you won't need an extra day to catch up any delays?
Basically you will spend all daylight hours ( there will be less than 7! ) and probably some dark hours behind the steering wheel if you want just a few breaks for food and sightseeing.

Din't know why you will rent a 4WD as all the interior roads will be closed for the winter.

Would it be best if we just did the southern part of the island?

Some of the reviews I read said that we should have a car with winter tyres just in case there is snow, so that was my plan.

South Iceland is doable. This time of the year give Reykjavik 1,5 days. City life may be attractive in November.
Winter tyres are fine ( probably standard? check?) - ABS and ESP is ( hopefully) standard and costs nothing. 4WD is no real advantage and actually gives a dangerous false feeling of security - and costs a lot extra.

I think you could either choose the South (Reykjavik-Vik-maybe Hofn) or North (flight to Akureyri and then rental car from Akureyri to get around Myvatn area).

In November the weather can be horrible. I was going by bus from Akureyri to Reykjavik on the 1st of November few years ago and I had to change plans and fly since it suddenly started to snow so much that ring road was closed. The weather changed from great to horrible in an hour. And I believe that's nothing extreme, just Icelandic weather.

Also driving in the darkness with bad weather (wind, black ice, sleet, rain) is tiring. Winter tires is a must but they can't do miracles. If you do any sightseeing, the driving will be in the darkness since days are short in November.

You will definitely enjoy more if you choose shorter route and make a flexible schedule.

Doing the ring road in six days is a challenge in July, in November it would be hard work for little gain - and risky to boot. I'd recommend either the south coast as far as the glacial lagoon and back or perhaps Snæfellsnes and the golden circle.

Winter tires are pretty much mandatory in November - insurance companies get upset if you are involved in any kind of accident where braking action might be an issue and are using summer tires. If your car rental company says otherwise find a different company.

While I normally question the need for 4wd (as Bjoern says the roads that really require it are closed and the locals seem to get by without) - if you can afford a 4x4 it would have the advantage of lifting you further off the ground - which can be a huge advantage in blowing snow.

Make sure you have warm clothes in the car in case you get stuck for a few hours - you will be rescued eventually but the car will probably be a pretty cold place by then.

Hey,

I went to Iceland in November a few years ago with my husband. We found most roads a few hours outside of Reykjavik to be closed and/or not safe for driving in small rental car (and we are from Canada so are use to driving in snow).

We were in the country for 7 days and based our whole trip from Reykjavik. We rented an apartment in the city from Apartment K and poked into a few hostels all of which looked great. During our week we spent one day doing a guided golden circle tour, another day we went horse back riding, spent a following day caving and snorkeling, and then a few days to explore the city (you can also go to the blue lagoon, do a northern lights tour etc.)...Basically, you can easily fill a week staying in Reykjavik and touring from there.

Also if you base your trip in Reykjavik there is not need to rent a car. From the airport to your accommodation you can take the Fly Bus (very easy to use, highly recommend), and anywhere of interest within 3 hours of the city you can find a guided tour. All the day tours we took picked us up from our accommodation and were good value for money especially given the weather/road conditions.

If you do want to rent a car and drive yourself I would suggest getting something a bit bigger than an economy car. Also we noticed most locals had spiked tires...I would request those on a rental car as well. Even in the city the roads were completely iced over.

Also a note on day light...when we were there our longest day was about 5.5 hours of "light" and it was not super sunny. The sun rose around 10 and set before dinner. It was an amazing experience to have such little light but, it would make driving difficult.

I hope you have an amazing trip! I thought Iceland in the winter was fantastic...no matter what you do on your trip Iceland will not disappoint :) Also I second the recommendation for warm cloths!

Sarah.

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