Thanks for the prep help and now I am home from my trip.

Just want to say thank you for those on this site.....especially those from Island, who helped with advice as I planned my trip. Now I am home after spending three weeks in Iceland but my mind is still there. I was so glad I got to see it in the fall with all the beautiful autumn golds of the landscape. Dramatic scenery and fabulous waterfalls. The thing I loved the most were the farms.....set up on the bench under the cliffs, each with their own waterfall to supply water to the farm and the plastic covered hay rolls in the green field. How come I could not find one postcard with a picture of a farm on it? I spent two weeks going around the ring road by bus...staying five nights in Akureyri...four in Hofn and a few more in Vik, Skogar and Hveragerdi. It was very easy to get around by bus although there was usually just one bus a day and I got the last bus of the summer season through the NE part of the country. The bus did not just stick to the ring road.....we took a few detours to fjord communities.

There is a circular whole day tour out of Akureyri that goes to Myvatn lake, Dettifoss, then circles up over and down to Husavik and back to Akureyri that I especially recommend.....you get your moneys worth. It stops at Asbyrgi which was just beautiful and a big surprise to me because I had never heard of the place before. The Golden Circle tour is very good too. If you like rural life....make sure you visit the Skogar Folk Museum. Look out for the free history walk in Reykjavik.....lots of fun and interesting.....a tip is expected. Loved exploring the streets of Reykjavik.

Stayed at a few HI hostels as I went around and all were good. Take a sleeping bag liner for your sheets so you do not have to pay extra for linen and they will provide a duvet. In Akureyri I stayed at the Akureyri Backpackers in the main street and in Reykjavik I stayed for a week at the wonderful Hlemmur Square hostel/hotel. Do not be afraid of staying in the 12 bed womens dorm there.....the room is huge with lounge chairs etc. Best way to save money is to cook oatmeal for breakfast every morning and enjoy it with the creamy local milk.......otherwise you are going to pay $10-$15 for breakfast. Meals are expensive in Iceland.....at least the water is good and free from the tap. Oh....and I recommend the big lunch meal at the Akureyri library.

Aloha

Thanks for the report!

Can you give us a rough overall cost total (not including flights)?

Hi Lucapal......I came in at about US$800 a week.... I was.willing to spend on the expensive tours but not so much for expensive meals.

Ok,thanks!

There is one more travel tip I would like to add on to my notes above. This I actually got from people staying at the hostels who were traveling around the country by car. They had very informative travel guides for driving around the ring road that they had printed off the HIhostel Icleand website.....so you might want to check that out if you are planning on renting a car in Iceland.