Usually, when we travel somewhere new I come back with a list of raves for different aspects of the trip. In Paris, it was: The crepes! And the wine! And the architecture! In Nashville, it’s always: The music! And the history! And the awesome vibe! In Costa Rica, it was: The weather! The colors! The incredible plants! And the fresh food!

With Iceland, there is only one rave and it is so fantastic, there’s no need for a whole list. It’s the landscape.

Between the internet and social media, I had seen a lot of photos of Iceland before we went on our trip. In a way, I thought being there in person wouldn’t be quite as fantastic because I’d seen so many pictures…

Just the opposite was true. I was in awe of how the pictures didn’t do the landscapes justice at all. It was incredible.

This trip was the last leg of our family trip to Denmark and Iceland. If you haven’t seen the post about our time in Copenhagen, check it out here.

Overall, my favorite activity of the trip was going out on the glacier. We’d spent the day driving all through the highlands with our guide and making it to the glacier was the highlight of an already awesome day. It’s an experience I don’t think anyone will soon forget.

A few Iceland recommendations:

– Do: talk to anyone you can who is from Iceland for their recommendations. Iceland has so many hidden places that only the locals know about. My dad and brother struck up a conversation with our Airbnb neighbor while he was washing his truck (if you know my family, this isn’t surprising…) and we ended up going on a day-long tour to secret caves and out onto a glacier with him! Check out his awesome company called Iceland In A Day for private superjeep tours. Also, we learned a lot and really enjoyed the ice cave tour at the Perlan Museum in Reykjavik.

– Stay: in an Airbnb house where you can make your own meals and wash clothes. We stayed here. This allowed us not to waste time and money eating out for every meal. Pro tip! Buy a cheap styrofoam cooler on your first day at the grocery store and bring picnic lunches and snacks on day trips (Pat and I have done this for our trips to National Parks). The washer and dryer meant we could pack really light (#teamcarryon) and not wait at baggage claim.

– Eat: our neighborhood had an unmarked, small fish store where we got the recommended catch of the day and a bakery where we picked up fresh bread. These were also hints from our neighbor/tour guide/new bestie- we would never have found them if not for him!