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Exploring Iceland and Greenland
17 - 24 August 2013
A brief introduction - full details will be available shortly...
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INTRODUCTION
Iceland is a surreal and unforgettable mixture of soaring mountains, vast glaciers, fjords, active volcanoes and bubbling hot springs. Our visit concentrates on the south-west of the country, taking in the Snaefellsnes Peninsula and Reykjavik, Porsmork Valley, the world-famous waterspouts at Geysir and Europe's most impressive waterfall, Gulfoss. Our guided walks will introduce you to the island's amazing birdlife and fascinating geology. This holiday does not compromise on quality and we have selected two excellent hotels as our base from which to explore. Guided walks on this holiday are graded Moderate overall.
The first part of the holiday (3 nights) will be at Stykkishólmur on the Snaefellsnes Peninsula. Our hotel has comfortable rooms with full facilities including bath or shower and overlooks the quiant fishing harbour that is still used by busy fishing trawlers.Our warm, cosy hotel is ideally located for our programme and enjoys impressive views of the fjord. The management and staff are friendly and helpful and we are assured of a warm welcome. Whilst here we explore several walks in the dramatic, volcanic scenery, take a boat trip out to explore islands that are home to arctic terns, kittiwake, puffins and white tailed eagle (amongst many others) and hear fascinating tales of Icelandic adventures of old.
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We stay in Reykjavik for the second part of the holiday (4 nights) where we can enjoy superb restaurants, attractions, hot spring bathing at the Blue Lagoon and sophisticated shops and night life. Reykjavik is a great base for touring and we travel out daily to visit National Parks, glaciers and waterfalls. We spend one day in rugged 4x4 state of the art super jeep vehicles that can drive almost anywhere and will take us to the glacier tongue descending from the glacier Eyjafjallajokull.
We visit spectacular waterfalls - one that's half hidden, one that we can walk behind,and of course, Gullfoss (the Golden Waterfall) which is amongst the most spectacular on the Island. We are guaranteed to see big Geysir's little brother, Strokkur, which spouts every 5 - 10 minutes, and we visit Pingvellir (Parliament Fields) where parliament was founded and met in the open air from 940AD until the late 18th Century. The 19th Century traveller, Lord Dufferin, is quoted as saying "It is worth sailing the Spanish Sea to see Geysir, but it is worth sailing around the World to see Pingvellir".
One of the most popular meals we enjoy is an Icelandic lobster feast, eaten in a rustic restaurant just outside Reykjavik. Reykjavik itself has a number of first class restaurants serving both local cuisine and food from around the world. Eating out is a delight.
We are planning to add an optional extension to our visit to Iceland - a trip to the little visited eastern coast of Greenland. Here the scenery is dramatic and the Inuit culture fascinating. We fly across from Reykyavik either as a day trip or for an overnight stay. More information to follow.
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E&OE
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