Iceland: a 3-day itinerary without renting a car

Are you struggling to pin down your plans for your Iceland trip? With so much to see and do it can be hard to figure out what to incorporate and what to leave out, especially if you’re in the country on a short break or a layover. But even if your time is short, it’s possible to fit a lot in. With just three days at your disposal you’ll be able to get a feel for what Reykjavik is like as well as see a little of the surrounding countryside.

Taking our guided tours and making use of shuttle bus transfers helps you make efficient use of your time. With our practical ready to use itinerary, we’ll prove you don’t need to rent a car to feel like you’ve got to know Iceland. Can you really see Iceland’s main highlights in just three days without a car? Let’s find out.

Potential flight delays

One of the trickiest aspects of planning a packed itinerary is how to deal with delays, should they arise. As Iceland is an island nation, you’ll arrive by plane and land at Keflavik Airport, about 45 minutes from the capital. Getting from one to the other is straightforward, even if your plane touches down later than you expected.

With open tickets for the direct Flybus service, you simply walk out of the terminal building and straight onto the next bus, whichever one that is. It’s the best option for getting to the capital at a reasonable price with the minimum of fuss. The service terminates at the BSI Bus Terminal, but it’s possible to add on an efficient hotel transfer to get as close as possible to where you’re staying.

To save time, we’d recommend you choose accommodation that’s centrally located. Many downtown hotels are located close to bus stops that pick up passengers for their tours. On a short trip when every second is precious, this saves a lot of time as you won’t have to waste a minute when it comes to pickups. It’s especially helpful if you are aiming to schedule multiple tours within the same day but prefer some downtime in between, as you’ll be conveniently located close to visitor attractions and places to eat.

Weather related issues

Another issue to factor in when working out a tightly packed itinerary is the weather. In winter especially, road closures can occasionally impact self-drivers and tours alike, even those hoping to travel along the ring road. Such inconveniences are often short-lived and don’t happen all the time. However on an Iceland winter three day trip you don’t have a huge amount of flexibility in such cases.

Where it’s possible we would seek to source an alternative for guests booked with us. For instance, if the South Coast is temporarily inaccessible, we could try to switch your tour to one covering West Iceland if available. You wouldn’t have to worry about re-planning your sightseeing at short notice as you would if you were travelling independently – simply hop on board the other bus.

Limited public transport

If you’re scoping out the possibilities for an independent trip to Iceland you might be considering whether it’s viable to take public transport. However, Iceland has a small permanent population and as a consequence, the numbers required to support an extensive array of bus services just isn’t there.

While there are plenty of city buses in Reykjavik and Akureyri, getting out into the countryside is a different matter. Services are limited, often to one a day, and timetables might not align with sightseeing plans. Taxis are expensive, which is why most visitors rent a car or opt for tours.

The exception is Icelandia’s Highland bus. This operates in summer, when it’s possible to use one of your three days in Iceland without a car to visit an extraordinary, off the beaten track region that’s truly breathtaking. Using special buses that are designed for this mountainous area’s challenging F-roads and river crossings, you can choose to experience colourful Landmannalaugar or verdant Þórsmörk but be back in Reykjavik by the evening.

Day 1 - Reykjavik

This is arrival day, and we’re assuming that you will be landing at Keflavik Airport in the morning. To allow for any unexpected delays, we’d recommend that you plan to spend your first day in Reykjavik. While you’ll find an extensive network of city buses – which conveniently accept contactless forms of payment – you might prefer to transfer between sites using a Hop On, Hop off bus to save having to figure out the best routes.

Let’s assume you begin at Harpa Concert Hall. Take a moment to admire its architecture and the way the light plays off the panes of glass. Afterwards stroll over to the Old Harbour, where you’ll find a variety of visitor attractions. Many tourists highly rate FlyOver Iceland; this motion ride gives you a flavour of the country’s landscapes and a sense of why the scenery here fills people with awe and wonder.

Another unique activity in this part of Reykjavik is LAVA Show. Iceland’s home to many active volcanoes, but they don’t perform on demand. It’s unlikely that you’ll witness an eruption during a three-day stay but instead, this is one place where flowing lava is guaranteed. The presenter will explain how volcanoes work as rock is heated intensely until it becomes molten and runs down a specially designed chute just metres from your seat.

Reykjavik’s known for its food halls, such as Grandi Mathöll on the far edge of the harbour. If you prefer, there are also a string of cafés and restaurants closer to the main road. Afterwards, take a whale watching tour. Iceland is one of the world’s best locations for whale watching and a number of species can be spotted here year-round, including humpbacks, minke whales, harbour porpoises and white-beaked dolphins. Tours operate year-round, weather and sea conditions permitting.

Now it’s time to make use of that Hop on, Hop off Bus ticket. Remain on board as the bus makes a circuit through the main downtown area; you’ll be able to identify Laugavegur, the capital’s main shopping street, Tjörnin Pond and Hallgrimskirkja, Reykjavik’s most iconic church. The city’s colourful buildings and abundance of street art will have you reaching for your camera over and over.

Alight at Perlan, an excellent museum where you can interact with exhibits about volcanic eruptions, step inside an artificial ice cave, watch a movie about the Northern Lights and learn about the nation’s birds by means of virtual reality. The view from the top of this striking building – it’s adapted from the city’s redundant water tanks – is also a must-see.

Year-round, a geothermal lagoon visit is the ideal way to round off a day’s sightseeing – Icelanders love to soak as they socialise. A host of luxurious spas and pools have sprung up within an easy drive of Reykjavik city centre. Which one you choose really comes down to personal preference, but to make it more straightforward if you have chosen not to rent a car, we package up admission with convenient transfers. The Blue Lagoon, Sky Lagoon and Hvammsvik Hot Springs can all be experienced in this way.

If you’ve come to Iceland between late August and late April, then we would urge you to book a Northern Lights tour for this evening. The aurora borealis is always fickle; tours won’t run if the cloud cover’s too thick because you’d be wasting your time. However, we always try to reschedule where possible, which is why you should lock this in for Day 1. A number of options are available, including coach tours, small-group minibus excursions and tours using high-clearance super jeeps that can cope with any terrain.

Day 2 - The Golden Circle

It’s time to get out and explore some of the Icelandic countryside and so the Golden Circle route should be on your radar. This sightseeing route is one of the most popular in the country and its trio of headline attractions are likely to make a lasting impression. Base tours can be done in around six to seven hours but we find that many guests like to add on another activity as part of their Reykjavik to Golden Circle tour.

Let’s take a look at those three highlights of the Golden Circle. The closest to Reykjavik is Thingvellir National Park. Here, the boundary between the North American and Eurasian tectonic plate is plain to see. Step off the bus and stroll down through the Almannagjá Gorge; the sense of history is palpable as the steep-sided rock walls flank you on either side. This is where the Althing once met; Iceland’s first parliament didn’t move to Reykjavik for many centuries.

Nature’s incredible power is the focus of the other two stops. At Geysir Geothermal Area, watch open-mouthed as Strokkur geyser shoots a massive jet of superheated water and steam high into the air. It blows every five minutes or so, meaning you can watch it multiple times. Half an hour inland you’ll come to Gullfoss waterfall. This mighty, two-stepped cascade churns and froths as it tumbles down the Hvitá River.

Now to the add-ons: there are myriad possibilities if you want to stretch this to a full day.

Ice

Pair glacier snowmobiling with a Golden Circle tour, thanks to the proximity of Iceland’s second largest body of ice, Langjökull. Alternatively you might choose an exhilarating ride in a super jeep, whose massive tyres and high clearance mean it can traverse terrain that’s off-limits to regular vehicles.

Outdoor activities in the countryside

The Icelandic countryside provides the photogenic backdrop to a range of outdoor activities. Adrenaline junkies will relish the chance to ride an ATV at speed; adventurous types can descend into a lava tunnel. You might choose to attempt a tölt as you sit astride an Icelandic horse, the unique fifth gait that’s a characteristic of this protected breed.

Geothermal lagoons

Another popular option is to combine a circuit of the Golden Circle with a soak in one of the geothermal pools in the area. Choose between rustic Secret Lagoon, one of the oldest such baths still in use, or exquisite newcomer Laugarás Lagoon, whose bucolic location and commitment to quality make this irresistible. It’s also possible to return to Reykjavik to experience the equally luxurious Sky Lagoon.

Eat tomatoes

This might seem an odd one, but when you stop to think, it’s an extraordinary feat to be able to grow tomatoes in a northerly location where the climate is harsh and the winters are long. Yet, the abundance of geothermal energy enables growers to heat greenhouses and produce a high yielding crop. We’d argue that the tomato soup you can enjoy here is the best in the country but don’t take our word for it – come and try it for yourself at Friðheimar.

Day 3 - The Snæfellsnes Peninsula or the South Coast

Is it worth seeing the south coast or West Iceland, or should you stay close to Reykjavík if you don’t have a car? Settling on a plan for the final day of your Iceland three day itinerary is not so clear cut. There are two other standout regions within reach of the capital that deliver on jaw-dropping landscapes and landforms: the Snæfellsnes Peninsula in West Iceland and the scenic south coast.

With only one more day at your disposal, you’ll have to pick one and leave out the other, though the good news is there’s no bad decision as they’re both a delight. Any Iceland stopover itinerary needs to include at least one of them and our guided tours make that exceptionally easy.

Both are remarkable in different ways. Snæfellsnes tends to fly under the radar in comparison to South Iceland. Read our special comparison on the two regions here. Nevertheless its fabulous coastline has all the ingredients to satisfy even the pickiest of travellers: gnarly wave cut arches and stacks, golden beaches, pretty waterfalls and even a glacier-topped volcano. It’s a chance to venture slightly off the beaten track without sacrificing the wow factor that comes with the country’s undisputed crowd-pleasers.

In contrast, the broad and flat coastal plain that dominates South Iceland contains its own plethora of gems covering mile upon glorious mile. Our choices for a South Coast day tour of Iceland cover waterfalls that crash down 60 metres from the clifftop, black sand beaches backed by basalt columns and mighty glaciers towering above iceberg-strewn lagoons. The names will be familiar: Seljalandsfoss, Skógafoss, Reynisfjara, Jökulsárlón Glacier Lagoon and Diamond Beach all command attention and rightly so. Glacier hiking and kayaking are possible in this part of the country; you can even combine your south coast sightseeing with an ATV visit to a wrecked plane or even an E-bike ride on the black sand beach.

We’re assuming a late flight home, but if you want to leave yourself with more of a buffer before returning to the airport, then you might consider swapping days 2 and 3 around: the Golden Circle direct tour gets you back into Reykjavik earlier than the Snæfellsnes and South Coast tours.

Planning how to spend three days in Iceland without a car doesn’t have to be difficult, thanks to the wide choice of tours offered by Icelandia. In fact, with your Keflavik Airport transfer and tours sorted, the hardest part is likely to be picking a favourite day afterwards. Of course, if you’re disappointed that you’ve had to leave something out of your short trip Iceland itinerary, then the answer’s simple: book a return trip and come back for longer next time.