So much of my trip planning and travel is based around food, and most travel guides I write are based around restaurants and amazing gluten free finds. We skipped the icecream based desserts in favour of hot chocolate and biscuits in the room that we had with us. The main issue was the texture, it was all a bit slimy! The two dishes with a Pepsi and a beer came to 10400kr/£59. The cod was large with a nice buttery sauce and a pop of flavour from some capers. Paul had a lamb dish whilst I played it as safe as I could with the cod and mash. The menu was pretty small and made up of Icelandic dishes, some of which were naturally gluten free. I didn’t need a translation card at all for dinner, the staff spoke perfect English. We didn’t leave though and used the time to nap and relax from the early flight straight after a busy work schedule so it was nice to have a bit of downtime and also just ate at the hotel in the evening. I’d taken a gluten free noodle pot as an emergency dinner in case we couldn’t go out for dinner, but we got our negative covid results about 4pm so we could leave the hotel. The hotel was Hotel Laugarbakki which looked really bleak from the outside and we were initially worried! Inside though it was nice, modern and clean with a comfy bed and it cost £158 for the night. We ended up not needing the early check in arriving about 2:30pm and they did cater for gluten free so it suited our needs. We had emailed the hotel in advance and requested early check in due to our early flight and to check whether they had gluten free options as we booked it solely based on being the only hotel in the area approved for quarantine. We had to take a mini bus from the airport as being a cheaper option they didn’t have a desk in the arrivals hall, but a short distance away. We hired a car through Lava, found through Northbound recommended by Chelsea (Cheap Holiday Expert) in her blog. This is what made the decision for us on which direction to travel the ring road but of course you can do the whole thing in reverse. If we had stayed in Reykjavik/driven anti clockwise around the Ring Road we would have been at our hotel pretty quickly and not used the time at all. There were no restrictions on how far you could travel though to the quarantine hotel providing you didn’t stop so we decided to travel a few hours to Hvammstangir to get some of the drive out the way and use the time more efficiently. When we travelled there was mandatory covid testing on arrival and up to 24 hours of quarantine until you got the results at an approved hotel. On arrival we had Iceland pretty much to ourselves and only saw people really as we reached the Golden Circle and Reykjavík and on a boat trip at Jokulsarlon. We were really worried about getting a plane for the first time but due to the lack of travellers the flight was only a third full. we figured it would be a good time to pay for Iceland instead and we were so pleased with our decision. Instead, as we were looking at pricy accommodation in the U.K. due to nice weather, but prices had gone crazy and it was busy. We were going to visit some of the coast in the U.K. travel so people in the country weren’t travelling abroad at this time. It was also the only green list country for U.K. For winter trips, I would stick to Reykjavik and winter activities and trying to see the Northern Lights! Of course that may not work for you in reality, so if you’re driving the ring road in winter make sure you give yourself plenty of time for delays due to adverse weather conditions and limited hours of daylight.Īt the time of our visit only vaccinated passengers could visit Iceland but we were some of the few vaccinated in our age group due to health conditions. Having visited in both seasons, I would recommend the complete ring road being done in the summer. This gives much more time to fit in activities and also allows you to see the puffins. This time we were visiting in summer which meant the opposite – almost complete daylight. Daylight was roughly 10am – 4pm and some of the driving conditions were horrendous. We also drove the South Coast to Jokulsarlon and back. We had been to Iceland before in 2013, a winter trip that included a few days in Reykjavik with friends seeing the sights, doing the Golden Circle Tour and going snowmobiling on a glacier but sadly no viewing of the Northern Lights. Visiting the spectacular scenery of Iceland without the crowds was incredible. Visiting Iceland in June 2021 as our first international trip after over a year of covid and lockdowns felt amazing! A trip that we were undecided about right up until the last minute, but one that we were so glad we took.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |