Winter Activity Holidays

Between September and April, enhance your experience of hunting for Iceland’s famous Northern Lights by seeing as much as you can of the landscape, soaking up the culture and getting under the skin of this surprising country. Do as the Icelanders do, wrap up warm, eat good food and go with the nature!

Perfect if you’re planning a get-away for something a bit different while still including the must-see Golden Circle and South Iceland. Hot water and cold air, crampons and head torches, jeeps with big tyres, all-weather adventures. A great get away for friends and small groups, or families with older children.

Travelling to Iceland in the winter provides enormous scope for adventure and enjoyment. From October onwards, as winter begins to arrive, the temperature drops and the days get shorter. Sometimes crisp with blue skies, at other times very windy, wet or snowy, the conditions change all the time, which is why you can expect ‘every weather in a day’ in Iceland. From early February onwards, the days lengthen and temperatures begin to rise. Throughout these months the opportunity to get the most from an adventure in the winter landscape is really all about having the correct equipment and transport and to travel with experienced guides.

In a typical winter holiday, we’ll suggest combining time in the Golden Circle and South Coast areas with hiking, geothermal bathing and cooking, lava tubing and a glacier experience. Exploring Reykjavik is always a good balance to experiencing the countryside and can be just for a day, or more. Accommodation is flexible: family rooms and apartments, farmhouse or hotels with hot tubs are all available. Overall, it’s our aim to ensure that your holiday is an authentic and Icelandic experience and that you’ll return home with great memories and a sense of having adventured and discovered the real Iceland.

Iceland in December! We swam in hot rivers, rolled in the snow in our swimsuits, climbed through a lava tunnel and over lava fields, cooked salmon and eggs and tomato soup in hot springs way off the beaten track. We watched the geyser at Geysir explode and soak everyone standing on the wrong side, we walked around a vast volcano crater as the sun went down and saw waterfalls that make you stop and stare in amazement, we took a super-jeep into the mountains where there was not a soul in sight. And all in only 4 days with 4 hours sunlight per day. We had private local guides who were fascinating as they recounted tales of ghosts and elves, political revolutions, the island’s significance during the wars, its economic troubles and the surprising benefits of the 2010 ash cloud. And – yes – we saw the northern lights! Thank you, Julia, for our trip to this incredible country – superbly organised with no detail left unattended. We will definitely go back.

SUGGESTED ACTIVITIES:

Combine sightseeing with outdoor activities
Superb Christmas and New Year teenage family adventures
Professional activity guides
Hiking, snowshoe, hot river bathing, glacier adventures
Geothermal swimming and relaxing
Adventures after dark and underground
Choice of accommodation and transportation
All areas of Iceland

WHEN TO TRAVEL:

Winter adventure departures from October to April
Midwinter with more snow adventures from December to March
Winter sports departures from January to April
Prices vary, we will ask you about your budget
Our standard Northern Lights holiday prices are from £795
We are members of the Travel Trust Association
Our flight inclusive holidays are ATOL protected
Early bookings really are worthwhile for lower costs and more choice

WANT TO KNOW MORE?

About the dates and details of this holiday?
About Iceland Traveller?
We are Iceland Specialists. For more information about Iceland please contact us here.

"Our favourite day was the guided day - getting off the beaten track and doing something not everyone has done - lying in our own private hot spring."
“Brilliant adventure and highly recommended. Travellers must be prepared to change activities depending on ambient weather!”
“We had a fabulous holiday. Thank you for organising it so well. We loved Iceland and the people. We were warned about a virus that made you addicted to the place and we are!”
“As Iceland novices we relied on Julia to put together a four-day package and itinerary for February based on our vaguely expressed preferences. She didn't disappoint. There was just the correct mix of travel, sightseeing, fabulous accommodation and great dining. Couldn't ask for more. The trip went like clockwork, from being greeted at the airport and taken to the Blue Lagoon, to the hire car delivered to our hotel in Reykjavik, to the restaurant bookings, to the glacier walk ...... etc. We had a wonderful time and can heartily recommend Iceland and Iceland Traveller. We will definitely be back for more."
“A trip of a lifetime! Prior to going, I felt confident about our holiday into the unknown as you were so confident yourself and full of so much information, tips etc. Nothing was too much trouble. Once we were there we had such a brilliant time doing really different activities we’d never tried before and seeing such interesting geographical features in stunning surroundings. The sunrises and sunsets are beautiful.”
"Another superbly well organised trip, we really enjoyed it and so did all the girls."
“Thank you very much for the excellent service you provided, we will definitely tell our friends and family about Iceland Traveller.”
“Iceland Traveller organised our trip from start to finish and it was truly remarkable. Everything was thought of! We had the most amazing five days in Iceland and I would recommend your company to anyone who wanted to travel there.”
“Christmas this year was spent in Iceland as a family having a trip of a lifetime – amazing. Our private guide made it so special – she made us feel safe (no mean feat on the icy roads that would be closed in the UK and in an isolated, magical cave in the darkness), comfortable and really special – she did everything to give us the most amazing time, nothing was too much for her and she made it all great fun. We did/saw/experienced everything we expected and more. It was all even better than we could ever have imagined.”
"It was an incredible holiday. I really feel like if I never get the chance to go to Iceland again I have actually "seen" a part of Iceland."
"Very powerful to be up on the glacier!"
“We had a fantastic time in Iceland and we thoroughly enjoyed all the tours you kindly organised for us. What an amazing place, the transfer driver was right – we have caught the Iceland virus and will definitely go back at some point!!” We loved it, a weekend was just too short.”
“It was extremely good value for money and one of the most enjoyable holidays I have had. Thank you.”
“The six of us were welcomed by our guide at the airport. We were impressed with the itinerary, both the fantastic craft activities and the quantity of things we did, we did not waste a moment. We had a great guide, she is experienced and listened to what we wanted to do, she was also great company.”
Maria (UK) February 2018
"We were all happy - from 75 to 18 years old - which is rare! Everything had been organised so efficiently that our trip was easy and meant we could enjoy every minute."