I have a forever-case of wanderlust… If I’m not traveling, I’m planning our next adventure. I am lucky enough to have a husband who understands this & supports my habit 😉 We prioritize our travel-fund and set aside for it monthly which allows us to be ready to book exciting trips on a whim. About five months ago, we were watching House Hunters International, as they wandered Reykjavik, Iceland. It was somewhere I would never even think to travel to, but it looked amazing! Then, about an hour later, a friend on Facebook posted a new airline promo, with tickets starting at $129… Within another hour, we were booked! Within a few days, 6 friends were coming with us!
We weren’t really sure what to expect, but for that cheap, why not? WOW Air is most definitely a budget airline, which claims to be Iceland’s most punctual airline. I mean, seriously, that’s their claim to fame. And they were over an hour late. Without any announcements or explanation as to why. And I’m pretty sure there’s only one other airline even in Iceland. And they will charge you for every ounce of luggage you bring, along with all sorts of taxes, fees, bottled water charges, etc. We were joking that they would even charge us for our seatbelts and then again if we wanted to actually leave the plane haha. And we had to fly out of Boston. BUT, wait, our roundtrip tickets, even after all the silly surcharges, WERE ONLY $350! To Iceland! And we made it there & back safely! So I would say yeah, sure, it was worth it!
In the most simplest of ways, to sum up this trip, everyone needs to know that Iceland is magical. Flat-out-enchanting, mind-blowingly-beautiful, adventures-at-every-turn, Viking-to-modern-chic, white-glaciers-to-black-sands, sunshine-to-blizzards, how-the-hell-is-this-place-even-real kind of MAGICAL. I’m still in awe that I was there. And can’t wait to go back!
I am so excited to share some of the shots I snagged along the way! The images here are a combination of my Canon 5Dmiii, Fugi underwater camera, iPhone & our friend’s GoPro… because the best camera is most definitely the one you have on you. Enjoy!
We arrived at 5AM, and drove into the sunrise, towards our Airbnb apartment. The rental was so cute, and was a perfect homebase for us, right around the corner from the major shopping/eating/partying street, Lauguvegur. If you venture to Iceland, this place was great! The four photos below are from their website, because all 8 of us dumped piles and piles of luggage and duty-free bottles of bliss all over the floor upon arrival ha; it so much nicer looking here 🙂
We tried to lay down & get some rest after being up all night traveling and adjust to the 4 hour time difference, but there was too much to see! It was chilly but lovely and we couldn’t resist a long walk around the city, exploring. 
The entire city is dotted with colorful buildings, beautiful street art, enticing shops, quaint little coffee shops turned bars, and sleek design. I was immediately enchanted. And then we stumbled upon Hallgrímskirkja church. SWOON. And just when we thought the actual church was the best part, we rode to the top & explored the aerial view of the city. My heart…
After soaking in the views, we wandered on, so hungry and so tired. Everything was closed. The entire city stays sleepy til about 11AM. We were all out of whack & just needed coffee and a cozy spot to nest for a bit. Enter Cafe Babalu! What a sweet little treat to stumble upon. It’s quirky, colorful and super weird. My kind of place. We loved it so much that we even went back on our last day. 
The apartment buildings and shops shared the streets with adorable little cottages, set back with big, twisting trees in the front yard. Layers of color, light and cuteness all over. Magic.
After wandering, we headed back for a seriously needed nap & woke up to head off to The Blue Lagoon! This trip knocked quite a few items off my bucket list, and this was one was right at the top of the list! If you can imagine the biggest, warmest lake you ever seen surrounded by snowy hills, swim-up bars, saunas…. I mean… pinch me. The steam rolling off the top of the water made it feel so private, even though there were hundreds of other tourists all over. We went later in the day to avoid the big crowds, and even though it was an incredible experience, I don’t think any actual Icelandic people spend time here. It’s probably the closest thing they have to Disney… lines and wristbands and over-charging to come sit in a big hole of water. Oh well! The cheap wine and warm water were a perfect treat for our jet-lagged bodies & we totally lived it up!
Afterwards we headed back into the city & bar-hopped. We found the Big Lebowski bar & drank white russians. Then we found an English pub & danced to Sweet Home Alabama. Things got weird. Then we realized we should eat and embarked on a mission to find a late night dinner. We wandered about 10 blocks only to be told by every single Icelandic person that no one eats after 10PM and you cannot find food anywhere. What?! So we headed to the only place we could find that was open : HOT DOG CART. Ughh. I hate hot dogs. I was ready to go to bed starving. But then one of the Icelandic friends we had made insisted we try these. They are like the chicken wings of Iceland. And apparently the little cart we went to is famous worldwide. Ok. Fine. But how good could they really be? OMG SO GOOOOOD. Like, I wish I had packed some to bring home. Like, I wish I was eating them right now. Like, does this place ship these treats to Buffalo!? Spicy mustard, sweet & sour sauce style ketchup, mystery cream sauce, crunchy fried onions, and lamb meat = heaven. Of all of the amazing things that happened on Day 1, I think it’s totally appropriate to end on this drunken, slightly blurry iPhone grab of our hot dogs. Let’s call it art.
Stay tuned for more Icelandic adventures to come, including our stay in a town with a population of 20, a blizzard, and snorkeling in 30 degree water!
