I didn’t see the Northern Lights, but I still had a lot of fun in Iceland. Arianna Griffin
I traveled from Baltimore to Iceland to see the Northern Lights.
I spent about $1,700 on flights, hotels, and activities like whale watching and snorkeling.
I didn’t see the Northern Lights, but I had a great time and would go back to Iceland in a heartbeat.
Seeing the Northern Lights in person has always been on my bucket list. So when I learned that 2024 was one of the best years to see them, I knew I had to take a trip to Iceland as soon as possible.
I booked a Northern Lights tour through Gray Line Iceland and paid $66 for a ticket that was valid for several days. But unfortunately, due to bad weather, the scheduled tours were canceled every day I was in Iceland.
Although I was disappointed after spending $1,700 on hotels, flights, rental car, and activities, I still managed to have a great time.
Here are five activities that made my trip to Iceland worthwhile.
My first stop was the Blue Lagoon, a geothermal spa.
The Blue Lagoon looked beautiful when I arrived. Arianna Griffin
My first stop was the Blue Lagoon, a famous geothermal spa with temperatures ranging from 98 to 104 degrees Fahrenheit.
Dressing up in a bathing suit and swimming in freezing weather might sound awful, but the water was quite comfortable. I paid about $95 for this experience.
I took a virtual tour of the country through FlyOver Iceland.
The theater was playing videos from Iceland that looked like the sights I saw from the plane. Arianna Griffin
My next stop was FlyOver Iceland, an attraction I learned about from an ad I saw at the airport. The $42 experience began with lectures and videos about Iceland’s history, mythology and land.
We were then taken to a theater filled with chairs with handlebars on the sides, similar to the seats on a roller coaster. As everyone sat down, the chairs rose up, suspending each person in the air.
A screen at the front of the room showed vivid videos of Iceland’s beautiful natural sights. The seats moved as we watched the videos, and the wind and scents corresponding to the projected scenes wafted through the theater. Mist hit my face when I saw videos of waterfalls, making it look like we were really flying over Iceland.
It was a great alternative to physically exploring parts of the country that I couldn’t get to by car due to bad weather.
The next day I suddenly decided to go whale watching.
I had a great view of the ocean from The Elding. Arianna Griffin
While I was in Iceland, I wanted to find an excursion that didn’t require me to go on the road, so I spent about $120 to go whale watching. I booked the adventure at the last minute at a solid location on the Gray Line in Iceland in downtown Reykjavík.
The mountain views, the beautiful ocean and the whales putting on a show were amazing. The boat had plenty of room and the staff served coffee and hot chocolate.
After getting off the boat, I headed to the Geysir hot springs area.
I saw Strokkur, a very active geyser, erupt twice. Arianna Griffin
The weather cleared up during the three hour whale watching expedition, so I made a sudden decision to drive to the Geysir hot springs area. The geothermal area was free to the public and featured geysers that could shoot water over 100 feet into the air.
Most of the geysers I encountered were inactive, but I saw the fountain-like hot spring Strokkur erupt twice.
I then headed to Thingvellir National Park for a snorkeling adventure.
Snow covered the area, but I felt warm and dry in my wetsuit. Arianna Griffin
Even though it was cold, I was excited to snorkel between the North American and Eurasian tectonic plates. I paid $150 for snorkeling and $30 for a diver to take photos with a company called Dive.IS.
After I got into my wetsuit, which was surprisingly warm, the instructor taught me how tectonic plates shift. We then went on the 30 minute snorkel.
The buoyancy of the wetsuit made it easy to stay afloat and I thoroughly enjoyed the clean, refreshing water.
Although I didn’t see the Northern Lights, the trip was worth the money.
I had a great time exploring Iceland. Arianna Griffin
Overall, I still think the $1,700 I paid to travel to and explore Iceland was well spent.
Due to the snowy and cloudy weather, I never got to go on the Northern Lights tour I had booked. Although my heart was set on seeing the streaks of blue, green and purple flash across the sky, my stay showed me plenty of things to see and do in Iceland.
I stepped out of my comfort zone whale watching and snorkeling and had an amazing time learning about the country’s rich history.
Gray Line Iceland, the company through which I booked the $66 Northern Lights tour, offered customers who didn’t see the lights the option of getting a refund or a ticket to use in the future. I chose the ticket.
I will definitely be going back to Iceland to try to see the lights again soon.
