Romance in Iceland: The 7-Day Adventure for Couples

Land in Iceland and you will know you that you are somewhere special. The capital city is small, its atmosphere dominated by natural surroundings. A mountain topped with ice looks down and across the bay to a harbor of colorful houses. The tallest building is Hallgrimskirkja Church, yet it would be dwarfed in most other cities. With such quiet streets, Reykjavik is great for walking as it is so small and well laid out that you can comfortably get around all the highlights in just one afternoon. The water is to one side, the church spires act as a compass, and everything is organized on a grid.

Walking around will give you a chance to appreciate a little Icelandic culture, especially if you stop in some of the pubs and cafes. Skolavordustigur and Laugavegur streets are good if you want to stock up on warm clothing for the mountains and glaciers. Move down by the water and try Laekjarbrekka for fine Icelandic cuisine with fresh seafood as well as mountain lamb. Your hotel will be very centrally located and is designed to reflect the wider Icelandic landscape, with volcanic rocks throughout. There are also some bicycles should you want to travel a little faster around Reykjavik. All this adds up to a very relaxed start to the vacation, getting you prepared for the adventure that is to come.

Waterfalls like veils amid the blackened rock of Thingvellir National Park and cascades as if in a monochrome image as volcanic remains meet glacial melt. Elsewhere in this UNESCO World Heritage Site, you can find translucent pools and rifts between the mountains, perhaps also the odd wandering sheep or horses. The park is a classic introduction to Iceland’s nature and the first stop on the Golden Circle route. It is a good idea to leave early and stay an hour ahead of the tour buses, so you keep most of this nature to yourself. Onwards you travel, through narrow gorges and out across twisting green landscapes.

You will soon hit the first geyser, the original that provides the word’s etymology: Geysir is its Icelandic name. Strokkur Geyser is a more reliable sight as it erupts every eight minutes. A flume of water shoots through the air then splays out on the wind, and then it dies down and bubbles for a while. Soon there is nothing to suggest what will happen next but right on cue, the geyser shoots once more, and you cannot help but feel admiration for nature. Continue to hop between Iceland’s dramatic nature, next to the twin cascades of Gullfoss, a serene sight to complement the exploding geyser.

You can take your partner by the hand and walk on a narrow trail and into a cliff that has been carved out by water. The trail meanders behind Seljalandsfoss falls, providing a surreal and splashy view onto Iceland. It will take most of the day to include all these sights, so a picnic is the choice for lunchtime, as when such surreal vistas extend you will never be short of a private place to eat. Spend the night a little further along the road in Vik, a small fishing village that feels cut off from modern times. Cut off, that is, until you enter your hotel suite, which is traditional from the outside but contemporary on the inside, complete with floor to ceiling windows for watching icebergs float by.

Take a sunrise stroll across the black-sand beaches that sometimes twinkle with ice. Or stay in bed a little longer, as this is a romantic vacation after all. Heading off through Skaftafell National Park you can gaze upon endless miles of lava fields with rugged and scorched black rock often covered in shimmering moss. Rising higher, the rock turns white with snow and ice dominating the scene. This is the land of the glaciers, and you can start walking, always alongside a guide on Iceland’s glaciers, for obvious safety reasons as you escape into landscapes that are ever-changing, yet rarely seen. The walk will be tailored depending on the season, and towards winter, you will be surrounded by white, while in the summer, you can climb higher onto the glacier.

Next up you can explore a glacier lagoon as Jokulsarlon is a landscape of icebergs floating on quiet currents. Shards of icebergs glisten like stepping stones, separating and reforming as they travel the lagoon. Yet others can be giants, monsters of ice that make you question your knowledge of how much iceberg is below the surface, as if what you see is just 9%, it is unfathomable to consider what lies below. Explore the lagoon on a private boat tour, and there are many dreamy photo stops, and after navigating back out of the ice maze, you can continue just a little further to Hofn, a secluded spot that is ideal for a cozy night indoors. Here lies another highlight of Iceland as after outdoor adventure on the ice, it seems so natural to cuddle up and get warm in a wooden cabin.

Across the fjords you will go, such splendid landscapes greeting you through the car window. Volcanoes are everywhere with some of them perfect cones while others are blurring into cliffs and stark mountains. Craters and holes make it feel as though you have briefly stepped onto the moon until puffins and seabirds suggest otherwise. The fjords narrow and so does the road, weaving in and out and up and down. The small towns of Egilsstadir and Djupivogur are worth a stop before you really ascend on the road towards Dimmuborgir, a place that the Icelandic believe is a bridge between earth and hell. It might not sound that romantic, but you do not need folklore when encountered by such a starkly beautiful landscape.

Rising onto a plateau, you will pass boiling mud pools and then flocks of puffins, the only residents in this netherworld. Colors return to the landscape gradually, and then they shine vibrantly as you cross Namaskaro pass. Down below is Lake Myvatn and it is a euphoric sight – aesthetically, and also because you will have made it across the mountains. Descend and spend the night on the lakeshore, at a guesthouse cut off from everything else. Dinner is served to the room, and the surrounding icy mountains reflect in the lake’s surface. This is one of the world’s great stargazing spots, and for half the year it’s also the best place in Iceland to view the Northern Lights. So settle in and look up, it should be a night to remember.

For three days you will have been on the road, cruising through Iceland’s most memorable landscapes. Whether you decide on a private driver or to drive yourself, the route from Reykjavik to Akureyri is Iceland in a nutshell with geysers, volcanoes, glaciers, icebergs, lava flows, a little wildlife and some cozy accommodation. Today’s drive will be short, and you will return to some semblance of civilization. Akureyri is Iceland’s second city, which means it is still very small when the country’s population is only 330,000. Head straight to the harbor for a whale watching tour, and you will be in search of the Eyjafjordur humpbacks, consistently seen every day throughout summer in 2016, 2017, and 2018.

A smaller 12-seater boat will allow you to get closer, as well as cover a greater area. Splashes and fins will alert you to the action, and as your boat gets closer, you will feel the wonder of nature as the mammal you seek is bigger than your boat. Dolphins also roam these waters along with a flurry of birdlife, but the humpbacks always steal the show, especially when a few of them rise and fall in the water. Eyjafjordur is Iceland’s longest fjord so it’s always recommended to take the smaller boat; the whales are here throughout summer, sometimes you need a little speed to reach them.

Akureyri is an even quieter and more colorful version of Reykjavik, with a string of wooden houses painted blue, yellow, red, and whatever other bright colors you can imagine. Snowy mountains and pristine waters provide the backdrop, and there is hardly a car in sight. So take a walk and feel the slow ambiance of Iceland’s north before retiring to a room with a fireplace. Public geothermal pools are a nice place to visit late in the afternoon, but you may choose to leave the swimsuit for tomorrow when the springs provide a more private experience.

Fly south to Reykjavik, and within 30 minutes of landing, you will be in the spa. Encircled by mineral-rich waters, the hotel spa helps you to rest and unwind after your adventure together. Here you will find more classic romance with a couple’s treatment, a sophisticated room with a view, and places to walk in just your bathrobes. The Blue Lagoon is also open to the public, so people are here throughout the day, even if the hotel has its private places. But as the afternoon drifts on, you will start to get this natural wonder to yourself.

Bathe in therapeutic waters with nobody else around and cross wooden walkways to private areas where you can dip your feet while watching the steam rise together. Gaze across to the volcano, and then wait for the stars to come, the after-dusk scene as impressive as the translucent waters of day. Blue Lagoon is best later in the day when everybody else has left, and most of the thermal spa is just for you. Complemented by traditional spa treatments, it will be a dreamy way to end your stay in Iceland.

Wake up early this morning because the Blue Lagoon is superb at sunrise, with light dancing across the water surface. Take a dip, get warm in the water, swim and walk the platforms together, and then take breakfast in your room. An airport transfer is the end of this romantic vacation, but such a vacation helps romance flourish for much longer than seven days.