Iceland 12-day tours

Iceland was our 6th trip with the tour operator. We have seen so many wonderful places. Iceland is so special because it is truly a land of fire and ice. Where can you go to see magnificent waterfalls and on the same hike arrive at a view of a glacier? Where can you visit a volcano, geyser and just a few miles away witness icecaps with glaciers flowing from them? How about a black beach with icebergs floating and resting on the beach? ICELAND is the answer! The hut to hut hiking experience with the fjords and every changing mountain terrain and view was a thrill to experience. All of these make for a great tour but what makes it a memory of a lifetime are the people and experiencing the culture. I cannot say enough about our guide Thora. She sang Icelandic songs, taught us a dance, told us some of the sagas. Most of all she shared her love of Iceland. It was an unforgettable experience.

It was a fantastic adventure to explore the beauty of Iceland. Our local Icelandic guide, Sylvi Signhildar-Aslfsson was awesome. His energy, enthusiasm and knowledge made each day very special.

The Stelkur trip around Iceland gave hearty servings of the history, culture, geology and ethos of this remarkable island. Sure, we all knew the island had volcanoes and glaciers, but I for one was not aware of the tremendous impact of glacial flooding on the island and its people. This trip hit so many high points that it was almost dizzying, from puffins and whale spotting to black sand beaches littered with remnants of icebergs, to seemingly countless waterfalls and glacier views, to vigorous and rewarding hikes, superb cooking by our guide, solitude on the hut to hut portions (we saw one other hiker during 4 days), tales of Icelandic heroes, trolls and elves. Our guide, Solvi, was a natural teacher, gifted storyteller and even sang us to sleep one night with an Icelandic lullaby. He surprised us often with little outings or touches that were not listed on the official itinerary and made us feel like we'd been let in on special secrets. We looked for kids rescuing young puffins who had not made it to water, tobogganed down a huge black sand dune, and snatched blueberries from the bushes that lined the trails as we hiked. There was magic in the air on this trip!

I had a wonderful time. I loved our guide - he was very knowledgable, caring, kept track of everyone and communicated well. And the clean tap water! I thought the group also looked out for one another.

We never intended to go to Iceland but decided to do so when our Mont Blanc Trip was cancelled for the second time in two years. What a mistake! Iceland should have been our first choice in the beginning. This is truly a wonderful country and the tour operator has designed a trip that shows off a lot of what the huge island has to offer. The trip was as advertised in regard to difficulty. Even the last four days with three long hikes back to back was managed by our guides so that everyone was successful. It was a wonderful time indeed.

This is our 2nd set of adventures with the tour operator, and we are impressed with the operations of this tour company. We will definitely travel with them again. Iceland is a land apart, being an island, being geothermally active, unusual critters, beautiful glaciers and friendly folks. Pretty fine beer and food too. Our guide, Solvi, was outstanding. His sense of humour, kindness and informational chats were great. Local guides make travel more interesting. And the Icelandic "word of the day" was fun to learn. The hotels were very nice, being centrally located in small towns. We had diverse activities to fill our days, so we all had some interesting challenges. Walking in crampons is a skill for sure!