I can’t believe it’s been over two years since Tavis and I travelled to Iceland! When we decided to rent a campervan to drive the Ring Road in June 2023, we weren’t sure what the experience (or the campgrounds) would be like in comparison to Canada. After all, we’re coming from Vancouver, where scoring a campsite is as competitive as getting a concert ticket.

Luckily, there were a ton of affordable, nice campgrounds to choose from every night, and we had a fantastic time. We didn’t reserve any campsites in advance and, thanks to the midnight sun, we could arrive at a campground and decide to go somewhere else on a whim. The flexibility and freedom of a campervan was a perfect match for my wandering soul!

Before we left, using details from Happy Camper’s campsite map, I made a rough personalized Iceland Ring Road tour:

We planned to drive approximately two hours per day, over 10 days, with my suggested itinerary. I wanted to keep things open by not booking in advance, but I also wanted to have a vague idea of where we wanted to go and what we wanted to see.

We decided to travel clockwise, following the weather. Since the first few days were predicted to be the nicest, and we wanted to experience the best weather possible on the South Coast, that’s the way we headed. I’m so glad we did!

Although I thought we might want to book a hotel on a cold, rainy evening, the tiny campervan became a cozy home. Despite both of us being over six-feet tall, we slept every night together, curled up in the small campervan, with our feet touching the doors and our heads at the back of our seats, as we explored the majesty of Iceland.

Amazingly, most of the campgrounds had running water with showers, washrooms and kitchen facilities. Some even had hot tubs and pools!

As always, I went into it with an open mind. One thing I love about travel is that no matter how much I plan, I can’t really have set expectations, because I have no idea what it will be like once I arrive. Going somewhere new allows me to relinquish control when I get there and just enjoy the beauty of the world.

So, here are some highlights and what really happened on our 10-day Iceland Campervan Road Trip:

We flew to Iceland overnight on June 1st, arriving at 6 a.m. We had to wait at the airport until 8 a.m. for the first shuttle to the Happy Camper office to pick up our campervan. Tavis didn’t sleep much on the airplane and was exhausted, whereas I felt awake and excited to explore!

We stopped in Reykjavík for groceries before driving to the Reykjadalur Hot Spring Thermal River. Along the way, I spotted lava fields with bulbous black rock. We stopped to boil an egg (and then ate it on local rye bread called Hverabraud, which is steamed in the hot springs) at Hveragerði Geothermal Park.

Various sources online gave different distances and times for completing the trek to the hot springs river, so without fully knowing what we were getting ourselves into, we parked the van and just started walking. The sky was blue and beautiful, the sun was shining, and Tavis was barely able to keep his eyes open. The landscape opened into a beige bowl of rolling hills. We hiked uphill, following a small stream surrounded by bright green grass.

In the distance, we spied the braids of a white waterfall spilling over grey rock. One hour later, we arrived at the steaming hot shallow river, which was flanked by a wooden boardwalk.

Striping off our sweaty hiking clothes to reveal our bathing suits underneath, we pulled on our water shoes and dipped slowly into the shallow stream. The warm water felt luxurious—not too hot, not too cold; just right. We lay down on the pebbles in an eddy, holding ourselves near the spout of a small current that released cold water to mix with the hot. My muscles relaxed and I unwound. Finally, I felt it: I was in Iceland!

After a deliriously tired walk back to the van—we dragged our feet and swatted away annoying flies that were attracted to the sulfurous smell coming off our skin—we drove to our first campground at Gesthús Selfoss. We unfurled the bed in the back and, without even taking out the sheets or pillows, promptly fell asleep with sunshine streaming through the windows.

Waking in time for dinner, I read my book and drank tea while Tavis cooked us a delicious dinner of bacon cheeseburgers with our expensive Iceland groceries. Still, it was much cheaper than eating at a restaurant!

The next day, we visited Skógafoss, a moody-looking waterfall that, from up-close, looked like an Elven hideaway out of a dark segment of Lord of the Rings. From the top, the mist rose towards a light green dabbled mountain with sharp grey peaks.

Next we visited Seljalandsfoss, a large waterfall with a curtain of water you can walk behind. After climbing to the top for an incredible view down on the toppling stream, we walked across the slippery black rock to gaze out from behind the sheet of falling water.

We ended the day at Víkurfjara Black Sand Beach and camped at the Vik campground after a quick visit to the small town’s public community pool, which is an inexpensive way to soak in a thermal hot spring.

For dinner, Tavis cooked us hot chili smothered in melted cheese, topped with crumbled chips and served with toasted bread. We ate outside next to our campervan.

The next morning was one of my favourites. We visited the campground’s coolest perks: an old school bus converted into a coffee shop.

I sipped the most incredible mocha at Skool Beans.

And then we were off! Our next stop: the scenic Fjaðrárgljúfur canyon. We watched a shallow waterfall tumble down smooth red rock like a toddler slipping down a slide. It was a gorgeous area that’s well-worth exploring.

One of the best parts of having a campervan was that it combined three necessities into one: transportation, accommodation and food. It also allowed freedom! We stopped for a snack with a view of Lómagnúpur mountain.

That evening, we ate a dinner of pasta at Skaftafell tjaldsvæði campground. The next morning, we woke up early to hike to Svartifoss waterfall, a thin cascade that plumes over stacks of black lava rock carved like sculpted columns.

Then it was time for the experience I’d most been looking forward to: discovering chunks of dazzling ice sitting on black sand at Diamond Beach! Unfortunately, I hadn’t realized most of the ice would be melted in June—the best time to visit for the true “diamond” experience is in winter.

Instead, what captivated me was the Jökulsárlón glacier lagoon. The stunning teal-blue lake held floating ice blue frozen chunks of snow.

We walked along the rocky shores of the lake, watching cute seals play in the frigid water. I squinted in the wind and sunshine, mesmerized by the unique beauty of this cold yet stunning place.

Despite the constantly howling breeze, the weather was on our side: it was slightly cloudy, but not raining. And I found some ice chunks on the beach!

After snapping endless photos, we visited the small fish and chips restaurant Hafnarbuðin on the harbour in Höfn. It was our best meal of the trip.

That night, we slept at the Vestrahorn campsite, which has an on-site Viking cafe and village you can visit. Rather than a historical site, the village is an old film set.

Built in 2009 for a movie that never saw the screen, the abandoned wooden buildings felt eerily haunted in the quiet evening. I half expected a Viking dressed as Ragnar Lothbrok wielding an axe to appear behind me.

As we left, wild horses galloped past us in the setting sun. That night, a massive windstorm rocked our campervan to sleep like a very violent rocking chair.

The morning brought blue skies and clear roads. We stopped in the town of Djúpivogur before continuing on to Tavis’s favourite waterfall, Nykurhylsfoss.

The day brought us to Seyðisfjarðarkaupstaður, a town on the Eastern point of Iceland know for its colourful rows of rainbow brick hopscotch leading to a light blue church. I was so excited to visit this remote outpost!

Although we’d planned to spend the night here, the campground was undergoing construction; most of the stores, guesthouses and restaurants in town were closed; and we wanted to go wildlife spotting. Tavis typed “puffins near me” into Google maps and, surprisingly, received a hit not too far away.

As our campervan clambered back up the steep hill we’d conquered to the fjord, Tavis could feel that something was off. The van struggled to make the climb, but with limited options, we kept driving to our new destination: Borgarfjörður Eystri.

We grabbed our binoculars and headed towards the puffin viewing sanctuary Hafnarhólmi, thinking we would need a zoom lens to see the puffins. We were so wrong!

Little did we know this is the most accessible Atlantic puffin colony. Only an arm’s length away, thousands of puffins nested in pairs, some close enough to touch. A hush fell over us as we walked along the boardwalk past other whispering tourists, all of us snapping photos of these adorable animals.

Luckily, we found a nice campground nearby where we could do our laundry. As I settled in to wait for the washing machine to finish its cycle, I saw the first and only sunset of our trip around 11 p.m. The sky filled with lines of pink and yellow, but the area never became completely entrenched in darkness.

After a good sleep, we knew we had to get the van looked at. We headed to the small town of Egilsstadir, which is the largest metropolitan area in East Iceland. After playing some games at a cafe and checking out local shops while the mechanics fixed our van, we headed to Vök Baths.

The floating hot springs perched on a cold lake had been high on my list to visit, and it didn’t disappoint! We soaked our stress away while waiting for our vehicle to be repaired. I dipped into the chilly freshwater lake to cool off. After over three hours, we decided to check at the front desk and learned our keys had been dropped off ages ago! Thankfully, we didn’t have to pay for the repairs, as we’d opted for the best insurance coverage policy. Reunited with our campervan, we were ready to hit the road again.

We drove northwest, passing craggily mountains, bright blue lakes and waterfall after waterfall after waterfall. It seemed like there were thousands; we almost started to get bored of seeing the glorious cascades. In one area, we drove through a barren landscape of black ash that looked like Mordor or the moon.

After a night at a lonely campground, we made it to Akureyri in northern Iceland. We explored the downtown shops, including a unique thrift shop, and then we drove up to Geosea Geothermal Sea Baths near Húsavík. In my opinion, the one-hour drive was well worth it, as these quiet, smaller, less crowded hot springs with an infinity pool edge overlooking the Arctic Ocean quickly became my favourite.

We spotted fins in the waves; it was either dolphins or whales. Afterwards, we went to Naustið seafood restaurant for a local bite.

The next day, we decided to cover some serious ground and spontaneously drive 388 kilometres back to Reykjavík earlier than we’d originally planned. The north of Iceland wasn’t doing it for us and the weather was turning, so we had to cook meals inside the campervan as rain patterned the windows. It had been a fine home, but it was small and stuffy for two tall adults.

Upon arriving back in the city, we visited a board game cafe and enjoyed a local beer. We also dropped far too much money on mediocre fast food at Smass burgers (it’s said to be Iceland’s version of McDonalds). Most importantly, we indulged in the most delicious pastries from Brauð & Co!

We wandered the colourful downtown core as the weather turned to sunshine, though we still needed to bundle up against the wind. We bought souvenirs from local vendors at art markets and tried the famous Iceland hot dog. It was fine (I mean, it was a hot dog); I think it’s mainly famous for being the most affordable meal in the country.

That evening, we visited a cool bookstore/cafe/live music venue called Hús máls og menningar, known as the “bookstore bar.” We sipped a shared beer (our budget was stretched tight by this point!) and listened to cover songs while patrons danced.

Finally, on our last morning in Iceland, we woke up at 5 a.m. to be some of the first to arrive at the Blue Lagoon for opening at 7 a.m. Our entrance fees were a Christmas gift from my mom, and it was the perfect present after travelling this incredible, otherworldly country in a cramped campervan and preparing for a long flight home.

Although some people say it isn’t worth the hype, I felt relaxed and luxurious soaking in the milky blue waters. I enjoyed using the provided face mask and floating with my eyes closed. I kept my hair clipped up so it didn’t ruin my luscious locks, and when it came time to leave for the airport, I was sad to go.

But at least I brought home a new friend with me.

Have you been to Iceland? What was your favourite part? Did we miss anything?

Comment below!