When you start doing some research about Iceland, the first thing you see is how expensive this country is. It is true and wrong at the same time. Yes, you can visit Iceland on a budget if you plan it very carefully!
To help you elaborate your Iceland trip cost, here is some useful advice regarding airline tickets, accommodation, rental car, food and activities.
Iceland has been on my bucket list for years. And it’s very understandable why : incredible rock formations, black sand beaches, volcano craters, infinite roads, powerful waves, blue lagoons, breathtaking viewpoints, northern lights… and more sheep than humans!
If you want to live the once-in-a-lifetime experience, here are the absolute best private northern lights tours.
So yes, Iceland is considered as one of the most expensive countries to visit. But there are loads of ways to cut expenses on your Iceland budget.
It depends on the season you choose to visit Iceland, how long in advance you book the trip and how roots you’re willing to be. It also depends if you’re doing a solo trip to Iceland, family trip to Iceland or an Iceland road trip with friends.
To help you plan a road trip, here is a dream 6 days Iceland itinerary corresponding to the following budget.
On the other side, we’ll cover everything you need to know from the flights, accommodation and food, to the rental car and gaz in this Iceland ring road trip cost guide.
How much does a trip to Iceland cost for one person?
For a road trip to South Iceland of 6 days and 5 nights, I spent 620€. This price includes the round trip flights, five nights in hostels or guesthouses, rental car and gaz, food and activities.
As covered below, most activities are free except the Blue Lagoon. The only thing that this total doesn’t include is the unforeseen, aka our car issues ! Here is a preview of the amazing experiences we had with this budget.
Iceland trip cost for two
The advantage of travelling with someone is that you get to split the Iceland road trip cost. So you can’t exactly multiply the previous number by two.
As two friends, we spent 1140€ for our road trip together of 6 days. And if you’re travelling with your partner, I believe you’ll pay a bit less as you share the bed.
Cost of 7 days in Iceland
How much is a flight to Iceland ?
There are not many airlines offering direct flights to Iceland, which can make it a bit expensive if you don’t book in advance.
Among the most known of them, you can find Icelandair, SAS, Air Iceland and Wizz Air. All international flights arrive at Keflavik Airport, a little over 30 minutes from the city center of Reykjavik.
A London to Iceland flight cost is around 100€. It typically last 3-4 hours. Our Iceland round trip cost from France was around 200/250€. Flights from East US to Iceland last 5-6 hours and cost around $250 one way.
Iceland accommodation
Yes, Iceland hotels are where you’ll spend the most money. In Reykjavik and its surroundings, you can easily find cheap and welcoming hostels. But most towns you’ll drive through during your Iceland trip are just one street long.
The smallest the city is, the less there are guesthouses and the biggest the price of the accommodation will be.
We booked everything on Airbnb or Booking for guesthouses and hostels and it was approximately 34€ per night and per person. If you’re going at summer time, you can rent a van and sleep in it.
Iceland Rental Car & Gaz
Unless you are only staying in Reykjavik, which is very unusual for Iceland travelers, you’ll have to rent a car.
So to define the Iceland cost of your trip, you need to consider the price of a car rental and of the gaz in the country. So, what kind of car will you need for a road trip in Iceland?
If you plan to drive along the Iceland Coast on the Road 1, don’t bother taking a 4×4! A smaller car can 100% do the job.
A Nissan Micra was perfect for our itinerary. Renting it for 4 days and a half only costed us 110€ and the gaz price is quite similar to France, just a little higher, 1.55€/L.
We booked the car via City Car Rental. Be careful with what you’re doing with the car though because there are approximately as many garages in Iceland as penguins in France… So even with the smallest car issue, your day will be ruined.
Most Iceland car companies ask for a deposit that you’ll have to pay with your credit card (and not debit card, very important detail!).
So read the contract carefully and ask them about everything, including which gaz to put in. Even if it seems obvious. Sometimes it’s not 😅
Food and drink prices in Iceland
Restaurants in Iceland are very expensive. It usually goes from 20€ to 30€ for a meal, so we skipped the restaurants and cooked all our meals ourselves.
We took a lot of dry food in the suitcase : pasta, rice, tuna, cereals… So we only had to buy some fresh products such as milk, vegetables and fruits… The less expensive supermarket is Kronan (16€ per person for 5 days).
It may not be representative of the average Iceland trip cost, as I don’t think most people thought about taking dry food in their suitcases. But it’s just to tell you that planning a trip to Iceland on a budget is 100% doable with a bit of thinking 😉
Activities in Iceland
When visiting Iceland, it’s mostly to visit the mind blowing landscapes, so you won’t pay a lot in terms of activities. You can visit almost everything for free and park everywhere, such as the magical Seljavallalaug Swimming Pool.
The only natural place we visited and had to pay for out of all the places we’ve been to was the Kerið crater (3€) and the parking of Seljalandsfoss (5€). You can check out our itinerary by clicking on the next picture. It features the Golden Circle, a wrecked plane, canyons, waterfalls, black sand beaches…
The most known hot springs location of Iceland is the Blue Lagoon. And for good reason ! Even if it’s not natural, it’s a remarkable dreamy geothermal spa with the bluest water you’ll ever see. The entrance is quite pricey (around $63 USD or 59€).
However, there are plenty of free hot springs in Iceland. One of the most magical one is located in the south of the country and is called the Seljavallalaug swimming pool.
It’s one the oldest swimming pools of the country and it’s lost in the middle of the mountains. You can access it for free, the location is absolutely breathtaking so I couldn’t recommend it more.
- Blue Lagoon Iceland trip cost : 55 to 75€ depending on the season
- Seljavallalaug pool cost : free access and free parking
More Iceland tips and tricks
Here are random but useful tips for Iceland first timers. Take very warm clothes in which you feel good, bring comfy and sporty shoes and make sure there’s a kitchen in all your accommodation.
Don’t be scared of heights. When it comes to taking pictures, stay careful. Most of the places ain’t secured with barriers like in central Europe.
Last but not least, open your eyes widely, be excited like a child and enjoy every minute of the adventure ! It’s among the best destinations to visit first post covid.
And just like that, we wrapped this Iceland trip cost guide in just under 1400 words ! As a reminder, the Iceland travel cost per day is around 100€ per person if you travel roots.
We hope it helps you have a better idea of the budget you should plan for your upcoming trip to Iceland to make it a once in a lifetime experience.
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