Along with the south coast of Iceland, another popular trip is the Golden Circle. This isn’t too surprising because the Golden Circle highlights some of the amazing natural wonders in Iceland. Sure, Iceland is full of amazing natural wonders, but you’ll find some unique things that you won’t be able to see anywhere else in the world.
About Iceland’s Golden Circle
The Golden Circle is a combination of three fantastic sights. There’s Geysir, the geyser that all other geysers in the world are named after. Then there’s Gullfoss, an amazing, powerful waterfall. Plus Þingvellir National Park, where you’ll see the Eurasian and North American tectonic plates. These Golden Circle highlights are amazing on their own, but there’s a few more stops you can add to the traditional list.
Golden Circle Highlights
Without further adieu, let’s get into the highlights of the Golden Circle.
Geysir Geothermal Area
There are more than 1000 geysers in the world (and over half are in Yellowstone National Park in the United States!). But Geysir, the geyser that every single other geyser is named after, is located in Iceland.
Now before you get too excited, there’s something really important that you need to know. Geysir no longer erupts. So while you will see hole in the ground where Geysir used to erupt, it won’t actually erupt.
Before you get too bummed out, there are plenty of other geysers here. These geysers continue to erupt on a regular basis. You’ll find everything from little splashes to geysers that can erupt 50 or more feet into the air. The most popular is Strokkur which erupts every 6 to 10 minutes. Strokkur is really easy to spot—just find the geyser with all of the tourists standing around it!
On my visit, we all stood around waiting and waiting and waiting. Strokkur just seemed like it didn’t want to erupt. But then erupted. And less than a minute later it erupted again. So bring patience because Strokkur doesn’t erupt on a fixed schedule (although every 6 to 10 minutes is a good average).
Gullfoss
If you translate Gullfoss literally, you get Gull = gold and foss = waterfall, so “golden waterfall”. After visiting, I think the name for Gullfoss is apt because it is that magnificent. It has definitely earned its place as one of the highlights of the Golden Circle.
While it’s not as tall as some of the waterfalls you’ll see on the south coast of Iceland, it’s still pretty cool. The falls are split into two sections. The first is 36 feet (11 meters) and the second is 69 feet (21 meters).
So while Gullfoss itself its cool, it’s worth knowing some of the history. Back in the early 1900s, Gullfoss was owned by a farmer. An English businessman wanted to purchase the waterfall to power a power plant. The farmer refused, and the fight to protect Gullfoss was eventually taken up my the farmer’s daughter (Sigríður Tómasdóttir). It took nearly twenty years to end the fight and save Gullfoss. A plaque near Gullfoss tells the story with more detail. For me, this story almost made Gullfoss more impressive.
It’s beautiful, but it meant so much to the family that they were willing to fight for it.
Þingvellir National Park
Þingvellir (or Thingvellir) is a national park that boasts several cool sights along Iceland’s Golden Circle. The highlight for most visitors is to walk between the tectonic plates. In this national park, the Eurasian and North American Plates are pulling apart from each other. They have pulled so far apart that a paved walkway was able to be added for visitors. And for those looking for a little more adventure, consider snorkeling at the Silfra fissure.
For less natural and more historic wonders, check out Alþingi (or Althing) which was the sight of the first parliament in Iceland. It was founded around the year 930, making it one of the oldest national parliaments in the world.
While I didn’t have the time to do it (because I was on a tour–more on that later), there are also a handful of hiking trails here as well. For more information about these hikes, check out the Þingvellir website.
Bonus
I’ve already talked about the major highlights of the Golden Circle, but there’s two other activities that I want to mention.
Secret Lagoon
One of the best things to do in Iceland is to visit a hot springs. Iceland was formed by volcanoes and as it still sits on shifting tectonic plates, it has a lot of geothermal energy. So take advantage of the natural hot springs here.
Many tourists just visit the Blue Lagoon. It is very touristy, but it’s so easy to visit. Even buses transporting people between Reykjavik and Keflavik airport will stop at the Blue Lagoon (that’s how I visited).
If you want a slightly less touristy experience, look at Secret Lagoon, which can easily be tacked on to a visit to the Golden Circle. You’d be forgiven for thinking this is some kind of secret hideaway, but it’s been discovered. Still, it was very interesting visiting this hot springs and the Blue Lagoon. The experiences felt incredibly different. The Blue Lagoon is touristy, but at Secret Lagoon, it felt more relaxed. Plus there were plenty of locals going about their daily lives.
It’s an easy stop to add on to your Golden Circle trip, and one that was included with my tour.
Faxi Waterfall
While not part of the traditional Golden Circle, we stopped here on my tour, so I’m going to mention it. As you head back south from Gullfoss, it’s just a short little detour, to visit this waterfall. While not as magnificent as Gullfoss, the waterfall was still beautiful.
Getting Around
This is best visited on a day trip from Reykjavik. You can easily do the entire trip on your own—if you have a rental car. But if you’re like me and are traveling through Iceland car free, a guided tour is another great option.
If you don’t have a car and don’t want to take a guided tour, you may wonder if you can use public transportation. As much as I’m a fan of using public transportation to do things on your own, it’s not really feasible here. To have the best experience, you need to have your own car or a guided tour.
As a solo traveler, the price of a rental car, fuel, and insurance was comparable to just paying for a tour. I took a tour so I didn’t even have to think about driving. I booked this (and my trip to Iceland’s South Coast) tour with Your Day Tours and had a great experience.
Planning Your Time
If you’re on a tour, you can skip this section. The tour company will take care of all of this for you.
For those with a car, you can travel in any order that you want. My tour used the following route and it worked out super well.
- Þingvellir National Park
- Gullfoss
- Geysir Geothermal Area
- Faxi Waterfall
- Secret Lagoon
Final Thoughts
The Golden Circle is one of the highlights on a visit to Iceland. There’s so many iconic land formations and natural beauty that you have to visit. Although, if I’m being completely honest, I think the south coast of Iceland is just a tad bit cooler. But even still, both the south coast and Golden Circle should be added to any Icelandic Itinerary.
Continue Your Adventure
Itinerary: If you don’t have a lot of time for travel, check out this Five Day Icelandic Itinerary.
More in Iceland: Nearby the Golden Circle is the Silfra Fissure where you can snorkel between two tectonic plates. Or head to the south coast of Iceland for black sand beaches, glaciers, and more waterfalls.
Iceland Travel Guide: For more about Iceland, check out my Iceland Travel Guide.