Reykjanes Peninsula Private Tour

Wild and rugged landscape experience in the Reykjanes Peninsula

My family of 8 adults and 2 young children arrived at 7:00 am at KEF and our driver, Mike, was there waiting for us to take us on our private Reykjanes Peninsula tour before dropping us at our accommodation in Reykjavik. He was polite and patient while we grabbed some snacks and coffee and pulled out our rain coats before walking to the van. We didn’t include a “guided tour” with our private driver experience so he didn’t share much about what we might see at each stop. Fortunately I had read online, watched videos, and had a few travel books to have some information about the area and knew that all the stops were free. The Bridge Between Continents was an interesting and easy first stop where the kids could explore safely and we got our first glimpse of the vast bleakness of the Reykjanes Peninsula’s volcanic landscape. As we drove further we were simply in awe of the power of the Earth to create this rugged and desolate area. Since the Snæland Private Driver tours allow for some flexibility, I asked to include a stop at Gunnuhver Geothermal Area. Seeing the steam of the fumarole forcefully push out of the reddish brown craggy ground with a backdrop of the hazy and misty day was the highlight of the tour for me. We then stopped to see the jagged black lava coastline with crashing waves filling the Brimketill Lava Rock Pool. Our search for a restroom gave us a chance to see the very tiny town of Grindavik, which didn’t have much to offer. After getting some food at one of the two places in town open in the morning (but without restrooms), we finally found a WC at a local campground and continued on our tour. Unfortunately the mist turned to rain which made the next couple stops less pleasant. We all got out of the van at Seltún and looked at the bubbling mud pit near the parking area, but the rain was too much for us to desire walking further along the wooden pathway to a different viewpoint. In retrospect, I realize this is where a guide may have been helpful, because I think we missed the vast view over the entire rugged and bubbling area by not continuing on the walkway (I had assumed the first mud pit was a good example of what we were going to see, but it was not an expansive and elevated view like we would have gotten by going further). By the time we got to Lake Kleifarvatn the rain was coming down hard enough to keep most of my family on the van and a few brave people got out to walk around. After that our driver simply drove us back to Reykjavik to drop us off. Although it ultimately was shorter than I planned due to the rain, the Reykjanes Peninsula tour was definitely a worthwhile tour to add to our transfer to Reykjavik, since we had several hours before our accommodation could allow us access. I would highly recommend a Snæland Private Driver tour since you can adjust what places you want to see and how much time you want to spend at each stop.

Response from the operator: Thank you for taking the time to write such a detailed review and for sharing your experience. We truly appreciate your feedback and are delighted to hear that you enjoyed the flexibility of the tour and that Gunnuhver was a highlight. Snaeland Travel Team

via Tripadvisor

Amazing experience with a guide like Siggi

Siggi T. was super welcoming. He told us anecdotes, war conflicts, idiosyncrasies of the country as we passed through different areas. It's been endearing to have you as a guide. We stayed with him for 2 days and he would definitely repeat

Response from the operator: Muchas gracias por su excelente reseña y por las amables palabras sobre Siggi. Nos alegra mucho saber que tuvieron una experiencia tan agradable con él. ¡Esperamos volver a verlos en Islandia muy pronto!

via Tripadvisor (translated)

Awesome tour of an awesome place.

You really get to see and experience the many views and experiences that Iceland has to offer on the tour. As you navigate the peninsula the terrain constantly changes and it appears you on in a completely different area - almost like another planet. Christo (I hope I got that correct) was an excellent guide and shared a lot of insights along the way.

via Viator