Got into Keflavik airport after midnight after my flight from Madrid that connected through Warsaw. The Keflavik airport is about an hour from Reykjavik so I got a night in the Aurora Star Hotel, on the airport property. After wandering groggily a bit, I found the way there and was checked in by a very nice clerk, who comped my breakfast buffet. Complete and delicious it was, after a decent sleep in a very basic room.
I thought, before checking out and taking the shuttle bus to Reykjavik, that I would use the opportunity to steam out the wrinkles on all my shirts. The bathroom had scalding hot Icelandic geothermal hot water. So I hung them around the bathroom, cranked up the water, and shut the bathroom door for five minutes.
Not the best idea.
When I opened the door, waves of steam came rolling out. Puddles of water were everywhere. And the steam quickly filled the room, which was now a sauna, and water condensed everywhere.
And then the fire alarm went off. For at least my floor, and possibly for the entire building.
I mopped everything up the best I could, opened the windows to the frigid morning air, and waited for the sauna to convert back into a hotel room.
Inevitably the front desk called. Was I OK? I was, I said. And I lied like a rug. Gee I was just trying to take a hot shower. Happens all the time, they said, or lied back. Who knows. Anyway, no permanent damage.
And my shirts were wrinkle free.
I hightailed it out to the shuttle to Reykjavik. It was around $40, which was reasonable given the long ride and cheaper than a $200 taxi ride.
On arrival to Reykjavik I immediately grasped that I was in a tourist area. That’s good when you are getting your feet under you in a new place. Everything is organized and well marked in that Disney way. The downside is that Reykjavik was my first real exposure to the Iceland tax. I hope they get paid well in Iceland, because things here, even outside the tourist bubble, are insanely expensive. Even given that it’s an isolated island.
It was midafternoon by the time I got checked in (sharing an room with my Cuenca friend James due to the astronomical cost of even basic accommodation) and settled in, and I decided to explore the area immediately around my centrally located hotel. And it really is Main Street in the Magic Kingdom. Blocks and blocks of restaurants alternating with gift shops. The restaurants fell into three categories. Attempts at “local” cuisine — seafood and lots and lots of lamb. Burgers, ribs, chicken wings places. And ramen places, which I’m guessing cater to the waves of Asian tourists everywhere. Ramen restaurants seem to outnumber everything else.
I was hungry and decided to start local. I’d heard of Icelandic Street Food from someone I chatted up. You buy a smallish serving of soup in a bread bowl for about $25 and you get unlimited refills of three soups: fish, lamb stew, and tomato.
I always compare restaurant soup to that of my friend Mark Shenk. He had various NYC restaurants, most famously our beloved neighborhood spot A Stray Cafe. And his soups were the immaculately crafted gold standard, each one the best of its type that you ever ate. The original Soup Nazi place was near my midtown workplace and I ate there a few times. Mark had him beat hands down. Icelandic Street Food soup? Thin and watery, not completely flavorless but clearly quickly cooked, cheaply and for all-you-can-eat consumption. Not sure of the authenticity, but at least it was filling, and, as I was to learn, relatively cheap at $28.
After a few more laps of the downtown tourist area, I booked a daylong tour online for the next day. It was the classic Golden Circle Tour, which takes you on an eight hour loop of parks and sites outside Reykjavik. You got back to town around seven. And then, as I booked a package, part two, the Northern Lights tour, which left at 9:30pm and got back at some indeterminate hour well after midnight.
After a quick coffee shop breakfast, I decided to do a little early morning shopping. I stupidly had brought a warm jacket, but it wasn’t really waterproof. And, duh Jamie, you are going to Greenland and Canada as well. Most places weren’t open yet, but I found a place that rented winter wear for the day. Would they sell me a gently used jacket? Hmm, the clerk said. I guess I could. We bargained over a price (South America has served me well in that regard) and I got a nice Swedish brand high quality all weather jacket at about a 30% discount off of what the internet price was for a new one. I checked some retail shops later, and it was far cheaper than anything new purchased locally, and actually a bit cheaper than inferior jackets in secondhand stores. For Iceland, I didn’t do too badly. And, more importantly, I didn’t have to return it at day’s end.
Newly waterproof, I met my tour bus at Tourist Bus Stop 1. Did I mention they had this place organized? It was a very rainy, cold and windy day, and I was glad to be dressed appropriately. The daylong tour had several stops: Thingvellir National Park (where the Atlantic and European tectonic plates meet); Geysir Geothermal Area (um, geysers); Gulfoss Waterfall (two stages and absolutely stunning); and Kerið Crater (a small but impressive crater lake). Even given the daunting but authentic weather it was by far my favorite day in Iceland, which was outside Reykjavik a magical country. I enjoyed the day with my bus mate Ekho from Ghana. He now lives and works in Illinois and takes a yearly week somewhere in the world. He was great to hang with, as he was motivated at every stop to hike everywhere and see everything. And, at sea level after hiking at Andes altitude for a few years, I had no problems keeping up with the younger guy.
The tour guide on the bus had recommended Independent People, a book from Iceland’s Nobel Prize winner Halldor Laxness. I found it in translation after a couple of stops in local bookstores after the daytrip. Good book to read on the cruise, maybe. And I dropped off some laundry for later pickup.
Dinner was at The Laundromat Cafe. Yes, I could have done my own laundry here. Nope. On vacation. This was the second food category. The burger place. A Big Mac sized mediocre burger, a single small potato’s worth of fries, and a coke topped $40.
Somewhat fortified, I met my 9:30pm group at, you guessed it, Tourist Bus Stop 1, for the Northern Lights Tour. Purportedly they scientifically check and only venture out if there’s a solid chance of seeing something. And they target a specific location. We were headed about 1 1/2 hours away, a lighthouse at the southeast corner of Iceland. Dozed for most of the trip, and upon arrival and a wait for midnight, was informed that the forecast had changed and we were unlikely to see anything. But there was hot chocolate so drink up. And then we headed home, arriving close to 3am.
Fortunately your trip purchase comes with a guarantee. If you don’t see them you can rebook until you do. And so our guide consulted the oracle and told us to email and request Saturday. This being Thursday. I guess Friday was a guaranteed wash.
Friday morning had my usual latte and morning croissant (a small plate with cheese, jam, and butter) and embarked on a project in my room.
I am an AMEX credit card guy and have been my whole life. But Iceland, surprisingly given their tourist demographic, accepts it not. And my Chase Visa (which I’ve had for 40+ years and is Prime + 0% interest; I’ll die with this credit card and my area code 212 New York phone number) has foreign transaction fees. There was an offer in my Chase app for a preapproved Chase Sapphire Preferred card (good lord what an aspirationally marketed name). A quick ChatGPT question confirmed it was a good travel card. Astronomical interest but I won’t carry a balance. Clicked on the link in the app, and a quick phone call later I had a new card. And, best of all, the app seamlessly and immediately dumped the new card into ApplePay. So I could now tap and go everywhere in Iceland, and get the physical card later. And no foreign transaction fees. I love good customer service, and wow this was that.
Suitably armed, it was time for some retail therapy. So I went clothes shopping at H&M. I bought 4 shirts on clearance and a new puffy vest. I had unknowingly and erroneously donated my puffy vest in Cuenca and kept Kirk’s XXXL. So upon arrival in frigid weather, I pulled out of my suitcase a completely useless enormous puffy vest. I’m not even sure why he bought that size. We both could have fit in. Fortunately there was a drop box for Red Cross clothing donations nearby. Some enormous Icelander will be very happy.
My Cuenca friends Susan and Victor arrived that day, so we all had dinner at dinner at Apotek. Burger and fries. 2 happy hour beers. $60.
Saturday morning I had the usual breakfast and headed to the Northern Lights museum. It was a bonus included in the purchase of my tour package. Museum should be in quotes. A perfunctory series of pictures on the wall with some scientific explanations of auroras. The main attractions were a room with chairs and pillows and blankets on the floor, and a large screen with projected images of northern lights in various Icelandic locales. And after that, four VR headsets. You put one on and got pixelated 360 degree views of northern lights in various Icelandic locales. Gift shop as you exit.
Saturday dinner with my gang was at Dirty Burger. Burger and fries. There’s a pattern here.
After dinner was Saturday night Northern Lights part 2. A much better experience with much better luck. The voodoo pointed to an area only 30 minutes outside Reykjavik. Got there around 10:30pm, stunning northern lights around 11pm without having to wait for midnight (the guide ranked them 6/10 but as they were my first, 10/10 for me), got some great pictures (thanks iPhone 16 Pro), drank the hot chocolate (actually a bit spicy and very good), and got back around 1am. Thanks BusTravel Iceland. You run a tight ship. Highly recommended outfit. Good phone app, great communication, no issues whatsoever.
Sunday morning I packed and we headed for the cruise port to board. Helped my friend Victor schlep suitcases for boarding after schlepping my own. Organized and smooth. Buses from the harbor near the downtown out to the boarding area.
My overall impression of Reykjavik? The most touristy of tourist towns. Nothing much to do except eat, shop, and go to expensive tourist traps. See a film and some large plastic whales. See a film about the Northern Lights. Museums of this and that. Not really my thing at all. Maybe the best part of Reykjavik was my continuing and developing WhatsApp relationship with Felipe, the man I met in Madrid.
Getting out into the country, however, was great. If I were doing this again, I’d either give Reykjavik only one night before the cruise departure, or I’d arrive early and rent a car and drive around the countryside which was amazing and immensely engaging.
