Welcome to the world’s most northerly capital, a colourful bohemian town buzzing with creative energy. Your boutique hotel is located in the central 101 District, its historic streets lined with eye-catching architecture, quirky art galleries and offbeat cafes that transform into hip music venues by night. After meeting your Pack Leader and group, you’ll head out for a welcome dinner at a cosy brasserie and cocktail bar. Get to know your fellow Flashpackers over elegant dishes of Icelandic food and raise a glass of brennivin (schnapps) to the adventures to come. 

The open road awaits and you’ll start with a geologically supercharged tour of Iceland’s Golden Circle, taking in Thingvellir (the site of Iceland’s original Viking parliament), Geysir (the waterspout after which all others are named) and Gullfoss (the ‘Golden Waterfall’), with its rainbow colours shining through the mist. En route, you’ll stop at the dramatic Silfra Rift to snorkel in the icy clear water between the Eurasian and North American tectonic plates. With visibility up to 100 metres, it’s an experience like no other. Warm up at a geothermal bakery where lava bread is baked underground and taste the most delicious tomato soup at the famous Friðheimar greenhouse, before continuing to your chic base in the remote Central Highlands.

Much of Iceland’s interior is a vast volcanic desert, a barely habited landscape of bubbling mud pots, huge glaciers and rivers winding through rust-coloured rhyolite hills pocked with steaming sulphur vents. This is where the wilderness really begins. You’ll spend the day exploring the untamed landscape around Kerlingarfjöll, a snow-covered summit criss-crossed with gravel tracks and spectacular hiking trails. After an active day, retreat from the elements at your highland base, a refuge of warm hospitality complete with hot thermal pools – a spectacular way to spend a wild summer’s evening. 

Traversing the rugged highlands, you’ll arrive at the Tröllaskagi Peninsula on Iceland’s north coast, a fairytale landscape of towering mountains and deep fjords, said to be inhabited by trolls. Keep your eyes peeled for wild Icelandic ponies as you travel towards the town of Hauganes, one of the best places in the country for a whale-whaling excursion. Boarding a classic oak boat, you’ll set off up the fjord in search of cetaceans, such as humpback whales, minke whales and white-beaked dolphins. Back on dry land, you’ll stop at a microbrewery to sample some of Iceland’s finest craft beers, before arriving at your hotel in Akureyri.  

Iceland’s second-largest city makes a good base for exploring the geological wonders the north. First up, you’ll visit Lake Mývatn: a serene bird-filled lake dotted with pseudocraters and surrounded by weird lava formations. From here, you’ll travel east to the roaring falls of Dettifoss, Europe’s most powerful waterfall, fed by icy water from the massive Vatnajökull glacier. Take in the views over Ásbyrgi, a magnificent horseshoe-shaped canyon filled with lush birch forest – a rare sight in Iceland – before finishing your day at a spa in the quaint fishing village of Húsavík, soaking in hot mineral-rich sea baths overlooking the Arctic Ocean. 

Rejoining Route One, which circumnavigates the island, you’ll travel east to the beautiful Eastfjords, a convoluted coastline of picturesque villages backed by sheer-sided mountains. You’ll stop to explore the stunning Stuðlagil Canyon, a particularly photogenic spot with hexagonal basalt columns lining a river of blue-green glacial melt water. Then, it’s a short drive to Iceland’s second highest waterfall: Hengifoss. Stretch your legs with a hike to this narrow ribbon of water cascading down the straited red clay and black basalt cliffs, before arriving at your hotel in time for a hearty dinner.

There’s a long drive in store today, but the scenery is out of this world, transporting you through desolate volcanic plains, past lonely farms and around the tongues of glaciers. You’ll stop off for lobster sandwiches at a cute cafe in the harbour town of Höfn before arriving at the magical Jökulsárlón lagoon. You might recognise this sight from films such as James Bond, Tomb Raider and Batman Begins but nothing prepares you for its beauty. Together with your group, you’ll kayak out into the tranquil water, surrounded by ghostly blue icebergs carving off the glacier and spinning as they drift out to sea or glistening like diamonds washed up on the black sand.

Spend the morning exploring some more of the south coast’s dramatic sights, including one of Iceland’s best beaches: Reynisfjara. The sparkling jet-black sand is backed by towering basalt columns with spiky basalt stacks jutting out of the sea offshore. Take in the view from the Dyrhólaey rock arch, a popular puffin-nesting site in summer, before preparing to get wet at Seljalandsfoss waterfall as you clamber behind the thundering cascade. After lunch, you’ll strap on some crampons for a hike on the Sólheimajökull glacier. Led by an expert guide, you’ll crunch your way across the icy wonderland, past deep crevasses, jagged ridges and sink holes. 

After breakfast, get ready for a quintessential Icelandic experience: bathing in a hot river in the middle of the Icelandic countryside. The Reykjadalur Valley is a beautiful geothermal area dotted with steaming fumaroles and mud pools. You’ll hike for a few kilometres through emerald green hills until you reach the perfect spot for a dip. Depending how hot you like the water, you can go up or down river to find the right temperature. Feeling thoroughly relaxed, it’s time to return to Reykjavik for your final farewell dinner at one of the country’s top fish restaurants.

That’s it, you’ve completed your grand tour of Iceland and it’s time to make your own way to the airport for your onward journey home. You’ve travelled through some incredible landscapes and met incredible people along the way. To experience a different side to the country, why not return in winter for our Unknown Iceland adventure where you’ll search for the Northern Lights and explore by super Jeep.