Iceland Archives · Sibeal Turraoin

Waterfalls in Iceland: Glymur

“It’s the second-highest.” “No, it’s the highest.” “No, it used to be the highest, then they found another one.” “I refuse to believe you! Prove it!” “There’s no signal.” “Ha! See, I was right!” So went the argument as we enjoyed a break from the most un-Icelandic heat of a summer’s day, sitting in front of…

Iceland: Glacier Walks and Ice Caves

Two things on my Icelandic bucket list were to walk on a glacier and to visit an ice cave. Ice caves can be really stunning with amazing shades of blue and sweeping arcs of ice, and well, who doesn’t want to walk on a glacier? After asking Katherina, my friend who works as a tourist…

Things to do in Iceland: Winter Lights Festival

The Winter Lights festival, or Vetrarhátíð, brightens up a dreary and cold February in Iceland. Celebrating the lengthening days, the festival is a combination of cultural events, light installations and many museums are free which is a great bonus. Many museums put on special guided tours or events, there’s art everywhere, language classes, storytelling, there was…

Bucketlists and Travel Goals

It´s that time of the year, come January it’s all new diaries, resolutions and of course travel plans. Looking back over my Travel Goals for 2017 I got thinking. I saw Arctic foxes in the Westfjords which was amazing, I did a road trip through the Highlands and I got to see more of the Northern…

Christmas and New Year’s Eve in Iceland

Despite appearances, I do like Christmas. Just not when the hype starts in September. But now that’s it’s December I can get into the Christmas spirit and there’s a few differences with Christmas in Iceland that I’m enjoying learning about. Here Christmas is called Jól, which we know as Yule, an ancient pre-Christian feast. Icelanders…

Books to read while travelling in Scotland, Norway, Iceland and Ireland

Sometimes people joke that I travel just so I can read in peace and quiet. In fact, when we set off on the Northwest Passage I packed over thirty books. It’s not completely true but I can’t set off without books to read and I especially love reading something set in the country I’m visiting. It’s…

The Blue Lagoon, Iceland. Is it worth it?

It’s been over nine years since I last visited Bláa Lónið or the Blue Lagoon. Easily the most Instagrammed place in Iceland, it’s on everyone’s to-do list. However for ages, I’ve been telling people not to bother because it’s really expensive and you have to book weeks in advance, so is the Blue Lagoon worth it?…

Review - International Photographer, Photographic Locations Iceland Map

Review: International Photographer, What to Photograph Iceland Map

Usually, before a trip I do a bit of preparation, like this photography map of Iceland here, marking the places I’d like to go with a photograph for reference. Then when I get there that all goes out the window, I travel around according to my whims and the weather. But, wouldn’t it be handy…

Icelandic Crafts and Souvenirs worth bringing home

Get out of that puffin shop! There are so much more to Icelandic souvenirs than plastic horned helmets and stuffed animals (I’m not knocking the stuffed animals – if there was a collective noun for polar bears then that’s what I’d have), you just have to look past the “Ég tala ekki íslensku” tshirts. What…

5 Reasons to visit Iceland in winter

There’s no such thing as the low season in Iceland anymore, but there are lots of reasons to visit Iceland in winter, and not just because there are fewer tourists (though with visitor numbers expected to reach 3 million in the next few years it’s a good place to start!). 1. You can see the Aurora Borealis Ok…

Categories

Recent Posts.

Category / hiking / Iceland / nature / things to do / travel