Iceland during spring break?

[Anonymous]

We are considering going to Iceland for spring break. Kids are 9 and 6. Is that a good time to go? Would 4 days be enough? Also, anyone flew to Iceland with Wow air, which is very cheap? Suggestions are appreciated. Thank you.

[Anonymous]

It will be painfully cold and daylight still pretty limited. But you may still be able to catch the northern lights if you're lucky.

[Anonymous]

Depends what you want to see and do. Blue lagoon can be done any time of year. Kids under 12 get free entry. You will have more daylight hours in March than December, in 4 days you would get a taste and could probably feel like you had a visit. Day 1 early am arrival Blue Lagoon. Wander around city. Day 2 Golden Circle (full day), Day 3 South coast? Day 4 part day and fly back. WoW is cheap but nice planes. Short flight so not too long to worry about it.

[Anonymous]

You can certainly spend a lot longer than 4 days there and see the whole country. But if you stay in Reykjavik and do daytrips, you will see plenty.

Blue Lagoon & Golden Circle are musts. South coast is a very long drive from Reykjavik. After spending the entire day in the car on Golden Circle day, you may not want to do another day in the car to see the South coast. I'd spend that day on a whale watching trip instead.

We liked WOW and would fly them again. Bring your own food & water.

[Anonymous]

If you can pull a longer trip (about 10 days), going around the island in a camper van is awesome. You can get more off the beaten path and see more of the beauty.

The one we took had a sleeping area both below and above that would work well with kids and a heater that worked overnight to keep the cold off. It's better if you can drive manual, but they have a few automatic transmission cars too.

[Anonymous]

OP here. Thank you for great tips. Do you think late March should be fine in terms of wheather? Some says it will be wet and rainy, and with ice melting, roads would be horrible. Also,anyone took a family trip there with kids around 9 and 6? How was your experience?

[Anonymous]

I would review TripAdvisor's FAQ on March in Iceland. For December then recommended against driving around because of the conditions. You can also get a sense of historical March weather - my guess is rain,ice, snow, wind will still be on the menu in March but the day light will be longer.

[Anonymous]

You will need a coat for March. Temp in July can get down to 40s at night (still daylight) so, in March/April, it will definitely require a coat.

[Anonymous]

We did a big family trip, so our kids played with their cousins - ages 5 to 13. They loved running around outdoors, climbing mountains & waterfalls, playing at the black pebble beach (not in the water) but I think the gorgeous sunny weather had a lot to do with that. They liked riding Icelandic horses too. Food is SO expensive. We stayed in places with kitchens so we could cook some meals at home.

Also, I got the windshield insurance for the rental car and that paid for itself. A tiny chip in the windshield from a rock on the road would have been like $2k. Even with that savings (ha!) the rental still ran me $700 for a week. yow!

[Anonymous]

We went for Spring break but did not take the kids. We loved it. The tours are very good but very very long. The weather is unpredictable but it is almost always rainy or overcast. Make sure you pack for any weather. It snowed there after we returned. My six year old would have been miserable but he is not used to traveling.

[Anonymous]

I think you should assess the feasibility and fun factor of this trip with your kids at their ages by how tolerant they are of long car rides. Iceland is amazing, but almost everyone will tell you to get out of the city and go on either day tours OR go driving through the country by yourselves on an extended road trip. If your kids are the type to tolerate long bus/car rides to get to their destinations, then fine. Or, if they are the type to actually even be able to enjoy those as PART of the trip, i.e. they can look out the window and enjoy the extraordinary beauty of the country, talk about what they're seeing, etc. That's how I was as a kid and I always enjoyed "the journey" as much as "getting there." My kid is the exact opposite of that and she's almost 12. Maybe it's being a city kid, where she can get almost anywhere she wants in 30 min or less, but she DESPISES long drives and cannot for the life of her enjoy scenery, etc. She's impatient to get where she's going. Car rides are to be slept through or she buries herself in electronics. She was whining and miserable at 9 when we took her to Iceland. I wish I had waited to take her. She frankly ruined my trip.

[Anonymous]

^^ agree with this. Also, how tolerant of the wind & cold are they? We went in July and wore fleeces & snowboots the entire week. Some of the stops on our extended road trip were very cold, with high winds.