My father (elderly) wants to travel to Iceland this Xmas, and

Go outside Reykjavík, do the Golden Circle and the Ring Road (at least the south coast). All the attractions are a few steps away from the parking lot so your parents will be fine. Enjoy Iceland

>>1180371
The Golden Circle is off-limits during the winter months if you try to drive through it you will be arrested.

>>1179681
it depends on the condition of your parents as to what you can do in Iceland.

I've been twice in summer and winter and will try to offer some advice.

I would recommend renting a car no matter what you have planned, as it will be easier to get around. You won't have much daylight near xmas and the weather will be cold and possibly windy.

There is plenty to do in Reykjavik such as eating, hot baths, museums etc. just google tourist attractions (don't go to blue lagoon as it sucks).

you could do worse than spending a few days in reykjavik, then driving down the south coast as its as easy drive and also picturesque. also the west fjords are nice. bear in mind that there can be long drives and your parents may get bored, your call.

as anon mentioned, a lot of attractions are very close to parking lots so you won't have to drive far, but bear in mind that waterfalls in winter are VERY icy so look after your folks around them ok?

Have a great time, its a beautiful country

>>1180748
Why does the Golden Circle suck anon? But it's blue though.

Is it true that the Golden Circle is banned in winter time, or off limits?

>>1180757
Don't listen to him, the blue lagoon would be fucking perfect for two elderly people. It is easily accessible, easy to get in and out of, lots of places to just sit and chill. Yes it is touristy but not so much that you can't enjoy it. It's a huge spa and your parents will love it and so will you. Book the exclusive or executive package or whatever so you don't have to wait in line when you get there. Get your free robe and drink and go mellow out for a few hours. Spring for a massage if you have the money.

Golden circle is not closed in the winter? the roads are fine, just get a car with winter tires.
Blue lagoon would be perfect for you parents.
-icy

>>1180378

Errr....no?

I enjoyed Iceland and the guys above offer good advice. The Golden Circle is open and accessible, I dont know what the guy above is on about. (t. was there yesterday).

My only tip? Bring lube with you and be ready to get FUCKED by the prices there.

I shit you not when I say that my two-week stay in Tokyo was cheaper than my 5-day trip to Reykjavik.

I live in probably the most expensive and touristic part in Greece, Mykonos, so Im quite tolerant to money-grubbing tourist traps and such, but you'll be hard-pressed to find a place to eat and drink without blowing your wallet open.

>>1182986
I also heard that you would be ticketed by police for visiting after November

>>1182986
This is the truth. Iceland is expensive as FUCK. Prepare to spend $50 USD per person, per meal. More if you want to try some of the classier establishments in Reykjavik. Renting a car is the way to go, but I spent almost $900 just in gas on a 6 day trip. I'm not trying to be discouraging. Iceland is worth every single cent and then some. But being overly prepared finance-wise will make your trip a lot better. Also, don't get a lot of paper money. Get 10,000 Krona just to be safe but everywhere takes a card over there

>>1183769
I also heard autist anons love talking out of their ass

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>>1179681
4 hours and 20 minutes of daylight on Christmas day in Iceland.

As for the temperatures, you can expect average low to be approximately -2 degrees Celsius (28 F) and the average high temperatures to be 4 degrees Celsius (39 F)

Cloud cover about 89%, chance of some form of percipitation on a given day around 79%.

Away from Reykjavik, many or most hotels/restaurants will be closed, driving conditions iffy, many roads suitable only for experienced drivers with all wheel drive and lots of clearance.

Puffins are gone in December.

Upside, likely you'll get some good auroral shows.

If that floats your boat, go for it. But if you want to experience an "icy Iceland,"going in the Spring might be a better plan.

>>1182986
>(t. was there yesterday).
Anon, what did you see?
WHAT DID YOU SEE?

>>1180748
Iceland is a fantastic self-drive vacation with very little walking for the elderly at each beautiful vista or waterfall stop, just like a few steps from the car. I would go last week of August/first week of September for the shoulder season where there are fewer tourists, lower prices, and yet everything is still open to see. The entire time I was driving around, I was thinking, oh yea, my parents can do this, sit in the back of a SUV and see the sights. But, I don't think old people are steady enough on their feet to take a rapid mad dash from the locker room at Blue Lagoon to the water's edge without a slip and fall. They'll go slower, and should have some nonslip crocs or something to wear to the stairs.
There's barely enough to do in Reykjavik to warrant more than a day's visit, seriously. There are lovely restaurants, and I've heard it has a nice Christmas decor (but I haven't tried that). But, there's about 8 blocks of walking to see all of the Laugerveger neighborhood, up to the church, down all the shops and museum, if you get a central hotel like my favorite CenterHotel Arnarhvall, which has a rooftop atrium to see the opera house while you eat breakfast, and a nice spa in the basement. You could go to the opera. As far as seeing the rest of Iceland at Christmas? I think you could need a car with a snorkel, and so would have to arrange a tour from someone, not sure what to do other than ski or get some distance from the city lights. Those people would have emergency radios and other safety from freezing gear in their vehicles too.

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>>1179681
If you plan to drive around get a 4x4 car and please don't kill me in traffic because you can't drive In snow.

Pre book the blue lagoon I've heard of people waiting there all day only to be turned around. Probably ok to just show up because less tourism in winter but still.

Do the golden circle then drive or book a tour bus to explore the south coast or west peninsulas of iceland.

Get fucked up in reykjavik people like to drink here.

Look at brochures and stuff if you want some special tours like ice caves or snowmobiling etc..

Prices are shit and the food generally is too so just have a couple of meals in seafood restaurants and shit then stop throwing free money at people who don't price their products fairly.

Loaf of bread and butter is like 5 bucks

>>1185069
>exchange rates are unfair
Lel.
I bet you love it and find it perfectly fair when you go somewhere with cheaper shit though.

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Ive read the locals dont use the poo lagoon because it only refreshes every forty days that means its filthiest pool in Iceland and isn't even checked daily as local pools are.
I also know they act like Jews in the south and only the north is authentic

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Ok kiddo your just in luck I live in Iceland and I can give you some basic tips and tricks.

Yes Iceland is ridiculously expensive, there is no way around this. The tourist bubble is killing everything and everyone wants to make mad money in no time.

I have come here many times to help people around buying food in normal stores, because the price difference is crazy.

Ok look at the picture learn these icons by heart. Ok? Never I mean absolutely never buy shit from 10-11 its the most over priced tourist trap everywhere, after 20:00 (8:00 p.m.) every day and all weekends the increase the price of stuff in the store. Just in emergencies buy stuff there.

Hagkaup is the second most expensive store but you will get all the cool shit there.

You can buy sandwitches, water (More on that later) fruits and all the other shit in Bónus and Krónan. Bónus is open usually until 18:00 (6:00 p.m.), Krónan some places until 21:00 (9:00 p.m.). Kónan is a bit better but Bónus is good.

You don't need to buy water, the water from the faucet/tap is clean. I have lived on that water for 27 years and I´m still alive.

Blue lagoon is not that special, BUT because you have your parents they might like it. Book a time, like someone was talking about, the pool is usually full or over booked.

I might sound crazy but I recommend going to IKEA in Iceland, the food there is cheap and really good.

At the moment there is 0% ice in Reykjavík. Been a hot start to a winter. I think the golden circle is open all year it usually just depends on the weather and the amount of ice that might collect around Gullfoss and Geysi.

Under no freaking circumstances go to "Vestfirðir" or the "Highland" during winter, Specially because you have your parents with you. People have died there because they had no idea what they where getting into.

If you have questions leave them here I might come here again. Usually threads I post in die soon after.

and also
Tipping is not mandatory in Iceland.

>>1186337
People dying in Vestfirðir? I'm curious

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>>1186357
Ok, I should not be that dramatic. Out of 16 fatal car crashes last year 4 of them where in the vest part of Iceland (See the flowing picture).

The crazy looking part over that is Vestfirðir, during winter the roads there are usually closed. I work with a guy who lived there all his childhood and I joke to him around winter time the "close the gate" to his town because the only way to get there is by sea or air, and during winter its almost impossible to fly there.

At this moment I think 7 tourists have died in Iceland this year, keep in mind all of those deaths are because of accidents. We don't have dangerous wild animals that hunt people or crazy people with guns.

It makes me sad reading about these pore people who die here because of stupid shit.

And even worse just stupid people traveling here doing stupid shit. There was this group of kids who where going to walk over some crazy distance during winter time. They where rescued 3 times on 3 different locations because they had on idea what they where doing. But they got on the local news because of this.

After that I always suggest people to come here during summer, yes everything will be filled to the brim with tourists but the chances of danger is way less.

>>1185060
>There's barely enough to do in Reykjavik to warrant more than a day's visit,

Spent one day there -- I'd have done two, looking back on it, but more than that would be a waste.

>>1186337
>Book a time, like someone was talking about, the pool is usually full or over booked.

Would that be the case in December, though?

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>>1186364
Iceland: road near Grindavik, March, 2014.

A small road that is less likely to get attention, but also near the coast and in the SW. The road is under you if you stay between the yellow posts. Main roads were much better, though getting over the pass going east from Reykjavik was a bit iffy. Roads north of Gullfoss/Geysir were way worse than this, and with a local we still managed to get off the road and had to do some strenuous shit to get back onto it.

December, I imagine, would be worse than March.

And repeat to yourself -- 4 hours of daylight a day around Christmas/New Years.

If you are going to drive yourselves, stay on the main roads and be careful.

>>1186337
>You don't need to buy water, the water from the faucet/tap is clean. I have lived on that water for 27 years and I´m still alive.

That is a poor metric for the traveler -- most places, the locals live on the local water and are still alive, but that does not mean the traveler won;t get the Brown Horrors from brushing their teeth with it, let alone drinking it.

That said, in this case, yes, the water is fine, though around Reykjavik and possibly elsewhere the hot water is going to reek of hydrogen sulfide.

>>1179681
I'm guessing OP has long abandoned the thread but whatever.
I'm heading to Iceland in March.

Cheapest way to get there from the US I found was IcelandAir. $600 round trip from Boston.
Also, be sure to look at their Stopover offer, where if you book a flight from the US to mainland Europe, you can pause your flight in Reykjavik for up to 7 nights. I'm pretty sure it's subsidized by the govt to get tourists there. One such flight was literally $480 round trip from Boston to Copenhagen, and I'm pretty sure you can do a stopover on each leg, so 14 total subsidized nights in Iceland; the upside is you also get to go check out Copenhagen for a day or more, but this might also be a downside for your parents because it's more time on a plane.
Sample: Boston -> Reykjavik (7 nights to do Reykjavik and the Golden circle/South) -> Copenhagen (2 days) -> Reykjavik (7 nights to do the Ring road/North) -> Boston. All for under $500/person in flights.

Now I'm going with a tour company called Extreme Iceland I think, which basically you pick out all the shit they offer that you want to do (e.g. whale watching, snowmobiling, helo tour, etc.) and they send you with a guide in a truck and take care of your lodging and I think 1 meal a day. This is pretty expensive but might be an option for you if you don't mind the budget. It's costing me about $4k as part of a 4 person group, so for our private tour shit with all the events we picked it's probably about $15k total for 11 days. Cheaper if you do it as part of a larger group but it won't be private.
Not usually how I like to travel, but I'm going as part of a wedding party so no choice in the matter.

>>1186553

Now, for me.

I'm planning on getting there a day or 2 earlier than the rest of the wedding party. I'll have to wait for them in Reykjavik so I'll need some advice on things to see/do there without them. Also open to ideas from other places in Iceland that I could convince them to stop at while we're jerking around the ring road with our guide or stopped somewhere for the night, so feel free to mention non Reykjavik stuff as well.
For Reykjavik, all I know is to go to Laugavegur for nightlife and bar hopping, that Kaffibarinn is one of the best bars in the world and apparently awesome, and that I should check out Perlan. So basically, not much.
>Is there somewhere cheap like a hostel I can stay in for a night or 2 that is near everything?
>Any other specific bars?
>Any other places to have fun?
>Any other cool things to see?
And last but not least, what should I expect from Icelandic women? I'm not really asking "herpderp how 2 pick up wimmin?" because I'm sure that shit gets asked here every day about every city. But, I would like to know what I'm working with.
Are they cold or easy to talk to? Accepting of foreigners (Murican)? Open to one night stands or more conservative?
Where do the younger girls (18-30) hang out and go to have a good time? And are they around only on weekends or are weekdays also night-on-the-town days?
And yes, I know the old adage, if you can't get women at home, you can't get them traveling. No worries there.

Also couple of dumb questions: Are condoms, specifically above average sized ones, easy to come by or should I bring some with me? Hows the STD landscape in Iceland, specifically Reykjavik (and are most young women on birth control)?

t. dark haired, blue eyed, 28 y/o American who can pass for anything from American, Latin American, Spanish, or Italian.

>>1186555
We are nr1 stop for chlamydia! http://grapevine.is/news/2014/04/29/iceland-1-in-chlamydia-for-tenth-year-running/

>>1186582
Well, fuck. Guess you run out of things to do on an island and just start fucking.

When is the latest time of year that people go to the Golden Circle?