Iceland With Kids: What I Wish I Knew

Our first few hours in Iceland were rough.  Although we read a number of guide books and blogs and asked friends who had traveled with children for advice, we did not find a great resource for families traveling the Ring Road.  Lonely Planet’s Iceland guidebook states, “It may be a good idea to limit yourselves to one part of the island to avoid boredom induced tantrums and frequent bouts of carsickness. Reykjavik is the most child-friendly place simply because it has the greatest variety of attractions and facilities.”  We did not have issues with boredom induced tantrums or motion sickness, and Reykjavik was one of the least exciting destinations for them.  While I believe traveling the Ring Road with children can be an amazing experience, we could have been better prepared for our trip before heading to Iceland with kids.

We arrived at about 6 a.m. after a six-hour flight. While we had prepared ourselves and the kids for the time change by going to bed and waking up very early in the preceding week and all went to sleep rather quickly on the plane, none of us slept more than six hours. We stepped out of the plane without putting on the fleeces, gloves and hats packed in our backpacks into a cold, damp and windy morning to board our shuttle for the airport.  Herding our luggage to the rental car office was further complicated by our daughter unexpectedly getting sick, twice.

After completing paperwork and installing the car seats, we plugged our first destination into the GPS to find that it was not identified because our GPS did not have an Icelandic keyboard. GPS coordinates, which we had not recorded, were often necessary.  Also, the helpful Geysir employee who processed our rental warned us that speed limits were strictly enforced by speed camera and police, but when we set out in our car, we found that it was pre-set for miles.

After heading out of the airport, we decided to pick up something to eat, but the only available option was a convenience store near the airport, which was probably the grocery that was the most expensive with worst selection that we visited in Iceland. It would have been better to eat the protein bars we brought with us, taken a nap in the car and held off shopping until Bonus, Netto or Kronan opened.

When we visited AAA in preparation for this trip, we found that AAA did not have a map of Iceland or really any helpful tourist information. This was a first for us – we usually rely on AAA to provide backup maps for any road trip.  We hoped to pick up a good map of Iceland at the first visitor’s center we found, but we did not get one until that first evening.  So, we spent that first day in a bit of a sleepy daze and mostly unsure of where exactly we were.

Early arrival in Iceland after a night of not so great sleep is practically inevitable, and our daughter’s fluke (but luckily short-lived) illness was purely unlucky, but you can substantially ease first day stress by being prepared with your itinerary and all the directions you might need to navigate. If you are using a GPS, try to preset the Icelandic alphabet and kilometers and make sure you have GPS coordinates (which are included here whenever available) pre-programmed and, if possible, a map of the country with you when you arrive.

It took us a few hours to get organized, but we ended up having a rather astonishing day. From the moment we left the airport, we were in awe of the views we saw along the side of the road.  The purple flowers (Alaskan lupine) growing everywhere were an instant favorite. We made an unscheduled stop at Reykjavik’s first Costco, which had opened only a few weeks earlier, took the Lava Tunnel tour and visited Kerid Crater before stopping for the night.  Our kids were all asleep when we reached our guest house and slept while I made dinner.  When our oldest woke up, he thought he had slept a full night when it was time for dinner.  Despite the late naps and 24 hours of daylight, none of us had trouble sleeping that night (or any other night of our trip, for that matter).

Want to find out more about Iceland with kids?  Check out our listing of all Iceland posts.