Magical West Iceland – Northern Lights, Snæfellsnes and the Golden Triangle

Highlights Include

• Northern Lights
• Snæfellsjökull glacier
• Seals in the Búðir Estuary
• Búðir Hotel
• Gullfoss, Geysir and Þingvellir national park
• Colourful geothermal areas of Hengill Volcano
• Fishing Villages
• Vast lava fields
• Black beaches and sea stacks
• Waterfalls and caves
• Volcanic craters and lakes
• Laugardalslaug Thermal Pool

AURORA ISLANDICA – a Northern Lights Timelapse from Ágúst Ingvarsson on Vimeo.

General Summary

Two departures, late April and mid October both offer the opportunity to photograph the northern lights beneath the majestic Snæfellsjökull glacier. On a clear day in Reykjavík this glacier can be seen across the sea in the distance. When the sun sets, its silhouette is surrounded by beautiful peach and pink hues. Though this glacier is nowhere near in size to some of Iceland’s others, it is by far the most mysterious. It was this glacier that French Author Jules Verne chose as his doorway into inner space in his fantastical book, Journey to the Centre of the Earth. The area is considered by many to be one of the earth’s great energy and power spots and subsequently attracts many artists, poets and photographers. Our two hotel bases are both delightful, stunningly located and in great spots for northern light photography. The holiday has been designed to get you right up and into the very best landscapes of the south-west and west of Iceland; a real adventure and lots of fun with like-minded people!

Day 1: Arrival and Transfer to Nesjavellir

There will be a single transfer from Reykjavík’s International airport in Keflavík timed to meet flights arriving between 15:00-16:00. We will drive directly to Nesjavellir with a great view over Iceland’s most famous lake Þingvallavatn and the mountains surrounding the lake.
Hotel Accommodation (D)

Day 2: Gullfoss, Geysir and Þingvellir National Park

This is a day to explore and photograph some of Iceland’s famous and iconic sights commonly referred to as the Golden Triangle.
Accommodation Hotel (B,L)

Day 3: Geothermal Activity and Snæfellsnes

After breakfast we will visit impressive geothermal terrain in the vicinity of the Hengill Volcano; a kaleidoscope of weird and wonderful colours.
Following lunch we head west towards our main base on Snæfellsnes with several potential photographic locations en route including Hraunfossar waterfall formed from several rivulets flowing over a lava field from a volcano which erupted under the glacier Langjökull and the natural geothermal pool Landbrotalaug for a wonderful late afternoon bathe.
Our Hotel Búðir is considered by many to be one of the most beautiful countryside hotels in Iceland. Located in a lava field on the westernmost tip of the Snæfellsnes peninsula, there are impressive views of the breathtaking Snæfellsjökull glacier, the surrounding mountains and the Búðir estuary, which meanders into the vast Faxaflói bay where a number of seals reside, Orca whales are a common sight.
Hotel Accommodation (B,L)

Days 4-8: Snæfellsnes Based at Búðir Hotel

There are many potential photographic locations on Snæfellsnes and during our four days based here, we will make decisions according to the prevailing conditions and after consultation with participants. Needless to say we have some superb locations up our sleeve, including some great sunrise and sunset places. These could well include:

Snæfellsjökull Glacier

The seaward slopes are particularly beautiful, with ropes of lava winding their way downhill. Weather permitting we will make an ascent to the weirdly shaped ice summit by snow cat for 360° vistas of the surrounding mountains and ocean.

Fishing Villages

Fishing is still the mainstay of the remote Icelandic communities that we will encounter, we will have opportunities to photograph as the boats and fishermen come in with their catches.

Sea Cliffs and Birds

The cliffs around the Snæfellsnes coastline are precipitous, majestic and very attractive with a huge variety of differing and interesting rock formations, they are also home to huge colonies of seabirds. We have several interesting locations that are easy to access for some great images.

Mount Kirkjufell

A beautifully shaped and symmetrical, free standing mountain on the northern coastline of the Snæfellsnes Peninsula to the west of the Grundarfjörður bay, superb sunset shots and great reflections in the wet sand/water.

Beaches

Snæfellsnes is unusual as it boasts both white and black sand beaches. The latter are more common in Iceland as the sand is generally of volcanic origin and generally gives some really unusual images. One fine example is the black beach of Djúpalónssandur with its strange lava formations, including Gatklettur, a rock with a hole giving unusual vistas through to a tranquil turquoise lagoon.

Green moss lava fields

These are vast and cover huge areas below the glacier, they are interesting to photograph alone or as fine foreground for other subjects.

Volcanic craters, lakes and caves

The area has a fine variety of all three including the famous Sönghellir (singing cave).

Day : Spa pool and airport transfer for afternoon flights.

We drive to Reykjavík where participants can experience Laugardalslaug Thermal Pool, one of the city’s best spa pools with numerous hot pots, various outdoor heated pools, slides, steam bath etc. From here we transfer to BSI for a flybus connection to the airport

Extensions

Participants may be interested in staying in Reykjavík either before or after the official dates of this trip, please call or write and we can chat about your various options.

What’s included

• All Accommodation 8 hotel nights
• Meals: all breakfasts and lunches, dinner on the first night in Nesjavellir
• All in country transport: exclusive use of suitable vehicle
• Transfers to and from Reykjavík’s international airport
• Guide
• Photographic tutor
• Reykjavík Spa Pool

What’s not included

• International flights
• Alcoholic beverages
• Snacks and beverages other than with meals
• Travel insurance

This holiday is for all levels of photographers. There will be some walking every day, occasionally on uneven terrain, although this will normally be on path or track. We have a very comfortable hotel base where we will be able to relax or wander in the surrounding landscape in our own time, work on our images, receive post-processing tuition and enjoy viewing sessions of each others work.

It is perhaps worth noting that our photography holidays offer far more than the normal whistle stop tours of just a few iconic spots. Personal tuition and great attention to detail are hallmarks of the service we provide, our repeat bookings speak for themselves.

Complete itinerary and full details

This page is only a brief summary. A complete itinerary and full details can be found in our PDF dossier. It is important that you read the full day-to-day description and further information for this holiday before making your booking.

Booking this holiday

As an incentive for people who would like to book a group holiday, we are offering one totally free place for each 8 people booked. The free place can be used as a perk for the organisor, or maybe spread the reduction to benefit the whole group or to donate the savings to a worthy cause – this is entirely up to you.

To book contact us by email, phone 00354 5888939 or download a booking form.