Trek or Mountain Bike Iceland
Trip Length: 7 days, 6 nights
Trip Type: Active, with moderate to advanced trekking or mountain biking
Highlights: Visit magical Iceland! This is our signature Iceland trip, and our custom itinerary logistics allows travel companions to either trek or mountain bike by day, while being together each morning and evening. Travel in expansive, other-worldly scenery; Hike to massive waterfalls; Trek or Mountain bike the famed Laugavegurinn Trail; Take a healthy soak in a natural geothermal hot spring;
Fixed Dates: All July dates for 2022 are sold out. *
We have just 1 remaining 2022 departure dates: August 7th – August 13th, 2022
2023 Dates: July 30th to August 5th, 2023; August 6th – 13th, 2023
Or we can make it a private, custom trip for between 2 and 15 people no problem, on any date you wish.
Trip Price: This trip is $3399 per person, multiple person discounts are available. This includes all private transport, airport door to airport door; 2 nights lodging, 4 nights camping fees+gear; all meals from breakfast Day 2 through Lunch Day 6; one dedicated trekking guide and one dedicated mountain bike guide Days 1 through Day 6; all shower& bathroom fees for each day at huts/camps; All high-end, expedition quality;camping equipment except sleeping bag is included, Snacks each day of trekking and riding also included, as is unlimited filtered pure Icelandic drinking water, .
Trip Itinerary:
Day 1 – Today is designed to accommodate those who got in a day or two earlier, so they can get in some activity while also allowing those on a tighter budget or less time to arrive just this morning to the Reykjavik airport. We’ll have a shuttle available at the arrival airport, and we’ll meet in the late morning at our group hotel and then head out to Hveragerdi, which has some great hiking and biking trails. Hveragerdi has some of Iceland’s most active and interesting mud pots and geothermic activities, including our first of several natural hot springs! The trail is approx 9 kilometers one way, is mostly downhill, and takes a few hours. Mountain bikers will get to ride this trail twice today! We then return to Reykjavik for dinner and an early night to bed. Thus, you will be in Reykjavik, with a full day of hiking or riding under your belt already, and well rested for tomorrow’s early start to the highlands. We took this picture at about 2 a.m. in early August, having nearly twenty four hour sunlight is really cool!
We will then have a quick lunch before heading out to one of our favorite trails on the outskirts of Reykjavik, complete with thermal pots, hot springs, and beautiful hiking and mountain biking.
Day 2 – Leaving early at 7am, we will drive to Landmannalaugar and the start of the famous Laugavegur Trek. This area is the beginning of many expeditions and has a base camp feel. Ambitious and fit trekkers can set out for the full fifteen mile hike to Lake Alftavatn, while others can do two shorter hikes: from here up into the rainbow, pastel colored mountains and back down, and then drive to our lake camp destination for a second, optional hike (stunning!) on the same trail the others are arriving on. Bikers will do a fun side trail up a mountain, before riding the epic trail to the lake. Dinner and camp at one of the most beautiful, lakeside camping spots in Iceland.
Our company style is to have a relaxed and safe pace in general, but also provide opportunities for folks who are really looking to get a serious workout on their trip, and the length of today’s trek certainly does that. Though the terrain is beautiful with lots of gentle up and down gradients, it is not too difficult.
For those not wanting to bite off such an ambitious (8 to 10 hours) of a hiking schedule, we have great news for you! We have the perfect solution. You can do 2 hikes today: first in the morning, we will ascend from camp through the unique, rhyolite colored sections of rock up to the top of the nearby mountain of Blahnjukur. Its about a two hour hike roundtrip, back to camp where we started. We’ll then get in the van and drive to Lake Alftavatn, the end point for the longer ride and hike option. Once there you can go on a second hike, as long as you wish, by taking the scenic trail from the lake towards Landmannalaugar, where you will encounter the bikers and long hikers coming from that direction. Hike this way as long as you wish, before returning back to our hut at Lake Alftavatn, for a well deserved dinner and good nights sleep.
Day 3 – A more relaxed morning and a big hearty, hot cooked breakfast before starting the scenic moonscape journey to Emstur. Today those who are mountain biking will get out ahead of the group, arriving first to our camp tonight, where there is then the option of a really cool ride for the second half of the day after lunch. The trekkers will cover the ten miles at their own pace, and then as always, we will all regroup for dinner in the evening!
Day 4 – The magical kingdom of Porsmork is our destination today, one of our favorite places in Iceland. There are several different routes we can take there, and your guide will help you choose one that best fits how you’re feeling after a couple of hard days of trekking or biking. The hiking distance is approximately another ten miles from Emstrur to Porsmork, and the bikers will have even more choices of sweet trails to and around Porsmork
Day 5 – Finally getting to slow down a little! Today, we have the entire day to explore Porsmork without having to move camp. There are more trails in the area than we could cover in a week, so we will have many different options and today we can split up a bit if desired, based on ability and energy levels. This is a lush, forested area of Iceland and a reputed hideaway for the many elves that live here.
Day 6 – There is an amazing trail that connects Porsmork with the famous waterfall of Skogafoss on the southern coast. Leaving right from camp, it is fourteen miles in length and is a steep uphill climb, thus its not suitable for everyone. But, with our creative logistics no one has to miss out.
Those not opting for the sufferfest (and by now most of us will be a bit tuckered out from 4 straight days of trekking or mountain biking) will go instead by van over to the end of the trail at Skogar, where we will still climb up to the iconic Skogafoss waterfall, and then with the option to climb up above it as far as you want. There are many other waterfalls that cascade down this beautiful volcanic mountain of Eyjafjallajokull, (the same one that erupted in 2010) on a very nice trail. Late evening return to Reykjavik for a celebratory dinner and optional Friday night out on the town.
Day 7 – An included breakfast at the apartment, after which most folks will need to head to the airport, with an optional visit to the Blue Lagoon (which due to its immense popularity must be reserved ahead of time. Our driver and van will be available the entire day today to take you to the Keflavik airport at no cost.
