The Golden Circle is the popular name of one of the most popular road trips in Iceland. It takes you to geothermal features, amazing waterfalls and more! This 190 mile loop starts and ends in Reykjavík, making it even more popular, due to proximity. Attractions along the Golden Circle road trip include a regularly erupting geyser, a huge waterfall, a few more less-huge waterfalls, a volcanic crater and more.
The Golden Circle is a popular tourist route that get’s its name from one of it’s most famous stops, Gulfoss. Gulfoss translates to Golden waterfall. Once this route, including Gulfoss, became a popular tourist attraction, the Golden Circle was named.
And sure, there are plenty of tours out of Reykjavík that you could book that will take you to all of these stops (and if you book through our link we’ll earn a commission at no extra cost to you). However, we love a good road trip. So this Golden Circle road trip is the self-drive route we took to all of the stops along the Golden Circle.
Most Golden Circle road trip itineraries are one day long. But you can also break this road trip into two days. We’ve provided you with both options below. You can see everything on the Golden Circle in one day. However, if you would like to do any longer hikes or snorkel the Silfra fissure like we did, you’ll need to add in the second day.
When To Visit The Golden Circle
You can visit the Golden Circle year round. This is a popular part of Iceland and the roads here are well maintained year-round. However, the best time to visit is in the summer months, between June and August. This way, you’ll be able to see all of the attractions at their most beautiful with the beautiful green grasses coving the rolling hills of the region.
Getting There and Around
To self-drive this Golden Circle road trip you will need a rental car. However, all of these roads are well maintained and you do not need a 4WD vehicle. In fact we drove these roads with a compact 2WD car that was laughably small.
The attractions along the Golden Circle are well marked and easy to spot. Just find all of the other cars. But seriously, this Golden Circle road trip is easy to drive, easy to navigate and always near civilization.
The Golden Circle is near both Reykjavík and the International airport. This Golden Circle road trip assumes you’ll be starting from one of those two locations. However, if you want to stay nearer, like in Selfoss, the night before your Golden Circle road trip that is even better.
One Day Golden Circle Road Trip Itinerary
Start your car and then get going on your Golden Circle Tour.
First, start your morning drive at Þingvellir National Park. Walk the park to see the Eurasian and North American tectonic plates converging. Make sure to take the short walk to Öxarárfoss waterfall.
Next, drive north on highway 35 and arrive at Kerið Crater. Stop here to see the volcanic crater.
Next, head to Bruarfoss. Drive north on 35 and then break off onto 37 north. To see Bruarfoss, you’ll have to hike about an hour from the parking area to the waterfall. A stop here take about 2.5 hours to complete the hike and see the falls. Consider taking your picnic lunch on this hike with you and enjoying it at the waterfall.
Then, continue on highway 37 until it rejoins highway 35. You won’t be able to miss the Geysir geothermal area. The parking area and visitor center is on one side of the road and the geothermal area is on the other. You’ll see several geothermal pools along with one very regularly erupting geyser.
Next, drive to Gulfoss, one of the most popular waterfalls in Iceland. Take 35 north until you reach the parking area. There is a short and well paved walkway to two viewing areas and a gravel pathway to a third viewing area. We visited all three viewing areas. From one of them you’re bound to see the famous rainbow over the falls on any sunny day.
Grab an early dinner on your drive south.
At the end of the day, drive south on highway 30 to the Secret Lagoon. Spend your evening soaking in the beautiful baths.
Head back to your accommodations and stay another night there.
Two Day Golden Circle Road Trip Itinerary
For a two day Golden Circle road trip, follow the Golden Circle itinerary of day one. EXCEPT, don’t stop at Þingvellir National Park on day one. Save that for day two of your Gold Circle road trip.
Stay overnight after your first day somewhere around the southern section of the Golden Circle. We stayed near Selfoss.
On day two of your Golden Circle road trip, head to Þingvellir National Park first. You can take either Route 36 or 360 to the north side of Þingvallavatn Lake. Whichever route you take, take the other road on your return journey in the afternoon.
Walk along the paths through this park to see all of the amazing things here. From the first parliament gathering grounds, to the joining of the tectonic plates, there are lots of cool things to see here. Don’t miss a short hike to Öxarárfoss.
Catch an early morning snorkel in between Eurasian and North American tectonic plates. We booked our snorkel tour and they were amazing! They even provided us with free photos. If you are interested, please book with this link as we earn a small commission to help keep this blog going. This snorkel tour was in freezing cold water. But the visibility was amazing.
Afterwards, drive back to the Selfoss area and have lunch out or at your accommodations.
Next, warm up in the afternoon with a brisk hike to Reykjadalur Hot Springs. This is actually a pretty strenuous hike over lots of hills. However, the scenery is beautiful and the path is well maintained. You’ll pass a few hot springs and a waterfall. Plus, at the end of your hike you’ll come to our favorite thermal bathing spot in all of Iceland. Here you’ll have the opportunity to bathe in the river where cool glacial water meets hot geothermal pools. There is a spot in this river for every temperature preference. Enjoy an hour or more here basking in this fun natural pool.
Stay one last night in your accommodations near Selfoss.
Want To Adjust the Itinerary?
You will need a minimum of 6 hours to drive the Golden Circle and stop at the attractions listed. So you could do this road trip in under one day. However, any less than that and you will not be able to stop at all of the amazing attractions along this Golden Circle road trip. The actual drive time for the Golden Circle route is 3 hours.
Or if you have even more time, you could do another Circle tour of Iceland. The Golden Circle is a short self-drive tour near Reykjavík. The Ring Road is a longer self-drive tour around the country. If you have a lot of extra time and enjoy a good road trip, consider extending your Iceland vacation with a full Ring Road trip.
What to Budget for a Golden Circle road trip
Several of the attractions listed in the Golden Circle road trip itinerary require admission or parking fees. For a full list of fees for these Golden Circle attractions, check out our post here. Most of these prices vary between 5,00-9,00 ISK.
The only big expense for this two day Golden Circle itinerary is snorkeling the Silfra fissure, accommodations, and the rental car. The snorkeling cost us $175/person USD.
Our two day Golden Circle road trip cost us about $650USD. We did splurge on an expensive overnight rental with a hot tub. You could easily spend less than $300 USD if you didn’t snorkel and if you stayed somewhere cheaper like a hostel or a campground.
What To Pack For The Golden Circle
As you’ll head to a bath on day one and a hot spring on day two, you’ll need to pack a swimsuit and a quick dry towel.
Also, Gulfoss is a powerhouse and it puts out quite the spray. You’ll want to pack rainproof gear for visiting. This includes a rain jacket and waterproof shoes. Speaking of shoes, you’ll want ones with really good traction for visiting Gulfoss as the paths can get slippery.
Besides those extra sets of “gear”, you’ll want to dress in layers for your Iceland road trip as Iceland weather is changeable.
We hope that this has helped you to plan your own self-drive Golden Circle road trip. We enjoyed our trip and hope you enjoy yours. Please leave any questions or comments you may have in the comments section below.
