Golden Circle Tour: Thingvellir, Geysir, Gullfoss, Northern Lights

Embark on an 11-hour adventure tour from Reykjavik, exploring the Golden Circle’s stunning sights. Discover Thingvellir National Park, witness geysers at Geysir Hot Spring area, and capture the beauty of Gullfoss Waterfall. After sunset, chase the enchanting Northern Lights.

Duration: 11 hours
Cancellation: 24 hours
Highlights
  • Reykjavik - Your Golden Circle full-day tour kicks off with a convenient pick-up in Reykjavik. From the capital, you’ll explore the classic Golden Circle attractions: Thingvellir, Gullfoss, Geysir, and the Kerið volcanic crater. Plus, enjoy additional fascinating stops at nearby sites, making this an unforgettable journey through Iceland’s most…
What's Included
  • Transport minibus
  • Professional guide
  • Hotel pickup and drop-off (select hotels)
What's Not Included
  • Food & drinks
  • Gratuities
Additional Information

Engage in an astonishing 11-hour exploration combo tour from Reykjavik. Discover Thingvellir National Park, recognized by UNESCO as a World Heritage site, watch geysers explode with intensity at Geysir Hot Spring region and pause at the breathtaking Gullfoss Waterfall for priceless photography moments. As night descents, pursue the enchanting Northern…

Location
Reykjavik
Cancellation Policy

For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.

Customer Ratings
4.2
(10 Ratings)
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Hollyjades2024
Mar 8, 2024
Amazing Golden Circle/Aurora Combo Tour in February - Late review but we took this tour on the 19th of February for my 23rd birthday and couldn't have had a better time. Pickup was quick and easy, and our tour guide Mitch was so lovely, kind, and knowledgeable, and I learnt more about Iceland on this tour than I did throughout the entirety of my trip. We had enough time at the stops to see everything we wanted to and it was just amazing. The second half of the tour was good. The tour guide didn't really talk much so it was a very different experience to the afternoon, but he was still really nice and he waited until 12:30PM for us to finally see the lights. Definitely would book with this company again, love the small groups and how organized it is :)
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Climber34905279252
Feb 16, 2022
Golden day! - Very cozy and amazing tour, our guide was really friendly. He did an extra stop to pet the super fluffy icelandic horses! You see the geysir and the wonderful gullfoss waterfalls. Our night tour for nirthern lights was cancelled because of bad weather but the afternoon only was absolutely enough to spend an unforgettable day!
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Jnedelka
Oct 28, 2019
Great first experience - Did a great job showing all the sights in less than a day. Didn't quite get to see the green and purple Northern Lights you see in photos, but we definitely saw something.
Review provided by Viator
Angela
Nov 21, 2017
Excellent itinerary, and they took great care of us! - We decided to take this tour because we didn't have much time on our vacation. I wanted to go in the winter months because I was hoping to see the northern lights. It's a nice itinerary that gives a sample of what the country has to offer. The excellent service is what makes this company really great. One afternoon our group split up while half of us went hiking on a glacier, and the other half went with our tour guide to Vik for some sightseeing. When we got off the glacier, our hiking guide told us that the rest of our group was stuck in Vik because there had been a terrible accident involving a snowplow and a car driven by a few tourists which made the road impassable. Over the next four hours several groups came together to help us out. Our tour guide stayed in close contact with us giving updates as he received them, the café at the glacier let us stay inside even after they had closed shop and left, and another glacier guide stayed with us to make sure we were all okay, plus he was excellent company. While he was stuck in Vik, our tour guide arranged for Super Jeeps to come get us and take us to meet another van driver coming from Reykjavik. The guys in Super Jeeps were about to head home for the day when they got the call. They were so nice and friendly even though they must have been exhausted. And the next van driver was also really friendly even though coming to get us meant an extra three hours of work for him in the late evening. The efficiency, effort and kindness from all these different companies to make us comfortable is truly amazing. You’ll be in good hands with these guys.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Splumpf
Mar 26, 2018
Packs a lot in and excellent tour guides - I loved this combo tour. The tour guide/driver for the Golden Circle portion of the tour was friendly and knowledgeable and the mini bus was comfortable for the long drives. There were three main stops - the Thingvellir National Park where you can see the parliament stone and where the two tectonic plates are parting; next up was Geysir where we saw the Strokkur geysir erupting every 8 mins or so. The final stop was the Gulfoss waterfall which was spectacular. We also did three other mini-stops at a cattle farm where there was the option to buy Icelandic ice cream, at a place where there were icelandic horses which you could pet and at another waterfall. My only criticism of this tour as that there wasn't long enough at the three main stops. We had around 45 mins at each one, I would have liked around 90 mins at the Thingvellir National Park and at Geysir as I felt I was quite rushed here. The tour could perhaps leave earlier in the day (it departs at 1pm) to accommodate more time at the stops. There were cafes at the first two stops but there was no time really to get a warm drink; it would be nice to have plenty of time to see the sights and relax a bit in the spectacular locations. The landscape we drove through was spectacular and the pick up/drop off process was very good. The Northern Lights tour was cancelled on the day I had originally booked due to the poor weather and I was sent a text message and an email with plenty of notice of the cancellation and was able to re-book for another day. I also received a text message on the day of the re-booked tour confirming it was going ahead. The tour guide was clearly very passionate about the lights and explained the science behind them on the drive out of Reykjavik and when we got to the location where the lights were visible he explained what settings to put our cameras to to get good photos. The lights were spectacular. It was freezing cold and there was a biting wind, but it was worth it and the guide gave us as much time as we wanted to watch the lights. The lights started to dim so we got back on the mini bus and the guide gave us the option of driving back to Reykjavik or waiting 45 mins to see if they returned as they tend to be stronger around midnight. While we were waiting the guide answered questions and told us some stories. I was Very impressed with the organisation of these tours and would highly recommend them.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Jhenniizzy
Feb 25, 2018
Good and interesting... - We enjoyed the day very much. The waterfall at the end of the tour was stunning. The guide was knowledgeable and extremely helpful. A recommended tour.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Suzette
Feb 15, 2018
Combo tour - mixed review of good and bad - We had two different guides for this combination tour. The first half of the tour -- the Golden Circle -- was a disappointment. First, we did this tour in February so the weather was quite cold - in the low 20s (farenheit). Despite asking for the heat to be turned on in the van twice, the van remained EXTREMELY cold. In fact, we could not see out of the windows for most of the tour because they had frosted over on the inside. This would not have been that big a deal except that we were in the van for 7 hours. The tour guide did not realize that this was a combination tour so there was some confusion about the handover of the group to the second half of the tour for the Northern Lights portion. E.g., he was not aware the we were to be dropped off at a certain spot and picked up again. HOWEVER, the second half of the tour for the northern lights was absolutely outstanding. We had a different guide (Clemy) who was extremely knowledgeable and customer focused. He had a huge passion for sharing the magical experience of the northern lights with us. He shared with us his knowledge of the science behind the northern lights, as well as lots of information about Iceland, its people and culture. On a 1-10 scale, I'd rate the first half of this tour a 3 but the second half a 10+. I definitely would recommend the tour -- the van issue is a logistical one which can be fixed.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Babla75
Dec 24, 2017
The staff were very knowledgeable and good but the Northern light tour bus was uncomfortable - We took the minibus tour with English speaking guide for the one day Golden circle and northern light tour. The guide for the Golden circle was very knowledgeable and good. The bus was comfortable though there was no free WiFi which was supposed to have been there. The same company then took us for the northern light tour and the guide there was also so knowledgable and good but the bus was different and very inconvenient.there was hardly any place to sit properly but it had WiFi. The guide also advised on the camera settings and helped taking pictures. He was upfront and said that northern lights as you see with the naked eye is totally different from what you see in pictures which are all altered. Overall a very good experience given that we saw the northern lights on 2 days, one on our own and also with the tour. Not sure what would the situation have been had we not spotted the Northern lights.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Dulce_l
Sep 13, 2023
The geyser and the views... - The geyser and the views were amazing, however the guide Temu was not very engaging. He seems annoyed the whole length of the trip. Additionally, since the trip started at noon the weather seems to be warm. We were boiling inside the coach and he seems not a bit concerned. We learned from another guest that the northern lights tour in the evening was cancelled but did not receive an email of cancellation. It is only when I asked the guide Temu if he is going to pick us up again, he said it was cancelled and advised us to just email the tour operator. The only good thing was that the refund for the cancelled trip was quick and hassle free
Review provided by Viator
Bjb806
Feb 24, 2018
This tour was challenged by overall... - <p>This tour was challenged by overall confusion about the pickup and drop-off locations. Our tour guide for the Golden Circle was informative, but I worried about his driving in the snowy conditions--he kept looking at his phone, and at one point was texting?! He also dropped us off at the wrong location, and told us misinformation about where we would be picked up for the later Northern lights tour. I sensed that he was asked at the last minute to do this tour, and not a professional guide? For the Northern lights part of the tour, when we were not picked up, we tried to call before 9PM to the Artic Adventures offices--but they never picked up the phone they close at 9PM. I finally found another phone number in your initial email, which worked--so I highly recommend that everyone booking a tour to make sure they have an after hours number to call I would also state NOT to wait 30 minutes before calling about a delayed pickup and there should be tour phones at the pickup bus stops there are new regs that tours have to pick up at the bus stops only. This proved to be the KEY anxious point re: every tour. The other issue is that we booked this tour BECAUSE it only had 18 people on the minibus. We ended up looking for the Northern Lights with all the huge GrayLine and Reykyavik Excursion buses, so it was not what we had bargained for. We were disappointed. I am not sure why we paid the extra price, when the minibus took over an hour to finally find us, took over an hour to go to the lighthouse where there was a mass scene at this one site where hundreds of people and about 20 buses gathered to try and see the lights, and it was overall stressful and not enjoyable. Our guide for this part of the tour was very nice, but there was no professional guide discussion of what the lights were, why we saw them only in the winter, etc. etc. I would not recommend paying extra for a smaller minibus tour when there was no extra value.</p>
Review provided by Viator
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up to 15 guests
1 Adult
November 2024
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