Iceland's Golden Circle is a popular tour of some of the most incredible natural attractions nearby Reykjavik. We would recommend going clockwise from the city as this will allow you to see the main attractions first. The entire trip can be driven within about 4 hours, but you should plan a day to complete the sights if you enjoy photography. In addition to the main 3 stops (Thingvellir, Geysir, and Gullfoss), we also added on some stops to some lesser-traveled destinations - which was super rewarding. You can read part I of our tour along the Golden Circle here, and part II here.
To finish our Golden Circle tour, we headed south to stop by the Kerid Crater. Kerid (pronounced like Kerith) is a colorful site: green moss contrasts the underlying iron-rich red soil, all along the rim of an aquamarine lake. For a small fee (approx $5 USD) you can walk along the rim of the crater, as well as around the lake. Our visit was rather windy, but if you are patient enough to wait for the water to still, the reflections are worth it.
Finally, we couldn't resist stopping at a lava field along the road. These alien landscapes can be found throughout Iceland and each one seems uniquely different. The thick layers of moss and lichen form a spongy carpet over the ground in a way that seems unlike most flora you'd find on our planet. This is just one of many reasons why Iceland has a reputation for seeming otherworldly.
Overall, our trip around the Golden Circle was incredible. We saw more within the span of one day than we have seen in many National Parks within the US. If you are ever in Iceland for only a short period of time, I strongly recommend you find the time to visit these locations.
This is part of a series of posts about the Golden Circle in Iceland.
Check out the other posts here.
Did you tour the Golden Circle? Which was your favorite part?
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