Grand Tour of Iceland: The Complete Ring Road & Snaefellsnes

Today you follow the classic Golden Circle and soak in the Blue Lagoon. You stand in Thingvellir National Park, a UNESCO World Heritage Site where the Atlantic tectonic plates pull apart in a dramatic rift valley and where the world's oldest parliament was founded in 930. You continue to the Geysir geothermal field, watching Strokkur blast boiling water high into the air, and gaze at the mighty Gullfoss thundering into its canyon, perhaps adding the crater lake of Kerid. This afternoon you soak in the famous Blue Lagoon, its milky, silica-blue waters steaming amid a black lava field, with a silica mask and a drink at the swim-up bar. As the day ends, you return to Reykjavik. This evening, savour the capital's superb seafood and, in the darker months, watch the skies for the aurora. Rest well, for tomorrow the road heads east.

Today you follow the cinematic South Coast to the village of Vik. You walk behind the shimmering curtain of Seljalandsfoss, feel the spray and thunder of the broad, powerful Skogafoss, and pass beneath glaciers spilling from the highlands, perhaps visiting the Lava Centre to understand the volcanoes above. You reach the black volcanic sands of Reynisfjara, with its towering basalt columns, sea caves and offshore stacks, where Atlantic breakers crash (staying safely back from the powerful sneaker waves), and take in the dramatic Dyrholaey promontory and the pretty village of Vik. As the day ends, you settle into your hotel near Vik. This evening, enjoy a regional dinner of Icelandic lamb or seafood, and watch for the Northern Lights over the black-sand coast in season. Rest well amid the drama of the South Coast.

Today you journey east through some of Iceland's most spectacular scenery to the glacier lagoon. You travel beneath the vast Vatnajokull ice cap, Europe's largest glacier, past lava fields and the beautiful Skaftafell nature reserve, where you can walk to the black basalt-columned Svartifoss waterfall. You reach the sublime Jokulsarlon glacier lagoon, cruising by boat among luminous blue-and-white icebergs drifting towards the sea, often with seals among them, and walk the glittering Diamond Beach, where crystal ice strews the black sand. As the day ends, you continue to the harbour town of Hofn, famous for its langoustine. This evening, savour a regional seafood dinner beneath the glaciers, and watch the skies for the aurora in season. Rest well in the far southeast of Iceland, surrounded by ice and mountains.

Today you spend a full day among the glaciers of the southeast, the icy heart of Iceland. With an expert glacier guide you enjoy a guided walk on a glacier tongue of the vast Vatnajokull ice cap, strapping on crampons and roping up to crunch across blue-white ice past crevasses and seracs, with full equipment and training. You venture into a shimmering ice cave, its walls glowing blue and crystal deep within the ancient glacier (a natural blue cave in winter, a striking ice cave or tunnel in other seasons), an otherworldly experience. You take in the sweeping views of glaciers and mountains, keeping watch for seals near the icebergs. As the day ends, you return to Hofn. This evening, savour fresh langoustine, and watch the skies for the aurora in season. Rest well amid the glaciers of Iceland.

Today you drive north through the beautiful, little-visited Eastfjords. The road winds along a coastline of sheer mountains, quiet coves and tiny fishing villages such as Djupivogur, with reindeer sometimes grazing the slopes and seabirds wheeling overhead. You might detour to the pretty village of Seydisfjordur, with its rainbow street and wooden church framed by waterfalls at the head of its fjord. It is a gentler, more solitary day of great beauty, far from the crowds. As the day ends, you arrive in Egilsstadir, the main town of the east, set beside a long lake said to have its own monster. This evening, enjoy a regional dinner and the deep quiet of eastern Iceland, watching the skies for the Northern Lights in season. Rest well, for tomorrow brings the geothermal wonders of Myvatn.

Today you journey to the geothermal wonderland of Lake Myvatn, one of the strangest and most spectacular corners of Iceland. Along the way you visit the mighty Dettifoss, the most powerful waterfall in Europe, thundering through a vast canyon. Around Myvatn you explore the steaming mud pools and fumaroles of Namafjall, the eerie lava pillars and pseudo-craters of the lake shore, the Krafla volcanic area with its warm crater lake, and the dark lava labyrinth of Dimmuborgir, watching for the abundant waterfowl on the lake. You soak in the milky, mineral-rich Myvatn Nature Baths, the north's answer to the Blue Lagoon. As the day ends, you settle into your hotel near the lake, surrounded by volcanic drama. This evening, relax after a wonder-filled day, watching the skies for the aurora in season. Rest well amid the geothermal marvels of the north.

Today you journey west towards Akureyri, with wonderful stops along the way. You detour north to Husavik, Europe's whale-watching capital, for a cruise on Skjalfandi bay, where humpbacks, minke and even blue whales feed in summer and the charming harbour and whale museum bring the giants to life. You admire the graceful Godafoss, the Waterfall of the Gods, where legend says an early lawspeaker cast his pagan idols into the falls. You reach Akureyri, the charming capital of the north, set at the head of a long fjord beneath snowy peaks, with its botanical garden, cafes and pretty centre. As the day ends, you settle into the town. This evening, enjoy a regional dinner and the relaxed northern atmosphere. Rest well, for tomorrow the road heads back towards the west and Snaefellsnes.

Today you journey across the north and west of Iceland to the Snaefellsnes peninsula, a long and scenic day of changing landscapes. You cross high moorland passes and broad valleys, perhaps pausing at the turf-roofed farm museum of Glaumbaer in the Skagafjordur horse country or at the volcanic crater of Grabrok, which you can climb for wide views, as the scenery shifts from northern fjords to the green farmland and lava fields of the west. As the day ends, you reach the beautiful Snaefellsnes peninsula, settling into your hotel beneath the glacier-capped Snaefellsjokull volcano. This evening, enjoy a regional dinner and the peace of the peninsula, watching the skies for the Northern Lights in season. Rest well, for tomorrow you explore Iceland in miniature before returning to Reykjavik.

Today you explore the Snaefellsnes peninsula, often called Iceland in miniature, before returning to the capital. You drive beneath the glacier-capped Snaefellsjokull volcano that inspired Jules Verne's Journey to the Center of the Earth, photographing the iconic Kirkjufell mountain and its waterfall, strolling black-pebble beaches and dramatic sea cliffs alive with birds, and visiting tiny fishing villages, lava fields and golden coves, the astonishing variety of Iceland packed into one peninsula. As the day ends, you drive back to colourful Reykjavik and return to the capital, perhaps soaking in a geothermal pool. This evening, celebrate the completion of your grand circle of Iceland with a special dinner in one of Reykjavik's excellent restaurants, reflecting on all you have seen. Rest well, having journeyed all the way around the land of fire and ice.

After a final Icelandic breakfast, perhaps a last stroll along the harbour or some souvenir shopping for Icelandic wool, chocolate and design, you are transferred back across the lava fields of Reykjanes to Keflavik International Airport for your onward departure. You leave having completed the definitive grand circle of Iceland, colourful Reykjavik and the Golden Circle, the dramatic South Coast and sublime Jokulsarlon glacier lagoon, the glaciers and ice caves of Vatnajokull, the beautiful Eastfjords, the geothermal wonders of Myvatn and mighty Dettifoss, the whales of Husavik and charm of Akureyri, and the miniature Iceland of Snaefellsnes. The images stay vivid long after you land, the erupting geysers and thundering waterfalls, the drifting icebergs and blue ice caves, the steaming mud pools, the breaching whales and the iconic Kirkjufell. Iceland offers the completeness of natural wonder in abundance, and you depart already dreaming of a return to the land of fire and ice.