Last updated on August 31st, 2024 at 04:19 pm

Golden Circle is one of the most popular tourist attractions in Iceland and an easy day trip from the capital Reykjavik. This is also perfect if you are doing a quick stopover. If you do have the time, though, we highly recommend renting your own car and exploring the Golden Circle as we did. If you plan on renting a car, we have a car rental page for Iceland dedicated to helping you make the best selection. For more information, visit our Rental Car Booking page.

Disclaimer: This post contains affiliate links.

However, if you are not considering renting a car, there are many companies that offer Golden Circle tour which you can find online. 

Related:  All the info you need to plan a 7 day Iceland road trip

What is the Golden Circle?

We asked the same question when we first heard of it … Is it a circle where you find gold? Well… to clear up any confusion, Golden Circle is a nickname given to a route that isn’t circular, to begin with, and the only gold you’ll find here are the golden memories you’ll bring back with you. Yet it’s one of the most popular tourist routes in Iceland and here’s all you need to know about it.

Golden Circle route covers three major tourist attractions i.e. Thingvellir National Park, Geysir Geothermal Park, and Gullfoss. Ring Road (another popular route) on the other hand is a circular route that covers the entire Island’s perimeter. Here are our top tips that you should know before heading to Iceland.

How to Get to the Golden Circle?

Well, there really 2 best options –

By Car (self-drive)

Which is what you probably will do if you are on a road trip across the island. And we will talk about places you must stop on this diy route.

With a private tour

In case you are not renting a car in Iceland, perhaps you just have a short layover, then jumping on one of the Golden Circle tours makes perfect sense. Here is a perfect example of the stops you’d take if you go on a private tour of Golden Circle. 

Stops to Take Along the Golden Circle

1. Thingvellir National Park

Thingvellir National Park is a UNESCO World Heritage Site and a key location in Icelandic history for being the world’s oldest existing Parliament which was held here in 930AD. TIP: Don’t forget to admire the rock walls when walking around the park, these are nothing but the Eurasian and the North American tectonic plates which are drifting apart every second. While 90% of the planet’s tectonic plates including the Mid-Atlantic Ridge are usually an under-ocean phenomenon, there are a few rare places on Earth like in Thingvellir National Park in Iceland where the plates extends above the sea level giving us an incredible opportunity to witness it with our own eyes as you can see from the picture below.  This also happens to be the spot where the convicts were punished in medieval Icelandic history.

Here you can go snorkeling or diving in the glacial waters of Silfra fissure between the tectonic plates. Read more about the adventure of diving/snorkeling between tectonic plates in Silfra fissure in Iceland in our blog post here.

2. Geysir Geothermal Park

Being one of the most active geothermal countries on the European continent, there are plenty of hot spots in Iceland where you can witness these geothermal activities. One such spot, the Geysir Geothermal Park, lies on the Golden Circle and is home to the great Geysir which was one of the most notable geysers in the world. I say ‘was’ because Geysir is inactive now and doesn’t erupt anymore but you still can see it’s colorful hot spring. The focus of attention now rolls down to Strokkur which is about 100 meters away from Geysir and erupts every 12 mins roughly.

FUN FACT: The English word “Geyser” is derived from the Icelandic word “Geysir” which means to gusher.  Another place to see these hot springs is Hverir geothermal area in eastern Iceland near Lake Myvatn.

Before we get into the photos, here’s a short video we took at the Geysir geothermal area. Fair warning, we had a very rough weather day when we visited the Golden Circle but that couldn’t have spoiled our spirits. TIP: Iceland is famous or rather infamous for its weather to change every 5 mins for better or worse, so don’t let that stop you from your adventures.

Below is a photo grid of the Geysir geothermal park.

3. Gullfoss

Gull-foss or the Golden-waterfalls quite literally are a series of two waterfalls at a right angle to each other. We decoded the name on our first day in Iceland while indulging in Gull beer and thus the golden word stuck on to us. Gullfoss is the last spot on the Golden Circle when driving from Reykjavik or even Keflavik.

You ought to be ready for a plethora of gorgeous waterfalls in Iceland and nothing better than starting that journey with Gullfoss. After all, there isn’t any such thing as enough waterfalls right?! TIP: You can walk all the way up and close to the upper waterfalls of Gullfoss but be prepared to get drenched. 

Want to make this trip an actual circle?

4. Kerid

Drive back through an alternative route and visit Kerid crater on your return to Reykjavik or continue driving further south to explore beautiful South Iceland.

It’s amazing how something so destructive as a volcanic eruption can leave something so calm and beautiful behind. Kerid crater is one of the many crater lakes that you will find in Iceland but since this one is particularly in close proximity to the Golden Circle we highly recommend adding this to your itinerary. TIP: If you are up for a hike then you have an option of walking the outer rim as well as in the inner circumference of Kerid crater. There is a small charge to enter Kerid though.. about 400 ISK i.e. almost 4 USD, this was literally the only place in Iceland where we had to pay to see it.

The Golden Circle is totally doable in a single day but if you are planning on any adventure activities alongside then I suggest to stay back overnight in one of the lodges or hotels in the Golden Circle. After Snorkeling in Silfra, we stayed at Hotel Gullfoss and it was an excellent location very close to Gullfoss and Geysir.

In closing, I just want to clarify that Ring Road and Golden Circle are two different routes. The Ring Road is a nickname for Route 1 which circles around the entire Island while Golden Circle is what we covered above. We met a few tourists at the Glacier Lagoon (in South Iceland) who mentioned they were on the Golden Circle tour while they were actually miles away from it. Don’t let that happen to you 🙂

Happy Traveling!