Insight Guides: Iceland

How To Use This E-Book

Getting around the e-book

This Insight Guide e-book is designed to give you inspiration for your visit to Iceland, as well as comprehensive planning advice to make sure you have the best travel experience. The guide begins with our selection of Top Attractions, as well as our Editors Choice categories of activies and experiences. Detailed features on history, people and culture paint a vivid portrait of contemporary life in Iceland. The extensive Places chapters give a complete guide to all the sights and areas worth visiting. The Travel Tips provide full information on getting around, hotels, activities from culture to shopping to sport, plus a wealth of practical information to help you plan your trip.

In the Table of Contents and throughout this e-book you will see hyperlinked references. Just tap a hyperlink once to skip to the section you would like to read. Practical information and listings are also hyperlinked, so as long as you have an external connection to the internet, you can tap a link to go directly to the website for more information.

Maps

All key attractions and sights in Iceland are numbered and cross-referenced to high-quality maps. Wherever you see the reference [map] just tap this to go straight to the related map. You can also double-tap any map for a zoom view.

Images

Youll find hundreds of beautiful high-resolution images that capture the essence of Iceland. Simply double-tap on an image to see it full-screen.

About Insight Guides

Insight Guides have more than 40 years experience of publishing high-quality, visual travel guides. We produce 400 full-colour titles, in both print and digital form, covering more than 200 destinations across the globe, in a variety of formats to meet your different needs.

Insight Guides are written by local authors who use their on-the-ground experience to provide the very latest information; their local expertise is evident in the extensive historical and cultural background features. All the reviews in Insight Guides are independent; we strive to maintain an impartial view. Our reviews are carefully selected to guide you to the best places to stay and eat, so you can be confident that when we say a restaurant or hotel is special, we really mean it.

Like all Insight Guides , this e-book contains hundreds of beautiful photographs to inspire and inform your travel. We commission most of our own photography, and we strive to capture the essence of a destination using original images that you wont find anywhere else.

2014 Apa Publications (UK) Ltd

Icelands Top 10 Attractions

From the ethereal, magical lightshow of the aurora borealis, a glacial lagoon and the wonders of Icelands barren wilderness areas, to the cultural attractions of Reykjavk.

Top Attraction 1

Northern Lights . Visitors often come to Iceland in the darkest winter months simply to try to observe the uncanny lightshow of the aurora borealis. For more information,

Dreamstime

Top Attraction 2

Blue Lagoon . The extraordinary resort is set in the midst of a lava field on the barren Reykjanes peninsula. Spend an afternoon bathing in its geothermally heated, mineral-rich waters and you will emerge relaxed, re-energised and already planning your next trip to Iceland. For more information,

Ming Tang-Evans/Apa Publications

Top Attraction 3

Reykjavk . Icelands capital may be small and isolated, but it is a lively, attractive and urbane city nonetheless, with many cultural attractions. The setting, with views across to Mt Esja, is spectacular, and the nightlife is legendary. For more information,

Ming Tang-Evans/Apa Publications

Top Attraction 4

Puffin-spotting . See huge colonies of these curious, colourful birds on the coast at Vk and Ltrabjarg, and on islands such as Akurey and Lundey (off Reykjavk), Drangey, Papey and Heimaey. For more information,

Fotolia

Top Attraction 5

Heimaey . Almost wiped off the map by the volcanic eruption of 1973, this quintessential Icelandic fishing port has an attractive harbour and two looming volcanic peaks. Situated on the friendly Vestmannaeyjar islands off the southwest coast. For more information,

Ming Tang-Evans/Apa Publications

Top Attraction 6

Jkulsrln . The glacial lagoon features on a hundred postcards, but nothing prepares you for its ethereal beauty. Glinting blue icebergs, calved from the mighty Vatnajkull icecap, float through the lagoon on their way to the sea. For more information,

Ming Tang-Evans/Apa Publications

Top Attraction 7

safjrur . The remote capital of the beautiful West Fjords region is notable not just for its setting but also for its restored 18th-century timber buildings. It is also the jumping-off point for wilderness hikers seeking to explore the deserted Hornstrandir peninsula. For more information,

Ming Tang-Evans/Apa Publications

Top Attraction 8

Whale-watching . Perhaps the best place in Europe to catch a glimpse of one of these majestic creatures is off Hsavk, on the north coast. For more information,

Fotolia

Top Attraction 9

Geysir and Gullfoss . Two natural wonders are a must-see countryside excursion for those on short city breaks. Geysir gave its name to all the worlds geysers, although these days it is outperformed by its neighbour Strokkur. Nearby, the dramatic double waterfall Gullfoss is awesome in its elemental power. For more information,