Reykjavík: South Coast Waterfalls, Black Sand & Glacier Tour

GYG

Reykjavík: South Coast Waterfalls, Black Sand & Glacier Tour

★ 4.8(12,274 reviews)

• Guide works in English
• Duration per the operator: 10 hours

from $132

See dates, price and what is included at the operator

Ten hours down the south coast

This tour takes you from Reykjavik along the south coast to the black sand beach at Vík í Mýrdal, with waterfall stops on the way. It runs for ten hours, which puts it among the shorter full-day options for this stretch of coastline. The trip is led by an English-speaking guide, and the price starts at 132 USD. With over 12,000 reviews behind it, this is the most-reviewed tour in its category, which means the experience you read about is the experience a very large number of people have actually had. The tour is not wheelchair accessible, so plan accordingly if that matters to you.

Photographs from the operator BusTravel Iceland. They show the listing, not your day.

What the price covers and what costs extra

The entry price of 132 USD gets you the guided tour itself, with transport from Reykjavik and an English-speaking guide along the route. Food is not part of the deal, so bring what you want to eat or buy it at the stops. Hotel pickup is available, but only as a paid extra. That puts this tour in a small minority within its category, where only two other operators in the group of 81 sell pickup separately. Most others either include it or do not offer it at all. None of the places on the itinerary charges admission or parking, so there are no gate costs to budget for beyond the tour price itself. Free cancellation is offered, though the operator does not give a deadline for it.

What a 4.8 rating actually tells you

The score here is 4.8 out of 5, which is high, but the more meaningful number is the one behind it. This tour has 12,274 reviews, which is the largest review count in the entire south coast category of 81 tours. That is what separates it from its neighbours. A tour with a 4.8 from a few hundred reviews is a good sign. A tour with a 4.8 from over twelve thousand people is a proven product that has been run thousands of times without the experience degrading. It ranks first in its category by strength of evidence, which is a direct result of that review volume. By price, it sits at rank 5 of 81, putting it among the cheapest 6 percent of south coast tours, which start at 116 USD and go up to over 4,000 USD. You are paying well below the middle of the market for a tour that has the broadest base of customer feedback in its group.

When the season matters for a ten-hour day

Reykjavik's temperatures peak in July at 15 degrees and stay above 10 degrees from June through September. The tour runs for ten hours, which means you are out from roughly morning to early evening. In the summer months, that gives you long daylight and the warmest conditions of the year, with highs between 13 and 15 degrees in June, July and August. May and September are cooler, at 10 and 11 degrees respectively, but still workable for a full day outside. From October onward, highs drop to 8 degrees and below, and by December and January you are looking at 3 degrees. The waterfalls and the black sand beach are exposed coastal spots, so the wind will make those temperatures feel colder than the chart suggests. For a ten-hour day, the June to August window is the most comfortable, while May and September are reasonable if you dress for it. The winter months are not impossible, but you are spending a full day in near-freezing conditions.

What happens when you get there

The tour begins in Reykjavik, where you meet the coach for the journey east. The route takes you to the waterfalls along the south coast and finishes at the black sand beach near Vík í Mýrdal. The stops themselves are open-air sights, so there is no building to enter or ticket window to find. What you get instead is time at each location to walk and take in the view, with the guide setting the pace. The weather is the main variable. Rain and wind are common on this stretch of coast, and the paths around the waterfalls are wet throughout the year. The guide will adjust the plan if conditions make a stop unsafe, which is part of the job rather than a failure of the tour. The ten-hour schedule includes driving time between stops, so the actual time at each sight is limited. You are there to see the highlights, not to linger for hours at any one place.

Who this tour fits and who should look elsewhere

This is a tour for someone who wants to see the south coast's headline sights in a single day without paying a premium. The price, at 132 USD, is the lowest among the four comparable tours in its category, and the review count is by far the highest. If you want a solid introduction to the waterfalls and the black sand beach, with an English-speaking guide and a proven track record, this is the one. It is not for anyone who needs wheelchair access, since the operator states the tour is not wheelchair accessible. It is also not for someone who wants to go further east to the glacier lagoon. If that is your goal, the Reykjavik: South Coast, Diamond Beach, and Jökulsárlón Tour runs 14.5 hours and reaches Jökulsárlón, but it costs 230 USD and has a 4.5 rating from far fewer reviews. Similarly, if you want a glacier hike added to the waterfalls and beach, the Reykjavik: Glacier Hike, Waterfall and Black Sand Beach tour runs 11 hours at 188 USD, or the Katla Ice Cave & South Coast Tour runs 12 hours at 287 USD. Those are longer and pricier days for a different kind of experience. This tour sticks to the waterfalls and the black sand, and it does that well for less money.

GYG

Reykjavík: South Coast Waterfalls, Black Sand & Glacier Tour

Dates, remaining places and the current version of what is included are at the operator. This page reflects the state of the catalogue, not the state of this morning.

from $132

Ansehen