The big tour day. The Golden Circle and Silfra snorkel are booked as a single combined tour with Tröll Expeditions. The pickup window runs from 08:00 to 08:30 at Bus Stop 6 outside the Culture House on Hverfisgata 15. Brauð & Co opens at 06:30 and is a five-minute walk from the hotel; get breakfast there and head straight to the stop with time to spare.
The morning is the Golden Circle: Þingvellir for the tectonic rift and Viking history, Geysir for the eruptions, and Gullfoss for sheer scale. The afternoon is Silfra, where you snorkel in the fissure between the North American and Eurasian tectonic plates in 2°C glacier-filtered water with 100 metres of visibility. The tour covers transport, drysuits, and all gear. Pack warm layers, waterproofs, extra socks, and remove all jewellery before leaving the hotel.
Get dressed while the kettle boils. Pack your bag: warm first layer, waterproof second layer, extra socks, all jewellery removed. No rush; Brauð & Co is only 5 minutes away and it’s takeaway, so you’re in and out quickly.
5-minute walk to Frakkastígur 16. Takeaway only; grab a cinnamon roll, a pastry, and a coffee and head straight to the stop. See the info card below.
Bus Stop 6, The Culture House, Hverfisgata 15. Pickup is from 08:00 and the van can arrive any time up to 08:30; it works through central stops in sequence. Eat your pastry while you wait. Vehicle marked “Troll Expeditions”.
First stop. UNESCO-listed valley where the tectonic plates split, with visible cliffs on both sides. Also where the Vikings held the world's first parliament in 930 AD. About 1 hour walking around with the guide.
The original 'geysir' (the word comes from this place). The big one (Geysir itself) is mostly dormant; Strokkur next door erupts reliably every 5-10 minutes, 15-20m high. Stand back. Tourist café here for lunch; kept simple.
Iceland's most famous waterfall. Massive, two-stage drop into a canyon. You walk along a viewing platform that gets you close enough to feel the spray. Wear waterproofs.
Back to Þingvellir National Park, to the Silfra fissure side. Detailed safety briefing, then suit up: thick thermal undersuit, drysuit on top, neoprene hood and gloves. The suit is heavy but warm.
Float face-down in the fissure, current carries you slowly through. Visibility 100m. The water is glacier-filtered, drinkable, 2°C. Hands and face exposed; they'll go numb but not painfully. The most extraordinary thing you'll do this trip.
Hot chocolate and biscuits provided at the changing area. Photos uploaded to a shared folder later that evening.
Tour ends. You'll be tired, hungry, and slightly euphoric.
Table booked for 3 at 19:30–21:15. Hverfisgata 96 — 10 min walk or short taxi from hotel.
Full-day outdoor tour with snorkelling. Pack the night before, pickup is early and you don’t want to be rushing.
Takeaway only; walk in, grab your pastries and coffee, and eat at the stop while you wait for the van. Opens at 06:30, 5 minutes from the hotel.
Reykjavík’s most beloved bakery, just off Frakkastígur near Hallgrímskirkja. Everything is baked fresh each morning from around 06:00. No seating; it’s a takeaway bakery, so you’re in and out in two minutes. Perfect for grabbing breakfast before the van pickup.
Golden Circle & Snorkelling in Silfra, full-day combined tour. All logistics below.
Tröll Expeditions · Full-day combined tour · 2 July 2026
Keep this code handy, you’ll need it for any changes, cancellations, or check-in on the day.
Log in at mytrip.troll.is with booking number TRO-90669233 and email chris.eade@bugbean.com.au to view, change, or cancel.
All booked through Tröll Expeditions as a single combined tour. The two halves are very different: one bus-and-walk sightseeing, the other a wetsuit adventure. The combination is what makes it a great day.
Þingvellir · Geysir · Gullfoss
The classic Iceland day-trip loop: Iceland's three most famous natural sites in one swing east of Reykjavík. Þingvellir for tectonics and history, Geysir for geothermal drama, Gullfoss for waterfall scale. Touristy by Iceland standards; expect to share each spot with several other tour buses.
Þingvellir National Park · Continental fissure
Snorkel in the gap between the North American and Eurasian tectonic plates, in glacier-filtered water with 100m visibility. Drysuit keeps you dry; only hands and face touch the 2°C water. About 30-40 minutes in the water, fully guided. You don't need to be a strong swimmer; current carries you. Genuinely the highlight of most people's Iceland trip.
The Golden Waterfall · Final stop on the loop
Your journey concludes at one of Iceland’s most magnificent sights: Gullfoss, the “Golden Waterfall.” This awe-inspiring waterfall is created by the melting water of Langjökull, Iceland’s second-largest glacier, which dramatically cascades into a deep canyon. The scale is hard to appreciate until you’re standing on the rim, two tiers dropping 32 metres into a gorge that disappears into the earth.
Back by 18:30. Shower, reset, then walk down Hverfisgata to dinner.
Authentic Italian · Hverfisgata 96, Reykjavík
Solid neighbourhood Italian, pasta, pizza, proper antipasti. Affordable by Reykjavík standards and genuinely good. The kind of place you’d be happy to find in any city. After a full day on the Golden Circle and Silfra, this is exactly what the evening calls for.
The wood-fired pizza is excellent, the margherita is the benchmark. House-made pasta is the other standout. Good seafood pasta options. Italian wine list, reasonably priced for Reykjavík.
The tour takes you east of Reykjavík to the Golden Circle, about 100km out and back. Þingvellir is the closest stop (45 min from town); Gullfoss is the furthest (2 hours).
Reykjavík: Tour starts and ends here · Þingvellir: 45 min east, first stop and Silfra location · Geysir: 1h 30m east, geothermal area · Gullfoss: 1h 50m east, waterfall and furthest stop · Total drive: ~5 hours over the day
The tour handles all logistics: pickup, transport, lunch, and gear. Your job is to be ready, warm, and well-fed.