It's blueberry season in Iceland!

It’s blueberry season here in Iceland – the time of year when Icelanders go off to the countryside to pick ripened blueberries and crowberries which grow in vast quantities in heathlands and around the foothills of mountains. You can find wild berries growing in most parts of the country, but they say the juiciest can be found up north.

Berjamó - an Icelandic tradition

It's tradition with many families here in Iceland to spend the day collecting wild berries; an activity known as Berjamó. When they get home, they make jam, juice and muffins out of the bounty, or simply serve the blueberries with skyr, cream and sugar for a refreshing dessert. If you don't have time to venture far from the capital you can find berries around Mount Esja and Heiðmörk. There are also many professional foragers in Iceland, so if you don't have time for Berjamó, you can find fresh Icelandic blueberries for sale in the supermarkets.

Icelandic recipe for blueberry jam

• 500g of blueberries
• 1 & 1/2 dl of water
• 350g of sugar

Boil the blueberries in water for five minutes. Stir the berries into a paste. Add the sugar into the mix and simmer for another ten minutes. Pour into clean jars and seal. Enjoy on any occasion! 

Plan your visit to Iceland with Glacial Experience and find out how you can pack a blueberry-picking adventure into your trip! 

For more details visit our site:: Langjökull glacier, Blue lagoon, Luxury travel Iceland, Dyrhólaey cape, Iceland Super jeep tour, Gullfoss waterfall tour & Luxury tours in Iceland. 

Start preparing for 2019: Highlands in June through September

You can not describe with words the beauty of the Icelandic highlands. It´s unique, remote, only accessible by big SUV, or super jeep as they are called in Iceland. Since the highlands are higher than the lowland around the coastline the snow stays longer and some places are only free of snow in the beginning of July. August and September are the best months to travel, free of snow and you´ll have the northern lights as a bonus!

Glacier has designed a fantastic 6 day trip to the highlands. We have been scouting the roads and places this summer, testing the accommodation and the food, measuring the time it takes to go from one place to another and we´re confident that we have a fantastic trip, far away from everything, where you can travel a whole day without meeting anyone! The benefit of a private tour is the flexibility: customer is king and you can decide a lot how the trip is executed: Do you like a lot of hiking or not at all? That´s totally up to you. We at Glacial Experience are all trained and experienced driver guides and hikers, used to cross voluminous rivers and floods.

The 6 days trip is divided into

• day of arrival,
• 4 days on the highlands.
• day of departure

I travelled this trip with high school friends last week, we took the 4 days as in the scheduled trip and it was just fantastic. Many of them had never been to these places and they were overwhelmed by the vast terrain with no people, only a few birds and then mountains, peaks, ice, rivers and all the colours.

For more details visit our site:: Iceland private tour, Private luxury tours Iceland, Kerlingarfjöll,  Seljalandsfoss waterfall & Svartifoss waterfall.

Rettir — the big Icelandic sheep round-up

With those glorious shades of autumn in progress, September is a particularly colourful time of year to visit Iceland. It marks the return of the northern lights, the start of the cultural calendar and it's also the time of year when Rettir takes place – the great Icelandic sheep round-up. As one of the oldest traditions in the country, it provides one of the highlights of the season for countryside communities.

There are three times more sheep than people in Iceland

For most of the year, Iceland’s large population of sheep roam the mountains and valleys grazing on an abundance of wild saplings, thyme and heather.

Given that there are almost three sheep to every person living in Iceland, the process of gathering them can be quite a challenge which is why farmers rely on the whole community to help with the gathering process; needless to say, additional help from visitors is always gladly welcomed.

Round-up events usually take place on weekends in September and involve lots of walking and running in the brisk autumn air, chasing sheep, rounding them up and sorting them into pens.

Dangerous dancing at the Rettaball

Once the hard work is over and the sheep are all rounded up the day is almost always topped off with a big autumn feast, known as Rettaball. Events like this, which are usually hosted in local community centres, involve lots of drinking, singing and because of the large quantities of alcohol usually consumed, some rather dangerous dancing. After three days of chasing sheep all over the mountains, it's a wonder where they get their energy from. 

For more details visit our site:: Iceland private tour, Private luxury tours Iceland, Kerlingarfjöll,  Seljalandsfoss waterfall & Svartifoss waterfall.

Enjoying Iceland in the rain

You should never rule out the chance of rain hitting your holiday parade in Iceland, even during the season of the midnight sun, but it doesn't mean that you can't have a fabulous time.

You should never rule out the chance of rain hitting your holiday parade in Iceland, even during the season of the midnight sun, but it doesn’t mean that you can’t have a fabulous time. Unless there’s a severe weather warning advising you to stay indoors, the rain shouldn’t really stop you from enjoying Iceland or visiting any of the outdoor attractions you came to see. In fact, the mood generated when it rains not only adds a thrilling atmospheric quality to the scenery, but it also brings out the pleasant aroma of distinctive Icelandic vegetation such as aspen, birch and angelica.

Whatever the weather

Locals don’t let the rain stop them from indulging in any outdoor activities or adventures here in Iceland and the simple explanation is that they make sure they dress for the weather. In fact, one of their favourite sayings on the weather goes something like this: “there’s no such thing as bad weather in Iceland, only bad clothing.” So if you want to enjoy your summer trip to Iceland, whatever the weather, here’s what to bring:

thermals

extra socks

long and short sleeved t-shirts

a fleece jacket

a wind and waterproof shell

waterproof walking shoes

waterproof hiking pants

buff & gloves

swimsuit (visiting any of the many outdoor geothermal pools in Iceland is especially thrilling in the rain – there’s something magical about relaxing in a hot pool with cool raindrops falling on your head)

and

a positive mental attitudeAverage temperatures during the summer range from 10-13°C (50-55°F) but can go up to 20-25°C (68-77°F) on warmer days.

For more details visit our site: Private Tour in Iceland, Reykjavík guided tours, Reykjavík private tour, Iceland luxury trips, Private luxury tours Iceland & Luxury tours in Iceland.

Game of Thrones locations in South Iceland

With its epic landscapes and generous tax breaks, Iceland has become an attractive destination for film producers with big-budget films shot here, such as Justice League, Thor: The Dark World, Star Wars: The Force Awakens, The Secret Life of Walter Mitty, Prometheus and The Fast and The Furious, to name a few.

Many TV series have also been shot in Iceland, like Sense 8 and Fortitude, but the series most people are most interested in is Game of Thrones. This immensely popular show has been using Icelandic locations since its second season and has filmed extensively in both north and south Iceland.

Although you wouldn’t be able to visit all the locations in one day, you could cover many of them by taking a Game of Thrones tour. One of the more popular tours is offered by GrayLine Iceland and guided by an Icelandic actor who has appeared as many different auxiliary characters throughout the series and has some great behind-the-scenes stories to tell.

Depending on the time of year, a typical Game of Thrones tour of South Iceland might visit any of the extraordinary locations listed below:

 Thingvellir – A world heritage site of geological and historical significance where numerous different scenes were filmed, including The Bloody Gate scene when Lord Baelish and Sansa Stark travel to the Eyrie (S4E05). It also featured in the scene where The Hound and Arya take the same route in (S4E08) and in an episode where the Thenns and the Wildlings meet South of the Wall (S04E01).

 Nesavellir – A geothermal area in south-west Iceland riddled with gorgeous trails and smoking hot springs. One trail leads to the location where Arya and the Hound meet Brienne of Tarth before an epic fight scene ensues (S04E10).

 Thórufoss – A waterfall in Mosfellsdalur valley features as a Meerene location where Drogon the dragon hunts for goats (S4E06).

 Gjáin – A lush ravine in Thjórsárdalur valley with wildflowers, babbling brooks and waterfalls. This is where Arya practices her water dancing and the Hound isn’t impressed (S4E05).

 Thorveldisbæinn – A reconstruction of the ruins of the Saga age farm at Stöng. Also located in the Thjórsárdalur valley, this location is where the Wildlings and Thenns attack Olly’s village (S4E03).

 Mýrdalsjökull – This glacier in South Iceland doubled as The Fist Of The First men in season two.

 Höfðabrekkuheiði – This popular hiking area near Vik appears as the frozen wastes of wildling territory beyond the wall in season two.

Reynisfjara – The famous black sand beach next to Vík features in season seven as the beach in Eastwatch-by-the-sea.

For more details visit our site: Iceland highlands tour, Iceland private tour, Gullfoss waterfall tour, Iceland Super jeep tour, South Coast tour, Luxury travel Iceland, Ring road tours & Reykjavík tours.

Land of the midnight sun

Iceland is home to a number of curious natural spectacles providing a constant source of surprise to visitors all year round. You can experience it yourself by travelling with Glacial Experience on a private tour.

Apart from the long, dark nights of winter and those sensational northern lights, which illuminate the night skies between September and April every year, Iceland is one of the few places in the world where you can observe the midnight sun. During the summer months (from mid-May to mid-August), Iceland is flooded with daylight for almost twenty-four hours a day and for a short span of time in June, the sun is still visible at midnight – a phenomena known as the midnight sun. The light is mostly direct but there are a few short hours before dawn when the sun remains dipped just below the horizon casting an enchanting glow in the skies behind the mountains and beyond the sea.

The midnight sun, which can be observed in Iceland and other countries with high latitudes such as Greenland and Norway, happens as a result of the Earth’s axis which is tilted towards the sun during the summer. The effect is reversed at the South Pole, and also during the winter when it’s tilted away from the sun giving us those long dark days instead.

If you’re wondering how on earth we sleep, the answer is we either use blackout blinds or sleep masks. Sometimes we don’t even bother and stay awake to enjoy the midnight sun and those few magical hours before dawn.

For more details visit our site: Iceland highlands tour, Iceland private tour, Gullfoss waterfall tour, Iceland Super jeep tour, South Coast tour, Luxury travel Iceland, Ring road tours & Reykjavík tours.

Exclusive Retreat - 7 Days Experience

A truly unique way to experience the best sides of Iceland, visiting the Golcen Circle, travelling to Þórsmörk (Thorsmork) on a super jeep, experiencing lava and glacier from within and feeling the ultimate luxury at the new Blue Lagoon Retreat 5 * hotel and spa.

You´ll experience Iceland in a unique way, staying the first two nights in the new luxury Blue Lagoon Retreat five star hotel and spa. We´ll take you to the magnificent volcanic cave Víðgelmir and the ice tunnel in Langjökull glacier, where you will see the glacier from within. We stop at Hraunfossar waterfall where you can see the glacier water flowing out from the lava after having travelled through and under the lava, filtered from all dirt and sand and flowing totally clear to its own river again.

We travel the so called Golden Circle which is basically three stops: at Thinvellir National Park where you can see the two tectonic plates seperate and where the settlers from Norway founded the parliament in the year 930, making it the oldest parliament on the world. We go see the Geysir (geyser) geothermal water spout, Gullfoss waterfall and the Secret Lagoon, an old geothermal swimming pool built in 1891. We stop for lunch in the Friðheimar tomatoe farm where we´ll have their delicious tomate soup with home baked bread, and, if you like, Bloddy Mary as well as tomatoe juice and tomatoe ice creem. You can add snowmobile tour on Langjökull glacier as well as a horse riding tour to this day, if you´re interested.

Now is the time for a Super Jeep Tour! We travel on a modified SUV with big tires to Thorsmörk, a wonderful place close to where the infamous Eyjafjallajökull glacier eruption took place in 2010. We deflate the tires, making it more comfortable to drive on the uneven gravel road, we visit the Nauthúsagil narrow canyon where your challenge is to return with your feet dry! We continue along the mountains, crossing between 15 and 20 rivers and driving in to a huge glacier lagoon that broke in 2010 and is now empty, allowing us to enter and drive almost to the glacier itself. We lunch in a place called Básar, your driver guide will fire up the grill and bbq you a delicious filet of Icelandic lamb.

Day 6 in this trip is the day you´ll see Iceland from above: we go on a helicopter ride to see the glaciers from above as well as the long black beach of South Iceland. We´ll land and have a nice lunch in a secret place!

After an intensive week it´s time to spend the last night at the Blue Lagoon Retreat five star hotel and spa, allowing you to enjoy the various services in the spa, guaranteeing a total relax of body and mind before you leave the country next day. The airport is only a 15-20 minutes drive from The Blue Lagoon.

Needless to say, but you´ll be travelling in new luxury vehicles!

For more details visit our site: Private Tour in Iceland, Reykjavík guided tours, Reykjavík private tour, Iceland luxury trips, Private luxury tours Iceland & Luxury tours in Iceland.