The Golden Circle, Gullni hringurinn, is the most famous round trip on Iceland. Even if you are only on a stopover for a few days, e.g. For example, if you are coming from America and are staying in Iceland's capital region, you should at least undertake this famous round trip as an "excursion into the country". From Reykjavík-The center is 250 km in a rental car. It is worth getting up early on a beautiful summer day because there is a lot to discover. Of course, you haven't been alone on the "Golden Circle" for a long time. In the off-season z. B. But at the end of September the number of visitors is limited. All stretches of the round are paved and easy to drive.
In addition to the rental car variant, the route is often taken as a booked day tour in the bus.
Here we go
Of 1 Reykjavík via the R 1 to the north and on the R 36 to the east to Þingvellir National Park.
- in the 2 Thingvellir National Park one can find the famous gorges of the continental plate drift, which has developed here geologically very vividly. The old meeting place "Þingvellir" of the Icelandic tribal assembly is also located at the fissure.
- From Þingvellir National Park, continue on the R 365 to
- 3 Laugarvatn: lake of warm springs.
Here the last Catholic bishop of Iceland, Jón Arnason, was executed in 1541. In Laugarvatn, the Reykjavík metropolitan area has the first shopping opportunity right in the through town.
- Continue on the R 37, then the R 35 east to Haukadalur. There is a large visitor center with information, gastronomy and also extensive souvenir sales
- 4 Great geyser (geyser).
In the thermal area "Geysir" lies the spring from which all others got their name, the great geyser. Since an earthquake in 2000, the geyser has erupted several times a week, albeit irregularly. A few meters further on, Strokkur, "butter churn", reliably hurls boiling hot water up to 15 m high every eight minutes. The barriers should be observed for safety reasons. The wind direction should also be checked to avoid standing in the spray of the Strokkur. There are also several other smaller hot springs and bubbling mud pots here. A special feature is the blue spring ("Blesi"). The blue light is reflected by a high mineral content of kieselguhr. In cold weather and westerly winds, the blue spring has a warm microclimate.
- You continue on the R 35 in an easterly direction, always along the "white river" of the Hvítá, to
- 5 Gullfoss.The landscape is very interesting at the "gate to the highlands". From the visitor center it is only a few meters to the first viewpoint at the waterfall. The fall is one of the most beautiful waterfalls in Europe. The water falls in two right-angled cascades 32 m deep into a 2.5 km long gorge, some of which is 70 m deep.
- The R 35 leads south past Skálholt. Was from 1056 to 1785 6 Skálholt a bishopric and for centuries the place was considered the spiritual, political and cultural center of the country. The current church was only built in 1956 for the 900th anniversary. The discovered crypt with the sarcophagus of Bishop Páll Jónsson, around 1200, can be visited.
- The is located 20 km before Selfoss 7 Kerið volcanic crater directly on the R 35.
- At Selfoss you reach the R 1 again and drive to Hveragerði. Here is the center of Icelandic greenhouse culture at the foot of the Hengill volcano. The geothermal energy from the numerous hot springs is used to heat the greenhouses, in which vegetables and flowers are grown for their own market. The well-known Cafe Eden (flower shop, cafe and souvenir shop in a greenhouse with numerous tropical plants) burned down in the summer of 2011. You can find it in the village itself 8 Thermal area in the center of Hveragerði, a Hot spring field, which belongs to the volcanic high-temperature area of Hengill.
- 9 Hengill area.In the gardens of some houses you can also see hot (steaming) and white areas. The earth's crust is very thin under white spots, so it should not be stepped on. On the northern outskirts is the small geyser Grýla. There is a nice hiking trail through the park or via a path on the other side of the stream northwards, passing numerous steamy spots.
- If you fancy a hike, you can go to the 10 Thermal area on the mountain "Ölkelduhnúkur" hike. From 11 Hikers' parking lot at the "Hot River Café" just walk about 3.5 km to the hot spring area.
You can reach the capital again via a small pass on the well-developed Ringstrasse 1.
