The easiest and most popular way to travel around Iceland is to rent a car. But what if for some reason this option is not suitable for you?
Not many people know that Iceland has a pretty good network of bus routes. These buses can take you almost anywhere in Iceland. Naturally, it will be easier to get to the most popular attractions by bus than to some remote mountainous areas.
Iceland has an extensive network of intercity bus routes covering almost the entire island. In total, there are several main companies engaged in transportation.
Detailed schedules and routes of all bus lines in Iceland can be found on the website publictransport.is .
It is also easy to get a free paper bus card at all tourist information centers, of which there are many throughout Iceland.
During the most popular tourist season, from June to mid-September, regular bus services travel to most of the attractions on Iceland's Ring Road, to popular tourist areas in the southwest, as well as to larger cities in the Western and Eastern Fjords, as well as on the peninsulas of Reykjavik and Snefelness. There are also bus routes that run through the Highlands and have stops at the beginning and end of the most popular and exciting hiking trails.
During the rest of the year, bus routes are significantly reduced, and their schedules become less dense. So, if you are going to Iceland in winter, then you should approach the planning of your trip a little more responsibly.
In summer, full-drive 4WD buses pass along some F-marked roads (mountain roads), including the Kjelur, Sprengisandur and Aska mountain roads (inaccessible to 2WD vehicles).
Many bus routes can be used as day tours, in which you are not tied to a tour group and can plan your own vacation and time spent in an interesting place. There are buses that spend several hours at the final destination before returning to the departure point, and can stop for up to 30 minutes at various interesting tourist spots.
Different bus companies may have departures from different terminals in Reykjavik. In small towns, buses usually stop at the main gas station. But it is better to check with the locals.
Many buses are equipped with free Wi-Fi. Also, many buses have GPS sensors, so you can see when your bus is approaching your stop.
List of bus companies in Iceland:
When you click on the name, you will be redirected to the official website of the carrier, where you can view the current schedule and prices for travel.
These are the main bus companies that operate regular bus services throughout Iceland. Of course, there are many smaller seasonal car companies that provide their services on a limited number of routes, and usually only in summer.
Travel passes for travel on Icelandic buses - Bus passports
In Iceland, with its developed bus transport and a large number of tourists, a variety of bus passes (passes) are very developed, such bus passes are called Bus passports. Bus operators offer "bus passports" every summer, in order to make it as easy as possible to travel by public transport in Iceland.
Different types of such travel cards are suitable for different trips, they are divided by regions of Iceland:
If you are planning to travel around Iceland by bus, then check while you are still at home which bus passports you have and which routes they cover. After all, the variety of passports and the companies that provide them is great, bus passports are not cheap and it is worth thinking carefully about what exactly suits you. It may turn out that if you are traveling with a company of 3-4 people, it is more profitable to rent a car and go on your own. By the way, as an aggregator of various car rental companies in Iceland, we really like skyscanner, although most of them know it as a search engine for air tickets, but they also have a car rental section. Actually for car rental we recommend local car rent companies and aggregator for them.
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Of course, all bus passports have some restrictions, such as the length of time when you can travel, maybe for 3-5-7-10-15 days, other passports do not limit in time, but limit in the direction of travel (usually these are passports for a circular route around Iceland, and you can only travel in one direction).
Passports also allow you to use the services of only one company, and even if you see a bus that suits you, but it is another car company, you will have to wait for your own. No Icelandic bus company offers an ideal network - each of them has significant geographical gaps in service, and most routes to remote parts of the island have a flight only once a day. Strætó has the largest network in Iceland and the most frequent flights, but most of the season tickets are intended for use in cities. It may be more convenient to buy tickets for specific sections of the route, but do not forget to check and print out the bus schedule for yourself, otherwise it may turn out that you went to the stop, and the bus left 10 minutes ago - and the next bus will be tomorrow.
See the current bus fares on the websites of the car companies listed above.
Bus passports for Iceland "Iceland on your own"
Two bus companies have joined together to implement the project "Iceland on your own" or "Iceland on your own". Details can be found on the official website ioyo.is .
Positive:
- Routes along the Kjelur and Springisandur mountain roads that will help you get to remote parts of the Highlands.
- There is a good network of routes in the south.
- Good route coverage in the north, which includes Akureyri, Husavik, Ásbyrgi and Dettifoss .
Minuses:
- A gap with coverage in the Western Regions of Iceland.
Iceland Independently offers these types of travel passports:
Hiking Passport is a bestseller, and with good reason. If you want to walk in Laugarvegur, you can be dropped off at the Landmannalaugar, and at the end of the route you will climb the ÞÓrsmörk (or vice versa). If you are traveling in Fimmvörðuháls, you can walk between Skógar and ÞÓrsmörk. You can also take both routes. The essence of this type of passport is that you get two tickets from Reykjavik to the region with some of the most popular tracking, without time limits (cost 14,000 ISK = $ 130).
Circle Passport is a route passing around Iceland, though without entering the Western Fjords, but through the Highlands. (cost 47,000 ISK = $ 440)
Beautiful South Passport - passport for traveling along the entire south coast (from Reykjavik to Hefn); Includes routes to Gullfoss, ÞÓrsmörk, Landmannalaugar and Lakagígar. It is possible to purchase a passport for 3/5/7/9/11 days (cost from 27,000 ISK = $ 250).
Beautiful South Circle Passport - passport including only the South Coast plus Landmannalagar (cost 24600 ISK = $ 230).
Highlights Passport is a passport, from the name of which it is clear that you will see all the most interesting things, of course, according to the creators of this passport. It includes the Southern Coast, the colored mountains, the Highlands, of course, the Golden Ring of Iceland and much more. The validity of this passport is limited in time 7/9/11/13/15 days (cost 52100 ISK = $ 490).
Highland Circle Passport - valid for one circular route passing along the Sprengisandur and Kjellur routes; Also covers Reykjavik to Skaftafell (price 44000 ISK = 420$).
Combo Passport - combines all possible routes of these companies. Of course, this type of passport is limited in time to 7/11 or 15 days (cost from 65,000 ISK = $ 610).
Now you can see that although bus passports may be convenient, they are still very, very expensive. Therefore, it is worth planning your trip correctly and looking for non-standard solutions.
Cheap flights by plane inside / around Iceland
The idea that you can travel around Iceland by plane and it will be cheap may seem crazy. But it's not like that! Of course, the trip will not be very cheap, after all, we are in Iceland, where nothing is cheap. But sometimes it can be cheaper to get to a remote town or part of Iceland by plane than by bus.
Let me give you an example - you have arrived in Reykjavik and want to visit Akureyri, and next to it Lake Myvatn and other attractions in the North of Iceland
The bus goes for a long time, of course, beautiful views will open from the window, but the cost of the bus will surprise you "a little". In season, the price ranges from $90 to $160 per one-way trip. While the local airline AirIcelandic has tickets from Reykjavik to Akureyri starting at $75. Of course, plane tickets should be taken in advance, but your trip will take only 45 minutes instead of 6-8 hours by bus.
AirIcelandic also has flights to the very east and the very west of the country and generally a pretty good air service. Plus, there can be up to 6-7 flights in one direction in one day, so you can choose the most convenient option.
How to get from Keflavik Airport to Reykjavik
Keflavik International Airport, which is located 50 km from Reykjavik, can be easily reached by shuttle bus. The bus service is provided by two car companies Reykjavik Excursions, which we have already written about, and Airportexpress.
The cost of the bus starts from $ 25 one way, but you can also choose the option assuming that you will be taken directly to the hotel.
During the daytime, buses of each company run every hour, but due to the overlap of the schedule, in reality, the bus departs every half hour. So do not buy a ticket from the airport in advance, and then rush or wait. Choose on the spot, there are always empty seats on buses, since most tourists prefer to travel by rented car from the first minute.
