Bubble Bath Bookings and Northern Lights: A Five-Night Iceland Sprint

FROM BATHTUB TO BOARDING PASS

This wasn’t a trip I planned—Lisa booked it for herself and her husband during a wine-fueled bath and casually asked if anyone else wanted to join. Four nights/five days in Iceland with five friends, a van, and a package deal that included flights, hotel, Sky Lagoon, and a northern lights boat tour. For whatever reason, I didn’t do much research or prep beforehand—a real departure from my norm. We chased auroras, explored Reykjavik, and learned about Iceland’s geothermal magic. I even burned my pinky in a sauna. It was short, spontaneous, and unforgettable.

ICELAND IN FIVE NIGHTS: A SPONTANEOUS TRIP, NORTHERN LIGHTS, AND A SAUNA BURN

What do you get when you mix wine with a bubble bath? A spur-of-the-moment Iceland trip! I wasn't the bather, nor the drinker, Lisa was. She booked an Icelandair package deal one night while drinking wine and taking a bath. When she told us the next day, and invited us to come along, myself, Karin, and Juana didn't even hesitate. It was going to be a short trip, just 4 nights so we'd need to stay close to Reykjavik for the most part. We rented a van as there were 6 of us (Juana's friend Ron came too).

THE PACKAGE DEAL AND AN EMPTY PLANE

The package included the flights, the hotel, a day at the new Sky Lagoon, a hop on/off bus ticket, and an evening boat trip to hunt for the northern lights. It was still pretty soon after Covid so the plane was practically empty. I swear I saw the northern lights from my window seat but couldn't get a good photo. I saw white wisps that moved and changed frequently. No color, but then again there was light pollution from the cabin lighting. I should have remembered this sighting later the next night, but it didn't register well as I was tired.

ARRIVAL AND THE GOLDEN CIRCLE (SORT OF)

We landed at 6:30am and none of us slept well on the flight so we made our way over to the rental car agency in a daze. It took forever to get out of there. We ended up renting a 9-passenger van so it could fit all 6 of us plus our bags. It was too early to check-in at our hotel so we dropped our bags in their holding room and went to find some breakfast. We found a hole-in-the-wall place that had big portions and strong coffee.

We then decided to get out of town and drive the golden circle - only for some reason we didn't drive it in a circle. I blame the jet lag. We drove up to the famous Gullfoss waterfall where it was super windy. My eyeglasses were getting smashed against my face with the strong gusts of wind.

We turned around and drove back the way we came (again, why didn't we continue in the same direction and drive the circle?) stopping at Geysir. We watched it blow then Dave, Lisa, and I huddled back in the van while the others explored a bit more. We drove right through Thingvellir National Park, twice without stopping.

TRAVELING WITH A GROUP AND MISSING THINGVELLIR

This trip was an interesting departure for me. It had been a while since I'd planned a trip and this one I didn't plan at all. I'm used to traveling solo so make all the decisions about what to see and do. This time I was with 5 others so didn't want to overstep I suppose. I also hadn't planned out my cell phone usage well and so didn't have any data outside of the hotel's free wifi. I therefore wasn't able to look up anything en route.

Later, I of course learned that Thingvellir is an amazing part of Iceland and its geological history. The North American and Eurasian tectonic plates pass under Iceland and are slowly pulling apart forming the mid-Atlantic ridge. Thingvellir is a rift valley created by these separating plates. I'll just have to return to Iceland some other time to check it out.

FIRST ATTEMPT AT THE NORTHERN LIGHTS

We had dinner that night then went to see if we could see the northern lights. It was November 1st so quite chilly though there was no snow. It also got dark really early. We drove to a dark area and looked up. Nothing. As it was cold, we packed up and went back to the hotel and crashed hard.

SECOND ATTEMPT AT 2AM

But, there was still northern lights to be hunted. We made a plan to set an alarm for 2am to head back out to see what we could see. Why 2am? Who knows, it just felt like a nice, extra dark time. Juana and Ron decided to skip the second outing so it was myself, Karin, Dave, and Lisa. We drove back to the same lightly forested area outside of the city center.

Fun fact: Iceland used to be heavily forested but in the Viking era, the wood was used for structures and fires, so the landscape was stripped of most of its trees. Only about 2% of the island is covered in trees today.

THE AURORA—CAUGHT ON CAMERA

We again didn't see anything. Nothing but white wispy clouds that moved frequently. I didn't quite put 2 and 2 together at that point from what I had seen on the plane. I did however notice a weird cloud formation off to the right that was changing. No colors per se, just oddly shaped and evolving. I was taking pictures with my phone and using the night sight mode with a longer exposure - trying to hold as still as possible while my hands were shivering.

We eventually got so cold and bored we jumped back into the van. As we started driving off I happened to look at my pictures. What?? I saw green streaks where those white wispy clouds were and green and pink colors in that weird cloud formation. None of this color was visible to the naked eye.

We stopped, turned around, and went back to take more photos. I was the only one that managed to capture the color and I took a LOT of photos. The green wasn't bright and vibrant, but it was there. So exciting! I had seen the aurora only once before decades earlier on a flight to Europe with my mom. The plane had taken the polar route and there they were. I really don't remember seeing them so I was thrilled to be seeing them now, even if only through my cell phone's camera.

3:30AM GROCERY RUN AND BULK CANDY JOY

We eventually got too cold again so started driving back towards Reykjavik. We took a quick detour to a huge grocery store - kind of like a WalMart. It had clothes, food, and miscellaneous other stuff. Not sure how long we spent in there but it was a while. We were the only ones too, seeing as it was around 3:30am. We were like kids in a candy store...especially when we found the bulk candy aisle! Seriously, not sure why we were all so excited about it but there were so many unusual and new candies to look at. A common candy in Iceland seems to be chocolate covered licorice. I love chocolate but hate licorice so it was decidedly not for me. We also stocked up on souvenirs thinking they'd be cheaper here than anywhere in town.

Back in the van we stuffed ourselves with our candy and chips bought in a moment of punch-drunk exhaustion.

REYKJAVIK WANDERING AND GEOTHERMAL INNOVATION

The next few days were a bit of a blur but we wandered around town, took the hop on hop off bus, and made our way to Harpa, the stunning concert hall next to the harbor. It's exterior is all glass - the design inspired by Iceland's basalt landscapes.

We also took a quick day trip out to a geothermal area that had a museum to tour. It was fascinating to learn about the amazing things Iceland is doing to harness and use the geothermal energy of the island. They're also on the cutting edge of pulling CO2 out of the atmosphere and pumping it into the ground where it turns to a solid. Say, what?

SKY LAGOON AND A SAUNA BURN

During one of our evenings we had a relaxing visit to the newly opened Sky Lagoon, which isn't far outside of town. It is in direct competition to the more famous Blue Lagoon which is close to the airport. The design was stunning - it felt like you were in a seaside lava pool and I guess we were, though it was manmade vs the Blue Lagoon's is the real deal. Sky Lagoon had a 7-step ritual you could pay extra for and it was worth it.

I however slipped while walking down the wooden steps in the sauna (which was amazing by the way - with an unobstructed view of the sea like you were all alone on the water). To catch myself I reached out with my right hand and burned my pinky finger on the hot stones in the middle of the room, perfectly at arms height. Now I can say I know what it's like touching the sun. It was only for a milisecond, but was enough to raise a painful blister. Yep, at least 2nd degree burn. The heat in the sauna was making it feel worse so I left quickly to get medical attention. My finger fully healed a couple weeks later but it was quite painful and tender until it did. Not the kind of souvenir I was looking for.

NORTHERN LIGHTS BY BOAT

Our final tour of our package with Icelandair was on a harbor boat to see the northern lights. We got access to heavy overalls to keep us warm if we wanted to be out on the upper deck. I had bought some Jack Daniel's Apple flavored whiskey at the duty free before leaving Seattle so we broke that out while outside - passing it around to help keep us warm. It either worked like a charm or it wasn't that cold.

We're sitting at a table and Lisa at one point exclaims, "I think those are the lights!". Sure enough, there were bright green lights in the sky, It looked like the sky was ripped and green light was leaking out and up. They were moving and changing shapes, it was magical.

FLIGHT HOME AND FINAL THOUGHTS

Our flight home was uneventful other than again, the plane was mostly empty. I hope air travel takes a while to bounce back to full capacity; it was wonderful to have so much space (had my row to myself). This trip to Iceland was great but too short. I'll need to come back for longer next time.