What does a 5-day trip to Iceland cost for 1 person?
About 238,000 ISK ($1,973) in total, or 48,000 ISK per person per day — travelling in September, with a small two-wheel-drive car, staying in guesthouses and eating out about half the time. The realistic range is 174,000 ISK to 329,000 ISK, and flights are on top.
Where the money goes
| Car rental | 40,000 ISK | 17% |
| Rental insurance (SCDW + sand and ash) | 20,000 ISK | 8% |
| Fuel | 13,000 ISK | 6% |
| Kilometre road tax | 7,000 ISK | 3% |
| Parking at paid stops | 6,000 ISK | 3% |
| Accommodation (incl. lodging tax) | 79,000 ISK | 33% |
| Food | 48,000 ISK | 20% |
| Activities and entry fees | 25,000 ISK | 11% |
The same trip, month by month
Only rooms and car hire move with the season. Everything else costs the same in February as in July, which is why the spread is narrower than people expect. The light does not behave like the price at all, which is why it is in the table: a cheap month can be a short one.
| Month | Total | Per person per day | Usable light |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 215,000 ISK | 43,000 ISK | 7 hours 30 minutes |
| February | 215,000 ISK | 43,000 ISK | 10 hours 15 minutes |
| March | 220,000 ISK | 44,000 ISK | 13 hours 30 minutes |
| April | 228,000 ISK | 46,000 ISK | 16 hours 45 minutes |
| May | 238,000 ISK | 48,000 ISK | 21 hours 45 minutes |
| June | 278,000 ISK | 56,000 ISK | 24 hours |
| July | 296,000 ISK | 59,000 ISK | 24 hours |
| August | 296,000 ISK | 59,000 ISK | 18 hours 45 minutes |
| September | 238,000 ISK | 48,000 ISK | 14 hours 30 minutes |
| October | 226,000 ISK | 45,000 ISK | 11 hours 30 minutes |
| November | 217,000 ISK | 43,000 ISK | 8 hours 30 minutes |
| December | 232,000 ISK | 46,000 ISK | 7 hours |
What to know about this trip
Travelling alone is the expensive way to see Iceland, and the reason is the room. One person in a guesthouse pays very nearly what two pay, so the per-head figure here — 48,000 ISK a day — is close to double the 31,000 ISK each that two people sharing would pay. Hostel beds and campsites are charged per person and are where a solo trip actually saves money.
Five days is a south coast trip, not a Ring Road one. The full loop is 1,332 km before detours, and attempting it in five days means most of the trip is spent driving past things. Reykjavík, the Golden Circle and the south coast as far as Jökulsárlón is a complete trip at this length and the pricing above assumes it.
On this trip the biggest single line is accommodation (incl. lodging tax), at 79,000 ISK — about 33% of the total. That is the lever worth pulling first if the number is higher than you hoped.
Other trip shapes
5 days, 2 people · 5 days, 4 people · 7 days, 1 person · 7 days, 2 people · 7 days, 4 people · 10 days, 2 people · 10 days, 4 people · 14 days, 2 people · 14 days, 4 people · Campervan or hotels in Iceland: which is actually cheaper? · The cheapest month to visit Iceland, priced
Change the assumptions and price your own trip · Driving distances
The part of the trip that costs nothing
Step inside the Diamond Circle — 10 stops, narrated, free.