Credit: Chris Wronski https://goo.gl/eiwgKA
World-weary travelers seek new destinations, new ways to see attractions and places inaccessible to mere mortals.
Of course some trips won’t be cheap, but for those where the sky’s the limit, this just doesn’t matter.
Jade Conroy in his blog post Complete escapism in incredible Iceland for The Telegraph – Luxury Travel writes: “A private helicopter tour to Iceland’s rugged interior and exclusive use of a mythical lighthouse make for an exceptional Nordic stopover.”
Iceland’s fabulous experiences are highlighted by Conroy:
- The helicopter flight.
A chopper ride offers you an aerial view of Reykjavik, before flying into the uninhabited center of Iceland.
Over the Capital, you’ll see Lego-like houses arranged in neat rows, the stepped frame of Hallgrímskirkja, the new Harpa concert hall with crystallized basalt-inspired pillars.
Iceland’s northwest offers spectacular natural lures – rust-coloured lava fields, the all-white silhouette of Vatnajökull glacier, and an amazing view of Iceland below.
A crater visit offers the opportunities to be enveloped in geothermal steam, smell the sulphur of the bubbling geysers, walk onto the moon-like land
- Visit a “real” spa. The steam that warms your bodies is not the usual artificially-generated heat from city based spas, but underground heat from “old faithful geysers.”
To accompany this unique experience, have a bite of “geothermal-baked bread.”
- Experience surreal sunlight at night, first hand.
Take pictures of basalt rock formations up close as they are bathed in the golden haze of sunlight.
Listen and marvel at tall tales about the sagas of early settlers’ trials and tribulations, trolls that were turned into the Reynisdrangar rocks, and stories about elves, sorcery and magic.
- Spend the night in the Dyrhólaey.
Dyrhólaey, which literally means “door-hole island,” is a fairytale-like lighthouse on a “cooled lava” island.
Views from this lighthouse are spectacular – on the east is the black beach, on the west are the Vestmannaeyjar islands and Mýrdalsjökull glacier in the north.
- Circumnavigate Iceland by road.
Route 1 (the Golden Circle roadway circles Iceland. You can travel right around the country by road.
Highlights include the Thingvellir National Park, modernist churches to the south, and the Eyjafjallajökull volcano.
You’ll also find waterfalls, black swans, wild horses and caves.
Marvels include the Gljúfrabúi falls, the frozen tendrils of Seljalandsfoss and the “… climb up to the top of the rainbow-littered Skogafoss.”
After all these, it’s back to the Dyrhólaey lighthouse to think about everything you’ve seen and experienced.
Up on the rooftop, sipping Birker liquor or another drink, you can marvel at the unique experience that only a few people will experience.
While others are watching the “sunset dance from blue to purple, pink to orange,” only a few lucky people like you will do so from up here – just you and your companions from the Dyrhólaey lighthouse.
These are the things that make luxury travel worth the cost!
