Camping advices

Guide to a perfect Camper van adventure in Iceland

So - you’ve set a date for your trip to Iceland. You’ve got your plane tickets and you’re ready to book a car rental and an Airbnb for your stay. Now what ?

Now : we recommend you dump a bucket of ice water on your head, check your pulse, and pinch yourself a thousand times to make sure you’re awake, because the only way to successfully experience everything that Iceland has to offer is by road tripping it in the Kuku Camper Style! Because here at kuku Campers, road tripping isn’t about seeing places - it’s about experiencing them!

Many visitors to Iceland book their Kuku Camper Van and then wonder where to go from there. If all you have for your road trip is a torn up map that you can’t make sense of, never fear - this guide to road tripping in Iceland will have you graduating to Road Trip Wizard in no time!

In this blog post, there are a few things we’ll address for you, from best campsites to park for the night, the best routes to take and what to expect while driving in Iceland.

So buckle your seat belt (this is a law in Iceland) and blast the music baby (this is a law in Kuku Campers) and let’s rock this guide!

Roads in Iceland

Iceland has no shortage of beautiful roads to travel, each one taking you to a wide variety of amazing outdoor places. Depending on what you have an appetite for, you have a couple of options that we recommend at least starting with:

Golden Circle - Less driving, focuses on key attractions

Ring Road - More driving, see everything in Iceland!

Golden Circle Route

This route will take about 3.5 hours to drive, but we promise you, you won’t be driving the whole time!

Packed into this scenic road are several attractions to visit, including Þingvellir National Park, Geysir Geothermal Area and Gullfoss waterfall. We could write a whole blog article on each of these places alone, but we’ll keep it short for now. Basically, if you want to see waterfalls, glaciers, ice caves and scuba dive, all within the same day, then this route was made for you!

Ring Road Route

So you have more time to hangout with us in Iceland, more like a whole week? Maybe you’ve just gotten married and you and your spouse want to go crazy and soak in everything there is in Iceland ? Then the Ring Road (officially called Route 1) is the road for you and your Kuku Camper Van!

Without stopping, it would take you about 12-13 hours to drive the entire road, depending on how good the weather is - snowy conditions may cause delays.

This route will take you all throughout the north, east, south and west parts of Iceland, where you can visit multiple popular attractions such as lagoons, black sandy beaches and volcanic mountains. You will more than likely also met some sheep crossing the road too! Speaking of sheep, now is a great transition into the next part of our advices

Driving Safely in Iceland

If you’re coming from the U.K., remember that the driving lanes are opposite and the steering wheels are on the left side instead. Make sure to practice driving in the parking lot if you have to in order to adjust to the change.

It’s also important to remember these safety rules before driving: Follow the speed limits and road signs. Iceland has speed limits, road signs and in a few places, toll fees, and it’s your responsibility to abide by them. And never under any circumstances drive off the road into the country side unless you have permission from the proper authorities.

Be careful of high winds.

Here in Iceland, we have some winds that are strong enough to rip your vehicle door off, along with anything that might be holding on to the door. Be careful when opening your vehicle door, opening it with a firm grip.

Yield to the sheep

Yes, Iceland is known for sheep and cattle freely roaming the fields. Be mindful of your speed on the road, as you will probably need to stop for crossing animals. Don’t worry, they’re sweet, and you can probably manage to roll your windows down and get a selfie with one if you’re stopped!

Be mindful of the weather.

Besides high winds, Iceland is also known for changing weather quickly. You can be driving on a pretty calm day and have a blizzard out of nowhere show up. When this happens, roads become too covered in snow to drive on and visibility is impossible. If this happens, pull over somewhere safe in your Kuku Camper Van and wait until the snow dies down.

Campgrounds for your Kuku Camper Van

At the end of a long successful day of exploring, mountain climbing and hanging out in the lagoons, nothing will feel better than pulling your kuku camper van in for the night at a nearby camping site. Note, they do have a small cost for staying per night, but it’s dollars compared to staying in a hotel !

Here you will find our Kuku map of all Iceland's campsites, with filters for the one open all year and the ones open only during summer. Campsites in red are the ones included in the camping card (this card is available during summer only)

Some campsites require bookings in advance, some others not. Make sure you click on the campsites on the map to access all the information : amenities and services provided, prices, phone number and opening dates.

If you want to book a campsite, your best bet is to call them directly.