HOP ACROSS THE SEA

Take full advantage of your passport! British or European? You already live in an excellent jump-point location

Airport: Manchester --> Reykjavík.

Date: February ’20

Flight duration: 2h 47

Miles: 984

I am so lucky to live just a stone's throw away from countries that are culturally diverse and geographically different to the UK. I was particularly interested in visiting Iceland because I've always wanted to walk in the footsteps of an Eskimo...

...I mean Eskimos have never actually inhabited the country, but hey! It's just that England doesn't have a lot of razzle dazzle when it comes to snowflakes and cosy cabins :( So, you know what? I borrowed a lovely ski jacket, unboxed my woolly hat, and jumped on the next flight outta here 🛫

Icy paradise

You know when you arrive at an airport and expect to be right in the centre of town? No? That’s because you are SMART my friend! I’ve travelled a fair bit, but I still kinda expect to jump off the plane and walk straight into my hotel. Luckily, my travel buddy Sam did her research and pre-booked tickets for the ‘Flybus’ at £18 each. It made life easier because we were able to hop on the bus straight away and roll into central station around 45 minutes later.

If you’re staying in the heart of Reykjavík, you have two options (…well, maybe four if you include limo and horseback). You could either pay for a hotel transfer when you arrive at the station OR you could walk. We chose the latter because we were passably fit and had the infinite wisdom of Google Maps. Although watch out… the trek can be a little icy.

Insider info: the walk took less than 20 minutes and you basically just follow a straight road ;)

Reykjavík: LAND OF FIRE & ICE

Copyright: National Geographic Photograph by Jamie Orlando Smith

We stayed at Hotel: Central Plaza, because the online reviews were good and it was situated right in the centre of town. It was lovely! We chose to include breakfast because we knew in advance that the food would be quite pricey. In typical chav-tastic fashion, we made our lunchtime rolls in the morning and sneaked them out for day trips 😏

On the first evening we went for a wander around the town. It was freezing cold, but the air was so clean and the snow was magical ✨ When got the chance to explore the city in daylight, we soon realised that the Capital of Iceland is a lot more cosmopolitan than we realised! There are plenty of shops, cocktail bars and restaurants catering to the locals as well as travellers.

Calling all food lovers and culture vultures out there! You'll be delighted to sample dishes from local restaurants, including: plokkfiskur, kjötsupa, pylsur, Skyr* and many more.

***Spoiler alert: Skyr is actually just a brand of yoghurt. It's delicious... I think I saw it in Sainsburys a few weeks ago actually...

Insider info: We bought our hotel & plane tickets separately to get the best deal ;)