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This may be a naive question for Europe and Scandinavian summers, but does Iceland very get crowded and touristy in summer, typically June ?

I don't mind some groups but on the whole this is going to be a naturey vacation and I'd like to avoid the busy season

update

To be precise, how much more expensive does it get in June/July ? Does finding accommodation/activities require much more advance planning or can I reasonably improvise once I'm there ?

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    How big does a crowd has to be that you consider it crowded?
    – Karlson
    Jan 30, 2014 at 17:00
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    If getting into parks/hostels, finding rentals becomes long, if I keep bumping into people on trails, more than a few buses at "landmarks", busy/full country accommodations like farms, guest houses. I don't know if this gives you an idea
    – blackbird
    Jan 30, 2014 at 17:07
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    Not exactly. Narrow trails with about a dozen people on them will qualify. In some cases 3 is a crowd. So unless you have some objective measure to identify the crowd your question could get closed as "Primarily Opinion Based".
    – Karlson
    Jan 30, 2014 at 17:11
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    ok how about this: how much more expensive does it get compared to low season ? Does finding accommodation/activities require much more advance planning or can I reasonably improvise once I'm there ?
    – blackbird
    Jan 30, 2014 at 18:00
  • Then you should edit your question and update it. Just not high vs. low but months to compare.
    – Karlson
    Jan 30, 2014 at 18:02

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The high season is a lot more expensive than the low season. I've just looked at a hire-car company that we've used before in Iceland (I've been nearly 10 times in the last 6 years with work), and the rental price goes up by about 50% a day in high season compared to low. The exact amount depends on which car you go for.

The high season usually extends until the beginning of the last week of august be varies between companies.

Finding activities you can usually improvise whilst there - and in fact I would suggest for some things it would be better as they are weather dependent. However, savings can usually be made booking in advance.

Accommodation varies, if you are flexible with where you stay you can probably get away with improvising if you go off season, high season the approach is a bit riskier as places are generally busier. It depends slightly on how many of your there are in your group.

Coming from the UK Iceland seems very big and spacious, and once in the south east it doesn't feel crowded at all. Obviously the big tourist attractions like geysir, gullfoss, the blue lagoon, snow mobiling etc will always have lots of people, but for just hiking you'll probably be ok.

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  • Thanks ! Have you been in summer ? In the countryside, can you find accommodation (hostel, hotel, farm, guest house...) for the night that same day or is it not worth risking ?
    – blackbird
    Jan 30, 2014 at 19:38
  • I've been in June, July, August, September & October! We usually stay in the same farm house so know the owners well. They quite often get people turning up on the day to try to get accommodation, in June, Sept & Oct they were often able to fit them in. In July & August they were fully booked for weeks on end. However, there are several other alternatives nearby. It depends on your personality - if I didn't know where I was due to stay I'd find it quite stressful. When we've needed to find somewhere to stay in another part of Iceland we've looked on farmholidays.is
    – Phil
    Jan 30, 2014 at 19:46
  • Usually I like some margin for improv as opposed to a prepared plan, but it's always good to know just how last minute I can afford to be, and thanks for the link :)
    – blackbird
    Jan 30, 2014 at 19:56

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