How to Get Around Iceland

A hire car is the practical choice. Public transport between towns is minimal and does not reach most of what people come to see.

Check road.is and vedur.is every morning in winter. Closures happen fast, and driving past a closed sign is both illegal and how rescue callouts start.

F-roads require a 4WD by law, and standard hire insurance does not cover them. They open around late June and close in September. River crossings on them are not covered by any insurance sold in the country.

Take sand and ash protection and gravel protection on the hire car — south-coast windstorms can strip paint off a vehicle entirely, and that claim is neither rare nor cheap.

Fuel stations are far apart outside the southwest; fill up when you pass one rather than when you need to.