Travelling solo? Here are our top 8 tips to make your experience a little less daunting.

A lot of people travel to Iceland from all over the globe, and a huge number are doing it alone. Solo travel certainly isn’t uncommon in our part of the world! Iceland’s hugely popular with people travelling alone for a number of reasons, from its friendly locals to its low crime-statistics (it’s a very safe place, even for solo-exploring newbies).

If you’re thinking of joining the masses and heading to Iceland alone, our team of travel experts at Midgard Base Camp have put together a guide with 8 handy tips to help you out.

1) Keep a List of Essentials

First things first, let’s start with your essentials. By this, we mean your passport, ID, all flight and accommodation booking details, money, phone and anything else that’s vital to your safety and travel.

If you’re prone to being a little forgetful sometimes, make a list of these items on your phone. At regular intervals throughout travel, get that list up and make sure you have everything with you. It’s little checks like these that can prevent some pretty big problems!

2) Plan Your Stay

Although it’s pretty simple to plan a solo trip to Iceland, and booking last-minute flights, accommodation, and trips are all easy to do, it can be nice to do a little bit of preparation. You could find out about the Icelandic culture, or make a list of sights you’d love to see to get the most out of your trip.

Of course, it can also be fun to go in completely blind and see where the road takes you, so how much you plan is up to you!

3) Find Out About Transportation

Transportation is key to any good trip, so make sure you know enough about how you can travel through Iceland to get around. Local transport, such as buses and trains, are pretty simple to navigate, and car hires are available. Perhaps you can even find a group of fellow travellers and group together in a hire car, splitting the costs and making travel far easier – and more enjoyable!

4) Stay in a Hostel

Hostels are great for solo travellers. You can get help from the staff and transform your trip into an epic journey filled with all the new mates you’ll inevitably make.

At Midgard Base Camp, we see solo travellers arriving every day, but they’re never alone for long. In no time, they’re sharing food with new friends in the restaurant, having a laugh at the bar or heading out to explore the local area with like-minded adventure-seekers. Life-long friendships begin at our base camp, and it’s one of the many wonders of travelling alone.

5) Stay in the South

The South of Iceland is a wonderful place for solo travellers. It’s full of all the awesome Icelandic sights you’ve come to see, rich in history, and brings a whole lot of other independent travellers to the area, so you won’t struggle to meet new people. This year, it even got voted as Activity Destination of the Year, which says it all, really! Stay at Midgard Base Camp for a central location in the South of Iceland.

6) A Few Places to Visit

Having mentioned the South, it’s probably a good idea to tell you about some of the places you can visit. First up is Þórsmörk, the rugged and majestic valley that’s known across the globe. There’s also the colourful mountains and geothermal pools of Landmannalaugar, the glacier-capped Eyjafjallajökull volcano and the Fimmvörðuháls hike which takes you between two glaciers and across a breathtakingly beautiful landscape – and that’s just naming a few!

7) Go on Group Tours

The best way to visit all of the incredible places South Iceland has to offer as a solo traveller is certainly with group tours. There’s something wonderful about sharing experiences with other people, isn’t there? It would be a shame to miss out on that because you’re travelling alone!

Our Midgard Adventure Group Tours also give you the knowledge of an experienced guide, the chance to explore the hidden gems of the country and experiences that you just wouldn’t have if you were doing it all alone.

8) Enjoy Yourself

Our final expert tip is simple: enjoy yourself! Be brave, adventurous and don’t be afraid to do what you want to do. If you want to make friends, go for it! If you want to visit somewhere in particular, make it happen! Don’t let your fears hold you back, or you may just miss out on some of the best experiences of your life in the beautiful country of Iceland.