Everything You Need to Know for an Iceland Camper Van Trip

Iceland is a perfect place to rent a van and experience Van Life! You can drive the whole country, it’s the safest country in the world, there are so many campsites and it will give you the flexibility to see and do so much more. If checking in and out of a hotel and bringing your luggage in and out every night does not sound appealing - the van route is the way to go!

The Ultimate Iceland Ring Road Itinerary!

Booking the Van

Happy Campers: We booked a van from Happy Campers after doing a lot of research and we made the best choice! They have so many options depending on your needs and number of people. We booked the 4x4 since we were going mid-March and heard the northern route could be snowy. When we were driving in the south of the country, we thought it was overkill but when we started heading north and saw all the snow we were so happy we did!

Prepping For Your Journey

What Happy Campers Provides: The great thing about Happy Campers - is that they have pretty much everything you need to make your journey great! They have all the bedding and blankets you need, cookware, Wi-Fi, secondary battery for using when the car is parked, chairs & table, coffee press, Bluetooth speaker, gps, towels and even a guitar if you want! There’s also a refrigerator cooler to keep stuff chilled and a little hot plate stove to cook on. There is a big water tank they will fill up for you before you depart that you can use in the sink to clean dishes or use the water for boiling in the pot.

What to pack yourselves: We brought with us some battery powered lights which came in super handy, toiletries, mirror, smaller bag to bring into hot springs, battery bank, phone tripod, trash bag, wet wipes, and medicine. We also brought food that didn’t need refrigeration in our suitcases and carryons which came in very handy and saved us a lot of money! Some examples - mac’n cheese, ramen, oatmeal, cereal bars. tortillas, peanut butter, and lots of snacks. Iceland’s weather changes drastically so make sure you prep for all types of weather and bring clothing that’s easy to layer!

On The Road

Campsites: You will want to do some planning in advanced so you know where to stay and how to pace your drive for the day. This guide put together from Happy Campers is amazing and very useful! We went in March so only the winter campsites were available which required more planning - but nothing needed reserved in advanced. In the summer months there are tons more that open up so you will have lots of options - but the popular sites may be more crowded as well.

Check Out my Full Itinerary on Driving Ring Road!

Weather & Road Closures: It’s also very important to check the weather for the day and the road closures map to make sure your route is clear to avoid any surprises! We were very impressed how often the map gets updated and how detailed it was! It even noted that a huge reindeer herd was near the road and it was spot on

Northern Lights: An amazing experience - check the aurora activity for the next few days so you can plan accordingly to pick a good viewing spot. The darker the better!

Gas Stations: Good advice we received is that when you are getting further away from the bigger cities on the drive get gas every time you see a station. This kept us from having any close calls!