Iceland- Day 1

“I want to visit [fill in the gap] before I die!” is something that I hear all too often.

Plans are made, conversations over empty & rattled bottles of wine are had and hypothetical travel itineraries are thrown out into open air. It was upon one of these nights a few months ago that my trip to Iceland was booked. 

Like any pre-booked event, I had 4 months to prepare and the night before is when I found myself chucking all of my not so warm belongings into an industrial sized suitcase for my trip to the land of Ice. Luckily my friend H, who’s a regular ski bunny, assisted me in pulling together a warm and toasty wardrobe to keep me warm as I descended into the land of Santa.

3 hours and a strangely equal time zone later...

I landed in Iceland.

Fresh faced, dreams of Christmas in my eyes and a fur headband to keep me warm [really just a vague attempt to make my ski jacket look chic in Iceland as the hole in the headpiece is not so warming.]

After a battle between the bureau de change and myself, we headed towards The Hilton Reykjavik Nordica- our home for the next few days. The truth is, we primarily chose the Hilton because it’s a short 15 minute walk from the city centre but is still far enough to enjoy the scarcity and space that Iceland refreshingly provides to a London City girl- but it really is so much more than that.

The staff are ridiculously friendly and always at your beck and call should you need anything to enhance your trip. 

The general decor of the hotel is very minimalist and modern but brings a hint of homeliness with the strategically placed open fires and bar areas[ happy hours daily from 5pm-7pm for my friends that like to have a regular holiday tipple]. 

The rooms are extremely clean and simplistic which did just the trick seeing as we were barely present in our rooms [Reykjavik gallivanting is key in a trip to Iceland]. The on-site restaurant is called Vox and serves up a scrumptious balance of local well cooked foods heavily influenced by the local culture. The hotel boasts a wonderfully simple vibe improved by the vibrant crowd that this hotel attracts. 

Hunger Looming, we meandered down to the Hotel Lobby for some fantastic wine by an open fire accompanied by the Hilton Nordica’s delicious High Tea menu [forever a Brit.] 

Much to my surprise, Iceland apparently doesn’t produce its own wine but the imported stuff tastes just as good by an open flame. A delicious stand of meat infused sandwiches, the Roast Beef was a personal favourite, and desserts, the white chocolate mousse with berries is a must, appeared in front of us and disappeared in under 5 minutes- hungry we were.

Significantly wined and dined after an almost 24 hour day, we retired to our hotel rooms to sink our tiresome heads into the plump pillows that adorned our beds.

Having successfully taken over the hotel bars and eatery, we’d need a snooze to conquer Reykjavik the following day...