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travel questions

*Barbie**Barbie* member
First Anniversary 5 Love Its Name Dropper First Comment
in Wedding Woes
I've been trying to plan a family trip for early December. DK and I agreed that we didn't want to do another cruise this year (we've gone the last 3) - so I suggested something very different - Reykjavik, Iceland. Seeing the aurora borealis is on my bucket list, and Iceland is one of the best places to see it. (It's also not nearly as cold as a lot of places that far north. Avg. temps in Dec. are 28-38*F, so not too bad.)

I was looking at hotels (I'd try for a Marriott affiliate because of my status/points, but they don't have a location in Iceland.) - but it seems that there are a lot more apartments/condos available for rent. The prices are typically better than the hotels, and we'd also have the option to save a bit of cash and calories by not eating out for every meal.

so my questions: 
1) has anyone ever used airbnb.com to book lodging? if so, how was your experience?
2) has anyone ever visited Iceland? in the winter? any recs of things to do/see? (we'll definitely do a Northern Lights tour, the "Blue Lagoon" hot springs, try to visit the geysers and/or national park, check out some of the museums, maybe go whale watching, and possibly one of the Game of Thrones tours - maybe they'll even be filming while we're there!)
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Re: travel questions

  • emmyg65emmyg65 member
    First Anniversary First Comment First Answer 5 Love Its
    Yep, we just used airbnb when we traveled to Rome. It was AWESOME. I booked with a woman who had 100% glowing reviews (I read every single one that was in English). It ended up being a great little apartment right in the historic district for about half what we would have paid for a hotel there. I definitely recommend airbnb--just do your due diligence and choose a place with good ratings.

    No specifics on Iceland, though I know a lot of people who love it. Just don't be too disappointed if the aurora isn't visible while you're there.
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  • dharmabunnydharmabunny member
    First Anniversary 5 Love Its First Answer Name Dropper
    @thejucheidea‌ I think this is your turf.
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  • GBCKGBCK member
    First Anniversary 5 Love Its Name Dropper Combo Breaker
    My ILs did the airBnB to Hawaii and had an awesome time and loved the apt. they stayed n.
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  • *Barbie**Barbie* member
    First Anniversary 5 Love Its Name Dropper First Comment
    @emmyg65 - I think we'll be going for 8 nights, so i'm hoping we'll get lucky on one of them. from what i have been reading the tour groups will give you a free trip out if you don't see it.Worst case is we'll need to go back to Iceland. ;-) (or visit Alaska or one of the Scandinavian countries in the winter)

    thanks all on the airbnb - I wasn't familiar with the site until this past weekend, but the few places i was considering have great reviews from the past several years, are central in the city, and are cheaper than the (bigger name) hotels.

    Do you need to pay at the time of booking, or when it's closer to your trip? I haven't fully reviewed all of their policies although i saw that different landlords have different levels of cancellation policy. 

    (I just booked airfare for our trip to PA for August, so want to wait at least a few days for my card to cycle to book anything large.)

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  • emmyg65emmyg65 member
    First Anniversary First Comment First Answer 5 Love Its
    You pay at the time of booking, but airbnb keeps your money until a day or two after your reservation begins in case you have any issues with the person renting to you. Then they pass it on.
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  • thejucheideathejucheidea member
    First Anniversary First Answer 5 Love Its Name Dropper
    edited May 2014
    I used airbnb for all of our lodging in Iceland in February. It's pretty much the only way to find well-priced accommodations in Iceland, especially outside of Reykjavik. I highly recommend renting a car when you go, especially if you're planning to leave Reykjavik AT ALL, as the only things that leave the city are tour buses, and really, you'll enjoy Iceland a lot more if you self-tour. There's a ton to do, and you'll want to do it on your own time rather than being shuffled on a tour.

    We liked getting away from Reykjavik, because even though it's a nice town, there's NOTHING to do. We had more fun way east in Kirkjubaejarklauster than we did in western Iceland. We stayed in a cute cabin on a pond like 30 minutes from Jokulsarlon. We were lucky with the weather -- it was kinda warm and didn't snow even though it was February. 

    If you end up driving yourself, make sure to look at Vegagerthin website (http://www.vegagerdin.is/english/road-conditions-and-weather) and I recommend Sixt as really well-priced rental, though they have very few automatic transmission cars if you can't drive stick. Gas is also crazy expensive, like $7.50 a gallon. You'll also need an international driver's license, which you can get from AAA. On that note, AAA is in Iceland, so if you have car problems, you can use your AAA membership to get help.

    For getting there, Icelandair is a fabulous airline, but they can be pricy. We used Norwegian to get there via Oslo and then flew home Icelandair. The airport is really nice and has free wifi.

    If you need help picking specific places to stay or eat or whatever, hit a girl up. We're hoping to go back to Iceland next summer so we can check out Northern Iceland, as we did the entire south from Grindavik to almost Hofn in February.

    ETA: I can also answer any questions you may have about Norway and Sweden.

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  • *Barbie**Barbie* member
    First Anniversary 5 Love Its Name Dropper First Comment
    @thejucheidea - thanks!!! I'm sure I'll be asking plenty of questions. 

    the rates for Icelandair didn't seem too bad for me - I was looking at flights out of Boston. It is going to be about $600/person round trip. (the round trip Houston-Boston rates weren't bad on Southwest - I think the total air for 3 people was in the $2600 range.) 

    Sixt seemed crazy expensive for rentals ($50+/day for an intermediate sized car?). (or maybe this is cheap compared to other rental companies?) Maybe I need to look closer to the trip. According to the Avis site, they're already sold out for our dates at all Iceland locations. 
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  • thejucheideathejucheidea member
    First Anniversary First Answer 5 Love Its Name Dropper
    Rental cars are VERY expensive in Europe, so $50 a day really isn't that bad, sadly. Flights were pricey for us coming back ($1100 for the two of us one way) because of having to fly through to Nashville. I can't remember how much flights were as a total, but all of our accommodations, flights and train rides came to about $4400 for the two of us for two weeks.

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  • jenna8984jenna8984 member
    First Anniversary First Comment First Answer 5 Love Its

    I may be off here since I have never been and @thejucheidea has so maybe she can correct me. But my friend siad it's one of the most expensive places. She only went for 4 days because she said getting any meal was $30 per person (a turkey sandwich not a fancy steak). Something to keep in mind.

    I just got a travelzoo email this morning- they have a 3 night deal to there with airfare, hotel, taxes $800 per person. Check their website.

                                                                     

    image

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  • thejucheideathejucheidea member
    First Anniversary First Answer 5 Love Its Name Dropper
    Yeah, all of Scandinavia is very expensive. We bought groceries in Sweden before heading over to Iceland because we heard their gluten free selection sucks (FACT), so we saved some money that way. There are a few really great restaurants that are well-priced though -- there's a great kaitenzushi place on Posthusstraeti and a tasty place called Geysir on Aoelstraeti, which was really close to the apartment where we stayed.

    Oh, and don't miss the dick museum. Best attraction in Reykjavik. Here's my selfie with the largest mammalian penis:

    image

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  • *Barbie**Barbie* member
    First Anniversary 5 Love Its Name Dropper First Comment
    We've never rented a car in Europe - so no basis for comparison. I'll have to check how rental rates compare with the tours. (Cost/benefit - I need to call AAA about the international DL) Since we'll likely be spending most of the trip in Reykjavik or the general area, we might be able to get away with only renting something for a few days. 

    I wouldn't be surprised if food is expensive - I'd imagine that an island with a shortened growing season would be importing a lot. I don't eat seafood, but that's pretty much my only restriction. DK eats everything, and Wolverine eats most everything. If we don't end up renting an apartment, we'll be staying in a hotel with a free breakfast. 

    The penis museum is an absolute must. I made DK watch a video on YouTube a few weeks ago about their search for the perfect human specimen. A family picture surrounded by dicks would be the perfect addition to our Christmas cards. (I sent everyone a picture of us in Hell [Grand Cayman], a year ago.)
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  • thejucheideathejucheidea member
    First Anniversary First Answer 5 Love Its Name Dropper
    Husband also doesn't eat seafood, but he loved the kaitenzushi place.

    Oh, also eggs were $1.50... each.

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