Stop the world for a few days: kiss, cuddle up to the love of your life and savour the serenity of Snæfellsnes with its ice cap dubbed the 'eternal pyramid of snow'. Catch sight of mighty Blues in their feeding grounds offshore; tortuous rock formations; foaming water fringed bird cliffs and the peninsular's kaleidoscopically coloured mountain spine.
Precede with a couple days of urban chic in Reykjavík to contrast with the raw isolated beauty of Búdir.
What To See And Do
Ólafsvik is a quaint fishing village on the northern shore of the Snæfellsnes Peninsula dating back to 1687 from when until about 10 years ago the inhabitants would have barely seen a visitor from one year to the next. But then, when whaling ceased and whale spotting began, a steady trickle of travellers has turned into a stream as people come for a chance to see these majestic mammals including killer, humpback and blue whales.
The Snæfellsnes peninsula juts out into the Atlantic with its northern and southern shorelines divided by a mountain spine which culminates in a glacier on its western tip. Your drive to Bú∂ir takes you along the south shore but it is worth returning along the northern one for its striking differences, being indented with bays and tiny fjords hosting fishing villages.
Snæfellsjokull glacier is a modest ice cap by Icelandic standards but is easy to get to from Bú∂ir just by following the main route 574 and turning off on the mountain road to your right. If you fancy a snowmobile tour then you can leave from Arnarstapi rather than drive, for which you will need a 4WD.
DAY 1: UK – REYKJAVÍK
Scheduled Icelandair flight to Reykjavík. Transfer on arrival to and overnight at Hótel Centrum for two nights.
DAY 2: REYKJAVÍK
Hang out, chill out and dine out. Optional excursions.
DAY 3: REYKJAVÍK– BÚDIR
Courtesy transfer to your hire car, collect and drive to Búdir, overnight at Hótel Búdir for 2 nights.
DAY 5: BÚDIR
At leisure.
DAY 6: BÚDIR– UK
Drive to Keflavík Airport, via the Blue Lagoon, drop off car and return flight to UK.
Hotel Bú∂ir has to be one of the world’s ultimate ‘chill out’ spots, perched as it is, on a rocky outcrop with only the sea lapping over the red sands and a miniscule wooden church for company. Rebuilt in 2001 (its predecessor burnt down) the clapboard wooden hotel has been a popular weekend haunt for Icelanders for some time and has little touches, an easy familiarity and a ‘to die for’ restaurant menu that only private ownership can confer.
The Snæfellsnes peninsula doesn't get the publicity that Iceland's star attractions do but is something a bit special: a long mountain ridged peninsula edged with red sand beaches and rugged bird cliffs, topped off at the end with an ice cap. The white clapboard Hotel Budir stands on a promontory with light refracting on the ocean to its front and the mountains behind, giving it a special magic for a weekend for just the two of you.
Daily May - September
Hotel Bú∂ir
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