Self Catering Holidays to Iceland

These bases work well for self catering because they combine supermarket access with easy routes into the wider country.

• Reykjavik: Reykjavik is the strongest self catering base in Iceland because it has the largest choice of supermarkets, bakeries and fish counters, so you can shop on arrival and cook most meals at home. The compact centre is walkable, and the harbour area is only a short stroll from most apartments. The trade-off is that apartments here cost more per night than those in smaller towns, but the convenience of daily shopping and the short distances to museums and day trips make it our first recommendation for first-time visitors. It is exactly the brief our Reykjavik holidays deals are built around.
• Akureyri: Akureyri is the largest town in North Iceland and offers a good range of self-catering apartments close to its own supermarkets and fuel stations. The town sits on Eyjafjordur, a long fjord, and the centre is a short walk from the harbour and botanical garden. Because the town is smaller than the capital, the choice of restaurants is more limited, which makes a self catering base a sensible and relaxed option for travellers who prefer cooking at home and taking short drives to Godafoss waterfall.
• Vik: Vik is a small village on the south coast, roughly 180 km from the capital along the Ring Road, and it has a handful of guesthouses and cottages with kitchen access. Self catering here works well because the village has a small supermarket for essentials, and the surrounding beaches and walks are reached on foot or by a short drive. Expect a quieter atmosphere and fewer shopping options than the capital, so plan your food purchases before you travel down the coast.
• Hofn: Hofn is a fishing town in southeast Iceland and a practical base for exploring the nearby glacier lagoon. Accommodation includes guesthouses and apartments with kitchens, and the town has a supermarket and fuel station, which makes self catering a straightforward choice for longer stays in the region. The town is small, so restaurant choice is limited, and guests who cook their own meals can keep costs down while spending more of their budget on guided glacier tours.
• Husavik: Husavik is a small harbour town in North Iceland known for whale watching, and its guesthouses and holiday homes often include full kitchens suited to self catering, the same brief our Iceland holidays deals are built around. The town has a compact supermarket and the harbour is close to most accommodation, so you can buy provisions and walk to tour departures on the same morning. Husavik is quieter than the larger northern town nearby, which suits guests who want a slower pace, though you should book groceries for the whole stay before heading further into the remote north.