Our review of the Reykjavik Golden Circle tour and Laugarás Lagoon entry: the day, the four options, what guests say and the small-group alternative.
The Reykjavik Golden Circle tour and Laugarás Lagoon entry is a 9.5-hour coach day from 09:00: Þingvellir, Geysir and Gullfoss, then two hours at the new Laugarás Lagoon. It costs from €172.80 per adult and is rated 4.7 from 15 reviews; the Lerki tier adds a towel and a drink for €18.
You leave at 09:00 from BSÍ or your hotel, drive about 50 minutes to Þingvellir, then go on to Geysir and Gullfoss. The day ends with two hours at Laugarás Lagoon, a new spa on the loop itself, and the drive home takes about an hour and a half. The page does not give minutes for the three main stops.
Four options combine two lagoon tiers with two ways to get on the bus. Birki is the standard entry; Lerki adds a towel and a drink at the swim-up bar for €18 more. Hotel pick-up adds €12.60 to either. The cheapest is Birki from the BSÍ bus terminal at €172.80 per adult.
The price covers transport with Wi-Fi, an English-speaking guide and entry to Laugarás Lagoon with its changing rooms, lockers and showers. On the Lerki option you also get a towel and one drink at the swim-up bar. Food is not included, and on the Birki option you bring or rent a towel.
Rated 4.7 from 15 reviews. Guests like the guides by name and the new lagoon at the end; the critical notes, from winter trips, are that the day can feel rushed in short daylight and that they would have liked longer at the lagoon. One repeat guest booked it a second year.
We had an amazing time. We got to see so much, Geysirs, Gullfoss waterfall, Þingvellir National Park and the Laugaras Lagoon to finish off wash just amazing. We did this tour last year and enjoyed just as much this time.
This tour was overall excellent and our guide B G was informative, funny and helpful. Got to see everything we hoped to. The geyser erupted 4/5 times while we were at park and the new Laugaras Lagoon was amazing & great views. Overall a very enjoyable tour !
Amazing. Our guide Gunnar was very very knowledgeable. There wasn't anything he didn't know! We had enough time to spend in each location, although we would have liked longer at the lagoon! An amazing and unforgettable day.
This tour suits you if you want the classic loop with a modern spa on the way, at a lower price than Sky or the Blue Lagoon. It is less good if you want a small group — the Laugarás small-group tour costs a little more — or if you have already seen the Golden Circle and only want the lagoon.
The nearest alternative goes to the same lagoon in a small group with hotel pick-up from 19 locations. It costs about €11 more on the standard tier and has fewer reviews so far; this tour is the cheaper way to the same water and adds the choice of meeting at BSÍ.
Four practical points from the tour page and from guests: pick the Lerki option if you don't want to bring a towel, bring swimwear, expect short winter daylight on the loop, and budget for lunch on the way, which is not part of the price on either lagoon tier.
Pick a date to see live availability and the price for your group on GetYourGuide. Choose the meeting-point option to save money, or the hotel pick-up option if your hotel is on the operator's list; the lagoon tier is chosen in the same step.
Short answers first, details below. These are the questions people ask before booking this tour: how long it takes, what separates the two lagoon tiers, when it starts, whether lunch is included, where the lagoon is and how cancellation works, all from the tour's own page.
About 9.5 hours. The Golden Circle stops and two hours at Laugarás Lagoon.
A towel and a drink. Lerki adds a towel and one drink at the swim-up bar for €18 more.
09:00. From BSÍ or with hotel pick-up.
No. You buy food on the way.
On the Golden Circle itself. It is on the loop, so you don't drive back to the coast for it.
Yes, free up to the day before. Free cancellation until 24 hours before the start.
Golden Circle and Laugarás Lagoon in one booking, from €172.80.