As I mentioned before, I truly love Iceland. Take away the cold, extreme wind, unpredictable weather, and the lack of nightlife and Iceland would be perfect in every way.
After many nights of research and watching Vlogs on YouTube I thought adding the Blue Lagoon at the start of the trip and the Sky Lagoon at the end of the trip was the best way to go for us. Many people will tell you that these are tourist traps and that there are many other inexpensive geothermal spas with less crowds that are just as good. Believe them. There are many places to choose from. But as a tourist you just have to experience it for yourself and have your own opinions about them. I love to hear about others experiences and their recommendations but I don’t base my entire trip on someone else’s opinions. Some things are better off experiencing yourself 😉.
Our flight was a direct flight from Newark, NJ that landed at 6:10am in KeflavÃk. Our hotel check in time was not till 2pm and from our Dubai and Paris experience I knew I wanted to do two things right this time. Not pack the day with many things to do (epic fail on this trip too) and not take a nap too late in the day to prevent oversleeping and not adjusting to the new time zone (success).
We decided to start our day at the blue lagoon. We made reservations ahead of time, well a couple of weeks out. It is true that the earlier you book the better price you get. In a two weeks period the price went up almost $20. So definitely book as soon as you know which day you want to go, in true Pam fashion I did not do so and paid $100 instead of $70 😅. Our reservation was for 0800 and we had more than enough time to leave the airport, get our car, and drive there. I calculated the drive from the airport to be about 44 mins. However, from the Lotus car rental office it was about 30 minutes.
I absolutely loved the Blue Lagoon!!!
And it is considered one of the Wonders of the World so there's another check on my list.
Known for its milky blue steamy mineral rich water and white silica mud both containing healing properties and located in a lava field. It truly was a great way to start the trip. We were the earliest group to get in and we had a lot of time to explore around in the water before it become more crowded. I believe we lasted about 2.5-3 hours here but there is no time limit. You also don’t need that much time there but being that it was so early and we didn’t have much to do before checking into our hotel at 2pm we stayed as long as possible.
They encourage you to drink water to prevent dehydration and they have water stations throughout that were very convenient. They also say to condition your hair as the silica in the water will make it stiff and hard to manage afterwards but thankfully I had no issues since I decided to keep my hair up and not go under water. Hubby didn’t complain about his hair either. I do recommend you take ear muffs or ear warmers to keep your ears warm. I did and it made a big difference, hubby's ear however looked like they were about to fall off 😩.
This place is a lot bigger than I expected. As we explored and went farther in we kept finding different areas to hang out at, even when it became more crowded it felt like there was enough space between the crowds. Our ticket included a drink and we opted for a green smoothie being that it was way too early and we were exhausted! The silica mask did leave my skin feeling super soft so no complains. There was a sulfur smell occasionally but not like I expected it to be and it was only in certain areas. And I had no issues with my gel polish melting or turning rusty or with my contacts either. I did wish I had brought out my sunglasses as it was early and the sun was very bright. Also my face could not hide the lack of sleep/jet lagged I was feeling 😅.
Overall, we loved the Blue Lagoon and I would personally recommend it.
The Sky Lagoon in the other hand was not as big as the Blue Lagoon. Beautiful yes, as it is newer with a simple yet modern design and it is also man-made. The ocean view was nice to see but the cloudy sky and crazy wind we had on our visit didn’t make it as pretty as I expected it to be. I also felt that the water wasn’t as hot as the Blue Lagoon.
It was less expensive, I believe we paid $70 each. Although it did not include a drink it did uncle the 7 step ritual which in my opinion was worth every penny and worth the visit on its own.
The 7 steps ritual includes the lagoon, cold plunge, sauna, cool mist, body scrub, steam room, and shower then back to the lagoon if you choose to. The views from the sauna was beautiful as you’re able to see the ocean. But be warned it was so hot in there. Dear Lord! I thought my nostril’s hair had fallen off. The cool mist was pretty cool but cool 😆 which wasn’t a good feeling after the sauna so we didn’t last long there. Going into the steam room with the body scrub on was the key of this whole experience. It was very relaxing being in there and coming out to shower was refreshing. Not to mention how smooth our skins felt afterwards. I kid you not, my skin was soft for a week after we got home. I will visit this lagoon any day just for this feeling.
Now don’t get me wrong. Although not as big as the Blue Lagoon, The Sky Lagoon was worth it for me as well. I loved the modern design. The locker rooms/shower area were nicer in my opinion. Maybe because it felt more spacious. And the waterfall outdoor was awesome. So glad I left this for the end and was able to go under it. I wouldn’t have done it if we had gone here first because I wanted to preserve my straight hair as long as possible.
I think these two lagoons need to meet up, get marry, and have a baby 😊. Both are unique in their own way and you can’t go wrong with visiting either one. Or both 😆.
They both had restaurants or at least a cafe area to grab a quick bite or coffee, a waterfall in the water where you can submerge yourself, saunas, and a swim up bar offering alcoholic and non alcoholic drinks. Sky Lagoon is closer to Reykjavik, about 15 minutes, while the Blue Lagoon is about 40 minutes give or take depending where you're staying. Both are man-made, in case you were wondering.
Have you been to Iceland and visited these lagoons? If so which one did you like best and why?
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