I was sitting on a Cape Cod beach this summer when I had this thought, “I should book a trip to Iceland this fall and see the northern lights!” (A dream of mine) In the past I have gone on cold vacations - Austria, TWICE in the winter, Alaska, Bar Harbor in the winter, England and Scotland in the fall (wow I really thought there were more) - so I wasn’t afraid of the winter.

Iceland Unlimited

I reached out to Iceland Unlimited (IU); Curb Free Cory used them along with others in wheelchairs, and I didn’t know how accessible Iceland was in terms of transportation.

They got back right away. They set me up with an IU travel agent. I think I put down a 20% retainer fee, which I think is pretty normal. Bless her heart, she put up with my going back and forth for 2 months! Silly things like booking a hotel room in Reykjavik. So, for newbies, it’s a pretty walkable city. My mom and dad were both coming, and a lot of the hotels only sleep 2 to a room.

Icelandair

I’ve flown on a number of different airlines, but Icelandair was one of my favorites. I got bulkhead seats right behind first class. It was great that it’s right by the door to board also the whole plane isn’t walking by you so we didn’t feel rushed! The aisle chair in Iceland was the comfiest chair!

Reykjavik Residence Hotel

After nixing hotels, whose rates were too high for 2 rooms, my agent recommended the Reykjavik Residence Hotel. It was a white colonial with a ramp up to the front door. I really liked it, so I said yes.

Not many handicap rooms around the world sleep more than 2 people; few have cots they can add to the room. This room had 2 twin beds AND a pull-out sofa! This was an apartment, bedroom, living space, kitchen and bathroom. It was a short trip, only 4 nights, but my itinerary seemed packed!

I am not the biggest water fan, and the Blue Lagoon Hot Springs looked like a tourist trap, so I also dropped that excursion, which brought my total down a lot! Here, read Curb Free Cory’s wheelchair Blue Lagoon experience!

There was a basket of food when we entered! Replaced each morning! (I don’t know how they knew the way to my heart is through my stomach, but I’m not complaining)

We got: 3 hardboiled eggs, 2 avocados (to be fair, 1 was rotted inside), 1 red pepper, 6 slices of sourdough, cream cheese, 3 peaches (the next day we got kiwis) 3 yogurts, apple juice, milk, a bottle of water (even though the tap water is safe to drink) and every morning someone hung a fresh loaf of bread on or door! This was the highlight of the day!

The kitchen was stocked with silverware, pots and pans, a Keurig, and 5 kinds of coffee cups. Iceland does not run on Dunkin’, they run on ice and fire!

I highly recommend this hotel; they even did our dishes every day so you can see this beautiful land!

Transportation

Sraeto is the public bus. I didn’t use it, but online they say they are wheelchair accessible. They have taxis and wheelchair taxis, BUT RESERVE THAT AHEAD OF TIME. You can’t call the night of, and they don’t usually work at night. I read that someone rented a wheelchair van, and that is what I’ll do next time I visit! And they also have an airport bus to Reykjavik, roughly a 45 minute drive.

The Weather

So, we went in early October hoping to see the northern lights. It’s really a hit or miss to see them. The week we were there was such a miss. Rainy, cold, with unusually severe winds. The temperature was 39 degrees with a wind chill of freezing.

Every day I wore a t shirt, a long sleeve turtleneck, with a long sleeve sweater over that with my fleece lined and water-resistant winter coat, a scarf, two winter hats, fleece lined leggings, throw blanket over my legs, fleece lined boots, and wool mittens, and I was still cold. I also bought a fleece face scarf - this was brilliant! I may have looked like a serial killer, but at least I was a warm killer!

Northern Lights Tour

The Aurora Borealis are never guaranteed. There are 3 factors that must happen for the northern lights to appear: 1. it has to be clear with no rain or clouds in the sky. 2. A strong solar storm from the sun, and 3. it must be dark, city lights pollute the sky, and this is why you need to drive to a remote area.

During our tour the weather was not cooperating, and after learning of all the factors, I realized it does come down to shit luck.

IU gave me a list of accessible museums, attractions, and restaurants which was very helpful.

Hallgrimskirkja

Of course, I had to see the church! Rainbow Road was only 3 blocks away. And if you stand in the middle, the Hallgrimskirkja Church behind you makes for a great photo.

The church was designed with cylinder columns that the wind coiled down sounding like random piano keys. Not quite music but almost trying.

Inside is an organ the size of a whole choir! There were no golds like in Europe, but it was just as beautiful.

You could also go up the elevator. Purchase tickets in the gift shop (wheelchairs are free). Because the windows are too high unless you can stand. There’s also 2 flights of stairs to a look out of all of Reykjavik. Where I was, you could hear the wind as if the windows were open.

Penis Museum

We went to the Iceland Phallological Museum, because some days are HARD (sorry, that was a bad joke, just flopped). This is the only museum like it in the world! The elevator is to the right of the main doors. You buy tickets in the gift shop. Yes, a banana hammock gift shop!

I didn’t know what to expect, but it was pretty PG. There were penises from animals found all over the world. Did you know humans are the only without penis bone? Probably better that way!

The models were penis bones. Many were very small. There were models from giraffes, whales, elephants, polar bears, pigs, dogs and mice, and many more. And there was a photo of the man with the longest dong, AND he’s WHITE!! How long was it? Guess you have to fly to Reykjavik to find out!!!

After, we stopped by the penis cafe. We got hot chocolate with baileys. And OMG this was THE BEST hot chocolate in the world!!! Talk about orgasmic! This should be the real reason you come to Iceland!

Rainbow Road

Rainbow Road is a section of the road that is painted as a rainbow (no yellow brick roads here), and if you get the photo just right the Hallgrimskirkja Church is in the background.

FlyOver Iceland

This is a must for everyone! They have 2 different shows, a FlyOver Iceland and the Americas West Coast.

When your designated start time comes, you go upstairs or take the elevator up. You start by taking photos in front of a green screen (have fun with it, don’t just smile, you can buy them later in the gift shop) there is a screen and a Viking talk of trolls.

You do stand for at least 10 minutes but if you need a chair just ask ahead of time. Then for the main thing. There’s a row of seats, you can either transfer on, or stay in your chair to the side.

This is not a roller coaster! A screen from floor to ceiling, playing a film, the seat moves up a little so your feet are off the ground. What you see on screen, with little movement, the cool wind and drips of water on your face, the smell of salt water and molten lava plays on all your senses to make you feel as if you are actually flying over Iceland, and hiking valleys with waterfalls, or going up snowy mountains and through a glacier. I went to places in Iceland my wheelchair could never take me. The fly over lasted about 25 minutes.

After, you exit through the gift store where I bought my favorite gift, a world map you fold into a globe and it comes with red push pins to show where you have been.

Before we left, I used the accessible bathroom.

Saga Museum

This museum had Viking mannequins paired with audio that told you of their discovery of Iceland!

Then after you could dress up like a Viking and stand by a stuffed, full size polar bear!

Thingvellir National Park

I have to be honest here - on my itinerary I really only had 1 full day outside of Reykjavik, the full Golden Circle Tour. In reality, it was a line, not a circle. Our driver picked us up at 9am - later in an email I was told I was late, but at the time I didn’t think I was late, so I don’t know if I really was, but if I was, it wasn’t more than 15 minutes!

First stop, the Visitor Center, which overlooked a river. It was beautiful!! Then we drove to Haukadalur & Geysir. We spent about 5 minutes here - it is a great geyser. Stokkur Geysir was next. There was a packed gravel walkway here and there are 40 other small hot springs in the area, but we were in a “rush” so I don’t know if wheelchairs can even get to the other springs.

I was then told we did not have time to go to everything - I had to choose between Kerio Crator and Gullfoss (HUGE waterfall) OR the Horse Stable. Well, I wanted to see it all, I mean that’s why I booked The Golden Circle Tour through IU! There were pictures in my itinerary that got me excited! The IU agent should have known we wouldn't have time to see it all. For how much I paid, I definitely felt ripped off!!

My driver was great! He did stop at Urrarafoss for me, but it was a shitty waterfall compared to the others!

And we never saw Oxararfoss (the famous landmark waterfall you see in every Iceland post card!

Horse Stable

Yes, there are horses everywhere, but at Skeidvellir Stable I was guaranteed a kiss. The driver wasn’t given the proper directions, but luckily he had their number to call.

I was very happy I went. All the stalls are dug lower than the floor so the horse could hang its head over the stall and socialize with the other horses.

They do this because the horses are social animals; here it was obvious how important the well-being of the horse are to the workers. What I also loved is they were at perfect height for wheelchair kisses!

Horse stalls around the world are notoriously too high for wheelchairs to even see a horse, let alone touch the horse!

The girl gave us a scheduled tour and told us how they are raised, what they teach, and other fun facts about the Icelandic horse and their long, beautiful hair. Think Rapunzel with 4 legs!

Then we went in their cafe where we got complimentary hot chocolate. The cafe looked out onto the arena; one wall was covered with trophies the horses had won!

I highly recommend this stable tour to everyone. I will never forget those kisses!

Perlan Museum

The Perlan museum is a must - you learn so much! There are glass jars you pick up and smell the real smell of molten lava. I thought that was so cool!

And they have an ice cave you can walk/wheel through. Don’t get stuck in there, it’s kept at -8 degrees. Make sure you check out the café - the glass dome!

This is when we had to call a taxi. It was 8pm, and we learned the hard way that handicapped taxis don’t work nights!

Thursday we had the whole day to see Reykjavik, but you need a few days to see everything.

Harpa

We had dinner inside the Harpa at Hnoss. We didn’t have a reservation, so we almost didn’t get in. I got the cod, and this was the best fish I’ve ever had! And I’m from New England!! Highly recommend!

Cafe Babalu
Our last morning, my mom ran to Cafe Babalu and ordered me chocolate banana crepes. Being an American sugar junkie, these crepes may not be a winner if you want sweets. My gym trainer would love them.

My favorite part? The cafe isa in your face bright orange color. My favorite kind of color.

Airport

Iceland has a very low crime rate. I do think one of the reasons why is because of their strict firearms laws. Because of the low crime rate, getting through TSA at the Keflavik Airport for me was a breeze - which hardly ever happens!

After going through the Duty Free (the hardest part), I went to 1 of the 2 bathrooms. The line was crazy long, but there were separate family accessible restrooms!