Iceland Ring Road: Mývatn, Snæfellsnes & Vík, 19 Days

It begins with your own journey to Hirtshals in Denmark. Boarding follows in the early afternoon and the ferry leaves for Iceland at around 11.30. The night is spent on board in the two-berth inside cabin, with the machine on the vehicle deck.

The second day belongs entirely to the North Atlantic. On board there is time for maps, route variants and gathering strength, before the east coast of Iceland comes into view the next morning and the loop proper begins.

The ferry docks at Seyðisfjörður in the morning. Along the Ring Road the way leads to Lake Mývatn with the pseudocraters at Skútustaðir, the lava formations of Dimmuborgir, the mud springs at Námaskarð and the Hverfjall tuff ring. A dip in the Mývatn Nature Baths closes the day.

Past the Goðafoss waterfall the short stage runs to Akureyri, capital of the north, with its museums and botanical garden. The high point is the included whale watching. Anyone wanting more riding takes the detour via the harbour town of Húsavík.

West through the lonely Öxnadalur valley and over the Öxnadalsheiði pass. At Varmahlíð you can meet Icelandic horses or swap the machine for a rafting boat, and just beyond lies the historic turf farm of Glaumbær. Night in or near Hvammstangi.

Over lonely plateaus and rugged coastal stretches the way reaches the harbour town of Stykkishólmur with one of the finest marinas on the island. The Snæfellsnes peninsula begins here, where glaciers, volcanoes, bird cliffs and green pasture sit side by side.

The whole day belongs to the peninsula. On the programme are the black lava beach of Djúpalónssandur, the fishing villages of Arnarstapi and Hellnar and the Vatnshellir lava cave. The day can start with a boat ride out to the offshore bird cliffs.

From the empty west the route runs to the capital. Borgarnes with its Viking grave and Settlement Museum lies on the way, and Reykjavík brings the Harpa concert hall and the old harbour. In the afternoon a detour to the Reykjanes peninsula and the Blue Lagoon is possible.

Through the volcanic area of Hengill with its hairpins the route circles Lake Þingvallavatn and crosses Þingvellir National Park. Anyone who likes gravel adds the lonely Kaldidalur track. The night is spent in the Golden Circle region.

Today leaves plenty of time for the Gullfoss waterfall and the Haukadalur geyser field with Strokkur. A geothermal pool or a detour to the highland resort of Kerlingarfjöll are there as options. The night is again spent in the region.

Through green farmland and beneath huge glaciers the south coast stage runs to Vík on its wide black sand beach. The Seljalandsfoss and Skógafoss waterfalls invite a stop, and at the Sólheimajökull glacier tongue a paddle on the water or a guided glacier walk is possible.

Through wide outwash plains beneath the glaciers the way leads into Skaftafell National Park with its arctic birch forest. A footpath runs to the Svartifoss waterfall and its basalt columns. Optional tracks head towards Eldgjá and Laki, in places with fords.

Beneath the Vatnajökull the route reaches the harbour town of Höfn with its glacier panorama. Two glacier lagoons, each with its own character, shape the day, along with Diamond Beach and its stranded icebergs. The Zodiac ride among the icebergs is included.

The route runs through the lonely East Fjords: the Atlantic to the right, valleys with snow-capped mountains and countless waterfalls to the left. In the village of Fáskrúðsfjörður the particular history that links the place with France is worth exploring.

Across country the way leads to the remote Wilderness Center, where riding, walking and the Wilderness Spa fill the evening; admission to the exhibition is included. Anyone wanting more riding adds the fishing village of Neskaupstaður.

Two variants are open: via the basalt column gorge of Stuðlagil and the museum farm at Sænautasel on gravel roads, or more gently to the secluded coastal town of Borgarfjörður Eystri. A visit to the Vök geothermal baths rounds off the day.

A short stage of around 30 kilometres carries you over the pass back to Seyðisfjörður, where the ferry leaves for Denmark at around 10.30. The night is spent on board again, with fourteen days on the island behind you.

One more quiet day on the North Atlantic. On board there is time to look back over the stages between Mývatn, Snæfellsnes and the glacier lagoons, before Denmark comes into view around midday tomorrow.

At around 12.30 the ferry reaches the port of Hirtshals, where the loop ends and your own way home begins. Behind you lie around 2,500 kilometres between fjords, glaciers, volcanoes and waterfalls, and fourteen nights spent on the island itself.