What to Pack for Iceland in the Summer

Posted on April 23, 2019October 23, 2020 by AliciaMarieTravels

What to Pack for Iceland in the Summer- If going to Iceland in the summer you may be making a packing list and are curious of what to pack. We did a lot of hiking in Iceland while we were there in June, my list will be geared towards what to pack for short and long hikes in Iceland. Iceland can range in temperature, its always hard to judge what to bring. I never want to over pack but I want to be prepared as well. This is my complete list for what to pack for Iceland in the summer months, May, June, July and August.

We completed our trip around Iceland in a campervan, you can look here for some things we brought specifically to our campervan trip. This is exactly what I packed for our 9 days in Iceland in the summer.

Suitcase/Travel Backpack

Travel Backpack:

I always travel with my Ebags Mother Lode. It has multiple compartments, an extender and can be used like a backpack, or tuck the straps in to make it a weekend bag. I have always gotten away with using this as a carry on as well.

Option 2 Backpack:

My husband has a Ebags Mother Lode but recently switched to Osprey Packs as he likes the straps and weight distribution better. This style has many fun compartments to put shoes, toiletries, which he saved the main compartment for his clothes in packing cubes.

Duffel Bag:

I always pack a Packable Duffel Bag with me on long trips. I typically use them as an extra bag to carry on my way home to store souvenirs and other fragile items that won’t fit in my checked bag. But for Iceland I used this as a carry on and packed food in my suitcase. You can read about the food and snacks that we brought with us below. When we were finished with Iceland I folded this up and stuck with one bag the rest of the trip.

Packing Cubes:

I don’t know how many times I have seen the question on travel group boards “are packing cubes really worth it?”. The question is always flooded with answers of YESS!!! You don’t need to splurge on fancy or expensive ones. I own this Amazon brand and they have worked wonders. Keeps you organized and helps when unpacking and repacking through a multiple destination trip. Heck I don’t even go on a weekend trip without them now! Lifesaver!

***one other packing tip is that always bring a few zip-lock bags and garbage bags. Also nice to have something if you happen to have wet/muddy clothes or shoes.

Clothes

Iceland’s temperature range calls for bringing lots of light layers. Don’t worry about bringing a big heavy coat in the summer, a good rain coat and some layers will do the trick. Bring lots of layers, and if its windy or rainy you can always throw on a rain jacket.

Here are some of my favorites

Hiking Pants:

I did love my hiking pants that I found on sale at REI. They are light weight and quick drying. They were fantastic for those rainy days, the next day they were always practically dry! These are great pairs and have great reviews as well, here and here.

Leggings:

I never travel without at least one pair of black sports leggings. My favorites are the high-waisted ones from Fabletics (get a huge discount with this link). They can be used for hiking and easily worn during a day in town. I prefer the high waist leggings for hiking and other physical activities. These here are a great pair, and these are as well and are a little bit cheaper.

Rain Jacket:

A solid rain jacket is a must in Iceland, it will help protect from both the wind, rain and waterfall mist. The weather constantly changes and you never know what it will bring you. I love this one for just strolls around the city, it is light weight and pack-able (women’s packable jacket and men’s packable jacket). But, for a hiking trip I like one that is a little more protective in wind and rain storms, and much warmer for those early mornings or chilly days (women’s thicker raincoat and men’s thicker raincoat).

Hiking Shorts:

My husband once in awhile changed into shorts when on a hike and it was sunny, but I never wore shorts in Iceland, always did well with leggings on the warmer days. This is another item I never thought specific hiking shorts was necessary, but do make a difference. They don’t ride up and are much more waterproof and breathable. They also are very elastic around the hips to make movement easier. This Columbia pair is great to have and comes in many colors.

SPF long sleeve shirts:

Again found at an outlet mall these Columbia long sleeve button ups are great. They are light enough to wear a layer underneath and thin enough to put a coat over. Great to keep you warm on chilly mornings and also light enough to use as sun protection on the sunny days. They have some more fun plaid styles for men as well.

Long Sleeve Zip Ups:

I wore these constantly in Iceland, they were the prefect layer under my rain coat. These are another great thin layer, you can find good deals on them at REI. I also like these here.

Tanks:

As I have said many times before layering is key. I always had a moisture-wicking sports tanks under my long sleeve shirts. Almost every hike we went on I used these as an additional layer. Here are two options that have great reviews and are cheap, cute and will go with anything, here and here.

Swimsuit:

Iceland absolutely loves their hot springs, and I will admit they are pretty great. So don’t forget a swimsuit. My favorite hot spring was this tiny one for two called Landbrotalaug.

Towel:

I never travel without my Turkish Towels now! They are perfect for the hot springs visits in Iceland, using it for a picnic or when you may not have any towels available in a hostel or like we did in a campervan. They are quick drying and thin so they are easy to pack!

Scarf:

This is another items I don’t travel without. I love the light weight ones as they can serve for many purposes. Not only will it help you keep warm in Iceland’s chilly summers, it also helps on airplanes, covering up at churches and more! Here are some cute ones, here, here and here.

Gloves:

I wore gloves almost every morning and evening while in Iceland. A little pricey but these North Face gloves are by far my favorite. Lightweight enough to be able to move freely and grasp on to things but also warm enough to stop the wind from freezing your hands.

***To help minimize over packing clothes we always try to make sure we book a AirBnB or hotel with laundry at least once a week. This way we only really need to pack one week of clothes. If we stayed any longer than 9 days in Iceland we would of did a load of laundry at the campsite or booked an AirBnB with access to washing and drying machines to break up our time in the campervan. We also always make tide pods so we don’t have to buy a big thing of detergent to lug around.

Shoes/Hiking Socks

As I said before we did mostly hiking in Iceland. I brought two pairs of shoes to trek in, this was because if it rained and my shoes became soaked I could let those dry out for the next day and wear my back ups. I did this often, I also believe it helps my feet not be as sore when I change up my shoe.

Hiking Shoes:

These Ahnu’s are my all time favorite hiking shoe. I used these on all of our longer hikes such as Glymur, Skoagfoss Waterfall Trail and hiking at Thakgil Campground.

Gym Shoes:

I also brought a pair of trail running shoes, these had great traction and worked perfectly to wear on our shorter hikes and quick stops in Iceland. Gym shoes are perfectly fine for quick stops like we did around the Snaefellsnes Peninsula, walking to this hot pot and more. But as I said always bring two in case it rains!

Socks:

I never was one to think I needed hiking socks, I purchased some on a whim at REI and Amazon and I have never looked back. I have some in multiple thickness and height to wear in different temperatures. I like these taller ones for the colder hikes and these short cut ones for when I am wearing shorts and its warmer.

Others:

For the few times we went into Reykjavik I wore my lace up Vans. They were great for the tourist-y places, comfortable as well! I also think these slip ons would be sufficient, and cute too!

***If just sticking to hikes hiking shoes will be just fine unless you plan on going out to eat at a nicer restaurant (which is outrageously expensive there).

I always throw in a pair of cheap plastic flip flops. They don’t take up much room and are great to have if using shared shower houses such as in a hostel or campground. Buy a cheap pair like these, that way you can toss them if looking to make room in your suitcase on your way back home.

Hiking Gear

Poles:

These are not necessary if you are not completing long hikes while in Iceland. But if you are I find them useful. After hiking in the Chamonix area in France and seeing many people using hiking poles I figured I would see what the fuss was about. I brought these travel hiking poles on our hikes in Zion and Bryce and loved them. They are fairly cheap and very pack-able. My husband doesn’t use them as much but I find them to be a lifesaver for my posture and to help my knees on those downhills ( I sound so old). I used mine a lot of the Glymur hike as it was raining and quiet slippery.

Day pack:

I use two different packs depending on the trip. For hot summer trips I usually use this one, as it is lighter and smaller. But it places like Norway , Ireland and Iceland where I might be wearing more layer to put on and off then I use this North Face one as it has more room yet still it not overly huge.

Water Bottles/Bladder:

For hiking trips I always bring two types of water containers. For long hikes I use hydration bladders such (here is a great deal on a pack of two of them!). I don’t worry about bringing a pack for it, just the bladder. It packs very flat and I just throw it in my regular daypack. Which many these days have compartments for water bladders anyways. We also kept these filled to be able to boil water while in our campervan.

The second type of water bottle I bring are these two, here and here. They are both collapsible and perfect for any type of travel, short hikes, city wandering, long car or train rides and airports as well. They are always with me.

Hat/Beanie:

I brought a winter beanie, a standard thin and a super soft fur lined one which is my almost favorite hat!! (here and here). I wore these a lot while in Iceland.

I took a hat with me for almost every hike we went on. These are a lifesaver for still wet hair or the fact that it is so windy there it helps keep your hair out of your face. I like these wide brim ones for extra sun protection, I own this one from Target in which I love. But a stand ball cap like this athletic one would work perfectly fine as well. If wanting something more fun I love this animal print hat!

Backpack Raincover:

This is another thing I never travel without now. It doesn’t take up hardly any room, I pack it in a zip-lock sandwich bag, and has saved our backpacks from getting soaked many times! I own this one but this brand is a little cheaper and has great reviews. We used these while is was rainy during our hike to Glymur and around the Thakgil Hiking area.

Snacks:

Always have some snacks on me for hikes. Read below for what I packed.

Tech Gadgets

These are obviously not necessary but some have come in handy during our travels.

USB car charger:

Some rental cars or campervans come without or have an extra fee to rent a car charger. We always pack dual charging one like this one one to use, cheap and small so it doesn’t take up much packing space.

Battery Packs:

My goodness I love these things. They have come in handy when on long hikes, using GPS to navigate cities and never having to fight for an airport outlet. This one is super cheap and worked better than our more expensive one.

Adapters:

Coming from the States or outside of Europe don’t forget adapters! We bought a multi pack pack like this set, but if planning to travel to many countries this device seems pretty nifty.

Cameras:

A standard smart phone can capture this beautiful country just fine. But if you love photography as I do you can check our my camera packing list.

Food

You may have heard that eating out in Iceland is expensive! And it’s the truth! We only ate out twice during our 9 days there. Shopping at grocery stores is way less expensive and the way to go. We did pack a few things that would help us in our travels and budget.

Coffee:

We used these coffee pour overs every morning. So cheap and they taste great! They even come with small packets of creamer and sugar if you wish to use. Flat and easy to pack as well.

Oatmeal:

We bought a big variety pack. We often ate this for breakfast as most places would not be open before our hikes anyways, easy to make while travelling in a campervan. I always ate some fruit along with it as well.

Granola Bars:

I always like to make sure I have my favorite kind with me as I am picky. I like these!

Jerky sticks:

These are hard to find so we were glad we packed them ahead of time. And they make a great hiking snack.

Peanut Butter:

We went through this giant jar between the 2 of us before our 9 days were over. Iceland doesn’t sell many options of peanut butter, it’s hard to find, and when we did find it we saw it costs $20-$35 there! So this was a lifesaver to use for sandwiches to pack on hikes.

Toiletries

Sleeping Mask:

This was one thing I used quiet often while in Iceland and Norway in the summer. They both experience 20-23 hours of daylight during June and and July. Not all AirBnBs (link is a discount code), hotels or hostels may have black out curtains, so they came in great use when trying to get a good nights sleep before a long hike or travel day. I really love this mask as it is soft, silky and has an adjustable strap to size how you want it to fit.

Chapstick:

I buy a multi- pack like this, I always make sure I put one in my backpack, suitcase, purse and toiletries bag. That way I am never without one. Chap stick is obviously important to me.

Shower Gel Containers:

These are a little pricey but I absolutely LOVE them. They are made of silicone which flex during the change in air pressure on flights, I have never had one leak before! They also have suction cups for when you have no where to set your gels in the shower. I also love Lush shampoo bars like these.

Shower Bag:

This shower tote bag has quickly become my favorite travel item. I hate putting wet containers from the shower back in my suitcase. This helps everything dry out faster. It is also handy to hang on bathroom doors if needed. They came in handy when using campground showers in Iceland.