How Much Money do I Need to Travel in Iceland? Iceland can either be an extremely expensive or reletively cheap country to travel in — it all depends on your strategy. If you are riding a bicycle or hitchhiking (easy to do and common), camping, and preparing your own meals, and stay out to bars, [...]
How Much Money do I Need to Travel in Iceland?
Iceland can either be an extremely expensive or reletively cheap country to travel in — it all depends on your strategy. If you are riding a bicycle or hitchhiking (easy to do and common), camping, and preparing your own meals, and stay out to bars, Iceland can easily be traveled on well under $20 per day. But if you do anything — take public transport, go out to restaurants, go on tours, drink in bars — you are looking at a $100 to $200+ daily bill. It is incredibly easy to spend lots of money in Iceland, the trick to prevent this is to try to do whatever you can for yourself: make you own transportation, food, and shelter. When in Iceland think DIY all the time, or else watch your travel funds pull a very astute disappearing act.
Average prices in Iceland
- Campsite- $6 to $15
- Dorm bed- $20 to $30
- Meal in a restaurant- $20 to $50+
- Fast food meal- $8
- Hot dog- $2
- Beer in a bar- $7
- A cup of coffee- $3, often endlessly refillable
- A liter of milk- $1
- A half dozen of eggs- $3
- A liter of 100% juice- $2
- Fruits and vegetables- $1 to $3 per kilo
- A kilo of cheese- $6
- A loaf of bread- $2
- Bus- $15 per hour
- Taxi- Don’t even think about it
- Flight across Iceland- $100
- Guided hike up a volcano or on a glacier- $100 to $200
- Swimming in a pool- $3
- Amazing scenery at every turn and fresh air- absolutely free
As you can see, there is a major gap in Iceland between the prices for basic living necessities and recreational novelties. To live in Iceland like a local, you can get by on under $600 per month, but if you live it up like a tourist your bank account is going to take a beating. The choice is yourse.
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About the Author: VBJ
I am the founder and editor of Vagabond Journey. I’ve been traveling the world since 1999, through 93 countries. I am the author of the book, Ghost Cities of China and have written for The Guardian, Forbes, Bloomberg, The Diplomat, the South China Morning Post, and other publications. VBJ has written 3728 posts on Vagabond Journey. Contact the author.
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