If you want both sophistication and excitement on your honeymoon, then consider a trip to Iceland. An amazing, and amazingly unspoilt destination, it can be reached easily from either side of the Atlantic.

Whatever time of year you visit, make sure you spend time in Reykjavik, Iceland’s vibrant capital with its galleries, museums, and live music. It’s compact enough to walk everywhere, or just to sit in one of the abundant cafés watching Icelanders and their visitors go about their business. Make time to sample the Icelandic cuisine, too. Fresh fish and the tastiest lamb, shellfish and the yoghurt-like skyr should all be tried.

On leaving the capital, visit the Blue Lagoon, an outdoor spa that’s just as perfect in summer as in winter, before moving on to the famous Geysir area, all spouting hot springs and bubbling mud pools. A bit farther east, you find Thingvellir, the site of the oldest Icelandic parliament. It’s also the place where Iceland is being torn apart by forces deep inside the earth: here, the mid-Atlantic rift reaches the surface and you can stand with one foot in Europe and the other in America. Below parliament hill and the Icelandic Prime Minister’s summer residence, lies a charming little church, very popular for weddings and just right for some quiet contemplation. And throwing a coin into the small lake nearby will make a wish come true.

If you visit in the summer, take advantage of the midnight sun and do some of your sightseeing at night! A drive along the north coast of the island offers a sense of remoteness while a journey into Iceland’s interior rewards you with any number of unusual experiences: road signs without any discernible roads, rivers with no bridges and, to top it all, an active volcano sleeping uneasily under a sheet of ice. Climb Vatnajökull and visit the caves melted into the glacier ice by the heat of the volcano. You’ll be standing in hot water with blue ice all around you!

During winter visits, try out every outdoor pool you can find. There is something very sensual about floating in warm water while the stars twinkle above and snow is falling all around you. Or try some of the Icelander’s favourite winter sports: skidoo, dog-sleigh, and 4WD glacier safari.

Despite becoming more popular with visitors, crowds are thin in Iceland and you will have peace and quiet to celebrate your marriage in one of the most serene landscapes on earth.

Author: Sue Marchant

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