Iceland how much currency to bring?

miss choc

Heading over for 3/4 days in few weeks would like to have a little bit of the currency when I get there. Bank of Ireland say I can order it a week in advance going in 3 weeks. Don't know what the fee is like on the atms over there so don't want to be getting out tons of money. Plan to buy our duty free from Belfast beforehand. Anyone who has been any idea how much I should order from bank?

whiskeyman

depends on how much you intend to spend I guess!
Plan your spending out depending on what you want to see and do.
Is hotel / travel costs already paid for / will you use CC for most purchases?
Discretionary spending (food / beer) is v expensive over there.
If you intend to pre-drink in the hotel and eat cheaply, work out the amount that way.
If you intend to dine out and hit the pubs and club hard, then work it out that way.

miss choc

I have paid for hire car, blue lagoon entry, wine will be bought at Belfast, so just need to pay for whale watching 60 euros, petrol,100 euro, accommodation 150 euros and food/drinks for 3.5 days. Don't want to go to atms too much or bring a ton of currency back

keithclancy

Just take it out of a machine, at least you won't come home with currency or be trying to spend it before you leave, or worse, trying to convert it back into euros.

snoopy29

I would advise buying drink whenever you land in Iceland, its a bit cheaper than buying in Belfast and much cheaper than buying in a restaurant. Expect to pay around £30 for the cheapest bottle of wine in a restaurant but in the off licence I've seen the same bottle for £7!

H2G2

Bring no cash... honest!

Iceland is the most plastic friendly country in the world. I lived there for almost a year and rarely used cash. For example, it is perfectly acceptable to buy a liter of milk with your visa card and no one will look strange at you. There is a floor beneath which they don't get you to sign, but you should always have photo ID, as Icelandic credit cards have your photo on them.

As for buying duty free in Belfast beforehand, don't bother. You can buy when you land in Iceland... everyone does. Just before the baggage carousal there is a large duty free shop, so stock up on beer and the hard stuff as it can be expensive. Wine is crazy prices in restaurants so best to avoid.

SpaceTime

It's one of the most credit / debit card friendly places I've ever been! Even places out in the middle of no where take chip and pin.

Never had any issues paying for anything by card anywhere and I hardly ever saw hard currency

Because places are so remote virtual money makes an awful lot of sense to them. Driving 200 km to the bank wouldn't be ideal

Taxis also all take cards and a lot of small transactions will just be taken with chip only (no pin requested unless they don't trust you lol)

My only tips :

Tomtom has absolutely no Icelandic maps so don't even bother bringing it. Garmin works and Google maps was great.

Bring an unlocked smartphone and get a prepay SIM from Siminn (main mobile company) coverage was good and prepaid data was as cheap as Ireland.
Absolutely no fuss getting one either unlike some police state style continental countries ...

I can't say how good Vodafone Iceland is but Siminn is the eircom of Iceland and oldest network.

Try learning a couple of Icelandic phrases if you can - you go from "annoying tourist" to "friendly neighbour from other weird island nation" in two seconds.

Although in general the Icelanders are super friendly and very open to chatting. Some of the older folks don't speak English though. Encountered a few scenarios in remote locations where we had to resort to mime, smiling and guessing

You'll find they can be kinda shy if they think you'll giggle at their English so, make sure you stumble around with a few phrases in Icelandic if you can at all! It's a massive help to breaking the ice (if you pardon the pun)

SpaceTime

Weather is very much like a blustery Irish west coast! Bring rain gear and plenty of layers - think the Burren on a windy day.

The weather this time of year isn't particularly cold but prepared for all four seasons in any 20 minutes period and plenty of rain showers.

If you're Irish it's just "weather" many tourists seemed to think it was a sun holiday destination and went around moaning endlessly!!

A hat and scarf is essential almost always !

Bring a good camera, bring a laptop - hardly any crime and stunning scenery !!

If you're camping - be prepared! I saw a few continental European groups who thought tents would suffice and had them blown away and were left soaked and utterly miserable.

If you're driving calculate your distances between towns and do not under any circumstances let your tank run low! This is a country that can have hundreds of km between petrol stations.

Also if you're driving download the 112 Iceland app. It can be used to give emergency services your precise location also if you're in remote areas you can log in and let them know where you are so they know where to look if you fall down a volcano or anything ...

If in volcanic regions (especially southern Iceland) watch he weather online carefully to avoid sand storms - they can wreck your car and are not good for your lungs!!

http://en.vedur.is/

Oh yeah one final tip: read maps carefully roads can literally just end!! Happen us a few times road just suddenly petered out into nothing.

Speed limits are also enforced here and there by automatic cameras so best to just cruise along and take in the scenery.

Shopping (cheap) try Bonus .. It's the Icelandic version of Aldi/Lidl.

Munsterbhoy

Download the app 'appy hour', gives u times that the pubs have their happy hour. Brings the beer down to irish prices

Reoil

I was there in February. With a ring...
Most transactions in Iceland are done by card.
You can withdraw cash in the airport with no transaction fees.
I would just take a minimum amount from a cash machine and if needs be, use a cash machine over there if you need too.
I took a small amount of cash out from the airport and ended up taking about €100 home.