Private Golden Circle Tour with Reykjaböð Hot Springs

Þingvellir is where Iceland's parliament, the Alþingi, first met in 930, and it lies in a rift valley where the North American and Eurasian plates are pulling apart. Chieftains gathered here every summer, laws were recited from the Lögberg (Law Rock), and the plain below still shows where the assembly booths stood. The lake beside it, Þingvallavatn, is the largest natural lake in Iceland. You walk through Almannagjá, a rift at the edge of the North American plate, to the Öxarárfoss waterfall. The parking fee is included.

Geysir gave every geyser in the world its name. The original Great Geysir now erupts only rarely, sometimes after earthquakes, so the show is Strokkur, a short walk away. It throws boiling water 15 to 20 metres into the air every 5 to 10 minutes, and sometimes a good deal higher, so you will see several eruptions while you are here. Keep to the paths between the pools and stay behind the ropes, as the water is very hot.

Gullfoss, the Golden Falls, drops about 32 metres in two steps into a narrow canyon roughly 70 metres deep and 2.5 kilometres long. The water comes from the Hvítá river, which is fed by the glacier Langjökull. Glacial water often turns golden-brown in sunlight, and rainbows hang in the spray on bright days. A path with stairs leads down to a lower level, closer to the water; in winter the lower path can close because of ice.

At Brúarhlöð the Hvítá river narrows and drops into a tight gorge, where centuries of fast water have sculpted the pale rock walls into rounded pillars and hollows. A road bridge, built in 1959 after two earlier ones were washed away, crosses at the narrowest point, with a good view down into the gorge. Most Golden Circle tours drive past it, so it is usually quiet.

Friðheimar is a family-run tomato farm in Reykholt, on the Golden Circle route. Tomatoes grow all year in geothermally heated greenhouses, under electric lights through the dark winter months. The restaurant sits inside one of the greenhouses, so you eat surrounded by the plants. Lunch is not included.

Kerið is a volcanic crater about 270 metres long, 170 metres wide and 55 metres deep, with a blue-green lake at the bottom. Unlike the black basalt found almost everywhere nearby, its walls are deep red, from oxidised volcanic rock. You can walk the rim and, where allowed, down to the water. The entry fee is included.

The last stop is in Hveragerði, on the way back to Reykjavík. Reykjaböð Hot Springs is a new bathhouse at the start of the Reykjadalur valley, just above Hveragerði, where steam rises from the hillsides. Reykjaböð entry is included with the Classic admission: the natural, chlorine-free hot springs and the outdoor ritual area with a sauna, cold plunge pools and a Kneipp pool, with use of a towel. If you want more, you can upgrade to the Signature admission when you book, which adds the adults-only Bathhouse, a bathrobe and slippers, and a drink at the in-water bar. You have about 2 hours at the baths. Bring your swimsuit.