You can make your trip to Iceland even more enjoyable with these 11 apps downloaded on your smartphone. I use many of these apps on a weekly basis but one of them is dependent on the season, so just be mindful of that.
Explore Iceland On Your Own
You’ll find them especially handy if you plan to rent a car and drive around the country on your own. If you are planning to do that then the sponsor of this episode will come in handy.
Go Car Rental Iceland is a local Icelandic car rental company that has great customer service, a large variety of cars and very competitive prices. Use my code Iceland10 to save 10% off the entire cost of your rental car.
I personally use them for when I go on adventures, and I’m so glad to hear that many of my listeners and subscribers are also having a great experience with them. I mentioned in a previous episode that one of my listeners switched to Go Car Rental Iceland from one of the internationally known rental car companies here and she saved $400! That was for a rental during the summer when prices can sometimes double due to demand.
Driving & Weather Related Apps
While these are not in order of importance, the first one is one of the most important sites/apps for you to know.
Safe Travel App
SafeTravel.is has an app where you can get updates on weather alerts, submit a travel plan (this lets authorities know where you planned to visit if you get lost or don’t have connection in a place but need help. When I checked out the app today, it even had a warning for Reynisfjara beach because of high and dangerous waves that are expected, and an avalanche warning in some parts of the country.
They have a color code system for roads that range from green, which means a road is easily passable to red, which means closed. The colors can be seen on a map. When you choose what area, you plan to travel in, the roads corresponding to that place pop up with appropriate colors. What’s great about this is that you can check safe travel out before leaving to see if the conditions of any of the roads you plan to travel on.
Google Maps
Google Maps works well in Iceland because it’s an easy place to navigate. If you don’t plan to have internet connection during your stay, meaning not renting a WIFI hotspot or using your existing phone service provider’s international internet plan, then you can download the whole map of Iceland on Google Maps onto your phone. Personally, I like to have internet connection because I use more than just Google Maps when on the road, but to each their own.
The weather in Iceland is always something you have to take into consideration when traveling. Yes, I have mentioned storms and potential weather alerts BUT those are not happening most of the time.
However, it’s almost guaranteed that you will encounter rain, windy conditions, snow (based on the season and where you are in the summer. The highlands can still have snow in the height of summer), icy and/or slippery roads or sidewalks. Vedur, which means weather, is information from the National Weather Service in Iceland. While I do have the app, I’m not the biggest fan of it because it can be a little finnicky. The actual website is better, but it’s still not that user friendly.
Sometimes it will say that it can’t find a certain location even though it is well known. You might be wondering why I’m even mentioning if since I/m not a fan of it. Well, I do want to let you know about it but my preferred app is from the Norwegian Meteorological Institute and it’s called yr.no. It’s been fairly accurate when I have used it, which is often. You are more than welcome to either app or both. I have also heard that the app Windy is good, but I have yet to use it.
112 App
The emergency number in Iceland is 112.
“The 112 Iceland app makes it possible to contact 112 without calling. Clear simple app menu assists users in explaining what is happening and send a text message to an emergency operator. As soon as the app contacts the emergency operator your location is sent to the emergency center, along with the personal information stored in the app and a description of what is going on. This makes it possible to respond even more quickly to your call.
The app is based on a design for hearing impaired persons who use sign language, in Icelandic called “döff people” but has shown itself to be useful for anyone who might have difficulty calling for help or in describing the situation in a call.”
If you happen to find yourself in a situation where you need emergency services and have internet services, but you can’t speak or a call is not going through, you can use the app to get help.
Music
Spotify
A trip in Iceland would not be complete without hearing music from local music artists. I teamed up with Go Car Rental to create an epic playlist of various Icelandic artists for you to listen to while you travel. Of course, you can also listen to these artists where you live but I think you’ll see that the music gives a different feel to the landscape as you drive along.
We put together a playlist that can be found on Spotify. It’s called “Epic Iceland Road Trip with All Things Iceland & GO”
You’ll find a mix of famous international Icelandic artists, ones that are famous in the country, as well as some up-and-coming people.
Happy Hours in Reykjavik
As I have mentioned in other episodes, like “Expensive Mistakes to Avoid in Iceland”, buying alcohol in Iceland is expensive. I highly recommend picking up alcohol in duty free, if you plan to drink, but you are limited to the amount you can buy at one time. To lessen the cost of drinking in bars and nightclubs, there is an app called Barhopp that showcases the happy hours going on in Reykjavík. It even showcases some events, like Djs playing at certain venues and dance parties.
I found this app after I noticed that the Appy Hour app, which many people used previously, was no longer being updated. It is nice to see that a new app has popped up to fill the gap because there are many happy hours happening around town throughout the week. You can try delicious cocktails and locally brewed beers at different locations. It might even be fun to make your own bar crawl. I did one in 2022 with friends and it was a blast. It was specifically a beer crawl, and we went to Brew Dog, Einstök bar, and Skúli Bar.
The Northern Lights
My Aurora Forecast (only useful during winter)
The only app on here that is season dependent is the next coming up, which is My Aurora Forecast. The northern lights in Iceland can only be viewed in winter because we long, dark nights during that time. During most of the summer, we have 24-hour bright days, which makes it impossible to see the northern lights.
If you have not already, I recommend listening to an episode I shared last year called “How and Where to See the Northern Lights in Iceland.”
Hiking Trails
All trails
Hiking in Iceland is one of my favorite activities. While you can do it any time of year, summer is optimal because you have a larger number of trails available. Plus, you can venture into the highlands, which is a magnificent place to visit.
I like to use the app All Trails for ideas of where to go. The trails range from walking tours in Reykjavik to very challenging hikes in remote parts of the country. Along with directions, a navigation tool, length of the hike, elevation gain, route type (such as a loop or one way), and level of the hike (like easy, moderate or challenging) it also provides reviews from people that have used the trail. Users can submit photos of the hike, so others have an idea of what their experience might be like.
The app is free to use, but you get access to more features if you upgrade. Personally, I haven’t upgraded but I might consider it in the future.
Alternative Transportation Options
Regardless if you rent a car or not, there might be time when you want to try other forms of transportation during your visit. Here are two apps you can use in the Reykjavík metro area.
Hopp Scooter
Hopp provides electric scooters that let you zip around town. Its very easy to use the app and riding the scooters can be a lot of fun. One safety concern is that some people have been drinking and scootering. I don’t recommend that, especially since we have been hearing about more serious scooter related accidents that end in hospital visits. Also, wearing a helmet is recommended because these scooters can go fast!
Strætó bus app - Klappið
If you would like to take the public bus around the city, you need the Strætó bus app called Klappið. I have heard that some people were having issues with it but it was launched last year after the bus company decided to upgrade from their old app system. Hopefully, they have worked out the kinks.
Icelandic to English Translations
Google Translate
Over 95% of Icelanders speak English well. However, you might encounter a sign or some text in Icelandic that boogles your mind. The Google Translate app has an awesome feature that makes translating Icelandic a breeze. There is a camera function that scans the text and translates it on the screen in real time. To be fair, the translation are not always 100% accurate but it does a decent job at getting the meaning across. Well, most of the time.
Before I jump into the random fact of the episode, I would like to give another shout out to Go Car Rental Iceland for sponsoring this episode. I hope you check out the Spotify Iceland Road trip that we collaborated on. I love listening to it and I plan to keep updating up periodically. Remember to use my code Iceland10 to save 10% on your entire rental cost when you book with Go Car Rental Iceland.
Random Fact of the Episode
There has been a rumor spread by international media outlets that for years that there is an app in Iceland that Icelanders use when dating. Because the country is so small, there is some concern that the person you’re interested in could be a close relative, like a first cousin, so it wouldn’t be strange to want to check that out beforehand. That is where the Islendinga App has come into play.
When an Icelanders puts in their kennitala, they can look up all of their relatives dating back to the time of the Vikings. The rumor is that this app was specifically created for the dating scene in Iceland. The truth is that the app is an archive that was once in the written form but now has been preserved digitally. While Icelanders CAN use it to see who they are related to and if they are or are not closely related to a person of interest, it is not primarily used for dating.
Icelandic Word of the Episode
In recent years, many English words have found their way into the Icelandic language. For instance, many Icelanders just say app in an Icelandic accent when talking about a computer program.
However, the Icelandic word for a computer program or computer application is tölvuforrit.
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