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Author Topic: Motor Camping in Iceland  (Read 3721 times)

Mark F

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Motor Camping in Iceland
« on: March 10, 2009, 10:15:30 pm »

I'm planning a trip to Iceland this June and will rent a camper. Not a huge motor home but one of those types that fit on the back of a 4x4 pickup. This will let me cook my own meals and catch some sleep during mid-day in the harsh light.  Did a google and came up with many rental agencies, all local.  Would really appreciate any recommendations from someone who has done this as renting bad equipment from the wrong agency could ruin the whole trip.

Also, I assume my US cell phone will not work in Iceland?  Are there rentals for international phones?

Thanks.
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Mark

5thElefant

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Motor Camping in Iceland
« Reply #1 on: March 13, 2009, 05:00:45 am »

Quote from: Mark F
I'm planning a trip to Iceland this June and will rent a camper. Not a huge motor home but one of those types that fit on the back of a 4x4 pickup. This will let me cook my own meals and catch some sleep during mid-day in the harsh light.  Did a google and came up with many rental agencies, all local.  Would really appreciate any recommendations from someone who has done this as renting bad equipment from the wrong agency could ruin the whole trip.

Also, I assume my US cell phone will not work in Iceland?  Are there rentals for international phones?

Thanks.
www.horizonsunlimited.com would be a good place to look/ask.

As for the cell phone, my (UK) phone worked in Iceland and works in the US, so I imagine yours will work. Give your provider a call, I'm sure they can confirm.
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westbourne

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Motor Camping in Iceland
« Reply #2 on: March 13, 2009, 05:31:07 am »

Quote from: Mark F
I'm planning a trip to Iceland this June and will rent a camper. Not a huge motor home but one of those types that fit on the back of a 4x4 pickup. This will let me cook my own meals and catch some sleep during mid-day in the harsh light.  Did a google and came up with many rental agencies, all local.  Would really appreciate any recommendations from someone who has done this as renting bad equipment from the wrong agency could ruin the whole trip.

Also, I assume my US cell phone will not work in Iceland?  Are there rentals for international phones?

Thanks.

Mark

Have a look at

http://www.randburg.com/is/camper/

Ian
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jeremyrh

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Motor Camping in Iceland
« Reply #3 on: March 13, 2009, 06:03:12 am »

Quote from: Mark F
Also, I assume my US cell phone will not work in Iceland?  Are there rentals for international phones?
I'm jealous - Icealand is photo heaven!!

For the phone - your US phone should work if it is tri-band? But be aware that network coverage in Iceland is not always great, so not reliable for emergency situations.
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Mark F

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Motor Camping in Iceland
« Reply #4 on: March 13, 2009, 05:41:09 pm »

Thanks.  I'm really excited about the trip, especially after reading all of the postings here. FYI, as several people suggested I ordered a copy of Lost in Iceland back in mid-February. Amazon projected a shipping date of between March 6 and 12. Today they emailed me that they do not know when (or if) they will be able to ship.

5thElefant and Ian, are these rental agencies that you or a friend have used?  I'd really like to stick to a company that someone has had previous experience with. When I rent a car from Budget, National, Hertz, Avis, etc. I know what to expect but here I will be renting from a local company and anyone can put a decent looking ad on the web.

Jeremy, I'm not sure what tri-band is, but I will check with Verizon if my phone will handle that. I expect not as my phone has never worked in Europe. Seems like US cellular technology is not as advanced as the Europeans' .

Mark
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Mark

Jon Meddings

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Motor Camping in Iceland
« Reply #5 on: March 15, 2009, 10:31:54 am »

Quote from: Mark F
Thanks.  I'm really excited about the trip, especially after reading all of the postings here. FYI, as several people suggested I ordered a copy of Lost in Iceland back in mid-February. Amazon projected a shipping date of between March 6 and 12. Today they emailed me that they do not know when (or if) they will be able to ship.

5thElefant and Ian, are these rental agencies that you or a friend have used?  I'd really like to stick to a company that someone has had previous experience with. When I rent a car from Budget, National, Hertz, Avis, etc. I know what to expect but here I will be renting from a local company and anyone can put a decent looking ad on the web.

Jeremy, I'm not sure what tri-band is, but I will check with Verizon if my phone will handle that. I expect not as my phone has never worked in Europe. Seems like US cellular technology is not as advanced as the Europeans' .

Mark


Mark, we took one duffel bag over that contained a tent, 2 sleeping bags and a small amount of camping equipment (stove, cooking stuff etc). The other duffel bag had our clothes and we carried our camera gear. I rented a 4x4 from Avis at the airport and we couldn't have been happier.

Your idea of a camper does sound interesting and might work well but even if it doesn't work for you in the end consider bringing a tent. There are camping spots in many places and for the nights that you decide you just don't want to there are numerous farms with guest houses all over.
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Mark F

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Motor Camping in Iceland
« Reply #6 on: March 16, 2009, 09:44:11 pm »

Jon,

My original thought was to tent camp but I read  (maybe someone posted it here, I've read so much stuff I really don't remember), that the winds are really rough and a very high quality 4 season alpine tent is needed. Said that their 3 season tent was practically torn apart.  Kind of scared me off.  But maybe I'll think about it again.



Quote from: Jon Meddings
Mark, we took one duffel bag over that contained a tent, 2 sleeping bags and a small amount of camping equipment (stove, cooking stuff etc). The other duffel bag had our clothes and we carried our camera gear. I rented a 4x4 from Avis at the airport and we couldn't have been happier.

Your idea of a camper does sound interesting and might work well but even if it doesn't work for you in the end consider bringing a tent. There are camping spots in many places and for the nights that you decide you just don't want to there are numerous farms with guest houses all over.
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Mark

Jon Meddings

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Motor Camping in Iceland
« Reply #7 on: March 17, 2009, 01:10:57 pm »

Quote from: Mark F
Jon,

My original thought was to tent camp but I read  (maybe someone posted it here, I've read so much stuff I really don't remember), that the winds are really rough and a very high quality 4 season alpine tent is needed. Said that their 3 season tent was practically torn apart.  Kind of scared me off.  But maybe I'll think about it again.

Mark, I think that note was one I received some time ago. It worried me as well. Having been there, and tented in a reasonable but not alpine tent, I wouldn't worry too much about this. We were there in September as it began to get cold and we did find the temperature a bit rough some mornings. The winds could be strong but I have to say that in most places I wanted to be near (minus a few important exceptions) we would also have been able to find a guest house. So planning to bring a tent, rent a 4x4 and spending a few nights in a guest house as necessary seems to me a quite reasonable way to really enjoy a spectacular country! I'd do it again in a heartbeat and it is on our list of places to go back to.
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Mark F

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Motor Camping in Iceland
« Reply #8 on: March 17, 2009, 08:34:46 pm »

Jon,

Thanks for the good advice. I'll think about the tent some more. It would certainly lower the price of the trip.

Quote from: Jon Meddings
Mark, I think that note was one I received some time ago. It worried me as well. Having been there, and tented in a reasonable but not alpine tent, I wouldn't worry too much about this. We were there in September as it began to get cold and we did find the temperature a bit rough some mornings. The winds could be strong but I have to say that in most places I wanted to be near (minus a few important exceptions) we would also have been able to find a guest house. So planning to bring a tent, rent a 4x4 and spending a few nights in a guest house as necessary seems to me a quite reasonable way to really enjoy a spectacular country! I'd do it again in a heartbeat and it is on our list of places to go back to.
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Mark
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