Camping in Iceland

First and most importantly, camping outside of designated campgrounds in Iceland is illegal. This is to protect Iceland's ecosystem from environmental damage and respect private property rights.

But there are hundreds of campsites scattered across the Ring Road, so you should never have an issue finding one. Here are some things to know:

• Almost all campsites in Iceland are first come, first serve (out of 11 campsites that we stayed at, only 1 took advance reservations and it was the largest and busiest campsite - Reykjavik ECO Campsite).

• Most campsites should have a few main things - bathrooms, showers, common area, cooking area, electrical hookups, and dishwashing area. The only campsite that didn't have anything except a bathroom was Skogafoss campground because the location recently moved and is still being developed.

• Each campsite will be different on if they charge for showers - only a couple of the campsites we stayed at charged and they were more remote locations.

• Some campsites with have washer & dryers available. I would say about 1/3 of the campsites we stayed at had this option at an additional charge.

• We usually arrived at a site anywhere from 5-8pm and there were always plenty of spaces left. Then there is a later crowd that comes in - usually solo or couple travelers who take advantage of the midnight sun.

• Although I researched all of the campsites ahead of time, there was one occasion where we were ahead of schedule and needed to find a new alternative on the fly and it was so easy. They are literally everywhere!

• If you explore the Westfjords everything gets a little more spaced out, including campgrounds. There are still plenty to choose from but always good to plan ahead.