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EXPLORING ICELAND - ICELAND TOUR OPERATOR
  • Our Tours
    • Exploring Iceland by bus
    • Exploring Iceland on Horseback
    • Exploring Iceland on Foot
    • Exploring Iceland by Car
    • Exploring Iceland on your own
    • Exploring Iceland - Private Tours
  • About Us
    • Contact
    • Meet our Guides
    • Meet our Horse Partners
    • Animal Welfare Policy
    • Environmental Policy
    • Fair Trade Policy
    • Icelandic Food
    • Facts about Iceland
    • Testimonials
  • Blog
  • Deutsch

Exploring Iceland Blog

Our retired horses

3/21/2023

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We often get the question: “What do you do with the old horses when they are no longer fit enough for the riding tours?” In our Animal Welfare Policy we have set ourselves clear welfare rules for our hotel riding tours. We do not ride younger horses than 8 years old (younger horses can come and run along) and not older than 20 but possibly up to 23 years old depending on their shape and stamina. Icelandic Horses mature late and often remain super healthy and fit even when they reach 20 years or more.


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The story of my first foal

3/15/2023

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When I was 12 years old I bought a beautiful 5 year old palomino mare with a blaze named Klassík frá Steinnesi. She has always been tough and a very good trail horse. She’s comfortable to ride and has a nice tölt and fast pace. 

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On my 20st birthday my good friend Ari gave me a gift to take Klassík to the 1 prize stallion Sólfaxi frá Sámsstöðum. He is a beautiful grey horse with very good temperament and nice tölt. He competed a lot in T2 (loose rein tölt) and was sold to Denmark in 2021. Klassík was at his field for a couple of months and when we took her back to us she had a little foal in her belly.

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My walk in downtown Reykjavik

3/3/2023

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On a lovely sunny day this week me and my coworkers went on the Reykjavik food walk in downtown Reykjavik. We met up with our guide in the heart of the city center. The first restaurant we visited is the Seabaron or Sægreifinn in Icelandic. It's a seafood restaurant and the inside looks like a boat home and I got the feeling like being at my grand-dad place. We got a delicious lobster soup, bread and a taste of whale meat (whale meat is not at all common in Iceland and I would never make my own at home) .
 
After we were done eating we walked to a hot dog stand called Bæjarins besta or the towns best hot dogs. It is a very common stop with both locals and guests. The most popular hot dog is the “one with everything” (meaning ketchup, mustard, fried and fresh onion + remulaði which is kind if Icelandic relish) and with a side of coca-cola. A hot dog is very popular food to have all year around, probably the most popular lunch among the local. We even have hot dogs for lunch on our riding tours! The hot dogs were my favourite part of the tour.

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Thinking about summer

2/22/2023

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Ohhh it is still snowing in Iceland and I am getting quite sick of the snow and want the spring to arrive. Sometimes when the weather is extra cold i think back to the nice summer days of riding. One of my favorite memory is riding through the Húsafell area on our Tölt with glacier view tour.

The trail ride is beautiful and the view on those sunny days is extraordinary. On the way I see waterfalls, mountains and glaciers. This area is a true gem in iceland and definitely worth to check out even if your not on a horse. 



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Our best friends - the office dogs

1/20/2023

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 It is often said that dog is the human´s best friend.  We at Exploring Iceland are so lucky to own a dog(s) and they can join us at the office!  And on the horseback riding tours as well. 
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Steinunn has two dogs. Stjarna who is an Australian shepard turning 11 years old this year. Stjarna spends most her time either sleeping or watching over the neighbourhood outside.  She also spends time in the stables with Steinunn and goes on our horse riding tours with hotel accommodation in the summer. 

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January 13th, 2023

1/13/2023

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Ella’s Fun Facts about Iceland

2/21/2022

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​Iceland has become a popular travel destination over the past few years and tourism today is absolutely booming.
From stunning waterfalls and tranquil lakes, lava fields, beautiful mountains, massive glaciers, bubbling mud pools, and the largest hot spring area in the world, Iceland is a nature lover’s paradise and is unique in many ways.
But read on to discover some out-of-the-ordinary facts about the country that may surprise you. 

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Grýla and her 13 Yule Lads

12/15/2021

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I have always found it quite remarkable that we have 13 Santa Clauses or Yule Lads in Iceland instead of one red dressed Santa.  I am also brought up with stories of the terrible troll Grýla, who used to eat bad behaving children.  She would come down from her cave in the mountains with a bag where she collected naughty children and brought them back to her cave where she ate them.  I am not sure if this would relate to a cannibalism since Grýla is a Troll, not human?  But luckily I was a quiet child so Grýla did not stand a chance with me.  Still I do remember when we heard someone knocking on the door, my mother raised the questions if this might be Grýla checking on bad behaving children!  

It is strange to think that while all female trolls in Iceland are quite scary with bad temperament, the male trolls are usually quite dull and do no harm.  There are many Icelandic troll stories to proof this and for example Grýla´s husband is Leppalúði. His part of the story of the Yule Lads is non grata, he is just there, lazy and dull. 

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Ella goes to North Iceland

12/9/2021

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We left Reykjavik for Akureyri on a Friday afternoon at about 4pm, having secured a ride with a lovely Latvian lady on ‘Samferða á Norðurlandi’ – a Facebook group for people who are travelling around Iceland for whatever reason and can either offer a lift or wish to catch one.  
Although I’d been to Akureyri many times previously, I usually visited during the summer months and so was delighted to see the cute little city completely covered in snow. 

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Ella checks on coffee houses in Reykjavik

11/30/2021

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​Reykjavik’s best coffee houses
There are few things in life that compare to the aroma of roasting coffee beans or the first sip of coffee in the morning. Iceland’s love affair with coffee was ignited when eminent Icelanders and Danes introduced the lovely, rich caffeinated stuff in the 17th century. Since this time, coffee has been historically central to Icelandic culture and a routine feature of daily life. Iceland actually ranks among the highest in the world when it comes to coffee consumption per capita, taking third place, with its fellow Scandinavian countries Finland and Norway in first and second. Being the Icelander’s favourite brew, the country takes pride in serving great coffee and even hosts barista 

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Fálkastígur 2 
225 Garðabær 
​Tel:  +354-519-1555
ID: 531213-2030
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info@exploringiceland.is

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Exploring  Iceland  is a fully licensed Tour Operator and Travel Agency, authorised by the Icelandic Tourist Board.
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  • Our Tours
    • Exploring Iceland by bus
    • Exploring Iceland on Horseback
    • Exploring Iceland on Foot
    • Exploring Iceland by Car
    • Exploring Iceland on your own
    • Exploring Iceland - Private Tours
  • About Us
    • Contact
    • Meet our Guides
    • Meet our Horse Partners
    • Animal Welfare Policy
    • Environmental Policy
    • Fair Trade Policy
    • Icelandic Food
    • Facts about Iceland
    • Testimonials
  • Blog
  • Deutsch