Hello - we went for about a week in May last year, and drove along the south coast, staying in Vik (Hotel Kria) and in Hof (Fosshotel Glacier Lagoon), before returning via Thingvellir to spend a night in Reykjavik. Both hotels were excellent, albeit expensive.
Most of the superlatives you read about Iceland are deserved. The landscape is truly sensational - just driving along the road you will pass over innumerable rivers that wind their way from the rugged high ground down to the sea;
or along beaches where the tide has receded;
I found the quiet and elemental beauty of the landscape to be very uplifting - possibly because it was our first proper holiday post-Covid - and we enjoyed ourselves most by going off the main roads and exploring some of the smaller tracks and places.
However, here follows a little on the more well-known tourist attractions. On the way to Vik, you can see the famous Skógafoss waterfall - more often than not, these kinds of places have been degraded by mass tourism, but here they still seem to retain an elemental power. From Vik, you can go to the famous black sand beach (Reynisfjara);
and see the puffins at Dyrhólaey;
From the Fosshotel, you can drive to Fjallsárlón and Jökulsárlón, where large chunks of ice are breaking off glaciers and accumulating in lagoons before drifting down to the sea;
At the sea, the ice breaks into small chunks on Breiðamerkursandur;
Breiðamerkursandur by
Tantris88, on Flickr
The whole area around Jökulsárlón is breathtaking, and we could easily have spent more time here. You can also drive on to interesting hamlets like Hali, where we had one of our best and least expensive meals (at the Þórbergssetur), and I got to know a little about Þórbergur Þórðarson.
We only scratched the surface of Iceland, and intend to return for a more extended visit, to see more of the interior and the northern and western coasts. We did find the place very expensive, but simple things like bringing a thermos flask to fill with coffee from the hotel, and using supermarkets to buy sandwiches rather than going to restaurants for lunch, will save you a meaningful amount of money! We found Reykjavik less interesting, and even more expensive - I ended up buying an Icelandic jumper in the Red Cross shop, which was significantly busier and friendlier than the main shops! I hope this is helpful, and that you have a great time
.