The Blue Lagoon, Iceland

The Blue Lagoon wasn’t exactly as I had imagined. I’d always assumed that they were natural hot springs, but the lagoon’s mineral rich waters are actually heated to 38⁰C by the adjacent geothermal power plant. Regardless, it was the most relaxing afternoon possible. As part of the ship’s excursion package we were issued with electronic bracelets on arrival which were used for a locker, shower, robe, slippers, a drink at the swim up bar and two masks from the swim up spa. Yes, a swim up spa. It all felt pretty decadent and I chose the silica mask and then an algae mask. Our local guide Erika had promised the waters were supposed to make you look ten years younger, so expectations were high. Sadly, that didn’t happen, but my skin did feel amazing! It was such a lovely, relaxing experience that I would recommend it to anyone. If you’re really into the concept, you could even stay at the luxury Blue Lagoon Retreat Hotel to ‘take the waters’. I checked the website of the hotel, which by the way is seriously expensive, and it’s absolutely gorgeous. Two fine dining restaurants, yoga classes, unlimited access to the waters and guided group hikes. If you wanted to treat yourself to a once in a lifetime experience, this would be a pretty good choice.

We went out for dinner in Reykjavik afterwards to Grillmarkadurinn which was fantastic from start to finish. I had the grilled fillet of lamb with potato terrine, sauerkraut, lamb shank and wild shiitake-apple glaze for main and the Skyr cheesecake with whipped skyr, oats, vanilla and raspberry sauce for dessert. One friend had the grilled langoustine tails with brioche, scallops and shrimps in champagne sauce and the other had the beef tenderloin for main and the homemade ice cream and sorbets for dessert.