About IcelandStart
IcelandStart is an independent travel website run from Iceland. Find practical notes on rental cars, places to stay and day tours, then continue to the provider to check prices and book.
Marteinn Hilmarsson — operator & editor
Based in Iceland
IcelandStart is created and maintained in Iceland by Marteinn. Independent, affiliate-transparent, and built around realistic Iceland trip planning — not booking pressure.
I love traveling around Iceland and finding places I have not visited before. Over the years, I have spent a lot of time driving and exploring the country, and that first-hand experience shapes how I think about route planning, overnight stops, and what a realistic Iceland trip actually looks like.
Why I built IcelandStart
I wanted one straightforward place to share useful Iceland travel notes and help visitors compare rental cars, stays and tours. You can go straight to the information you need without completing a questionnaire.
What we are
An independent Iceland travel website with free practical guides and field notes. We point visitors toward the partner sites and official Iceland resources that fit their trip — first-time visits, South Coast road trips, Northern Lights, Ring Road, Reykjavík city breaks, family stays, and arrival days from Keflavík.
What we are not
- We are not a travel agency.
- We do not take travel bookings or travel-booking payments.
- We do not book hotels, cars, flights or tours, hold reservations, or sell package trips.
- We do not show live prices, fake discounts, or fake availability.
- We are not affiliated with the Icelandic government or its safety agencies.
Bookings, live prices, availability, taxes, fees, refunds, cancellation rules, and customer support are handled by the partner site you continue to.
Why Iceland-focused
Iceland is small, weather-driven, and easy to misplan. Driving distances, daylight, road closures, and seasonal conditions matter more than typical travel destinations. A focused planning guide — with the right partner categories and the right official safety links — is more useful than a generic global directory.
How we choose partners
We list established travel brands that map cleanly to common Iceland travel needs: flights and packages, hotels, vacation homes, local and global car rental, and reputable tour platforms. We add Go Car Rental as a local Iceland car rental option alongside global comparisons. We do not add partners just because they pay more — they have to fit the category.
See our editorial policy for the full selection and review process.
Why official resources are included
We link to Visit Iceland, SafeTravel, Vegagerðin (Icelandic Road Administration), and the Icelandic Met Office because they help travelers plan safely. These are not affiliate links and we do not earn from them. They are included because Iceland trips are better when travelers check road conditions, weather, and safety advisories before key travel days.
How partner links support the site
Some outbound links on IcelandStart are affiliate links. If you click through and book on a partner site, we may earn a commission at no extra cost to you. This helps us keep the site free, ad-light, and free of paywalls. See our affiliate disclosure for details.
- No fake prices, fake reviews, or fake availability.
- Clear separation between affiliate partners and official resources.
- Honest copy about what Iceland trips actually require.
- Safety- and weather-aware planning suggestions.
- Plain disclosure when a link is a partner link.
How IcelandStart reviews travel advice
Every guide and decision page is reviewed against the same short checklist before it goes live or gets updated:
- Route feasibility — driving distances, daylight and stop spacing for the trip length.
- Weather and daylight — what the season actually allows, not what looks good on a map.
- Official road, weather and safety resources — umferdin.is, vedur.is and safetravel.is are linked where they matter.
- Car vs tour decision — when self-drive is sensible and when a guided day works better.
- Booking order and cancellation — what to book first and what to keep flexible.
- Partner links are clearly labelled — bookings and final terms are handled by the provider.
Plan Check is paused
We are not accepting new Plan Check requests. For an enquiry you already sent, please use our Contact page.
Who runs IcelandStart
IcelandStart is an independent Iceland-based travel planning project, operated and maintained by Marteinn Hilmarsson. Marteinn is the operator, editor and primary contact for editorial, partner, privacy and compliance questions, and acts as the data controller for the limited personal data this site receives.
If you spot something outdated or unclear, email . Editorial commitments are detailed in our Editorial Policy.
Contact
Operated from Iceland by Marteinn Hilmarsson