Private vs Group Thingvellir Tours: What the Extra Money Buys
The short answer. A group tour costs from $85 a person and gives you 30 to 45 minutes at Thingvellir as one stop on the Golden Circle. A private tour costs from $470 a person, or $713 for a car of up to three. What the extra money buys depends on which private tour you choose. The Thingvellir-only half-days buy you two to four hours in the park. A private Golden Circle day buys you comfort and a door-to-door car, but often no more time in the park than a coach.
"Private or group" sounds like a question about company. At Thingvellir it is a question about time. The park has no gate and no ticket, so every fare you compare is transport, a guide and whatever else the day includes. Every fare is on Thingvellir Tours; here is how to read them.
What does a group tour give you?
The big Golden Circle coaches are how most people see Thingvellir. You leave from BSÍ or Bus Stop 12 at Höfðatorg, or take a pickup, and spend 30 to 40 minutes in the park before Geysir and Gullfoss. The whole day runs six and a half to eight and a half hours.
The coaches are large. The listed maximums run to 65, 99 and 100 people. Gray Line and Reykjavik Excursions add an app-based audio guide in several languages; you bring your own headphones. What you get is the loop at the lowest price, from $85 to $89.
What does a small group change?
A minibus changes the pace more than the itinerary. The small-group days run the same loop, with 40 to 45 minutes at Thingvellir, and cap the group. Your Day Tours takes 19 at most, from $121, and gives the park 45 minutes. The BusTravel day that ends at the Blue Lagoon takes 18 and puts the lagoon's Comfort ticket in its $268 fare.
A smaller group means you are closer to the guide and there are fewer people to wait for at each stop. It does not mean a longer stop in the park.
Read the time line, not the length of the day. Every card shows how long you spend at Thingvellir. A ten-hour day can give the park 30 minutes, and a four-hour private tour can give it two hours. Compare that figure first, then compare the price.
What does "private" mean at Thingvellir?
There are two kinds of private tour, and they buy different things.
- Thingvellir-only half-days. Oak Travel's car from Harpa gives you two hours in the park for $713, per group of up to three. Prime Tours collects you from your hotel for a four-hour tour built around the park, from $477 a person.
- Private Golden Circle days. Pickmeup, BR Tours and Mercury Grail drive the whole loop with your party alone. They give Thingvellir 30 minutes to an hour, much like the coaches.
If time in the valley is the reason you are paying more, only the first kind delivers it. The private tours page sets all of them side by side.
Private and group tours compared
| Format | From | Priced | Time at Thingvellir | Group |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Classic coach | From $85 | per person | 30 min | Up to 100 |
| Small-group minibus | From $121 | per person | 45 min | Up to 19 |
| Private Golden Circle, SUV | From $820 | per person, min. 2 | 45 min | Your party |
| Private Golden Circle, car | From $1,650 | per group, up to 3 | 30 min | Your party |
| Private half-day from Harpa | From $713 | per group, up to 3 | 2 h | Your party |
| Private four-hour tour | From $477 | per person | 4 h | Your party |
All of these refund in full up to 24 hours before the start.
How does the per-group price work out?
Some private fares are priced for the car, not the seat. Oak Travel's half-day is $713 for up to three, which comes to about $237 each if three of you share it. The Pickmeup Golden Circle day is $1,650 for up to three, about $550 each.
Others are priced per person with a minimum of two. BR Tours' SUV day is $820 a person, so a couple pays twice that. Mercury Grail's day with the Blue Lagoon is $470 a person, and its fare leaves the lagoon ticket out. Do the sum for your own party before you compare a private fare with a coach seat.
What does a private guide change inside the park?
On a coach, the stop is fixed and you walk it with everyone else. With your own guide, you choose. You can go down Almannagjá first and loop back, stop at the flagpole for as long as you want, and add Öxarárfoss or Peningagjá if the time allows.
Two hours is enough for the gorge, the Law Rock, the waterfall and the church in summer. Four hours adds the booths, the lakeshore and a slower pace. The walking route guide shows what fits into each, and the national park page describes every stop.
Access, pace and children
Private tours give you the most control over pace, and several state wheelchair access: Oak Travel, Prime Tours, BR Tours and Mercury Grail. Among the coaches, Gray Line states it too. Infant seats are listed on every private tour and on the two big coach operators.
If anyone in your party walks slowly, a private half-day is the calmer choice. You are not watching the clock to get back to a coach. The post on Thingvellir with kids covers the family side.
Who should book a group tour?
- Solo travellers and couples who want the whole Golden Circle at the lowest fare.
- Anyone happy with half an hour at the viewpoint and the gorge.
- Cruise passengers, since several coaches and minibuses collect from the port.
- Travellers who like company and a plan made for them.
Who should book a private tour?
- Anyone who wants two hours or more in the park itself: book a Thingvellir-only half-day.
- Groups of three, where the per-car fare narrows the gap.
- Families, older travellers and anyone who needs step-free help or their own pace.
- Photographers who want to wait for the light at Almannagjá.
There is a third way too. You can drive yourself: the park is free to enter and parking is 1,000 ISK a car for the day. Visiting the park has the practical detail.
Weighing a coach seat against a private car? The three below cover both, and every other fare is on Thingvellir Tours.
Private and small-group ways to see Thingvellir
Thingvellir National Park Tour ( Þingvellir )
A private car from Harpa for up to three, and two hours inside the park at your own pace.
From $713 per group, up to 3
Check AvailabilityPrivate Golden Circle Tour by Luxury SUV from Reykjavik
A full-size SUV and a driver-guide from your hotel, 45 minutes at Thingvellir, fees and taxes included.
From $820 per person (min. 2)
Check Availability
Small-group Golden Circle Classic Tour from Reykjavik
A minibus of 19 at most with pickup in Reykjavík, and 45 minutes at Thingvellir on the Golden Circle.
From $121 per person
Check Availability