hashtag_Yeti: Can you help me with this concept? I'm renting a KuKuCamper for mid-June. My understanding was that I could park that sucker pretty much anywhere except someone's yard. According to others in this forum, I cannot simply pull over to the side of the road or stay in the parking lot for the night next to a waterfall. So, if I must find campgrounds along my entire route, what can I expect to pay per campsite? What does the cost of a camping spot include-- shower, laundry facilities, wiFi, etc.? (Seems to kind of negate the whole cost-effectiveness for being in a camper if I have to pay to stay somewhere else.)

If I do have to ask an owner permission to stay on the property with my camper van, what is the likelihood that said person would say "sure"? Thanks!

Sometimes the campsites charge a fee per person, and sometimes they charge a fee per tent/camper. And sometimes all facilities and use of electricity is included, sometimes you need to pay extra.

You can see info on almost all campsites here : http://tjalda.is/en/ regarding available facilities and prices etc.

I would say that your chances of getting permission from a landowner to park the camper on his land, are about 50/50. But it's not always easy to know whose land it is that you're on.

My friends and I had a blast with the kuku campers! There were 7 of us and we took a 5 person automatic and a 2 person automatic car. We had no problems with either. They gave us all the items we needed to drive around Iceland for 7 days. We were also happy to get the golden package insurance because we ended up getting hit by gravel on one of the windshields and it cracked! They were also very helpful with the registration process and explaining charges. Check out was just as easy, we kept the camper clean while we were on the road, so we had no charges for filth. One thing that kind of sucks is that you don't get unlimited kilometers (300km a day), but you also get nicer vehicles than places that offer unlimited km. Once we got there they had a stash of food other people left behind that we could use! Things like salt and pepper, oil, aluminum foil...Honestly look no further, you have arrived to one of the nicest camper van companies in Iceland. Will definitely be renting from again when I return. Thank you KuKu!!!

Brittany, where did you park your camper at night? Did you find campsites that were open?

We are headed to Iceland beginning of July for 8days 7 nights. I was going to rent a car and stay at various B&B's etc but choice seems to be limited. We are now veering towards a camper. I understand camping overnight in campgrounds only. Question: How restricted are you in terms of not being able to drive on certain roads as it is not a 4x4, in other words are you missing ALOT of the scenery? is going around the country in 8 days enough, or is that tight ?

8 days for the Ring Road is tight but doable. You can take a camper all the way around the ring road and on many of the other NON-F roads. Some side roads you will take a look at and decide "maybe not". But there's more than enough scenery on high quality roads to keep you busy in 8 days.

We (three of my friends and I) rent their category C camper for our road trip around Iceland and it was probaby the best idea we ever had. Literally became our home. We were never cold, never wet, and it was quite nice to be able to make some tea right after a nice hike in a lovely unpredictable weather. We had the freedom to explore Iceland without restrains other than the unpaved roads. The camper was really well equiped, clean, and the beds were quite confortable as well. We drove the ring road in 10 days, and it was enough (even though the more you see, the more you want to see)

The kukucampers staff are also incredibly nice human beings, really helpful, and it made the whole experience ever more perfect.

As for the parking: in the west and the north, we were lucky. We were in Iceland in the end of may, slightly before the touristic season. We found places were there were no indications that you can not park overnight and we didn't have problems. We left the places as we found them (that means no garbage of all sorts, not even toilet paper. Seems obvious for some people, but is obviously not for some others...) In the south and east, there were more people, and less places to park, so we went to camping sites. Some of them were closed but you were still allowed to camp there (but no toilets, no showers most of the times). Still, camping sites are great. Some of them have wifi and a kitchen, and having a proper shower is quite nice too, don't underestimate it. We paid between 1000 and 1500 ISK per person.

Tessa, if you didn't park in campsites or have permission from landowners to park the camper, you broke the law.

Tessa

I am glad you enjoyed your trip and personally I think a camper is possibly by far the best way to enjoy Iceland.

Unfortunately, then there not being signs explicitly forbidding parking or camping is not the same as either being allowed. The law is VERY CLEAR: ALL types of camping needs to be in camping sites OR with the landowner’s explicit permission. The only exception is conventional camping (as with a tent) in remote areas. I do wish KuKu would inform their renters of this, just as I know they warn about F roads and speed limits.

Thanks’ for taking your garbage with you. That is considerate. However, there is very limited chance that you can leave any site completely untouched. I used to wild-camp until some years ago when I talked to a warden about camping. He pointed out that the same sites got chosen repeatedly and inevitably the wear-and-tear created problems. Like if you were camping in May then chances are the ground is soft. Your camper might leave slightly deeper ruts than normal. These in turn retain water, making the next camper several days later sink a bit further creating even deeper ruts. Or that driver avoids the ruts, widening the track. Or maybe you stopped the camper on new vegetation that was just growing out of the soil. Now it’s stunted or dead, creating a spot that gives wind-erosion a grip…

There are good and valid reasons Iceland is cracking down on wild-camping, and one of them is that it’s destroying our environment piece by piece.

For those considering a camper in Iceland: GO FOR IT! It’s a great idea. But please – with over 200 campsites in the main season - then planning the trip with them in mind is a very limited concession and makes us locals not think you are an inconsiderate d@ickhead.

I have never seen a topic with so many reviews from people who have only ever posted once in their lives. Should I be suspicious? ( By the way, it has put me off going to Iceland, there are so many other countries to see).