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Even though I love to travel, one of my least favorite parts about it is packing. I always leave it to the last minute, sometimes hours before my flight.

However, with the excursions we had planned for Iceland and the fact that we were going to be living out of a van for twelve days, I knew that this was one of those trips where I could not leave it all to the last second. We had our trip planned for about nine months, and over that period of time we gradually bought the gear and equipment we needed.

Packing for the Ring Road was definitely tricky, so for anyone who is struggling to think of what to bring for their trip, here is a list of what I had for our twelve day road trip this past October.

You may also download a printable document of this list by clicking here!

Iceland Ring Road Packing List

CLOTHING

Layering is everything when you are traveling in Iceland. You want to be prepared for conditions that are from dry and mild to wet and freezing. Having layers on comes in handy because you can add or remove them as the weather conditions change. For the twelve days we were there, I had about five outfits and re-wore each of them about three times. I know… this probably sounds gross to some people but this trip isn’t meant for you to look glamorous the whole time.

• First shell

  • Under Armor Top

  • Fleece Leggings

• Second shell

  • Sweaters / Vests

  • Rain proof pants

  • Hiking pants

• Third shell

  • Winter coat

• Waterproof shell

  • Rain coat

  • Poncho (I went the extra step with this to protect my camera from rain and mist from waterfalls)

• Hiking socks

• Regular socks

• Warm pajamas

• Under garments

  • Underwear

  • Sports bras

SHOES

If you plan to mostly hike and sightsee during your trip, you really don’t need a whole lot of shoes to choose from. We wore our waterproof hiking shoes every single day for the majority of the day because we never knew how the trail conditions of the hikes would be. They ended up being mostly muddy so the boots were put to good use.

• Hiking boots that are waterproof and have ankle support

• Wading shoes to walk through rivers

• Flip flops / shower shoes

• Slippers

WINTER WEAR EXTRAS

You can never go wrong with having extra winter gear. You definitely want to cover as much skin as possible when you are in the colder parts of Iceland.

• Hats that cover your ears

• Ear muffs

• Scarf / Neck warmer

• Gloves

CAMPING GEAR

• Coffee tumbler / travel mug

• Reusable water bottle - I have a 32 oz. which came in handy for the times we didn’t find a sink for a long period of time

• Travel kettle - make sure that this is a small travel sized and not a full-sized kettle. We made the mistake of bringing a full size and blew the fuse of our cooler on the first night. You may have to do some research on voltage to get the correct one.

• Headlamp / Flashlight - a headlamp is a lifesaver

• Travel humidifier - great to use inside the van before bed

• Charcoal air purifier - pouches for your shoes / clothes to keep everything smelling fresh

• Microfiber hand towels

TECHNOLOGY / CAMERA EQUIPMENT

• Portable chargers (one rechargeable & one solar)

• Headphones

• Bluetooth speaker

• Camera

• Tripod

• Extra camera batteries (I brought 4 total)

• Camera battery charger with USB output to charge your batteries in the van

• Waterproof protective camera sleeve

• SD card case

• Extra SD cards

SHOWER ITEMS

A mistake I made was not bringing a bag to put all of my toiletries in to carry to the camp showers. Luckily my sister had something that I could borrow, but having a drybag to carry all of your toiletries in helps keep the van organized and makes your trip to the showers much easier. I also highly recommend a microfiber bath towel because they are compact and don’t take up as much room.

• Drybag

• Microfiber bath towels

• Personal toiletries

ADDITIONAL TOILETRIES

• Face masks, eye masks - You cannot bring enough of these. I didn’t think to bring any masks otherwise I would have done one every night to fight the dry air

• Rosewater facial mist - This is nice to spray on your face throughout the day to keep it from drying out

• Aquaphor - great for extremely dry skin

• Travel first aid kit

• Body / hand lotion

• Lip balm

• Baby wipes - these are fantastic with cleaning up any messes, wiping dishes clean if you do not have access to a sink, wiping down the van, etc.

• Hand warmers

• Foot warmers

DRY FOOD

• RXbars

• LaraBars

• Cliff Bars

• Instant Oatmeal

• Rice

• Ramen

• Fruit strips

Download a printable document of this list by clicking here!

I hope that this helps you! If you have any questions, feel free to ask in the comments below!