Iceland is one of the most beautiful destinations on earth. But its remote location and inability to grow their own food means that it is also a very expensive place to travel, especially with kids. If you are on a family trip on a budget, here are some tips to save you money in Iceland:
1. Stock Up at Costco in Reykjavik.
The food in Iceland is shockingly expensive – like truly shocking! At some point you just become numb to it, but there is one tip to travelling to Iceland on a budget which will help – stock up at Costco in Reykjavik before you hit the Ring Road.

The Reykjavik Costco is virtually the same as its North American counterparts, with a few minor differences. If you are about to embark on a camping trip around Iceland, you can stock up on non-perishable staples such as pasta and sauce, granola bars, peanut butter, mixed nuts, long shelf life milk and cereal. Buy as much non-perishable food as your camper van allows – you won’t regret it.
If you are looking for a cheap meal in Reykjavik, the Costco has its familiar restaurant. This is going to be the cheapest restaurant meal you find in Iceland.
2. Go Camping Around Iceland Instead of Hotels
When we first started planning our 3-week family camping trip around Iceland, we were going to rent a car and stay at hotels or Airbnb’s. After seeing the lack of options for Airbnb’s and hotels around Iceland, coupled with the very high nightly cost, we started looking into more budget-friendly options.
We quickly figured out that a camping trip was a far more affordable way to travel around Iceland. The average nightly cost of a camper van was significantly less than the typical daily cost of a hotel plus rental car.
We found the perfect campervan for our family. Keep reading for more details…
3. Get an Iceland Camping Card
If you are planning an extended Iceland camping trip, take a close look at the Iceland camping card. For the cost of roughly 179 € (approximately $185 USD), you can stay for free at roughly 40 participating campsites around Iceland.
When you stay at a participating campground, the only thing you only have to pay is the nightly tax. It was 333 kroners in 2024 (which is roughly $2.50 USD)
A typical (non-Camping Card) campground in Iceland costs approximately 2,000 kroners (~$14 USD) per adult, per night. To see if the Iceland camping card is worth it, calculate the number of nights you’ll be using it and for how many people.
Over our three week family camping trip around Iceland, we got a ton of use from our camping card. With the number of free nights of camping we got, we more than got our money back.
You can often get your camping card through your campervan rental company (as we did), but you can also learn more here.
Read More
Not all the campgrounds in Iceland are kid-friendly. If you are planning a family camping trip, don’t miss my list of the Top 10 Family-Friendly Campgrounds in Iceland.
4. Cook Your Own Meals
Another way that camping helps you travel to Iceland on a budget is the ability to cook your own meals.
We rotated between 4 different dinners during our family Iceland camping trip. To feed 2 adults and 2 kids each night, I estimate the average cost of our self-catered meals to be around 5,000 kroners (~$35 USD).
Compare that to the average cost of a restaurant meal for a family of 4 in Iceland, which ranges between 10,000 and 20,000 kroners (~$70 – 140 USD). Due to the high cost of dining out in Iceland, we only ate out once – at a reasonably ‘affordable’ pizza place – it cost 11,000 kroners (~$80 USD).
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If you are interested in self-catering for your family camping trip to Iceland, check out our post on Family-Friendly Iceland Camping Meal Ideas.
5. Limit the Number of Tours
As with everything in this island nation, organized tours are very expensive in Iceland. But, what can you do? You’re coming to one of the most beautiful & adventurous places on Earth – you need to enjoy it, right?
I recommend that you prioritize your entertainment money by focusing on the tours which feature the stuff you love most, be it snowmobiling, whale watching, horseback riding etc.
Then, spend the rest of your time enjoying the beauty of nature in Iceland. Aside from a modest parking fee here and there, all the best natural attractions in Iceland are completely free!
Read More
Check out the very best of the free natural attractions in Iceland with my list of beautiful waterfalls in Iceland.
Our most expensive tour in Iceland was our snowmobile tour on Vatnajökull, but it turned out to be amazing – one of the best tours we did! We thought the best ‘affordable’ tour in Iceland was our whale watching tour in Husavik.
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We did a lot of tours on our 3-week vacation in Iceland. To see if they are worth it to you, check out our post on the Best Kid-Friendly Tours in Iceland.
We also did a significant amount of hiking. See the best parts of the country for free with the best hikes in Iceland.
I know that’s not many, but that’s about all the advice I can offer on how to save money in Iceland. I’m a very frugal guy, so trust me, I was looking for ways to save money all the time. If you follow my advice, I’m confident these tips will help you travel to Iceland on a budget.
Need a Family-Friendly Campervan in Iceland?
As mentioned above, I originally planned to stay in hotels & Airbnbs all around the Iceland Ring Road, but I very quicky abandoned this plan after seeing the price tag. Switching over to staying in a campervan, was the single biggest action I took to save a significant amount of money on our trip to Iceland.
But, the benefit of a campervan isn’t just financial… we weren’t tied to check-in and check-out times as we brought our “hotel” with us everywhere we went. Plus, with so many campgrounds around the country, conveniently located near major attractions, we saved a ton of time & gas money by staying close to the places we wanted to see most. Having the complete freedom of a family-friendly campervan was a huge reason for the success of our Iceland camping trip.
If you are looking for a kid-friendly campervan in Iceland, we recommend you check out the Go BIG Automatic Campervan from GoCampers.is! With plenty of space, comfy beds, and an easy-to-drive automatic transmission, it gave us total freedom to explore Iceland’s stunning landscapes without the expense or hassles of staying in hotels.
With two levels for sleeping, the Go BIG Automatic Campervan comfortably sleeps up to 4. With all the fresh air and exercise we got on our family camping trip, we had some of the best sleeps of our life in this campervan – I’m not joking!
Restaurant meals in Iceland are incredibly expensive, so with the included fridge and cooking gear, we were able to save a ton of money cooking our own meals. Plus, unlike tent campers, we were grateful to be able to eat indoors on the days the weather wasn’t perfect.
If you’re dreaming of the perfect family-friendly Iceland campervan, book your Go Campers van now!
Get 5% off Your Rental!
If you make your reservation with Go Campers using our link and use the code “familycantravel” at checkout, you’ll get 5% off your rental!
Dan Brewer is an intrepid family travel blogger with a passion for exploring the world's most captivating destinations. With 58 countries under his belt and a sense of wanderlust that knows no bounds, he has made it his life's mission to share his travel experiences and insights with fellow families who love to travel.
When Dan isn't traveling with his wife and kids, he's either out enjoying the Canadian Rockies he calls home or working on one of his three travel sites (Family Can Travel, Travel Banff Canada and Ultimate Sports Road Trip).