The best of Iceland & dreams that come true, with Saara Holma

A while ago, we had a lovely chat with Saara Holma, outdoor lover, explorer and marketing director, born and raised in Northern Finland. We got so inspired talking to hear about her recent dream trip to Iceland, and she was kind enough to share her top places to visit in Iceland. Tag along! 

For someone who doesn’t know you, how would you describe yourself and your life?

I work as a Marketing Director in the Nordics in a recruitment marketing company 

I've been born and raised in Northern Finland and that has left its mark on me. Even though I now live in Helsinki, I feel most at home at our cabin in the Finnish Lapland. I just love Lapland! 

I try to make the most out of my time, and whenever I get the chance, I travel somewhere. Usually somewhere abroad or to our cabin in Lapland. I love traveling and exploring new places. Especially if there are mountains or sea available – preferably both of them.

In addition to traveling I love all kinds of outdoor activities. My favorites are ski touring and hiking, but I'm always open to try new things. Oh – and I also enjoy just being outdoors, even if it is just sitting there and admiring the beautiful nature around me.

Saara is wearing the black Amelia Hiking Pants 

We know that your big dream finally came true. Do you want to tell us more about it?

Yes, actually one of my long term dreams came true this May, when I was finally able to travel to Iceland.

Our trip was directed to the South of Iceland. Even though we didn’t have many days to spend there, the plan was not to run a schedule and be stressed, but rather to take it easy and enjoy the incredible nature. And with that we succeeded – everything was easy to access and the sights were close to each other, so even within 4 days, it was possible to see a lot and still have time to relax.

I had a few things on my list that I wanted to see or experience in Iceland: waterfalls, hot springs, Icelandic horses, black sand beaches, mountains, empty roads, geysirs, glaciers, lava fields, cute little villages, puffins and sheep. Did we see all of it? Yes – abundantly.

Do you have any tips for those who want to travel to Iceland?

If you are planning on your trip to Iceland as well and want to see all of that too, here’s my three top picks to stay at:

• Vík i Myrdal – a lovely small village in the South coast of Iceland.

Vík is very close to some of Iceland most popular sights including waterfalls and a few different black sand beaches: Reynisfjara beach, Dyrhólaey (where the puffins nest), Skógafoss, Seljalandsfoss. There is also a remote hot spring surrounded by mountains, called Seljavallalaug.

• Höfn – fishing town in the southeastern part of the country.

When driving from Vík to Höfn, you’ll pass some incredible sceneries and places to visit. Those are for example several glaciers, including Svínafellsjökull and Hoffell Glacier, Skaftafell waterfall, the famous Diamond Beach, and a beautiful glacier Lagoon called Jökulsárlón (a lot of seals to be seen!). In Hoffel you can also take a dip in a hot spring!

• Reykjavík area & Golden Circle

Very close to Reykjavík it is possible to find several places to enjoy your time in a hot spring. You can also visit the traces of a recent volcanic eruption, see active geysir’s and of course visit the capital itself.

I got to say that we really enjoyed our stay in Iceland. I hope you get to travel there too – it’s an incredible place full of nature’s wonders.
And if this text doesn’t motivate you enough, I have pictures to share who will! :)

Ps. During my trip I was wearing the Amelia Hiking Pants that totally stood up to the challenge and kept me both warm and dry.