Hi there, this is me being a little selfish again. Well, not completely as many of you ask us how to do a trip to Iceland with points and miles. I’ve long wanted to go there myself (even Mr. Reluctant Traveler wants to go) so I decided to do research on the best ways and share it with our readers.

The best time to visit Iceland to see the northern lights is between November and February when the nights are the longest. The best time to visit if you want to explore inland is when the snow has thawed after June.  I may hit April when you can still see the lights possibly but the weather is a little warmer. Not a fan of cold weather here!
 

Flights

Now I will be flying out of Denver so some of my ideas may be different so I will look at a few outbound destinations. There are many different airlines that will get you to Iceland and so many travel partners that we have a lot of options.
 

United Airlines

Of course, United is one of my top choices as I can travel from Denver and not have to position for a flight.  Flying on a United flight means I can use United Miles or Ultimate Rewards to transfer to United, American Express Membership Rewards (transfer to Avianca to book a United flight), and the Capital One Venture X Credit Card (transfer to Avianca also).

 

 

There were many options in economy and business. Often, readers see the 155k in business and freak out. Usually, you can find United business class for 70-80K one way if you are flexible and keep looking. Having 2 stops isn’t my favorite though so I may position to find a better flight.  I do like that I can find flights from my home airport when looking at Iceland on points and miles though.
 

Delta

From JFK, we can go to Iceland in economy class for only 60K roundtrip. This is a good option as the flight is only a little over 5 hours. American Express Membership Rewards transfer to Delta Airlines and there are several American Express Delta Credit Cards. I definitely won’t be going in first class at 400K points! Yikes!

 

 

Chase Portal

Usually, I find that booking through the portals is more expensive than transferring points. However, if you want a nonstop option on Iceland’s own airline, Icelandair, this is a good option. This is an option I might even consider.

 

 

Hotels

Iceland on points and miles also has a lot of lodging options. Each of the four major hotel chains has some hotels we can use points on.
 

Hilton

Hilton has a good presence in Iceland so it is a great choice for using points and getting a free stay. I actually found the pricing reasonable for Hilton as I often find it very expensive.

 

Hyatt

If you are an outdoor enthusiast and want to stay outside of the city of Reykjavik, you can stay in use Hyatt points for a stay in Hella (58 miles away). This would be in one of the Small Luxury Hotels of the World. Based on my experience staying at one in Lake Como, it is bound to be nice!

 

Marriott

Marriott actually has 5 hotels in Iceland for stays although I am only showing two. Three cost 70K, one 40K, and one 100K points. It is always nice when you have options with using points.

 

 

IHG

IHG has three options for staying in Iceland, all Mr. and Mrs. Smith hotels. Does anyone else think that is an odd name for a hotel? Evidently, they are a travel company that partners with boutique hotels. They don’t own or manage any of the properties. They look really nice, so I would like to give them a try. The room size looks a little more compact in Iceland, though.

 

 

Bottom Line

I was pleasantly surprised to see so many ways to get to Iceland on points and miles and stay there too. This is a trip I would like to make in the next few years. Being able to travel hack my way there makes it a must-do!