Iceland is a land of unpredictable weather, epic landscape and amazing wildlife. It’s surreal. Having the opportunity to share that with our sixteen month old son made our journey all the richer. Get excited, do your homework on where you want to go and see and be ready for an awesome adventure! In order to make the trek more enjoyable is packing and not over packing for your kids, which can be challenging.

Here are my staples that were in Jack’s bag for Iceland:

Clothing: 

Warm wool socks, hat (the little dude had a hat attached to his head pretty much at all times except for sleeping and swimming), sneakers, water proof boots, gloves, a few pair of swim trunks, rain poncho (this was awesome to wrap him in when we were venturing to waterfalls where his jacket and hiking pants just weren’t going to cut it) a few pair of tee shirts and long sleeve shirts (layers rock! With swift temp changes it’s nice to be able to peel off when needed) and very comfortable pants for the plane ride, driving in the car along with our day treks.

Transportation for the little dude: 

Hiking back pack – our Kelty pack was a tank! It was comfortable for him and us even with Jack at a solid 35 pounds ☺ off road stroller (we used Reebok Jeep stroller and it was AWESOME! We hiked a few areas where our hiking bag wouldn’t cut it due to distance and terrain and the stroller was a life saver!),

Tech Fest: .), IPad with head phones (kept him busy on the plane as well as a few long car rides) and a sound machine  (even if your kids are older this is great if your in a flat, hostel, etc. to drown out noise),

Extras: quick drying towel (less smell and more compact), suntan lotion (it can get warm and super sunny in the summer), sunglasses, hiking pack, puddle jumper for swimming,

Nosh: 

Favorite snacks from home (peanut butter, Cheerios, fruit snacks, etc.) I didn’t bring a whole lot because whether it be cookies or cereal anything you need, for the most part, can be purchased at the local grocery store.

Being that fruit is pretty pricy and a lot of it is imported (green houses are huge in Iceland as well producing some high quality – but very expensive- fruit and vegg) my little dude digs his fruit so we stuck to bananas and I brought a few bags of dried fruit from Trader Joes that were different, but still yummy!

Meds: 

Children’s Tylenol and Saline Solution for nasal congestion (otc medications aren’t that easy to obtain, so it’s better to over pack w/ any needed meds than under pack), coconut oil (I use for dry skin, when a rash might pop up with a change in diet, etc.)

Hope this list helps and feel free to share your tips and any items that made your international trek with kids easier and more pleasant. Happy travels!