Iceland Packing Regrets: What Real Travelers Wish They'd Packed
Not a generic checklist. These are the specific items real travelers in Iceland travel communities say they wish they'd packed, or wish they'd left home, drawn from repeated threads asking exactly that question.
What people wish they'd packed
- A headlamp or flashlight. Especially useful for winter mornings and evenings, and for anyone doing early starts to chase the northern lights.
- A quick-dry towel. Iceland's hot springs and geothermal pools are a near-constant part of any itinerary, and a compact quick-dry towel beats a bulky bath towel taking up suitcase space.
- Swimwear, even in winter. This surprises first-timers repeatedly: the Blue Lagoon, Sky Lagoon, and countless smaller geothermal pools are open and popular year-round. Pack a swimsuit regardless of season.
- A small over-the-counter medication kit. Real packing threads consistently mention antihistamines, anti-diarrheal medication, melatonin, pain relievers, and hydrocortisone cream, small, easy to forget, genuinely useful.
- Real waterproof layers, not just water-resistant. Repeated across nearly every source: what tourists usually forget is properly waterproof and warm clothing plus good footwear, not merely water-resistant gear that fails in sustained Icelandic rain and wind.
What people regret bringing too much of
Clothing, overwhelmingly. Multiple travelers specifically flag packing too many pants and shirts as their biggest regret. "You don't need 5 pants. Or 8 shirts," as one traveler summarized it. Iceland's cool, layerable climate means the same base layers work rewearn across multiple days, and a smaller, more versatile set of clothing beats a suitcase full of single-wear outfits.
One practical tip nobody tells you
Icelandic wind can be strong enough to catch a car door and either wrench it hard open or slam it, sometimes hard enough to strain or damage the hinge. Experienced visitors specifically flag learning how to open car doors carefully in heavy wind, a small, easy-to-miss detail that a generic packing list would never think to mention.
Sources
- Reddit, r/VisitingIceland, "What did you regret packing?", 90+ comments
- Reddit, r/VisitingIceland, "What do you wish you'd packed for Iceland? And What did..." 110+ comments
- Reddit, r/VisitingIceland, "Packing tips and regrets", 30+ comments
- Reddit, r/VisitingIceland, "I made a list of things you'll regret not packing for Iceland" (car door wind tip)
- Reddit, r/VisitingIceland, "Things you were so happy you packed on your trip to Iceland", 140+ comments (medication kit list)
- Reddit, r/VisitingIceland, "My packing regrets (and wins!) so far during my October trip", 50+ comments, 10 months old
Frequently asked questions
What do people forget to pack for Iceland?
The most repeated items across real traveler discussions are a headlamp or flashlight, a quick-dry towel, swimwear (needed year-round for hot springs, not just summer), and a small over-the-counter medication kit. Waterproof, warm layering is the most common general theme, since Iceland's weather shifts quickly regardless of season.
What do people regret packing too much of for Iceland?
Too much clothing. Multiple real traveler reports specifically flag over-packing pants and shirts as their biggest regret, when a smaller set of rewearable, layerable pieces would have worked fine. Plan to layer and rewear rather than bringing a fresh outfit for every day.