If you’re heading to Iceland, Blue Lagoon is likely to be at the top of your sight-seeing list. It is known all over the world as an extremely relaxing geothermal spa & lagoon, located about 30 minutes to an hour from Reykjavik, the capital of Iceland. We spent a good 6 hours at the spa and it was such an amazing and relaxing day- exactly what I needed after a crazy emotional week. I was ready to be far far away from reality and Blue Lagoon was just that.

There were a few things I did wish I had known or had prepared for prior to visiting. If you’re heading to the Blue Lagoon- here’s a few tips to help you prepare!

1.Bring A Waterproof Camera.

My travel partner was a life saver as she brought her waterproof camera and a gopro – so we were completely covered on this point. You would never want to get to the amazing lagoon and not have that one gorgeous photo to savour the day! Many spa goers had iphone waterproof sleeves and were using these, however I would definitely recommend a waterproof/shockproof and freeze proof camera (as you’ll need this in Iceland anyway!) so you’re not freaking out about your phone and not actually relaxing.

2. Book Ahead

You have to book ahead of time to get into Blue Lagoon. We booked one week ahead – and still managed to miss out on our preferred ‘timeslot’. So book ahead your preferred package and you may even get a discount (when our time slot was booked out, we had to pay an extra £10 for the later slot).

3. Come Earlier Than Your ‘Timeslot’.

When you book on the Blue Lagoon website you have to pick a time slot. However, as we were forced to book a later time (and this would have caused us to be waiting around as our transfer would drop us off 1 hour earlier) we tried our luck at waltzing in earlier. We had no trouble at all, and it seems that that time slots are just to spread out the tourists walking through. So never fear, if you muck up your timings a little! (as we did).

4. Spend A Little More.

We went for the ‘Premium’ package (there are 4 packages to choose from- Standard, Comfort, Premium & Luxury). No matter which package you go for, you will have access to the main event – the thermal pools. However, we were so happy we chose the Premium package that made us feel completely pampered and special. The premium package gets you an extra mud mask, fluffy robe, slippers, two drinks and a reservation at the gorgeous and fancy LAVA restaurant. Picture yourself emerging from the blue lagoon, putting on your bathrobe and sitting in a fancy restaurant sipping prosecco overlooking the thermal pools- bliss! The LAVA restaurant is quite expensive – although I can vouch for the main meal – amazingly delicious and so worth it.

5. Lather Your Hair.

If I can give any tips at all to remember for the Blue Lagoon – its LATHER YOUR HAIR IN CONDITIONER. And put it in a bun. Do NOT spend 6 hours with your hair in the water occasionally adding some conditioner as you will end with hair that is impossible to brush that feels more like a neglected horse’s mane than healthy hair. The silica in the thermal water seemed to strip my hair of all the good stuff and only until I got home and put in a hair mask did it get back to normal. Learn from my mistakes!

The Blue Lagoon was amazing and I feel it was well worth the money – and the hype that is given to it. Spending a day in the lagoon – even when we had some icy rain patches – was a magical experience I would recommend to everyone heading to Iceland!