Getting there
There are mainly two ways to go to Iceland during the summer! Car ferry or aircraft.
Car ferry will take its start in Hirtshals in Denmark and stop at the Faroe islands where you will be able to take a extremely short look at Tórshavn before you end up in Seyðisfjördur on the Icelandic east coast some 48 hours later after start. You may or may not be granted a 7 hour visit to Tórshavn depending on eventual delays during the sea trip back again only. There is one more option and that is to stay 3 days in the Faroe islands, or a full week.
For those who like an atlantic cruise and never have been to the Faroe islands this is really a great option - if you go by your own car. Without car it is less attractive unless you enjoy the atlantic sea cruise and have a plan how to go to Hirtshals and later from Seyðisfjördur to Akureyri. There is a flight connection from Egilsstadir to Akureyri and to Reykjavik. During summer there are some regular buses but mainly tourist buses take you around highway 1.
Cost is high and you can calculate the price by looking here :
http://www.shttp://www.smyrilline.se/priser/priser-2018/island-3
If your car is not higher than 1,9 m and you plan for a longer roundtrip this is one of two options on how to bring it to Iceland. The other option is sending it in a container with Eimskip or Samskip and transport yourself with aircraft. The choice is a matter of available time and conveniance. If the car is higher than 1,9m you might even considder the container alternative more due to the much higher car ferry pricing.
I have been in contact with Eimskip around sending the car in a container as an alternative to going by the Faroe Islands. They disembark Helsingborg on Tuesday at 1500 hours weekly only and embark Reykjavik 5 days later. For those of you coming from central Europe there are possibilities also to ship from Germany according to what I heard. If someone has relevant info please let me know and I will publish it. The transport for a jeep will cost you around 1800 Euro to Iceland and back again according to an offer I got. Cost is depending on vehicle value due to insurance cost. Price mentioned covers a vehicle with a value of around 18000 Euro. If you need more detailed info please contact me.
Aircraft
From Göteborg there are regular direct flights from Landvetter to Reykjavik/Keflavik during July with Iceland air. You will also find KLM and SAS offering this trip but at a higher price. Just having it said WOW air (former Iceland Express) is a low budget company of the less reliable kind. It is cheaper, around 2000 SEK + extra luggage fee of 600 SEK if you do not travel lean and if you book early, but be prepared for possible heavy delays and/or missing luggage. This is what we have faced several times anyhow. There is no Wow air service point in Akureyri ! Also forget that you will get any form of compensation in case of delay or cancellation which you normally should be entitled to unless you are prepared to start a row.
During week 43 in 2012, icelandexpress was acquired by another company named wow air, the old url still seems to work, www.icelandexpress.se or .is or .com. It is always a good idea to check the icelandic site (.is) first when you check the prices. Often you get better prices there than choosing your local site ! be aware of that conditions may be different !
From Stockholm, Copenhagen or Oslo you have more connections, even direct flights to Akureyri during summer time and they are often much cheaper too.
Since the target area for the events is the Akureyri area in a wider sense one option is to go by aircraft from the central airport inside Reykjavik. A bus transfer from Keflavik, the approx 50 km to Reykjavik airport, is mandatory if you do not rent a car at Keflavik airport.
Cheapest way is to buy a standby ticket at Reykjavik airport and sit down and wait for the next flight with an empty seat. A bit more unsecure but normally you do not have to wait too long to catch a flight unless weather conditions have made flight tables void. This offer is only available to youngsters up to an age of 26 yeras. The rest of us will have to pay around 140 Euro one way.
Car rental on Iceland
This might quickly become your most money consuming part of the trip. Car rental is expensive, not to say very expensive. If you are in with an A or B sized vehicle you limit yourself to all roads not marked with an F. For a first time visitor this is a good choice. If you want to explore the more remote parts it will quickly become a limitation. Renting a 4x4 will cost 2-4 times the cost of a standard vehicle, on the other hand it will take you to places you will never forget ! Typical cost for a small 2x4 car is around 1000 SEK (100 Euro) per day unless you can negotiate a better price due to a longer rental time period. Off season prices are much lower but also then there are less roads to drive on !
This link might be a guide to a cheaper rental service and some practical tips along the way too : https://misstourist.com/8-things-you-should-know-before-renting-a-car-in-iceland/
Links for rental cars are the usual ones like Hertz, Budget etc but look also at
they have a huge selection of different 4x4. A Landrover in July will cost around 200 000 ISK/week just as an example.
http://iceland.rentalcargroup.com/
Where to stay indoor at "budget cost" - all over the country
http://www.hostel.is - 30 hostels all over Iceland
https://www.heyiceland.is/ - farm houses all over the country or organised tours
http://en.camping.info/iceland/campsites - camping sites all over the country but not recently updated
Akureyri (best access for the Sulur walk, many possible places to stay at all price levels, here some Farmhouse examples :
http://www.farmholidays.is/FarmDetails.aspx?No=382 - 3km outside central village and from 50 Euro/room
http://www.farmholidays.is/FarmDetails/375/silastadir-i-horgarbyggd - 5km outside central village for larger group comes at 180 Euro/room and night.
and a link to some central positioned hotels
http://www.tripadvisor.se/Hotels-g189954-Akureyri-Hotels.html
typically starts at 200 Euro/night up to 400 Euro.
Grenivik (best access to the Fjördur walk, lies outside village, horse rental in the area)
http://www.farmholidays.is/FarmDetails/393/artun-in-eyjafjordur
starts at 75 Euro/room and night
Myvatn (in general an expensive area due to heavy tourism here)
http://www.farmholidays.is/FarmDetails.aspx?No=420
starts at 89 Euro/night
http://www.farmholidays.is/FarmDetails.aspx?No=425
http://www.farmholidays.is/FarmDetails.aspx?No=430
Myvatn - Bardardal area (shorter access road without 4x4 from Bardardal during dry weather conditions)
http://www.farmholidays.is/FarmDetails.aspx?No=415
typical 120-250 Euro per room and night
Bardardal (good access to Sprengisandur and highland, power trail walk and the myvatn area)
http://www.farmholidays.is/FarmDetails/406/kidagil-in-bardardal
from 92 Euro per night. See also here at their own website:
http://skot19.wixsite.com/englishkidagil where there also are camping facilities on offer.
A bit more remote lies Húsavik, most known for its whale watching excursions and its whale museum, but it is also a good alternative for the traveller who travels by car.
Camping sites
Akureyri
The biggest camping site in Iceland, Hamrar, is located just south of the city centre http://www.hamrar.is. There is another one too more centrally located at Thórunnarstraeti.
More information on renting a bunk house for a group of people www.saeluhus.is . General information on accomodation in Akureyri is here http://www.visitakureyri.is/en/accommodation
Myvatn
There are at least 3 hotels and many many guest and farmhouses in the area.
Check for instance here http://www.eurobookings.com/iceland-is/reservations-myvatn-hotels.sv.html?cur=SEK&as=g&aid=6732391570&dsti=8842&dstt=1&label=bc8842&gclid=CP7z3ty9qbMCFUh2cAodEmUAfQ&akw=+myvatn%20+accomodation&asrc=Search&ast=_+myvatn%20+accomodation or through the services of tripadvisor.com or booking.com.
Closest hostel is this one http://www.hostel.is/Hostels/Arbot/
Please share your experiences with others in the discuss forum on this website !!
