re: Impulsively booked a flight to Iceland over the weekend. Help me fill in blanks

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We are going in mid November. The goal is to see the northern lights. I know that it is kinda early in the season for that, but it's a craps shot anyway.

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You need to go in with the mindset that if you don't see them, it's ok. I was there in February and didn't get lucky enough to see them, but it was still a great trip. Just gives me an excuse to go somewhere else one day to try and catch them.

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I figure we will be renting a car for the week so basically the whole island is fair game.

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Even if you know how to drive stick, pay the extra money and get an automatic. It can be incredibly windy and if there's ice on the roads, you'll be glad you have it. I think upgrading to an automatic cost me something like $35 for the entire trip (4 days).

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The only thing we have heard to do so far is the Blue Lagoon and that the food sucks.

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In all likelihood, your flight will land early in the morning when it's still dark out. I recommend going to the Blue Lagoon straight from the airport, and spend the morning there. It's cool to see it at night, as the sun rises, and during the day. It's also much emptier first thing in the morning.

The restaurant there is called Lava and it's actually pretty good, but very expensive. That will be a theme of the entire trip, so get used to it. Things are expensive there.

We stayed in Selfoss, Vik, and Reykjavik. I'd recommend doing a glacier hike, though with a 15 month old that might be out of the question. Since you'll have a car, drive the Golden Circle rather than take a tour.

Publick House and The Fish Market were two really great meals we had in Reykjavik, and you also have to get a hot dog for lunch one day at that stand downtown.