MSC Iceland: Port Stop Questions

Hi there, We’re joining an MSC Preziosa cruise in early July from Hamburg via Iceland. The MSC shore excursions are way overpriced, so we’d like to book through Get Your Guide or Tripadvisor. Even though we’re seasoned travelers, this is our first cruise, and we’re not sure about docking durations, arrival ports, disembarkation times, or how far excursion meeting points are from the ship... It’s a bit tricky to plan visits outside the cruise line’s options while making sure we’re back on board in time. Any advice? Thanks for your tips! Danielle

Hi Danielle,

The port where the large ships dock in Reykjavik is a bit far from the city center (just over 4 km to Harpa), but the walk is pleasant and easily doable.



In Reykjavik, tour operators are well aware of the ship docking and departure times, and they’ll pick you up and drop you back at the boat.

Back in 2018 (it’s been a while), we booked the Golden Classic Tour with Gray Line Iceland, and it was great and much cheaper than the ship’s excursion. I imagine Get Your Guide does the same. Often, you just mention you’re on a cruise when booking, and they’ll ask for the ship’s name—it’s that simple. 😉

In 2023, our ship had a two-day stopover, and we rented a car. Some rental companies aren’t too far from the port.

Hi Danielle, We’re taking the exact same cruise on the same date and just booked 3 excursions with Get Your Guide (the 2 in Reykjavik and the one in Akureyri). This’ll be our first time using this company, but we’ve only heard good things about them, and they seem well aware of cruise-related constraints. As for cruises themselves, we’ve done quite a few—including one on the Preziosa, the inaugural voyage from Saint-Nazaire to Genoa! If you have any questions about the ship or cruises in general, I’d be happy to try and answer them.

Hi Danielle,

I wrote a review about this cruise. - It’s a bit old, but you can still find some useful info.

Just so you know, MSC surprised us by reversing the stopovers, doing the Iceland tour in the opposite direction of what was planned... I was lucky that the tour operator agreed (and was able) to change the day of my visit to Akureyri since there were no other boats available on the new day!

https://voyageforum.com/forum/retour-croisiere-msc-preziosa-ecosse-islande-13-24-aout-2017-d8225995/

This Iceland cruise remains one of my favorites.

Happy planning! Best regards, Claudine