The Blue Lagoon was at the top of my bucket list for my Iceland trip. And I’m sure it’s on the top of yours too because why wouldn’t it be? A gorgeous milky blue lagoon you can swim in with a mud mask on your face? What’s not to love.

Well it was definitely an amazing experience. The water was a steamy 40 degrees celsius like a hot bath and it was just a dream to lounge around in there. However a few things were not as I had imagined so I figured I would give you the lowdown with a few tips I picked up.

Go as part of your airport transfer.

I learnt this before I visited the Blue Lagoon. It’s closer to the airport than it is to Reykjavik so most people either opt to go as soon as they arrive or just before they leave. I went for the latter and was able to store my suitcase at their luggage facility for 600 krona (about £3.35 at time of writing).

Book your Grayline bus.

I booked my roundtrip Grayline bus ticket online via Viator and they were super flexible with times, which was handy. You had a set time for the bus from Reykjavik to the Blue Lagoon but then you could choose to take any of their return journeys, either to the airport or back to Reykjavik, when you were ready. So you can basically spend as much time as you want there without worrying about catching the bus. Well that’s if you are going to Reykjavik, I had a plane to catch pal.

Pre-book your ticket and go for the standard package.

Blue Lagoon highly recommend pre-booking your ticket online. As it is such a popular tourist attraction you have to book an hour slot for when you want to enter the spa just so that they can manage how many people arrive I guess. I booked on their website and went for the Standard package (€40) which just includes entry and the mud mask. I really think that’s all you need, the extras on the Comfort and Premium packages are for robes and towels and extra masks, which to be honest I don’t think is necessary. If you’re on the fence, book Standard as you can upgrade to one of the others when you arrive.

Be prepared to queue.

Ugh queues. Aren’t they the worst? I had to queue for everything at the Blue Lagoon. I queued for the luggage storage, I queued to get in the building, I queued for the counter to actually get in the spa and then I queued in the lagoon itself to get a drink from the swim-up bar. I mean there’s nothing you can do about it, it’s a big tourist attraction and you’re going to have to wait for stuff. But it leads me onto my next point…

Give yourself PLENTY of time.

Seriously like loads. I really hadn’t allowed enough time and feel like I didn’t stay as long as I would have liked to. I was picked up by the Grayline pick-up bus at 8.20am which took me to the Bus Terminal. Then the Blue Lagoon coach left at 9am and arrived at 9.45am. I then went through all the queues, changed clothes and they make you shower before you get in (and it’s actually enforced by a woman by the door) so by the time I got to those glorious waters it was 10.45am. My flight was at 3.50pm and so the 2pm bus to the airport would have been cutting it fine. So I had to get the 12pm bus. Which meant I was in the lagoon for an hour. An hour. Despite my pruning fingertips, that wasn’t enough time!! There are steam rooms and waterfall massages and I had been considering getting an in-water massage or grabbing some lunch from the cafe. I needed more time.

Prepare your hair.

Hair is a big deal at the Blue Lagoon. Those dreamy turquoise waters can actually be a bit of a mare for your locks and it normally takes three washes to get it back to normal after your visit. The spa offers conditioner to prepare your hair before you go into the lagoon to help avoid this, but I just think it’s worth knowing. As I was heading straight for the airport after my visit I decided to keep my hair dry. It was totally doable and I just used my red bandana to keep it in place.

Have a mud mask!

This is part of the Blue Lagoon experience and is included in your ticket price. I had read on other blogs before I went that there were loads of tubs full of the stuff around the pool but it took me ages to find it. It’s definitely not all around the pool. The mud masks are supplied out of a hut, kind of like a swim-up bar, and you just help yourself to as much of the deep-cleansing mud mask as you like.

If you opted for the Comfort package this is also where you’ll get your algae mask and a guy in the hut gives it out to people with the correct wristbands. Although I did see him let a few of the Standard peeps have a try, so definitely chat him up for the good stuff when you’re there!

Bring sunglasses.

This is a mistake I made. No sunglasses. The thing is, it was a bright day but not crazy bright so I didn’t think I’d need them. But that lagoon reflects the rays! I spent most of my time there squinting and even saw a few people with sunburn. In Iceland. Bring sunnies, folks.

Bring your own towel and make sure it’s not white.

I actually wasn’t sure if I was allowed to bring my own towel at first because all Instagram photos I’d seen of the Blue Lagoon showed everyone in lovely, fluffy white towels. So I figured you had to use theirs. But I’m so glad I decided to bring one just in case. Firstly because you have to hire their towels if you don’t have one. Which seems like a massive waste of money to me. And secondly, because they’re all white, it’s difficult to keep track of which one is yours. I got a bright yellow towel off of the guys at Expedia at the Traverse conference I went to earlier in the month and could spot my towel from the other side of the lagoon!

I really had an awesome time at the Blue Lagoon, despite only actually being in the water for an hour!! I 100% will be coming back on my next Iceland trip and plan to spend a lot longer being pampered.

Have you been to the Blue Lagoon in Iceland? What did you think? Let me know in the comments below or tweet me @HeelsInBackpack!

Total blogger transparency: I accepted free transport to the Blue Lagoon from Viator but all thoughts and opinions expressed are my own. I wouldn’t play you like that shorty.