For the second instalment of our Iceland trip, I want to take you to the stunning Ion Hotel in Thingvellir National Park. As I mentioned last week, the weather while we were there was beautiful and sunny...if you were sitting in the warm cosy indoors looking out, as the wind was up to 40 mph some days!

And there isn't a more perfect place to sit and stare and the amazing landscape than at the Ion Hotel.

The glass-walled Northern Lights bar was the perfect place to sip cocktails at the end of our exhausting day exploring. It would also (as the name suggests) have been the perfect place to watch the Northern Lights, but we weren't to be that lucky on this occasion.

The hotel is perched on the stilts at the foot of Mount Hengill and even though it's only an hour away from Reykjavik, it feels worlds away. The start design of the hotel exterior is perfectly reflected inside with super stylish, minimal interiors. The polished concrete floors are complemented by soft sheepskin chairs, warm fireplaces, soft fluffy duvets and stunning artwork; supersize images of Icelandic ponies decorate the bedroom walls.

Whilst on the topic of Icelandic ponies, I need to say that I LOVE them and am in awe - they are so adorable, hairy and brave - beautiful little creatures bred survive the extreme weather conditions there. Amazing! Every time we drove past any I made Patrick stop and take lots of pictures, some of which are below. Just gorgeous and so tiny compared to the vast landscape that surrounds them.

Back at the hotel, the restaurant served delicious and elegant Icelandic food - dishes we tasted included arctic char and lamb carpaccio. We were exhausted so ate quite early then had a quick night cap in the bar {to take in that amazing scenery one last time} before crawling into our very cosy bed.

It was a stunning hotel and I would highly recommend it to anyone visiting Iceland. As with the rest of this trip, we booked our accommodation through i-escape.

Next week the final part of our trip and a stay at Hotel Ranga, where the rooms are quirky and the food was out of this world!

LBM

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