🇯🇵 Japan or 🇮🇸 Iceland
Which one, honestly
Japan leads on cities, food and getting around.
A normal day costs about $165 in Japan and $190 in Iceland.
Side by side
- 🇯🇵 Japan🇮🇸 Iceland
- Mar, Apr, May, Oct, NovBest monthsJun, Jul, Aug, Sep
- $165A normal day$190
- 14h to TokyoNonstop from London3h 20m to Reykjavik
- Not the drawBeaches and seaNot the draw
- ExceptionalCities and cultureGood
- ExceptionalFoodGood
- ExceptionalNature and hikingExceptional
- GoodValue for moneyNot the draw
- ExceptionalEasy to get aroundVery good
- The best rail network in the world, buy the pass before you arriveGetting aroundA hire car on the ring road, and a four wheel drive for the interior
- Golden Week in early May, when the whole country travels at onceWhen to avoidNothing seasonally, but the highland roads are shut from roughly October to June
Pick by what you want
🇯🇵 Choose Japan if
you want somewhere that feels genuinely different, you like cities and food, and you want everything to work perfectly.
🇮🇸 Choose Iceland if
you want landscape above everything else, and you have accepted in advance that it costs more than anywhere else here.
Full Japan guide →Full Iceland guide →
And what the world thinks
Dead even. The next vote breaks the tie.
Compare something else
Written and checked by hand. Nothing here about visas or entry rules: those change often and depend on your passport, so check an official source.