I would love a day of surprises,” my wife replied when I asked her what she wanted for her birthday. I groaned on the inside. Organizing parties is definitely not one of my strengths. I would have loved an answer like “jewelry always works darling.” But since my wife pampers me much more than is good for me and I deserve, I just nodded and smiled, remembering the eternal wisdom of “Happy wife, happy life. It was time to buck up and rise to the challenge. It was time. I was planning a surprise birthday for my wife in Reykjavik. So if you are a husband, here is my free five-step guide to plan a surprise birthday for your wife in Reykjavik.
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Step 1: Start with the fish of the day
Well, this was not too difficult, Reykjavik is a fun city, and my wife is also fun and easygoing. So this was much less of a challenge than my whining indicates. First off, I wanted a nice lunch to start things off. We both enjoy Reykjavik harbor, and one of the best restaurants there is Kopar. So I booked a table there using the handy Dineout app. It was great; we both ordered fish of the day and got delicious Ling. Pro tip: When ordering at Reykjavik restaurants, it is often a good idea to order the fish of the day. It is often economical, and the chefs seem to put a lot of work into those dishes.
Step 2: Comfort Austrians about Icelandic prices!
After our meal, we both yearned for coffee and decided to get coffee at Reykjavik Röst. We sat down and met a young Austrian couple enjoying coffee and sandwiches. Well, the lady was enjoying her refreshment while the man complained about Iceland being so expensive. We chuckled at this; after all, we live here! However, we did our best to give them tips on saving money in Iceland. They were starting their Iceland road trip, and I hope they had a lovely time. I saw them off and reminded them to stay safe when driving. Narrow Icelandic roads are not exactly like European freeways.
Step 3 of my free plan for a surprise birthday for your wife in Reykjavik is soaking in a spa
After lunch, I thought it would be nice to head to a spa. I have always liked Hreyfing gym, although I have not worked out there in years. However, I was sure that their hotel would be nice. So I booked a summer offer at Hreyfing Spa, which was great. We had this silica and steam treatment which made our skin soft as silk. We came out of it super-relaxed and ready for step 4.
Step 4: Soar to the top of Mt. Esja on a helicopter.
The next step was heading to Reykjavik airport, where I had arranged for us to fly on a helicopter to the top of Mt. Esja with my friends at Norðurflug (Helicopter. is). It is a short hop, but you get this fantastic view of the city and the islands on the bay, and you also see the surprisingly impressive cliffs of Mt. Esja. The pilot, Julius, was a young, fun guy who could barely hide his excitement about becoming a father for the first time.
Pro is staying cool under pressure.
We teased him about how his life would change forever, but Julius is a cool dude who was unfazed about our exclamations about losing sleep and lifelong commitments. He was one of those pros who you trust instantly. He called fuel “motion lotion” and made jokes. But I noticed how meticulous he was about his checklist, how he pronounced his communication with the flight tower very precisely and focused on his flying. He asked whether we wanted the sporty takeoff, which we enthusiastically agreed to. And we zoomed towards Mt. Esja across the bay. When we approached the mountain, my wife decided where to land. From Esja, we got this amazing view of Reykjavik and its surroundings from a new angle. We got another exhilarating sporty take-off when we took off from the mountain. The helicopter ride was a big win.
Step 5: Take your wife to a country hotel that claims to have four stars
Lastly, I wanted to go on a little road trip and stay at a lovely country hotel. So I booked a hotel near Hella which claimed to be four stars hotel. It suffices to say that the road trip was nice, but the hotel was perhaps not quite four stars! The hotel experience can be summed up in the following anecdote: When we walked in through the entrance, the lady at the counter looked at us very surprised and exclaimed: “where are you going so nicely dressed?” But to be fair we did get a really nice good night sleep there.
We both agreed that my surprise day in Reykjavik had not been too bad, and practice makes perfect. So we will do more of these in the future.
