The Retreat at Blue Lagoon Iceland

We stayed at the Blue Lagoon Iceland Hotel for 2 nights, and the experience fell short of expectations. We wanted to book a massage during our stay, but the only time available was after our checkout at 11:45 AM. The issue? Checkout is at 11:00 AM, and we were told that once we check out, we no longer have access to the spa or facilities. I’ve stayed at several luxury hotels in places like the Maldives, Bora Bora, and Seychelles, and they’ve always been accommodating when it comes to using the facilities after checkout. But here, they offered a half-off discount on a locker fee, which didn’t seem like a fair solution when we were willing to spend more money on their services. The room was another letdown. For $1600 a night, it was small, and there was no desk to work from, which seemed out of place for a hotel of this caliber. In other destinations like the Maldives, you can get an overwater villa with a private pool for less, so the value for money here just wasn’t there. When we arrived, we had to wait around 30 minutes for someone to check us in, which was frustrating and set the tone for the rest of our stay. Overall, the service and value didn’t live up to what you’d expect from such a high-end property. I wouldn’t recommend it based on our experience.

After driving and hiking all over the Western peninsulas of Iceland, spending two nights at The Retreat was the perfect way to end our vacation. There were some common concerns about staying at The Retreat, so to address them: Is there an egg/sulfur smell? Yes, but it might be situational. We stayed in the Lagoon Suite which has access to a separate, private lagoon right outside the bedroom. This lagoon is supplied by a pump that runs throughout the day. When the pump runs, it smells. It is strongest in the morning (the pump probably has to work extra hard the first time each day), but it is still weaker to sulfur water at hot springs in the wild. The smell dissipates shortly after the pump shuts off, and given that there are many reviews say there is no smell at all, we think it could be just a Lagoon Suite (and perhaps neighboring rooms) problem. We only smelled it in the room; the rest of the hotel and the Blue Lagoon itself had no smell in our experience. Noise: Noise insulation is not great in the room. Noise from the hallway is non-existent, but if you're on the first floor you can definitely hear footsteps and things being dragged on the floor above. The aforementioned lagoon pumps are loud enough to go into the room and will be bad for light sleepers. They are supposedly set to run 8am-10pm, but our host mentioned we can ask the hotel to adjust the time if we wanted to use our lagoon earlier/later. We heard the pump running at 7-7:30am, so it's possible that the neighboring suite requested their pump to run earlier. There is also a geothermal power plant neighboring the Blue Lagoon, and it occasionally makes noises that sound like a jet is flying directly overhead (not at night thankfully). If these don't feel like dealbreakers (it sounds bad writing it out but it felt more like minor inconveniences in person), then read on for the many positives The Retreat has. The entire staff at The Retreat was the best service we had at Iceland. I don't know if it's a European thing, but at various other hotels/restaurants (including Blue Lagoon store) throughout the country people seemed... stoic? Service was still great, but it just didn't feel warm. The Retreat staff felt like you were seeing genuine emotion and excitement to help you with whatever you needed, from valet parking to check-in/out to bookings and just general conversation (a good number of the staff are League/DoTA players so The Retreat is a bonus recommendation to gamers who have expendable income to burn) Food at Moss and Lava were delicious, and there is breakfast buffets and afternoon tea provided daily in the lobby at no extra charge. The spa massage (we got 60 minute hot stone massages) was the best we've experienced. We weren't even asked about strength level, but somehow it was at the sweet spot. They also have a free 4 step skin care ritual which we're sure is just a big advertising platform for their products, but it's been a few days and our skin is sti

I've been to many 5* Hotels around the world. In my opinion the Retreat is very overpriced: Location: You can see lava but if you are on the ground floor, not the lava field but just lava stones. around the hotel is not pure nature but also industry and other hotels. Food: Breakfast is okay,. VERY long waiting for coffee every morning. No oatmeal. Rooms: very nice design. but the size of the suites is much to small for 1'700.- / night. Important: SPA: Very strict no-phone rules. I was in the fire room all alone just reading news. I had to put the phone away, even there was noone. If you want tu use the phone, you must allways go back to the spa restaurant. the SPA is very nicely designed. the outdoorpools not crouded. you allways find place for yourself. but inside sauna, steamroom etc. can be quite busy which ist surprising in a luxury spa. in the official blue lagoon you had much more space.

The service at this resort is amazing - all the staff are extremely well trained, helpful and friendly! The rooms are fabulous - truly thoughtfully appointed! The spa ritual is super fun and we really appreciated the complimentary spa products. We dined at Lava and the food was great. The bellman forgot to put our bag in our car and they delivered it to the airport before we even arrived with the rental car shuttle! It is expensive, no question. However, this was a bucket list stay for us - we have no regrets and hope to come back! 🩵

The best hotel in the whole of Northern Europe, no matter the service, location, and everything you can think of, it is worth staying for more than 2 nights. Thank you to all the staff, especially Alessandro, you have gained a loyal customer.

My husband and I stayed here for our five year wedding anniversary. We stayed in the lagoon suite, which was my favourite part as we had our own private lagoon. Our host was amazing, friendly, knowledgeable, and helpful. The setting is so peaceful and beautiful, I know I will be thinking about it for a long time to come. We had room service and it was great. The hotel itself, and the retreat spa is amazing, we loved the yoga room and the library and all of the views of the Lagoon around every corner. I took one star off because the water in our lagoon was a bit cold, which I felt was surprising for July, and despite the staff making a great effort to warm it up for us, it never really reached the point where it was hot. This might not have been a big deal, except the weather was cold and rainy the whole time so that was kind of a downer. I also purchased some products from the store next to the front desk and the woman who helped me purchase. The products told me she would prepare my tax return form and give it to me the next morning at check out, but she didn’t, and unfortunately, I forgot until we were halfway to the airport and I lost over $100 in taxes as a result which was both annoying and disappointing. Overall, I would say it it is definitely worth the money, especially for the lagoon suite. The products they give you when you check into the room were amazing, I will definitely be buying more of the serum. Breakfast and unlimited drinks (soft drinks, wine, beer) included in the stay were also welcome and appreciated. I would go back for sure, and highly recommend it.