How much does a 12-day trip to Norway and Iceland cost? 【With money-saving tips】

During the National Day holiday, I fulfilled my Iceland dream. The 12-day trip, excluding the first and last days, was about 5 days in Iceland 🇮🇸 and 4 days in Norway 🇳🇴. The experience was definitely worth it, and I will come again next time. Maybe because Northern Europe always has the "expensive" filter, I have been asked how much it roughly cost 💰. Today, taking advantage of a few friends settling their bills, I’m sharing my expenses. Apart from personal spending and pre-trip gear, everything else was fixed costs. The listed items are all per person expenses. Visa 🪪 On the day of submission, I paid over 700 yuan extra for the VIP fast track service. Airfare ✈️ Booked in August. To save over 1,000 yuan, I bought a round-trip ticket from HK to OSL (6100+ yuan). The luggage was checked through via Dubai, but after departing HK, there was a stopover in Bangkok, which made the total travel time very long. Also, I had to travel between Guangzhou and HK, which was very exhausting. I won’t do that next time. Accommodation 🏠 Cheaper than expected because there were four of us, and we always chose Airbnb. Northern European Airbnbs generally have good conditions, are very clean, and come equipped with complete kitchen appliances. The experience is not much different from hotels. Tours 🚌 If you don’t drive in Iceland, you have to join local tours, which include transportation between spots on long routes, entrance tickets, and one night’s accommodation on the second day. Prices vary depending on the length of the tour. We took a three-day tour (2 days Golden Circle + 1 day South Coast), covering all the important sights. On-the-road expenses 🍴 Mainly food and drinks for the four of us. This cost is definitely not luxury but not stingy either. We had the best coffee at must-visit spots and went to several popular restaurants. Eating out in Northern Europe is indeed expensive; 300 yuan per person at restaurants is basic, and breakfast with a coffee and a bread costs about 100 yuan. But many meals were on the road, often solved by supermarket bread, sandwiches, or hot dogs at service areas, costing about 70-80 yuan per meal, which helped lower the overall expenses. Pre-trip gear 👔 If you’re not already well-equipped for hiking, this cost can’t be avoided. Iceland really requires some professional waterproof, windproof, and cold-resistant gear. I bought mostly high cost-performance domestic brands, no super luxury brands. Some friends spent over 10,000 yuan on gear, so this is the most flexible part of the budget.