We rented the Highlander 3 to ensure that we had a 4x4 vehicle for the F roads, blackout curtains, and a relatively comfortable (and large) bed to sleep on. The van delivered - it held up well on the F roads and my wife and I were able to sleep relatively comfortably on the bed. The included tablet with a hotspot was such a game-changer! We really appreciated that. Other callouts: the heater was a lifesaver, the cooler was very handy, and we used the blackout curtains every night. The entire electrical system in the back which controlled the heater, cooler, and charging ports was very intelligently designed and we were really impressed how well it worked.
Our actual experience was really great, though we had a few minor hiccups: To start, the instructions for using the provided camping stove were not clear, and we accidentally broke ours by setting it on fire. A very scary situation! Additionally, we rented a power inverter from Cozy Campers, but the power inverter actually blew a fuse in the back electrical system! And finally, in the last 2 days, our cooler stopped working properly.
What stands out, though, is how well Cozy campers responded to our run of bad luck. They were incredibly helpful and gracious - providing us with a replacement stove, directing us to an auto mechanic who addressed our fuse problem, and generally were just very responsive to our issues. They addressed everything to our satisfaction, and throughout it all, the core systems of the van continued to work perfectly well.
We would absolutely go with Cozy Campers again next time we're in Iceland! 5/5 stars for a great vehicle and being incredibly wonderful at addressing all our problems.
Some other useful things to note:
- The blackout curtains get ~95% of the light, not 100%. Additionally, the curtain covering the roof is very finicky; the magnets holding it in place are not very strong and it takes some tweaking to get it to hold. There was at least one time where we didn't get it right and it fell down and hit my wife in the head. However, I was able to sleep easily without a sleep mask using only the curtains.
- The bedding itself didn't actually cover the entire mattress - only about ⅔ of it. We weren't sure whether the bedding was supposed to be that size or we had the wrong bedding. Ultimately it didn't end up bothering us too much, but it could be worth validating that the sheets cover the mattress before you leave Cozy Campers.
- We rented camper chairs and never ended up using them. Generally everywhere we went had seating of some kind.
- Stringing up a clothesline inside the van didn't end up working very well. We were able to use some of the lines holding up the curtains to dry our towels, but hanging our own line proved too difficult. Definitely recommend trying to use dryers at campgrounds (try to look online to see if the campground has them). Alternatively, get strong magnets with hooks on them, and put the clothesline between them.
- Space is *very* limited - packing cubes were a lifesaver, and creating an organizational system was critical.
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