Lava Car Rental vs Black Sheep Campers

Black Sheep Campers is a budget, self-service operator whose entire fleet is 4x4 SUVs rather than built-out campervans. You either sleep in the back of the vehicle on a mattress laid over the folded seats, or in a hard-shell roof-top tent mounted above -- there is no built-in kitchen, no toilet, no sink, and no indoor standing height, and all cooking happens outside on a portable camp stove. The lineup runs from a manual Suzuki Jimny with a roof tent (sleeps two) and Dacia Dusters in both sleep-in-the-back and roof-tent configurations (2017-2019 and 2023 model years, manual, sleeping two-plus), up to a Ford Explorer with sleep-in-back and roof tent that sleeps four, the largest in the fleet. Every vehicle is four-wheel drive, and all but one are cleared for Iceland's F-roads; the sole exception is the automatic Subaru Legacy 4x4, which is also the only automatic Black Sheep offers. Lava Car Rental takes the opposite shape: a Keflavik car-rental company founded in 2016 whose camper segment centers on a single enclosed campervan, the Renault Kangoo, in recent 2024-2025 model years with automatic transmission and 2WD. It is a purpose-built two-person van conversion for paved roads and the Ring Road -- weather-protected and simple to drive, but with no 4x4 option and no highland or F-road access.

The living setups reflect that divide. Black Sheep folds a genuinely complete camp kit into its all-in EUR price: a mattress, two sleeping bags, pillows, sheets and two towels for sleeping; a full camp-stove cooking set (stove, kettle, pots, pan, coffee press, cutlery, dishes and washing-up gear); a passive cooling box rather than a powered fridge; and two chairs and a table (pulled in winter). Taxes and standard insurances are baked into the quoted rate, and mileage is unlimited. The important caveats are heating and water: Black Sheep's only heat is a 220V electric heater offered just from November 1 to April 15 that requires a campsite power hookup -- there is no diesel or parking heater -- and there is no onboard water tank or sink at all, so both warmth and water depend on campsites. WiFi, an extra driver, a roof box and a GPS tablet are paid add-ons. Lava's Kangoo, by contrast, is an enclosed hard-sided van, and Lava bundles its base insurance package -- third-party liability, CDW, super-CDW and gravel protection -- into every rate; its mileage terms and its exact sleeping and cooking inclusions are worth confirming at booking. Both vendors, in other words, fold core insurance into the base price, but Black Sheep leans on outdoor, campsite-dependent camping while Lava gives you an enclosed vehicle you shelter inside.

Pickup and reputation round out the contrast. Black Sheep offers two self-service pickup points -- a lockbox lot beside the BSI Bus Terminal in central Reykjavik and Keflavik Airport (reachable by free shuttle from BSI) -- with flexible self-service returns, a minimum driver age of 20, a 12-month license requirement, and a three-day minimum rental. Lava, by contrast, operates from a single Keflavik Airport base, with no Reykjavik pickup option at all. On cancellation, both are free-cancellation vendors, but the windows differ: Lava allows free cancellation up to 24 hours before pickup, while Black Sheep gives a full refund only if you cancel more than 48 hours out (within 48 hours or a no-show is charged in full, and early returns are not refunded), though Black Sheep takes no deposit at booking, placing only a card hold at pickup. The review picture is a study in sample size versus score: Lava carries a very large footprint at roughly 4.6 on Google (about 4,700 ratings) and 4.2 on Trustpilot (about 3,700), but those cover its entire car-rental operation rather than campers specifically. Black Sheep's numbers are smaller yet camper-specific and higher -- 4.9 on Google from 148 reviews, 4.5 (Excellent) on Trustpilot from 39, and 9.1/10 on the Northbound aggregator from 103 -- with praise for responsive staff, included gear and capable, economical 4x4s, and recurring gripes about self-service lockbox confusion, warning lights on some older Dusters, and cold-weather comfort in the sleep-in-back and roof-tent setups for a minority of renters.