Travel Features
Long-form travel writing about the people, places, sights and sounds of Iceland, as experienced by The Reykjavík Grapevine’s writers over the years.
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Scientist, Just For One Day: Documenting Glacier And Coastal Changes At Katla Geopark
I’m an office rat. I love staring at my computer, typing words for people to read, and knowing my job doesn’t involve being responsible for anyone’s life. I love that, as I type this from my bed in my pyjamas, the quality…
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Into The Green Valley: Camping And Hiking In Þakgil
Ever since I first heard of Þakgil, it has been on my list. A campsite in a secluded canyon? In the highlands, yet so close to the Ring Road? Wait — did you say they have a dining area inside a cave?…
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Following The Weather North: Holiday Weekend In And Around Húsavík
When Verslunarmannahelgi, aka Merchant’s Weekend, aka the last public holiday before Christmas, rolled around in the beginning of August, I did what most Icelanders do that weekend: followed the weather and got the hell out of town. While the capital was drowning…
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Lesser-Known Bird Paradise: Cosplaying David Attenborough At Grímsey
I’m on a boat heading to an island few people have ever set foot on, and even fewer have heard of. Hundreds of clumsy puffins are flapping my way. I’m headed to Grímsey. Like many places in Iceland with identical names (my…
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Surrendering To Strandir: The Edge Of The World Has A Pool
The Strandir region doesn’t give up its secrets easily. Maybe it’s the geography — so remote that stories take longer to travel. Maybe it’s just the way things work out here. Somewhere between the silence and the sea spray lies Trékyllisvík, a…
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A Story To Tell: Hidden Tales Of Djúpavík
“My sister and I went to school on the opposite side of the mountain,” says Héðinn Birnir Ásbjörnsson, pointing across the fjord. “When the roads closed in October or November, we stayed there for a week. In the first years, we had…
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Clocked Out, Clipped In, And Climbing Mt. Esja
Testing Iceland’s first via ferrata One Thursday afternoon, I find myself balancing on a slippery rock somewhere on the outskirts of Reykjavík. One wrong move and, if it wasn’t for a safety harness, I’d be tumbling down this cliff, hoping for a…
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When The Road Calls Again
Chasing spring through the winding roads of Hvalfjörður Oh, that first sunny day after weeks of grey skies and gloom. The one where the sky turns a crisp, cloudless blue, the sun finally breaks through, and the whole world feels just a…
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A First-Timer’s Journey To The Faroe Islands
Weird, windy and wonderful — the Faroes are perfect for exploring without a plan No matter how hard you try not to compare a country you’re visiting to what you already know, it’s inevitable that comparisons creep up. When I spontaneously ended…
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Scraping Tradition: Skrapt Festival Celebrates Underground
My plane makes a swift turn and the clouds part, offering a first glimpse of the unknown land. A rough ocean stretches below, with islands scattered across its surface — tiny, rugged, dramatic peaks covered in emerald green despite the date on…
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Adventure And Bird Conservation On (Not) Björk Island
The study of seabirds takes a team of researchers to the loneliest house in the world While puffins are practically the symbol of Vestmannaeyjar, petrels (a small species of sea birds in the same family as the larger albatross) are much more…
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The Top Of Iceland: Climbing Hvannadalshnúkur, Iceland’s Highest Peak
It was quite pleasant inside the crevasse, once I realised I wasn’t going to die. The ice inside was smooth and pale green, like sea glass, and gave off an other-worldly glow. I looked down—there was quite a lot of down to…
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Into The Highlands: A Five Day Trek Into Iceland’s Wild Interior Desert
Note: Driving in Highlands requires advance research on everything from suitable car types to weather, road conditions, prohibited practises, and river crossings. Visit safetravel.is and road.is for further guidance. The engine judders to a halt, and we step out of the van…