According to a new survey conducted by the Travel Office, more
Icelanders are travelling than ever before, despite economic troubles.
Nine out of ten Icelanders said they intend to travel within the country this summer, even though the price of domestic flights has gone up 10% and the price of gasoline is expected to rise.
The cost of hotel accommodation has increased 10-15%, but at the same time, the value of the crown has dropped far more – at this time last year, one USD was worth about 65 crowns, while today, it’s worth about 120. Indeed, 80% of guests to the Blue Lagoon were foreign tourists, and about 90% of those staying in hotels and going on whale watching expeditions are said to be foreigners as well. However, Icelanders are also getting out of doors.
“People are starting to come out here and there are definitely more Icelanders this time around than before,” Ásta Hafberg, the project manager for the East Iceland Marketting Office, told Morgunablaðið.
“We hope the summer’s going to be good,” said Erna Hauksdóttir, director of the Tourist Office. “On the other hand people worry about the fall and winter so it’s clear we need to engage in an aggressive marketting campaign.”