Even though summer had come and gone we – the Danish writer of this article and her travelling companions, two exchange students from Canada and Germany – thought it would not be too late to go see the countryside. In late September,…

Snæfellsjökull Glacier Distance from Reykjavík: ca. 19km Snæfellsjökull glacier, a 1,446-metre high volcano on the western part of the Snæfellsnes peninsula, is among Iceland’s most famous landmarks. The glacier has been the topic of endless speculations over hundreds of years as some…

Notable for its greenhouses and floriculture, Hveragerði locals have made several clever moves to make use of the geothermal heat. The swimming pool Laugaskarð, built in the 1940s, is one of them. Ranking among the top pools in the country, and the…

Time passes easily when visiting the small village of Stokkseyri, situated at the south-coast and only a 45-minute drive from the capital. There are plenty of interesting sites to visit, a gourmet restaurant, Fjöruborðið, specializing in the art of cooking lobster to…

Ten minutes south of Lake Kleifarvatn is Krýsuvík. As these two areas are closely connected, geothermal heat with its bubbling mud pots and hot springs is even more characteristic of Krýsuvík than Lake Kleifarvatn. When driving the main road, you’ll notice the…

At nine square kilometres, Lake Kleifarvatn is the largest lake on the Reykjanes peninsula and the third largest in southern Iceland, although its size tends to vary a bit, especially in recent years. After an earthquake in 2000 the lake started draining…

When I used to think about surfing, I would always connect it with beautiful white sandy beaches, turquoise-blue sea, tropical climate, sun-lotion, shorts or bikinis. Perhaps even some Piña Colada to cool down while relaxing in a small beach-hut between waves. Given…

“It’s not the destination, it’s the journey”, have you ever heard that one? Even upon arrival at Keflavík International Airport the traveller is reminded of the Chatwinesque saying, as it stands out on the Hertz Car Rental ads along the corridors. And…

Hotel Búðir is one of the world’s best hotels – Condé Nast Traveler has said so, as have a few other magazines. And they’re all right. What is more, if Búðir were a four-dollar tent with a sleeping mat, it would still…

Four hours of driving unkept gravel roads, over mountains, across fjords, will take you from Reykjavík to Iceland’s other Reykjanes peninsula, the one that’s happily free of international airports, chav culture and naval bases. This peninsula’s claim to fame is an Olympic-sized…

It takes only ten years of detoxification and total abstinence from cigarettes for a smoker’s body to completely undo the damage of former years of dependence, and return to its original state, as if never touched by the habit of tobacco intake.…

Kjölur – a strip of barren land stretching between the glaciers Langjökull and Hofsjökull, slicing the country north to south like a fence. This highland route, impassable in winter, is drawn out as a thin line in the middle of a gravel…

For the average tourist not in possession of a car, native or otherwise, getting from place to place in Iceland can be a hassle. Choices are usually limited to some form of public transit, be it flying or riding a bus. And…

I’ve been in Iceland three years, and have published about 250,000 words on the culture and tourism industry here. You name a personality, politician, fjord or puffin, and I figured I’d covered it. As I got ready to leave, though, I looked…

“So, are you ready?” “Well, not exactly. But are there alternatives?” The fifth day, I spend in uttermost solitude after leaving the tourist hub Gullfoss on a Saturday morning. It’s not so surprising that I have picked the habit of posing questions…

Tourist-tailored representations of the country – so focused as they are in selling glaciers, hot springs and volcanoes – often tend to neglect the sea as a central element of a travel experience in Iceland. Peculiar and quite unfair: after all, the…

Driving towards Dyrhólaey from the west, the first thing you notice about the colossal rock mass is the bird shit. All around the “door”, splotches of droppings visible from a kilometre away effectively outline the cliff’s outcrops, where the fulmar, sea hen,…

For eight kilometres I’ve been ascending the barren wasteland of Hrafntinnusker, 900 metres above sea level. The snow, common here even in mid-summer, provides a little more resistance. But the contrast of snow against field, and the feeling of exhaustion itself, provide…

“This building used to be a freezing plant,” Viddi’s mom tells us while pouring us a cup of coffee after we have attended a local art show. Viddi’s parents own the building, which now houses a totally different business than filleting fish.…