Natural Treasure Lake Jökulsárlón For Sale - Familiar to audiences of such films as Tomb Raider and Batman Begins

Familiar to audiences of such films as Tomb Raider and Batman Begins

The lagoon Jökulsárlón – Glacier-river-lagoon, in a verbatim translation – is for sale. So to speak. The plot of land lying up to the glacial lake’s east bank will be auctioned March 4 2015. This was reported by RÚV.

Reportedly, the owners of the plot have not agreed on how to further develop tourist services by the lagoon. One of the land’s owners, Einar Björn Einarsson, who runs the travel company Jökulsárlón travel services, offered to buy the others’ shares, but was refused. Interviewed by RÚV, he said that he expects to make an offer at the auction. His current rental contract, presumably for those shares not owned by him, is valid until 2024.

Hulda Jónsdóttir, representing eleven percent the plot’s shares, has reportedly opened a Facebook page advertising the lake for sale. Interviewed by RÚV, she expressed joyful sentiments over this turn of events. Meanwhile, other owners seem decisively less joyful. Baldur Gíslason, CEO of some of the land owners’ joint venture Fell, claims that Einar Björn alone has profited from the tourist boom in recent years, while the other owners have not. He says that those other owners have always declared their good will to “solve that”.

Covering an area of about 18 km2, the lake is among the most popular tourist destinations around Iceland’s coastline. It is the deepest lake in Iceland, but its splendour resides not least in icebergs, chunks from glacier Breiðamerkurjökull, that float around in it. The lake’s scenery has appeared in various international film productions, including Tomb Raider, Batman Begins and two James Bond films.

Related: As reported, the government has declared its intention, and last week proposed a law, to charge residents and visitors alike, for access to popular tourist destinations in Iceland’s wild.