Westman Islands, Jewel of the South Coast
“You haven’t seen Iceland until you have visited the Westman Islands!” is a direct quote from visitwestmanislands.com. This cluster of volcanic islands, located off the south coast of Island, is stuffed to the brim with examples of amazing nature. Mountains, islands, volcanoes and of course a wide variety of sea birds, including puffins.
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Water Supply To Westman Islands Badly Damaged, Alert Phase Declared
There is a danger that the water supply to the Westman Islands will be cut off after being damaged on Nov. 18 by an anchor dragged by the trawler Huginn VE. The National Commissioner of Police, in consultation with the Chief of…
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Canadian Prime Minister To Visit The Westman Islands
Prime Minister of Canada Justin Trudeau will be a special guest at the Nordic Prime Ministers’ Summer Meeting being held in the Westman Islands on June 25 to 26, RÚV reports. Iceland is hosting this year’s summer meeting as the current chair of the Nordic…
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MATEY Seafood Festival Starts In Westman Islands
MATEY Seafood Festival will take place on September 8-10th. The festival aims to celebrate food and producers of the Westman Islands, claimed to be one of Iceland’s biggest on the world gastronomic map. [su_pullquote]Best of Reykjavík 2022 Autumn edition is out! To…
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Beluga Whales’ Move To Klettsvík Bay Postponed
Beluga whales Little White and Little Grey, based at the Sea Life Trust Beluga Whale Sanctuary in Heimaey in the Westman Islands, were supposed to move to a new home in Klettsvík bay. Their move has been postponed until the spring, RÚV…
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Discussions About Tunnel To Westman Islands Resumes
The Westman Islands town council agreed to resume talks with the national government regarding a tunnel between the mainland and the islands, reports RÚV. [su_pullquote]Who better to ask what’s best in Reykjavík than the people who live here? Every year we round…
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Belugas Receive New Home In Klettsvík Bay
The belugas were captured as babies when they were only around 2 years old from their home in the arctic waters of Russia, and sold to an aquarium in Shanghai for entertainment. [su_pullquote]Are you going to Iceland in the near future? Check…
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Trash Cans In Westman Islands Have Gotten A Colourful Look
According to Vísir, the trash cans in Westman Islands have gotten a new look. They have been decorated over this summer, because the people living in the islands wanted them to stand out. The project was carried out by three of the…
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Family Rescues A Kittiwake In Westman Islands
According to Vísir, a family in the Westman Islands has taken a kittiwake under their wings. It seems like the bird has become a new member of the family. The bird was rescued by the son of the family, Andri. His mother,…
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Capitalists, Celebrate: Your Guide To Merchants’ Weekend 2020
Legend has it that every year on the first weekend of August a great and mighty Icelandic boat dude would disembark his vessel and pass out on the shoreline after a couple of brennivin-fuelled choruses of “Ja Ja Ding Dong.” And thus…
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The Westman Islands: Craft Beer, Fine Food, Volcanoes & Puffin Watching
The Westman Islands are a mountainous archipelago just south of Iceland’s mainland. The most scenic way to get there is to drive and catch the Herjólfur ferry, then zip between the town, the Nýja Hraun lava field, and the Stórhöfði peninsula. Here’s…
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World’s First Open Sea Beluga Whale Sanctuary To Open In Iceland
Two beluga whales are set to make a journey from China to Klettsvík bay, in Iceland’s Westman Islands this month. The archipelago will house the first open sea beluga whale sanctuary in the world, but some are wary about transporting these whales…
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Island Life: Pakistani Cuisine, Lamb Eating Contest, Shiny New Westman Islands Ferry
Seyðisfjörður, the cultural hub of East Iceland, recently played host to a free course in Pakistani cuisine. While that course has come and gone, there are Pakistani evenings every Friday in town. This event is organised by one Azfar Karim of Pakistan,…
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The Kindness Of Strangers: Searching For Puffins In The Westman Islands
In the Westman Islands, opportunities for seeing puffins—the colourful seabird often associated with the north Atlantic—are manifold. You can enjoy the raw but very dead heart of the puffin for your glorious, carnivorous lunch. You can also buy stuffed puffins in gift…
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Best Of South Iceland 2018: Best Sightseeing Tour
Southern Iceland is home to most of the most popular tourist routes in Iceland—with good reason. The coastal Ring Road road from Reykjavík to Höfn is a trail of picturesque towns, black sand beaches, dramatic mountains, powerful waterfalls, basalt cliffs, towering glaciers…
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Best Of Iceland Awards: South
Welcome to Grapevine’s Best Of Iceland—a guide to the best hikes, hotels, must see spots, eateries, road trips, tours, shops and more, all around the black shore of this rocky subarctic isle. We assembled panels of locals, travellers and Iceland experts to…
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Growing Food Shortages In Isolated Westman Islands
With shipping to and from Heimaey seriously disrupted, the island chain’s only populated island, supermarkets have started to look deserted, reports MBL. “I just came from the store where people were hoarding milk,” local man Valur Smári Heimisson told MBL. “Very few…
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World Record For Puffin Rescue Broken
The annual rescue of puffin chicks in the Westman islands has just been highflying so far, and never before have more chicks been found and sent back to sea, reports Visir. A total of 3,896 baby puffins have been found and weighed in…
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Heimaey Town Guide: Fine Dining And A Living Landscape
Vestmannaeyjar—or the Westman Islands—are one of Iceland’s most dramatic spots. Accessible daily by plane or ferry, this tiny volcanic archipelago of eleven islands—and some smaller islets—is home to just one town, located on the main island of Heimaey. The twin volcanoes of…
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Jun Jun Dead, What Next For Westman Islands?
Last month, the Grapevine reported on plans to import three beluga whales to an enclosure in the Westman Islands, as a part of a large exhibition of sea creatures. These plans, however, have been put in jeopardy following the sudden passing of…
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Outside Reykjavík: A Whaling Station and a WWII Base
Road Trip: Hvalfjörður A question we often get is: “I’ve a hire car, and a free day—where should I go?” Obvious answers are Snæfellsnes and the south coast. But a less-travelled road is Hvalfjörður. This picturesque fjörd is near Reykjavík, and packed…
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Lightning Seen In Reykjavík Actually Touched Down In Westman Islands – VIDEO
Readers across the greater capital area reported seeing a flash of lightning during yesterday’s storms, but the lightning itself actually touched down in the Westman Islands, some 140 kilometres away – and one Icelander was there to record it. As reported, storms…
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Volcano Island: A Weekend In Vestmannaeyjar
The tiny propellor plane descends into the clouds, buffeted by the ferocious wind. Along with my twelve or so fellow passengers, I’m jolted left and right as a tiny sea stack appears in the round window through a blanket of fog. A…
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2016 In Travel: Small Towns, Ice Caves, Volcanoes, Islands
To look back on Grapevine’s year in travel, we decided to first go the empirical populism route, and drew up a list of the most clicked, liked and read stories we published in 2016. The first noticeable pattern was that our…