Iceland Insider
Knowing the who, what, where, when, and how is the success key!
For a small country Iceland overflows with natural beauty and history. Often overwhelmed visitors miss many of the nuances surrounding them. Now a guided tour helps all.
Newly announced for summer 2007 is Icelandair Holidays/North America's guided tour appropriately named “Iceland Insider”.
Spend some kronar (Icelandic currency) on your first day in Reykjavik. Shop along the main streets like Laugavegur and Skólavördustígur or cultivate some culture.
ASÍ Art Museum houses contemporary Icelandic artists, and with free admission is a boon to your budget. To further understand Reykjavik a visit to the Árbær Open-Air Museum is a must!
For 50 years the facility’s focus has been the architecture and customs of 19th and early 20th century Reykjavikians.
Fight your jet lag at one of five neighborhood thermal pools. The largest - Laugardalslaug resides in the Laugardalur district. Hot pots of varying temperatures, a 50-meter pool, and an 86-meter-long water slide make it a local’s favorite too.
The next day the western fjords, and the Snæfellsnes Peninsula entice. With an national park and glacier of the same name the volcano, Snæfellsjökull, is legendary thanks to the Jules Verne’s novel. Circle the glacier to discover a part of Iceland’s soul. Discover her beginnings at the Settlement Center in Borganes. Vikings and Celts found the island and the Sagas heralded their efforts.
Admittedly, hakarl ,is an acquired taste – but feel the adventure and sample cured sharkmeat. A quick nip of Brennivin (the local hooch) might help. Next the town of Stykkishólmur provides a colorful backdrop. Leaving her harbor aboard a ship motor into the bay of Breiðafjörður in search of seals and birds. Harbor and grey seals frequent these waters and shorelines, as do puffins, auks and whooper swans.
North Iceland beckons with her sweeping mountain vistas and town and village laden fjords. Gleaming is Akureyri, Iceland’s second largest city and a former Danish merchant town. Different in temperate from her southern more cosmopolitan city sister, visitors here quickly acclimate to the tranquil tempo.
Waterfalls and whales are important components here. Goðafoss’ torrents of fast moving water demonstrate Mother Nature’s sheer power – seeing the power of whales in Husavik’s renowned Whale Center shows Mother Nature’s sense of majesty.
Volcanic activity shaped the Lake Mývatn region. Whether a birder or geology buff – this is your place! Krafla is the volcano and its lava created the menacing dark citadels of Dimmuborgir, pseudo-craters, bubbling mud pots and the Hverfjall crater. Be sure to ask about the trolls! The scenery is surreal and changes drastically as you journey eastwards across a desert to the town of Egilsstaðir.
The tense days of WWII are relived at Reyðarfjörður where both American and British troops guarded the strategically placed North Atlantic island. Now a museum glorifies their efforts.
As Europe’s largest glacier Vatnajökull affects the local economy and the landscape. A dramatic occurrence will be a glacial lagoon boat tour in Jökulsárlónið where icebergs glide. Stunning Skaftafell National Park, in a bowl of ice, is a distinct contrast to the upcoming vast plains of black sand to the west.
Iceland’s typography continues to change when the tour winds westward. Black sand mixes with lava fields and leads to one of the most famous natural sites in Iceland - Dýrhólaey (Key Hole Island).
It is said every breakfast in Iceland comes with cucumbers and cherry tomatoes. Delight in the rich agricultural tradition here – including harnessing the thermal waters.
From your overnight stay in Flúðir visiting Iceland's famous Golden Circle is a snap!
Strokkur hurls hot water high into the air every 3-5 minutes at Geysir Park. Along the drive to Gullfoss, the Golden Waterfall you will notice spirals of smoke like mists scattered across the lunar landscape signaling multiple geysers. The tour ends at Iceland's national treasure Þingvellir National Park. Sitting atop the Mid Atlantic Ridge shards of rock gut from the ground. It was here Iceland’s Parliament was formed over 1,000 years ago.
Iceland Insider is your ticket to the heart of Iceland.
For more information see:www.icelandair.com/
For more articles on Iceland see:iceland-travel.suite101.com/article.cfm/north_icelands_maritime_marvels
iceland-travel.suite101.com/article.cfm/icelands_ghosts_have_a_home
cultural-anthropology.suite101.com/article.cfm/icelands_mystical_beings
