TRAVEL: Dubliners warm up to Iceland

By Darren Kinsella

DESPITE its chilly name, Iceland is really hot when it comes to a holiday destination with a difference.

Home to some of Europe’s biggest glaciers, active volcanoes, geothermal hot springs, cave explorations and skiing, a trip to the land of ice and fire is definitely one that’ll linger long in the memory banks.

It’s now easier, and relatively cheaper, than ever before to fly direct from Dublin to Reykjavik and visitor numbers are increasing. 

During 2014, Iceland saw a total of 969,181 international visitors, and that increased to 1,261,938 visitors last year. Earlier this year, Wow Air announced that it’s increasing capacity on its Dublin to Reykjavik route by 70 per cent this summer.

The low cost airline will by flying out five times weekly from May 30 and its founder, Skúli Mogensen, admits even he’s surprised by demand for the route that his company only introduced in 2015.

“Our Ireland-Iceland service has exceeded our expectations with continued strong bookings on the route since our first Dublin flight only seven months ago,” he said.

“Many Irish are visiting Iceland for short breaks while also flying with us to the US, via Reykjavik.”

Iceland’s tourism industry is responding to the increasing number of visitors, so there’s lots to look forward to this year.

One of the highlights will be Iceland’s third annual Secret Solstice Festival that’s taking place during the summer solstice weekend on June 17-19. The sun doesn’t set for three days straight, making for a surreal experience and the festival is packed with music performances. This year’s line-up includes Radiohead, Deftones, Roisin Murphy and St Germain. Festival tickets cost around €177.

Later in the year, from November 2-6 to be exact, the Iceland Airwaves Festival takes place, showcasing both Icelandic and international new alternative music. This year, the line-up includes Axel Flovent, GKR, Julia Holter and Lush. Tickets cost around €140.

Reykjavik Culture Night on August 20 is worth centring a visit to Iceland around. It’s an essential part of cultural life in Iceland, with thousands of people lining the streets of the Icelandic capital for an evening of traditional cultural activities along the streets, in museums and even in residential gardens.

With about 100.000 guests Culture Night is the biggest and most popular festival in Iceland. All festival events are offered free of charge, meaning great value for visitors to the otherwise expensive icy island.

Another popular Icelandic festival worth checking out is The Great Fish Day. The annual event takes place in Dalvíkurbyggð and is held on the first or second Saturday in August.

During the festival fish producers invite guests to a sea food buffet between between 11am-5pm at the harbour in Dalvík. The reason for this generous offer is simply to get as many people as possible together to taste fish and enjoy a good day out.

There’s a real carnival atmosphere and a versatile menu with new dishes on offer alongside traditional fishy treats. Expect grilled fish burgers served with bread and sauce, fresh Japanese shrimp, herring and lots of home made whole wheat bread with Icelandic butter.

Available to guests from September 1, the family owned North Aurora Guesthouse in North Iceland near Lake Mývatn will open two large hot tubs and an outdoor swimming pool from where guests can watch the northern lights.

The baths will be open from 10pm to 1am and will be lit only by candlelight to maximise the experience. A double room in the guesthouse costs from €117.

Fans of the Icelandic BBC series ‘Trapped’ will be able to get a guided tour to the most recognised locations in the series, which is based in Siglufjörðurm.

Surrounded by mountains, roads in and out of the area were unusable in winter months, meaning people were trapped for months, and that sparked the idea for ‘Trapped’.

Local Icelandic operator, The Traveling Viking, has begun tours of Siglufjörðurm.

Visitors can walk in the footsteps of Trapped’s main characters, Andri and Hinrika, learn about life in Siglufjörður and experience rural Icelandic life. The tour costs around €155 from ttv.is/en/summer/the-trapped-tour.

You can fly directly to Reykjavik with Wow Air (www.wowair.ie) or SAS (www.flysas.ie). Package tours are available from Abbey Travel.