Iceland has a population of 400,000. Drivers are very courteous and always stop for pedestrians in crosswalks. They are very conscious of climate change and have more electric vehicles than North American cities. Electricity and heat is cheap but gasoline is ISK 3.15 per litre(CAD $3.53) compared to CAD $1.55 in Vancouver.
I was shocked at the price of restaurants. We never went anywhere fancy and the prices are probably 50% more than we would pay in Canada for an equivalent restaurant. No tipping and all taxes are included in everything you buy. Great food and wonderful service!
There were lupins on the roadside on every road we drove on. They are not native but brought in from Alaska! Only purple lupins in Iceland and with the buttercups it made driving very pleasant. Their national parks have trees that look like we would call a Christmas tree farm! Very small and green. They say if you get lost in the forest, stand up!
I was astonished at the size of the lava flows. It takes about 100 years for moss to grow on a lava flow and there were many lava flows with a lot of moss. The volcano lava at the Blue Lagoon was massive. It covered the road and part of the parking lot. They are working to repair the roads and the parking lot around the lagoon. Volcanos are active for 260 years and then dormant for 800 years!
The 2010 Eyjafjallajökull eruption produced a large amount of ash that was carried by strong winds to Europe. It interrupted air space as aircraft cannot fly through it. Because of the press, it put Iceland on the map as a tourist destination. Before the eruption Iceland had 240,00 visitors a year, last year they had 2.4 million.
Iceland is a wonderful place for a holiday. In the summer you see all the flowers and 24 hours of daylight. In the winter you see the snow and the northern lights. Lots of people rented campers and were driving the ring road. If you want to try that, there are plenty of travel books that can guide you and tell you everything there is to see. It's a very safe country and everyone we met spoke English.
Icelandair flies to Reykjavik from Vancouver and Halifax. Westjet flies direct to Reykjavik from Calgary and Air Canada has direct flights to Reykjavik from Toronto and Montreal.
You can fly to Europe through Reykjavik with a layover and continue on to many European destinations. You can take a bus to the Blue Lagoon that's close to the airport for a few hours to break up your long flight and have a wonderful experience!
Icelandair has some very reasonable air fares. You pay extra for your seat and luggage and those costs are more than North American airlines. If you want food, you order it 24 hours before your flight. They serve free tea, coffee, pop, juice and water. No pretzels or snacks. Internet for our flight was €24.00/CAD$38.47!
Airalo worked great! I got a good signal and always had data.
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