Iceland Tourism Associaton - Hittumst 2011

"Hittumst" 2011 - Icelandic Tourism Association Slideshow: Reykjavik’s trip to Reykjavík, Iceland was created by TripAdvisor. See another Reykjavík slideshow. Create a free slideshow with music from your travel photos.

Iceland Tourism Association - Hittumst 2011 - Natura Hotel. Ferðamálasamtök Íslands stóðu fyrir hittingi fólks úr ferðaþjónustu 11. október 2011.

Bjork at Airwaves in Reykjavik Iceland

Bjork is Iceland’s best knows musician and for a good reason too. I’ve got great respect for her for preserving her own style of music and not selling out to some of the great record labels. If she had sold her music to the big companies she would have lost some if not most of her artistic liberty of expression.

Bjork is probably the most famous Icelander – ever!

 When I work as a tour guide I love telling people about Bjork because she is often the only person foreign visitors in Iceland know prior to their visit. For better or worse. What many people do not know is that Bjork has tried her hand in many different styles of music ranging from raw rock to jazz. Who would have thought?

Bjork’s jazz album Gling Glo sells steadily in spite of the fact it came out perhaps 15 years ago. Bjork wasn’t all that serious about the album at the time but it produced an unforgettable song – Oh So Quiet.

If you’re in town and want to get the best advice on what music to buy, go to the store 12 Tonar (12 Tones) on Skolavordustigur street. The shop is in an old corrugated iron building ( you go up some steps) which stands on the left hand side of the street, about half way up, as you walk up towards the landmark memorial church in Reykjavik – Hallgrimskirkja – which looks like a space shuttle about to lift off.

Airwaves Music Festival Reykjavik Iceland 12-16 October 2011

Iceland Airwaves Reykjavik Iceland 2011 starts October 12 and runs until October 16^th. The main event is sold out but there are off-venue events also which remain free and open to everyone. Try listening to some music in a local swimming pool! Or a hostel!

Gus Gus, YACHT, Monsters of Men and more are some of the local bands sure to rock your socks off! Personally, although mainstream, I find Monster of Men’s music most enjoyable. Singing, lyrics and music – I’m a fan.

Apart from those mentined there are about 200 other acts – Sinead O’Connor – remember her? Wonderful singer and wonderful music out of Ireland.

Expect to party with 10.000 other music fans this week in Reykjavik.

Most of the events take place in the evening so there is plenty of time to see the sights. Try the Reykjavik Bike Tour with Reykjavik BikeTours every day at 10 AM, or Whale watching with Elding Whale Watcing Company every day (weather permitting) at 1 PM.

Winter Bike Tour in Reykjavik Iceland

Why not bike in the snow? Dress properly and you'll enjoy the ride just as much! Click here to see a video.

French schoolgroup bicycles through Reykjavik

French schoolgroup from Maison Familiale in La Tour d'Aigues in the south of France near Aix en Provence. They enjoyed a guided tour of Reykjavik Iceland in the French language. 

Bicycle to health - Get rid of your flabby stomach

According to a new study, just five minutes of cycling a day can keep flabby tummies at bay. Read Sun's article about Alexandra Burke experience. Getting fit is just like riding a bicycle - she says.

Bicycle to health.

Bicycle around Iceland Rondje-ijsland

Maurice de Keijzer from the Netherlands will bicycle around Iceland 16-23 August to collect some money for KIKA - the foundation of Children with Cancer in the Netherlands.

Þórdís, Maurice's daughter age 3, died in 2009 from cancer.

If you would like to donate money to this great cause, or just to find out more about Around Iceland on a Bicycle Event - then visit www.rondje-ijsland.nl.

Iceland volcano

A study has found that it is unlikely that the UK will see another eruption within the next 56 years like the one in volcano Eyjafjallajokull in Iceland last year.

BBC reports on a study published in the journal Geology - Another giant ash cloud 'unlikely' in our lifetimes.

Auf zwei Rädern durch Reykjavik

"Für mich ist es immer etwas Besonders, eine Fahrradtour in meiner deutschen Muttersprache führen zu dürfen. Wenn die Gäste dann auch noch aus meiner Heimatstadt Nürnberg kommen, ist das natürlich das Tüpfelchen auf dem I", strahlt Ursula Spitzbart, Mitbegründerin von Reykjavik Bike Tours. Das junge Familienunternehmen bietet nun bereits das dritte Jahr geführte Fahrradtouren in und um Islands Landeshauptstadt an. Kurz vor dem Nürnberger Herbstvolksfestes hatte der Festwirt Peter Lössel, besser bekannt als "Gigerlas Lössel", eine private Fahrradtour gebucht. Nicht fehlen durfte bei der familienfreundlichen Fahrt auf zwei Rädern ein Stop an der bekannten Reykjaviker Würstchenbude "Bæjarins beztu", die Stadtbesten - wurde sie doch im gleichen Jahr, 1937, eröffnet wie die Imbissbude von Familie Lössel! Die "Eine mit allem" anstelle der in Nürnberg üblichen "Drei im Weckla" mundete allen Familienmitgliedern vorzüglich.

Paula (12), Peter, Ludwig (9) und Elisabeth Lössel.

"Auch die Kinder stufen deine Radtour auf der Beliebtheitsskala ganz oben ein!" resümieren die Nürnberger Islandbesucher am Ende ihres Urlaubes.

Gay Pride Reykjavik Iceland

Gay Pride in Reykjavik takes place 4-7 August this year. It is an amazing festival enjoyed by hundreds of gay and 50.000 non-gay people. 

The Gay Parade in Reykjavik takes place on Saturday and starts from the BSI long distance bus station for the first time. The reason why the parade does not start at the top of Laugavegur, Reykjavik's main shopping street, is because the procession has become too big and floats have become too many and too large for the small street.

Participants in the Gay Parade spend days, even weeks and months, preparing for the event. Dressed in colourful and often shiny and glittering outfits they dance to the music rhythm played on a mobile music system carried on several floats.

Gay Prime minister Johanna Sigurdardottir, Prime minister in Iceland since May 2009 and the first openly gay Prime minister in the world, proposed a bill for same sex marriages in Iceland. The law took effect in 2010.

Reykjavik Bike Tours

More dedicated bicycle paths in Reykjavik

Reykjavik's major Jon Gnarr and city council promised in January 2010 to add significantly more bicycle paths in the city. Well, today - August 2011 - only 3 km have been or are about to be built. The ambitious plan was to build 20 km of dedicated bicycle paths in two years.

Aparently it is financing that is causing the delay. The money was supposed to be borrowed from the European Investment Bank.

Morgunbladid reports.

Paul and Hanna's Golden Circle bicycle tour

Hannah and I departed for pastures blue and in Iceland we found a place uniquely beautiful and diverse. We had travelled independently as we usually do but had prebooked a few bits such as whale watching and snorkelling. One thing that caught our eye though was the opportunity to go on a cycling tour of The Golden Circle, having heard of the way people can be shepherded through the key sites a bit too quickly we wanted to see things a little more closely and with the wind between our … Well you get the picture.

Paul's blog about Reykjavik Bike Tours - Iceland biking with Reykjavik Bike Tours

Gay Iceland

Iceland is an incredibly gay-friendly destination. The locals are relaxed and friendly and gay visitors are always given a warm welcome.

Reykjavik Gay Pride takes place 4-7 August 2011. If you are too late to book a flight to this chilled out capital, visitors can still enjoy a lavender-tinged ambience at Trúnó, the only gay café in the capital. Trúnó is a friendly, laid-back café with tiny library of queer literature, easy listening background music and lilac walls. The charming Norwegian waitress told me that the word ‘trúnó’ translates as ‘when you sit down and have a heart to heart with somebody and tell your deepest secrets...’

The fabulous nightclub, Barbara, is next door, and you can’t miss it with its bright pink walls and rainbow flags everywhere. Start the evening with a cocktail at Trúnó then party late into the next morning with Barbara.

Original article by Lucy Mallows - Gay Iceland

Lucy Mallows writes about Reykjavik Bike Tours in Iceland

‘Follow me!’ shouted gentle giant Stefan, as he set off, pedalling along the middle of the road straight towards an oncoming car, which, with Icelandic good manners, slowed down and gave way. Our group of novice cyclists followed in slightly less cavalier fashion, through the streets of Reykjavik, Iceland’s cycle-friendly capital.

Original article by Lucy Mallows - Reykjavik: Cycling, swimming, and partying till dawn

Two types of bicyclists in Iceland

People are different and people use bicycles for different reasons. Wade Shepard wrote an entertaining article about his experience on the matter while cycling around Iceland. He points out that while he and a fellow bicyclist share the road, they do not share the same passion for riding a bike. Wade uses the bike as a means of transport between beautiful places and real life experiences such as encounters with local people from Reykjavik Iceland and elsewhere. He runs into an avid cyclist whose mission is to ride a bike in his spandex outfit and collect sattelite co-ordinates of the journey. 100 km a day.

Source article - Two Styles of Bycycle Travel in Iceland.

Tour de Hvolsvöllur rekindled

Tour de Hvolsvöllur bicycle race in Iceland has been rekindled after a break of several years.

Three distances are on offer 9 July 2011 - 110 km, 48 km and 14 km.

Those cycling the furthest start at 08:00.

Tour de Hvolsvöllur home page

Difference between Eyjafjallajokull eruption and Grimsvotn eruption for aviation

The Eyjafjallajokull volcano erupted in April 2010, causing prolonged closure of European airspace. 100,000 flights were cancelled during the volcanic ash crisis in April 2010, with over 10 million people affected. 8,200 flights were cancelled on the first day of the crisis alone.

Read the full article on TravelDailyNews.

Reykjavik Bike Tours

Volcanic eruption in Iceland seems to be over

The Grimsvotn Lakes eruption in Vatnajokull glacier in Iceland seems to be over. Volunteers from the general public, unpaid rescue team workers, as well as the minister of tourism have joined hands to help the local people in a cleanup operation.

The eruption in Grimsvotn Lakes started Saturday, May 21, and produced more ash in only a couple of days than the infamous Eyjafjallajokull’s much longer eruption in 2010. This time, however, the ash was not as fine grained and did not spread as much as in last year‘s eruption, which is particularly good news for the aviation and tourism industries.

Iceland‘s international airport in Keflavik, 35 miles from the capital city Reykjavik, was closed one day as a safety precaution. In hindsight, it may not have been necessary to close the airport as the ash cloud did not reach it. Aviation authorities in Europe had better information this time on which to base airport closures than during last year‘s eruption. The experience gained from last year’s eruption avoided a repeat aviation chaos across Europe.

Ash is being cleaned from roads, village streets, residences, and institutions in the affected area south of the volcano.

The summer tourist season is under way and tourists have returned to the area.

First published on eTurboNews.

Reykjavik Bike Tours

Iceland eruption frightful for tour operators

The eruption which started in Grimsvotn Lakes in Vatnajokull glacier in the southeast of Iceland about 350 km from Reykjavik on Saturday night reminds many of last year's eruption in Eyjafjallajokull.

“It’s a frightful situation for us and the tourism industry in Iceland,” said Rannveig Gretarsdottir, the CEO of Elding Whale Watching Company in Reykjavik, “We’re at the start of the tourist season, and I am afraid that the eruption will physically, or mentally, discourage foreign tourists from visiting the country. All we can hope for at this stage is that the eruption ends soon and for flights to return back to normal.”

“In our first year, we dealt with the banking crisis, in the second year, we dealt with the eruption in Eyjafjallajokull, and now, in our third year, we get to deal with another eruption,” said Ursula Spitzbart, the CEO of Reykjavik Bike Tours, “These are trying times for us in the bicycle tour business, as well as everyone else in Iceland involved in tourism.”

Last year’s eruption in Eyjafjallajokull started on March 20 and petered out in May. Visitor numbers compared to the previous year dropped by 20 percent in April and May due to cancellations and disruptions of flights. The end result for visitor numbers in 2010 was on par with 2009, which was a record year.

It is difficult to predict how long an eruption can last. The last eruption in Grimsvotn Lakes in Vatnajokull was in 2004 and lasted for a week. There have been several eruptions in Grimsvotn Lakes in the last decades, and they have all been relatively short lived. An eruption in 1873 lasted 7 months, but intensity was relatively low during that time. After a forceful start to this eruption, it started to show reduced activity on day 2 (Sunday).

This article was written by Stefan Helgi Valsson, first published on eTurboNews 23 May 2011.

Icalandair cancels flights due to volcanic eruption

An eruption started in Grímsvötn lakes in Vatnajokull glacier yesterday evening. The eruption is on a 500-800 meter long fissure, or cauldron, according to geophysicist Magnus Tumi at the University of Iceland.

Sources quoted in the local media say this eruption is much more powerful than the infamous eruption in Eyjafjallajokull which took place from March through May last year. This said, it is likely not to cause as much trouble to aviation as the eruption in Eyjafjallajokull.

The asp plume has already risen to 20 km above sea level, 4 km higher than in the Eyjafjalljokull eruption last year. However, the ash is grainier which probably means that it won’t travel as far as the ash from Eyjafjallajokull. Latest reports say the eruption is waning.

Iceland’s international airport in Keflavik, 35 miles from Reykjavik and 200 miles away from the eruption, is closed – some say unnecessarily because there is no ash in the area yet.

The airport’s closure caused Icelandair to cancelled flights to Iceland this afternoon from Amsterdam, Paris, London, Copenhagen, Stockholm, Oslo, Helsinki, Bergen/Stavanger. As a result flights from Iceland to Copenhagen, London, Stockholm, Oslo, Washington, Toronto, New York and Boston are cancelled.

During last year’s eruption flights were redirected to Akureyri airport in the north of Iceland and Icelandair moved its hub to Glasgow in Scotland. No decision of this kind has been made for the present eruption yet.

Everyone in Iceland is safe and there is no immediate threat to human lives.

Volcanic eruption in Iceland

A volcanic eruption started in Iceland Saturday night 21 May 2011.

This time the eruption is in Eyjafjallajokull glacier - Europe's largest glacier.

The eruption is about 350 km away from Reykjavik and there is no sign of ash yet in the capital city of Iceland.

Flights are expected to be diverted, in fact Icelandair has cancelled all fligths to the country in the afternoon but all its planes managed to leave the country this morning with out problems.

Eyjafjallajokull eruption which started 20 March 2010 and lasted until May the same year caused great problems for avaiation.

This eruption is the largest of 23 eruptions that Omar Ragnarsson, the volcano newsreporter expert formerly at the State Television and Radio, has ever seen.

The ash plume rises 20 km in the air, 4 km higher than the ash plume from the Eyjafjallajokull eruption. This said, the ash is not as fine as in Eyjafjallajokull eruptions which means it will probably not travel as far.

The effects of the eruption is difficult to predict but it is certain that it will have immediate effect on air travel in Iceland this afternoon.

There is no danger to people, buildings or bridges at this stage.

Watch this blog.

Most bicyclists in Reykjavik Iceland use a helmet

83 per cent of bicyclists in the Greater Reykjavik Area in Iceland use a helmet. This is the result of a recent field observation commissioned by VIS insurance company in Reykjavik.

Automatic counters were installed in seven locations in the city. A total of 1.045 cyclists passed in three days. 867 used a helmet. The results are comparable to previous field observations by the Iceland Sports Union on helmet use by bicyclists.

“We always ask our guests to use a helmet on our tours,” says Ursula Spitzbart of Reykjavik Bike Tours in Reykjavik Iceland. “If guests insist on not using a helmet they must sign a release in case of an accident”. But there are no exceptions for those 15 years and younger because according to the law they must wear a helmet. “We are strict about the use of helmets and all our guides wear a helmet to set a good example,” says Ursula.

“This said, a helmet may provide false security but at least it looks good in the pictures and it keeps our guest’s heads warm,” says Ursula smiling.

The World's Best Tour Guide?

There are more than 100.000 professional tourist guides in the world. When I say professional tourist guides I mean tourist guides who have undertaken special training to guide visitors around a city, region or a country. They have also been accredited or authorized in some way by a local authority.

So when I came across this article, which can be accessed via the link below, I remembered a discussion I once had with a colleague tourist guide in Iceland - who got upset when I signed off in a blog...”Stefan The world's best tour guide”.

He clearly himself thought he was.

Anyway, since tourist guides often work alone and in isolation they do not have a comparison who is the best guide. Neither do the guests who regularly write amazing comments about their guide, perhaps the only guide in the country they know. As a result guides get a big head and soon start to think they are the best tourist guides in the country - perhaps even the best tour guide in the world.

This said, every tour, every tourist guide-visitor encounter is unique. Most of the time, both enjoy the encounter which of course is what it is all about. To meet a friendly local who knows the facts but also is a superb people's person, connects visitors and locals, introduces visitors to new things is the guide to seek. And if the tour involves driving - a driver-guide must above all drive safely.

Read the article in the Travel+Leisure, click here.

Here are some visitor comments about me, for which I am very greatful. Best tourist guide in Iceland?

Facts about Reykjavik Iceland as seen by Chris Leadbeater Mail Online

Reykjavik is full of art galleries and museums. Yoko One tribute to John Lennon - the Peach Tower on Videy Island. Hallgrimskirkja. Blue lagoon - one of the most famous places in Iceland. Reykjavik Bike Tours - http://www.icelandbike.com, http://www.reykjavikbiketours.is

Should bicyle helmets be made compulsory?

Some believe wearing a helmet is better while others refute the notion. Here is an article which gives a good overview of the situation.

Top 10 Hottest Summer Party Spots north of the equator are:

Reykjavik in Iceland has done it again. Made it onto a list of top 10 of something. This time it has been named as one of the top 10 pleaces north of the equator to party this summer.

Reykjavik gets 24 hours of daylight for about 6 weeks in the summer so there's plenty of time to party. Reykjavik is famous for its music scene and crazy Friday and Saturday night pub crawls.

Source for this top 10 claim: eTurbonews

Winter Bike Tour in Reykjavik Iceland

Reykjavik Bike Tours operate bicycle tours all year. There's no such thing as bad weather, only insufficient clothes!

Ok, we do cancel tours if it is too slippery or if the snow is too deep. We've once cancelled in September because of strong wind and horizontal rain as we call it over here.

We have some extra clothes on hand for those who come unprepared. Hats, gloves, raingear, socks, jackets etc.

Island - urgewaltig schön - Wasserfälle und Geysire

Island ist das Land der Wasserfälle, Eisberge, Robben, Die Blaue Lagune, und Party in der Hauptstadt Reykjavik. Lesen Sie die Artikel: Island

Iceland in the press

Reykjavik Bike Tours offers a city tour of the capital city of Iceland, a tour of the coast, tour along the Golden Circle which includes Geysir geothermal area, Thingvellir national park and Gullfoss waterfall. Also Westman Isles of recent (1973) volcanic activity and puffins in summer.

Loose weight while bicycling

A recent article on Bicycling.com mentions some of the benefits of cycling. Among some of the positive effects of cycling are; weight loss, improved mood, muscle build up, less strain on your joints and ligaments than if you were running - and the best of all, while bicycling people do not feel so much that they're working out. It is all about fun.

Just spoke to a friend of mine who at the age of 50 had started collecting some extra weight. He described to me how he's lost 14 kg in 10 weeks as a result of bicycle training. Ok - he is a bit extreme since he cycles for about two hours a day on his road bike, and does weight training a couple of times a week.

We figured it out that he lost the equivalent of the weight of a Mars bar chocholate each day since January 1 this year.

Read the article on Bicycling.com

Helmets may be required for all bicyclists in Iceland

The Dutch know how to bike and use various kinds of bicycles. It doesn't look like many of them use a helmet.

Ministry of the Interior in Iceland may in near future introduce a new law / regulation which make it compulsory for bicyclists of all ages to wear protective helmet and reflective vest.

The current regulation says all 15 years and younger must wear a helmet.

Bike ride on a winter's day in Reykjavik

Hilmar Guðmundsson and Josef Marek enjoyed a bike ride around Reykjavik with us in February. Frozen lake Tjörnin in the background as well as Fríkirkjan church and Hallgrímskirkja church.

South Africans kayak around Iceland in March 2011

Riaan Manser circumvented the African continent, some 37,000 km, on a bicycle 2003-2005. Now this brave South African is heading for Iceland 16 March with the intent to kayak around Iceland.

This time he's going to take his protege Dan Skinstad with him on this adventure. The duo will be accompanied by a crew of six photographers.

One of their main concerns is not to get eaten by an orca whale, same whale as starred in the Hollywood movie Free Willy. Other concerns are to meet Bjork and have to listen to her, the freezing water and temperamental volcanoes.

None of the above will stop Riaan and Skinstad from setting off on their journey around Iceland in a Kayak.

Riaan's partner Dan was born prematurely and suffers from a mild form of cerebral palsy.

Riaan and Dan - if you read this post, please contact us at Reykjavik Bike Tours. We'd love to meet you and show you our city from the saddle of a bike.

Source of this post is an article posted by Dan Nicholl on Sport iafrica.com 15 February 2011, click here to read it.

More about Riaan Manser and his adventures.

Cyclist Victoria Pendleton - I'd like big boobs but they'd slow me down

Olympic gold medalist Victoria Pendleton spills her beans about how to have a healthy lifestyle in an article in the Sun Health 3 February 2011. Victoria's Fitness Secrets.

Rick Steves on Iceland

Rick Steves interviewed writer Bill Holm about Bill's experience of Iceland. Bill speaks passionately about Iceland and Rick Steves shows his skills as an interviewer.

Listen to Rick Steve's podcast on Iceland.

There's two kinds of tourism in Iceland, Bill says; - the quick - the party in Reykjavik on the one hand, and then the - slow - countryside on the other.

You cannot say you've seen the USA if you've only be to New York!

Great wisdom.

Iceland is Ian McCarthey's favorite place to bicycle

Ian McCartney a former geography teacher has cycled hundreds of thousands of miles in his life and thinks Iceland is the best of all places he ever visited.

Read the article in the Southern Reporter: Two Wheels Better.

NY Times says Iceland is one of the best places to visit

Iceland features in 4th place on a list of 41 places to visit in 2011 compiled by the NY Times. Journalist Sally McGrane wrote:

Where a country’s hardships are a visitor’s gain.

Iceland’s economic crash has had an upside, at least for tourists. After the devaluation of the krona that followed the country’s 2008 financial crisis, the breathtakingly beautiful island is a lot more affordable, meaning that a hotel room that was $200 before the crash might cost $130 now.

While traditionally a must-see for nature tourists — who come for thermal springs, glaciers, volcanic landscapes and the Northern Lights — Iceland is stepping up the cultural offerings with Reykjavik’s new Harpa-Reykjavik Concert Hall and Conference Centre, a symphony and opera house whose stunning glass facade was designed in collaboration with the Danish-Icelandic artist Olafur Eliasson. Opening ceremonies begin in May, with performances by the Iceland Symphony Orchestra, Icelandic Opera and local rock bands. Another draw is the third annual DesignMarch (in March), a festival that showcases Icelandic design, from clothing and textiles to furniture. And the Iceland Airwaves music festival, every October, is perennially cool.

Source, NY Times.

First person to bicycle around the world 1884

Today, 4 January 2010, it is 124 years since Thomas Stevens from England set out on his tour around the world on a bicycle. He used a penny farthing bicycle for the journey. He packed a 38 Smith and Wesson hand gun just in case which would no doubt be useful in some countries today.

The first part of his world journey took him from San Francisco to Boston and became the first person to cross the US. From Boston he travelled to Liverpool, then south Europe to Iran. Then he travelled to the Middle-East and India and Asia.

For more information about his trip, see the Thomas Stevens first to bicycle around the world website.