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Moving to Iceland: A Complete Relocation Guide
Discover everything you need to know about moving to Iceland, from the immigration process to cultural habits, the benefits, and challenges in this guide.
Michael Chapman
Certified Travel Expert
English
Michael Chapman is a British travel writer living in Reykjavík. A former scuba and lava cave guide, he draws on firsthand experience to write about Iceland’s nature and culture. He’s also the author of Hidden Iceland (2020).
My articles
The Story of Icelandic Cinema
Read a complete guide to Icelandic cinema. Find out the story of film in Iceland from the first films to modern-day and more. Read on.
Snowmobiling in Iceland: Everything You Need to Know
Find out everything you need to know about snowmobiling tours in Iceland. Discover where you can do snowmobile tours and what to expect. Find out more.
The Perfect Camping Tour Around Iceland
Iceland is the ideal destination for a long stay camping holiday, with a wide array of popular attractions, fantastical landscapes and the majestic midnight sun. To mak
Skiing and Snowboarding in Iceland: The Best Spots and Tips
A complete guide to skiing and snowboarding in Iceland. Discover more about these winter activities available to tourists. Read more.
Scuba Diving and Snorkelling in Iceland
Find all you need to know about scuba diving & snorkelling in Iceland. DIscover where you can do it, what you need and how you can book a tour. Read more.
Gender Equality in Iceland: A Story of Strength and Solidarity
Learn how Iceland became the most equal country on Earth, and why it continues to inspire the world. Read more!
National Parks in Iceland
A complete guide to the national parks in Iceland. Discover Skaftafell, Snaefellsnes, Thingvellir, and Vatnajokull. Find the top sites and attractions.
GUSGUS | The Top 5 Tracks
For over twenty years, GusGus has paved the wave for the Icelandic electronic scene, having released over nine studio albums. Read on to find out more.
My blogs
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Reykjavik City Break | A Weekend in Iceland's Capital
What is there to do for visitors staying in Iceland over the weekend? Which attractions are close to the capital, Reykjavík, and just what secrets does the city hold? How can you keep your budget down, or how best to spend big for a big weekend? Read on to find out all you need to know about a weekend in Reykjavík, Iceland. Discover the cheapest and biggest range of city breaks in Reykjavik Go to this link to find the biggest selection of Reykjavik Tours. It’s been a long week at the office desk. Your back is sore, your head’s rattling with sales data, you’ve embarrassed yourself in
EVENT: "Strell Ytzia Blossom: A Utopian Drag Show" | June 7th 2018, Gaukurinn
Iceland is famed for its entrepreneurship, tolerance and creativity, a trinity that have come to a head with the recent IndieGoGo campaign for estranged magazine, founded by long-term residents and editors, Kaspars Bekeris and Matthias Boyer. These efforts will reach a shuddering climax on June 7th with the show "Strell Ytzia Blossom: A Utopian Drag Show". Read on for more. Read on: The Drag Scene in Iceland. Header Credit: estranged magazine Over recent years, the drag scene in Iceland has exploded with a host of new acts, new shows, new approaches to the art form. From the outset, it wa
Iceland Proposes Circumcision Ban | Opinion
Icelandic MPs have made international headlines this year with a bill proposing to ban male circumcision. The bill has been met with condemnation from religious leaders, yet has the majority backing of Iceland's domestic population and major political parties. If the bill succeeds, Iceland will be the first country in Europe to ban male circumcision. Oh, how the debate rages... should, or should we not circumcise our children? There does seem to be plenty of justification, doesn’t there? Shall we list them together like a prenatal Christmas list? Well, the ethereal usefulness of religious
Swimming Pool Etiquette in Iceland
First and foremost, if you expect to soothe yourself in one of Iceland’s swimming pools, be warned—you will be expected to shower first, buck-naked, scrubbing your dangly bits in front of a watchful sanitation warden. Read on to find out more. Having been raised in the commonwealth, I am accustomed to bathing and, in fact, luxuriating in waters likely to be befouled by human filth, be it excrement or something even more unsavoury. The Icelanders, unbeholden to civilised accustom, have chosen a cultural keepsake that defies logic; the need to cleanse themselves before entering the ethereal w
A Day's Ice Caving with Katla Track
With winter coming to an end, Guide To Iceland decided to spend some time with Katla Track, an adventure tour and sightseeing operator based in Vík í Mýrdal, to gain a closer look at their popular Fast Track Ice Caving tour, the only one of its kind available during the summer. Read on for more information. Blinking into consciousness, I was, for a moment, confused to find myself lying in a bed that was not own, and even felt a slight jolt of the excitement at the thought that, perhaps, I’d had something of a lucky night. As waking life took hold, it dawned on me slowly that I was at Midgar
Discovering Thorsmork with Midgard Adventure
Guide to Iceland went to check out Midgard Adventure in Hvolsvöllur, South Iceland, to see what this adventure tour operator can offer its guests. Read on to find out all about Guide to Iceland's trip to Þórsmörk with Midgard Adventure. Despite my best intentions, I’m often prone to negative thinking, easily able to scapegoat, justify and question the world around me without, I might add, real passion or elegance, but rather, a morbid waiting-room ambience that settles itself in the brain and begins, almost subconsciously, to speak for me. I am a man who needs a rattle every so often, or I
How To Avoid Cycling In Iceland
Everyone loves a cyclist—that is until they’re driving alongside one, at which point, they become a dangerous nuisance, likely to record every moment of your frustration on their readily equip helmet-camera. Before you know it, your unrelenting anger is showcased to the world through YouTube; within a week, you’ll find yourself before a tribunal, attempting to justify your reaction to a jury of cyclists. Then, your license is banned. You’re facing a five-year jail term for road rage. Thank you, bikie. From: 2-Day Biking Tour | Snaefellsjokull Glacier From All Sides. When not engaged in r
Naming Names | The Mystery of the Icelandic Naming Committee & Other Cases.
Icelandic naming tradition uses a patronymic or, more rarely, matronymic system, meaning the suffix -son ('son') or -dóttir ('daughter') is added to the genitive form of the father's name, ie. Ólafur Jónsson is the son of Jón Einarsson. Names in Iceland must also be pre-approved by law—but who holds the authority to accept what names are and are not acceptable? Read on to find out more about the mysterious minds of the Icelandic Naming Committee. Names are funny, aren’t they? If your answer is ‘not particularly’, I would resoundingly agree with you, save for two obvious exceptions; cel
Reykjavik Folk Festival 2018
Iceland’s long tradition of folk music was celebrated in full force this weekend (1-3 March 2018), as the first night of Reykjavik’s annual Folk Festival got underway. Once again, I was to sit there appreciating each performance, sipping away at cold Einstök as the musicians rolled out one by one to delight with their eclectic range of talents. See Also: Music in Iceland. Concert Photos taken by Kaspars Bekeris Held on the first floor of Kex Bar and Hostel, in a wide, red-lit hall, the festival enters its eighth year, drawing an ever-increasing fanbase to its rich tapestry of community, l
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Install Iceland’s biggest travel app
Download Iceland’s biggest travel marketplace to your phone to manage your entire trip in one place
Scan this QR code with your phone camera and press the link that appears to add Iceland’s biggest travel marketplace into your pocket. Enter your phone number or email address to receive an SMS or email with the download link.
