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Explainer: Why Is Everyone Going to Iceland?

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Why Is Everyone Going to Iceland?

How reykjavik successfully managed the pandemic and brought tourism back..

• Christina Lu

In June, more than 42,000 people packed their suitcases and boarded flights not to tropical beaches or resorts but to a much colder alternative: Iceland.

Tourists often flock to Iceland for its erupting volcanoes and northern lights, but these sights aren’t the country’s only draw right now. After a year of closed borders, social distancing, and Zoom calls, Iceland also offers a coveted glimpse at normalcy. Life on the island has returned to the way things were before the pandemic—and with open doors and low infection rates, the country has become an especially attractive vacation destination.

As global border restrictions slowly ease, Foreign Policy looked into how Iceland’s approach to beating the virus and safely reopening for tourism can serve as a model for the rest of the world.

Is life actually back to normal in the country now?

Pretty much. Iceland lifted all domestic restrictions on June 26 and was the first country in the European Union to welcome vaccinated visitors in March . Ever since, life on the island has returned to normal—there’s no more mask wearing, social distancing, or limits on gatherings.

“We are regaining the kind of society which we feel normal to live in and we have longed for,” Svandis Svavarsdottir, Iceland’s minister of health, declared in June.

They were able to reopen safely too. Iceland, which has reached herd immunity , has some of the world’s highest vaccination rates; 70 percent of people are fully vaccinated , and as of June 28 , 87 percent of adults had received at least one dose. The country’s vaccination success is an extension of what has been an overwhelmingly effective pandemic response: Not only did it manage to avoid lockdowns , but it also only had 30 deaths. 

Reykjavik’s response stands in sharp contrast to other rich countries that have similarly loosened restrictions, even as the virus continues to rip through the unvaccinated. On July 19, Britain celebrated its reopening, “ Freedom Day ,” with almost 40,000 new cases , 19 deaths, and the world’s seventh highest death toll.

Why is tourism important, and what was Iceland’s approach to bringing it back?

Tourism is a major part of Iceland’s economy—and an industry that suffered during the pandemic. The sector accounts for 39 percent of total export revenue, comprises about 9 percent of the country’s GDP, and employs almost 16 percent of the country’s workforce.

  As much as the return of tourism would have been economically beneficial, there was an understanding that controlling COVID-19 was a necessary first step. “ From the beginning, it’s been kind of goal number one to get the pandemic under control,” said Johannes Por Skulason , managing director of the Icelandic Travel Industry Association.

And now? “We have reached a place where we have one of the best vaccination percentages in the world right now,” Skulason said . “We can use that to our advantage.”

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Much of the world is still struggling to contain the coronavirus. What did Iceland do differently?

Iceland’s pandemic response was primarily led by public health experts —not politicians. “In the beginning, the science was very much at the helm,” Skulason said , who noted that the country’s government and health officials worked closely, and constructively, together.

With health experts taking the lead, the country implemented a strict contact tracing, testing, and quarantining system to suppress COVID-19 infections before they became full-fledged outbreaks. “The restrictions were quite firm at the beginning of each wave so [as] to grab it right away before it spread out,” said Snorri Valsson, a specialist at the Icelandic Tourist Board.

For the most part, the public was also receptive. “We’ve had a very, very high percentage of trust towards the health directorate and the government in the response that they’ve made,” Skulason said. Some of this trust also comes from Iceland’s past experiences with natural disasters, which fostered unity and solidarity in the face of crisis—and informed the country’s pandemic response.  

“The nation was ready to do everything that had to be done,” said Bjarnheidur Hallsdottir, chairperson of the Icelandic Travel Industry Association. “We followed every rule and did everything we were told to.”

What was Iceland’s vaccine rollout like?

Very efficient, likely a result of Iceland’s highly centralized public health care system. Unlike countries like the United States, where many people initially scrambled to secure shots, Icelanders received text messages notifying them of their vaccination appointments.

“I just got a text one day that said, well, we have some extra portions of AstraZeneca vaccines. You can come to this place in 30 minutes. Be there in 30 minutes. We’ll vaccinate you,” Skulason said , who described an assembly line-esque vaccination system involving hundreds of people . “Henry Ford would have been really impressed. … The process itself was just beautiful.”

And most people wanted the shots. “We’ve had nowhere near the same levels of backlash as many other countries, certainly not anywhere near what you’ve been seeing in the U.S.,” Skulason added , who noted that vaccine misinformation—while still there—didn’t gain much traction. 

How much of this had to do with Iceland’s location and size?

Part of Iceland’s success can be attributed to its geography: The island is isolated, a geographic advantage that has prevented the virus’s cross-border spread.  

Home to just 368,792 people , Iceland is also sparsely populated and tightknit —qualities residents believe lead to a greater sense of community and social responsibility. (Everyone is, in fact, so closely related that some Icelanders developed an app to help people confirm they aren’t dating their close relatives.) 

“One of the strengths of the society is that it’s somehow easy to activate this sense of community and sense of partnership,” said Gudrun Pora Gunnarsdottir, director of the Icelandic Tourism Research Centre.

What’s travel like now, especially with the delta variant?

There are currently no COVID-19-related travel restrictions for visitors who can supply proof of vaccination or prior infection, although pre-registration is required. Unvaccinated travelers, on the other hand, have a few more hurdles they must meet before entering the country. 

The delta variant has resulted in a spike in cases—but only one person in Iceland has been hospitalized, and few are reportedly experiencing serious symptoms. Most of the infected individuals are fully vaccinated.

In response to the rise in infections, Iceland’s minister of health announced that starting July 26, all visitors—including those who are vaccinated or have already contracted the virus—will have to provide a negative COVID-19 test to enter the country.

“We’re in a kind of a new era now,” Skulason said. “We’ve had most of the population vaccinated, and now the government will have to decide how they want to proceed into the next few months.”

And if variants like the delta variant continue to pose new challenges?

“We would nip that in the bud if needed—but in society here, things are back to normal,” Valsson said.

Christina Lu is a reporter at Foreign Policy . Twitter:  @christinafei

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Iceland Tourism Prepares for a Comeback

The country hopes that when people book their first post-pandemic flights overseas, Iceland will be the top choice. It also aims to learn from the recent past, when tourist numbers soared.

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By Paige McClanahan

In a normal October, the Radisson BLU Saga Hotel in Reykjavik would be buzzing with tourists hoping for a glimpse of the Northern Lights, business travelers in town for trade fairs, honeymooners gearing up for a tour of Iceland’s waterfalls and geothermal spas. This year, of course, things are very different.

“It’s surreal,” said Ingibjorg Olafsdottir, the hotel’s general manager. “It’s completely quiet.”

Since March, even with government support, Ms. Olafsdottir’s staff has shrunk from 140 to just 16. The hotel, which has more than 200 rooms, normally has an occupancy rate of above 75 percent, but it fell to 11 percent in September.

“It’s been emotional,” Ms. Olafsdottir said, adding that, even after cutting down to bare-bones operations, the hotel continues to rack up debt. “But the thing is, I think everybody is in the same boat here.”

Tourism is undergoing an unprecedented downturn all over the world, but several factors make Iceland particularly vulnerable to the industry’s crash: geographic isolation, a small domestic population, strict border measures and an economy that — after an extraordinary, decade-long tourism boom — had come to depend heavily on foreign tourists. A recent surge in coronavirus cases has added to Iceland’s challenges.

But while visitor numbers are low, Iceland is positioning itself for a major tourism rebound after the pandemic. The government is investing more than $12 million in tourism infrastructure, while improving roads and harbors across the country. To keep the tourism industry afloat in the short term, the government is also investing more than $9 million in a program that distributes free travel vouchers to Icelandic citizens and residents. A marketing campaign targeting domestic tourists was rolled out in the late spring; an international version will be unveiled as soon as travel restrictions are lifted.

The government hopes that when people go to book their first post-pandemic flights overseas, Iceland will be at the top of their list.

The tourism boom

A lack of tourists was the last thing that Icelanders were worrying about in 2018, when the country welcomed a record-breaking 2.3 million visitors — more than six times Iceland’s population.

It was the height of a tourism boom that most observers trace to 2008, when a steep drop in the value of the Icelandic krona — which was linked to the economic crisis that hit the country that year — suddenly made Iceland much more affordable to outsiders. Then in April 2010, the cloud of ash from the eruption of Iceland’s Eyjafjallajokull volcano forced the temporary closure of a large swath of European airspace — and put Iceland into headlines around the world. The government had rolled out the “Inspired by Iceland” marketing campaign just a few weeks after the eruption hit the news, and what started as a travel nuisance turned into a giant publicity boon.

Tourism took off. Visitor numbers rose from 459,000 in 2010 to more than 2.3 million in 2018. Economically, tourism came to account for 8.6 percent of gross domestic product and 39 percent of the country’s total export revenue. Roughly 30,000 people — nearly 16 percent of Iceland’s work force — were employed in the tourism industry in 2018.

Signs of tourism’s impact began cropping up in Reykjavik: Dunkin’ Donuts appeared in 2015 (all locations have since closed); a Hard Rock Cafe opened the following year; H&M arrived in 2017. In the countryside, sites that had once welcomed a handful of visitors were full of tour groups. Many tourists were seen parking their camper vans illegally , while others were caught defecating wherever they pleased .

“In a typical summer, you would see camper vans parked just about anywhere,” said Jenna Gottlieb, the author of the Moon Iceland travel guide and an American who has lived in Iceland since 2012. “That gets a lot of backlash from people because there aren’t toilets in a parking lot or wherever people are parking. It’s seen as so disrespectful.”

In 2015, a Justin Bieber music video transformed an obscure corner of the Icelandic countryside into a must-see spot for the Instagram crowd. The site — Fjadrargljufur canyon, which had little infrastructure in place when the video was filmed — was soon inundated with tourists. Iceland’s environmental agency later closed the site to visitors in the springtime, when the thawing earth is especially vulnerable to damage.

A survey of tourists in the summer of 2016 found that at all but two destinations — the popular Gullfoss waterfall and Geysir Geothermal Area — a majority of visitors weren’t bothered by the size of the crowds. Most Icelanders also remained positive about tourism. Indeed, the industry’s rise brought locals many benefits: a broader range of jobs and restaurants, more affordable flights to other parts of the world. Plus, many of them actually enjoyed having visitors. Unlike other European tourist hot spots like Venice and Barcelona, Iceland has no active anti-tourism movement.

Icelanders “are just warmhearted people who like to have visitors,” said Anna Dora Saethorsdottir, a professor of tourism at the University of Iceland. “We are proud of our culture, we are proud of our nature. When you’re proud of something, you also love showing it. Most Icelanders are very positive toward tourism.”

But still, concerns started to mount. Foreign experts and many Icelanders worried about the pressure that all of those tourists were putting on the country’s fragile natural landscape. “Overtourism” appeared in a travel story about Iceland in 2016, and use of the term began to spread .

Of course, it wasn’t to last. In 2017, the Icelandic krona strengthened, making the country more expensive. In March 2019, WOW Air, an Icelandic low-cost airline, collapsed . Tourist numbers that year declined by about 14 percent, to just under 2 million. And then came 2020.

‘Everyone is crying’

The summer started off fairly well. Coronavirus numbers in Iceland were low and travel within Europe’s Schengen Area, of which Iceland is a member, began opening up. Travelers to Iceland could choose either to undergo a virus test on arrival or self-quarantine for 14 days. At the same time, the government rolled out a campaign to promote tourism among the island’s roughly 366,000 inhabitants, offering tourism vouchers worth 5,000 krona (about $36) to every Icelandic resident over the age of 18.

The summer was “pretty good, considering everything,” said Bjarnheidur Hallsdottir, the chair of the board of the Icelandic Travel Industry Association and the chief executive of two tourism companies. “And then suddenly out of nowhere, the government decided to change the rules at the borders. Since then, everyone is crying.”

Under the new rules, which took effect on Aug. 19 and are still in place, arriving passengers may choose either to submit to two screening tests for the virus, separated by five days’ self-quarantine, or to skip border screening and self-quarantine for 14 days after arrival.

“Given the uptick in infections worldwide and the widespread effect that a small infection can have on the functioning of our society, the Government has decided to strengthen our border-screening measures to further limit the number of infections entering the country,” Prime Minister Katrin Jakobsdottir said when the rules were announced.

When the new measures took effect, Ms. Hallsdottir said, tourist numbers plunged. And while virus cases remained low for most of the summer, the country has registered a wave of new infections since the middle of September, even with the new measures in force. Many of the recent cases have been linked to a pair of French tourists who tested positive for the virus when they arrived in the country, but then failed to isolate, Iceland’s Visir.is news outlet reported . On Oct. 5, the government ordered bars, nightclubs and gyms to close, and banned most gatherings of more than 20 people.

As in most parts of the world, the tumult of the last several months has triggered a surge in unemployment in Iceland. Between March and August of this year, about 8,000 people — roughly 4 percent of the country’s labor force — were laid off, according to Iceland’s Directorate of Labour; most of those layoffs were in the tourism industry. Iceland’s unemployment rate reached 8.5 percent in August, compared to just 2.5 percent two years earlier. The agency predicted a rise in job losses in September and October.

Ms. Hallsdottir says that tourism operators are now looking to the government to help them cover running costs, or to pay the wages of a few personnel who can keep the companies afloat.

“If no one answers the phone or answers the emails, there will be no tourism next year,” she said.

Investing for the future

After the 2008 banking crisis, Iceland’s tourism boom helped to propel the country into an impressive economic rebound. But while the rapid growth in foreign arrivals created jobs and revenue, it also outpaced the government’s ability to build the infrastructure that was needed to manage so many new visitors. Now, with tourist numbers low, the government has a chance to catch up.

This year, the Icelandic government is investing roughly 1.7 billion Icelandic krona (about $12.3 million) in infrastructure at both public and private tourist spots across the country, said Skarphedinn Berg Steinarsson, director general of the Icelandic Tourist Board. Roughly 1 billion krona has been set aside for infrastructure at national parks, protected areas and large public tourist sites, while 700 million krona is going into the country’s Tourist Site Protection Fund. The investments were already being planned last year, but the government increased the funding after the pandemic hit. Further investments will support harbor and road improvements throughout the country.

The improvements at tourist sites have two goals, Mr. Steinarsson said in an interview, “allowing them to receive bigger numbers — creating parking spaces, walking paths, etc. — but also preserving the nature to make sure that the sites will not be worn down when we get the visitors back.”

The largest grants from the Tourist Site Protection Fund are supporting the construction of a viewing platform on Bolafjall Mountain in the Westfjords, he said, as well as infrastructure at Studlagil Canyon , where a viewing platform is being installed as well as new walkways, toilets and information signs. These improvements are meant to keep tourists safe (the Bolafjall site features a steep cliff), while also protecting the landscape from environmental damage and improving the overall visitor experience.

The Studlagil Canyon is an example of a phenomenon that is not uncommon in Iceland: a site that was created not by the hosts, but by the visitors. The canyon — which features dramatic basalt-column cliffs lining the banks of a glacial-fed river — was “discovered” as an attractive destination only recently, Mr. Steinarsson said, after the river’s flow was made much calmer following the construction of a nearby hydroelectric plant.

“This is one of those sites that are created on social media,” Mr. Steinarsson said. “But there’s no infrastructure there, no parking sites, no toilets. What happens when you start allowing 100,000 or 500,000 visitors? Everything gets torn down because nothing is designed to accommodate that.”

Now the government is working with the owners of the land to build pathways, parking spaces and toilets. The goal, Mr. Steinarsson said, is to ensure that visitors can enjoy the site “without spoiling anything.”

The kind of infrastructure being installed at Studlagil is already in place at most of Iceland’s more established destinations, particularly in the Golden Circle — an area not far from Reykjavik that includes some of the country’s most famous tourist destinations: Gullfoss waterfall, Geysir Geothermal Area and Thingvellir National Park , among other spots. While the infrastructure in those areas is already fairly good, Mr. Steinarsson said, any areas that are particularly fragile will need continual upkeep — and funding — to protect against damage from visitors.

Plenty of Icelanders would have seen these places over the last several months, and enjoyed them with smaller crowds than usual. A marketing campaign encouraging Icelanders to explore their country was rolled out in the late spring (“ Island — komdu med! ” or “Iceland — come join us!”), while the government’s travel voucher campaign helped to jump-start demand for hotels, restaurants and attractions. So far, Icelanders have used more than $1.2 million worth of their free travel vouchers, which are valid through the end of the year. The most popular spots have been FlyOver Iceland, an attraction in Reykjavik; Islandshotel, a hotel chain; and Blue Lagoon, the geothermal spa near the country’s biggest airport.

“It was a success,” said Mr. Steinarsson of the efforts to encourage domestic tourism. “Icelanders really enjoyed their country during the summertime. And that’s what counts.”

Looking ahead

What will Icelandic tourism look like after travel restrictions are finally lifted? Several people interviewed expressed the hope that future tourists would make longer visits and take the time to explore less popular corners of the country.

“If you get off the beaten path a little bit — and you don’t even have to go that far — you can get more of a remote feeling, a more private version of Iceland,” said Ms. Gottlieb, the travel guide author.

It’s a kind of travel that seems in line with how consumer attitudes have shifted during the pandemic, said Peter Jordan, head of strategy and research at Toposophy, a destination marketing and management agency. People are looking for “open spaces, fresh air, nature, walking routes, cycling trails, outdoor activities, and perhaps a much slower form of travel,” he said in an interview. By those measures, Iceland — which has the lowest population density in Europe — scores very well indeed.

Even Ms. Olafsdottir, the hotel manager, was optimistic about the country’s prospects for post-pandemic tourism.

“The population is so small and the country is so big,” she said. “For Iceland, that’s a huge opportunity.”

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How Iceland Is Rethinking Tourism for the Long Haul

By Julia Eskins

Iceland has a New Year’s resolution. After a 10-month pause in tourism due to global lockdowns, the country is preparing for a new era of outdoor adventure—one that locals are hoping is more sustainable than before.

The Nordic island nation’s meteoric rise in popularity remains a controversial topic. Once named the fastest-growing destination in Europe, its economy has become reliant on flashpackers keen to marvel at glaciers, geysers, and green-streaked skies. But environmentalists have raised concerns about the impact of overtourism on delicate ecosystems. Iceland’s answer? Encourage people to stay longer, travel slower , and make use of the country’s greatest asset in a COVID-minded world: space.

Similar to other hot-ticket destinations like Venice and Amsterdam , which celebrated reduced pollution in 2020, Iceland experienced its own silver linings in a year of fewer visitors. Thingvellir National Park director Einar Sæmundsen noticed less litter on trails that were previously trampled by hikers. Meanwhile, locals enjoyed the quietude, with domestic travelers flocking to beloved sites, as well as the Westfjords and Eastfjords—two lesser-explored regions that are finally getting the attention and financial support from the Icelandic government to thrive.

“The growth we saw in the number of visitors up to 2019 was far too rapid and we were getting close to the edge of seriously unsustainable development,” says Tryggvi Felixson, a tour guide and Chair of Landvernd, the Icelandic Environment Association. “We are fortunate that Iceland is a relatively big country. It’s possible to distribute the traffic more evenly than we have done before.”

Iceland's national parks, like Thingvellir, pictured, have seen benefits from less foot traffic during the pandemic. 

More funding for infrastructure and conservation

Unlike destinations that tightened budgets in 2020, Iceland increased its spending on tourism by 40 percent. A substantial amount of the $1.73 billion ISK ($13.6 million) budget was used to improve infrastructure at tourist sites. Many of these places, like the basalt column-flanked canyon of Stuðlagil, became famous due to social media. The government is finally playing catch-up to build necessities like restrooms, parking lots, designated trails, and wheelchair-accessible entrances.

“It’s been challenging to stay ahead of social media,” says Skarphéðinn Berg Steinarsson, Director General of the Icelandic Tourist Board. “Visitors like to go around wherever they want and that's how we want to keep it. But we are sometimes unprepared for the sites they're visiting. Many of these places are much more delicate during the winter and spring when the frost is leaving the soil. A lot of traffic can spoil the environment.”

Iceland’s parliament is also now debating a proposal to establish a national park in the Highlands, which will cover and protect about 30 percent of the country, says Felixson.

A push for longer stays, alternative routes, and remote accommodations

Inexpensive flights once made Iceland a magnet for weekend jaunts, but with COVID-19, longer trips that include working remotely are becoming the norm. In November, Iceland announced a new visa for international remote workers. Foreign nationals, including Americans, are now eligible to stay in Iceland for up to six months, as long as they are employed with a company or can verify self-employment. Unlike other visas aimed at digital nomads, Iceland’s program has some important fine print. Your monthly salary must be at least 1 million ISK ($7,360) or about $88,000 per year to qualify.

The quality-over-quantity strategy is simple: attract high-earning professionals that can help stimulate the local economy without leading to overcrowding. The new visa program is just one aspect of Iceland’s shift toward attracting those craving a slower style of exploration.

“Not everyone has to drive the Ring Road,” says Steinarsson. “We’re encouraging people to travel around the country but, preferably, stay longer in each region.”

Offering alternatives to Route 1, which follows the circumference of the island, Iceland opened two new circuits in late 2020. One is the Westfjords Way, a 590-mile journey around the Westfjords peninsula, which was previously closed in the winter due to avalanche risks. The second new route is the Diamond Circle in North Iceland, a 155-mile circuit replete with waterfalls and wildlife.

The Sky Lagoon, one of the biggest tourism projects in Icelandic history, is set to launch in the spring. 

Jessica Puckett

Anna Borges

Karthika Gupta

But that isn’t to say the capital should be completely overlooked. This spring, new geothermal spa The Sky Lagoon is set to open in Reykjavik . The project is one of the biggest in Icelandic tourism’s history at 4 billion ISK ($31 million). With its 260-foot oceanfront infinity pool and architecture inspired by the region’s traditional turf-houses, it could be an attractive alternative to the famous Blue Lagoon.

For those who want to experience nature away from the crowds, the newly launched Bubble Hotel offers the chance to sleep under the Northern Lights in one of 18 clear dome structures located in two remote forest locations. Meanwhile, close to Europe’s largest glacier in Vatnajökull National Park, the new Six Senses Össurá Valley is set to open in 2022. With 70 rooms and private cottages sprawled across 4,000 acres and built using renewable materials, the property will usher in a new option for sustainable luxury.

Conserving the environment while continuing to grow economically remains a challenge. But perhaps the forced pause has led to more than just a rebirth of quiet and clean trails. This time—with more remote adventures and better infrastructure—the land of ice and fire will be ready.

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Embracing powerful nature and fragile ecosystems

By anna maría bogadóttir.

Over the course of a few years, the number of annual visitors in Iceland grew from half a million to two million. While the rapid growth surely benefited the economy, it came hand in hand with signs of over-tourism, causing red alerts and closures of popular nature sites due to excessive intrusion. While creative landowners responded to the situation by becoming tourist operators, the government launched a series of official plans, funding schemes and other initiatives. The aim was to coordinate research and prepare to develop physical and human infrastructure that would ease access to and protect the primary attraction: Nature.

Icelandic nature and tourism

In flux between glaciers and volcanoes.

Iceland is a volcanic island located in the North Atlantic Ocean, 300 km east of Greenland and 900 km west of Norway. The Arctic Circle runs through the island of Grímsey, 40 km north of mainland Iceland. Due to Iceland’s location, north of the Central Atlantic, its nature and ecosystems are particularly fragile.

Interactive Map

The surface area is 103,000 km², but most of the 376 thousand inhabitants live close to the coastline, spanning over 500 km. The population density is four people per km². Iceland’s landscapes are shaped by the forces of nature, varying from snow-capped mountains and staggering waterfalls, deep fjords and valleys formed during the ice age to vast volcanic deserts, black sand beaches, gushing geysers, natural hot springs, and lava fields as far as the eye can see. About 10% of the land area is covered by receding glaciers. Scientists predict that they may largely vanish in the next 100-200 years, which will drastically change the landscape.[1] 

Iceland’s climate is subpolar oceanic, with cold winters and cool summers, although the winters are milder than in most places of similar latitude due to the Gulf Stream, which ensures a more temperate climate in Iceland’s coastal areas all year round. The Gulf Stream also results in abrupt and frequent weather shifts, which is why one may experience four seasons in one day. Iceland does not have a rainy season, but precipitation peaks from October to February, with the southern and western parts receiving the most rainfall. In the North, East and inland, there are colder winter temperatures but warmer summers and noticeably less snow and rain. Iceland’s most influential weather element is the varying types and degrees of wind.

The appeal and image of nature

For centuries, Iceland has been a destination for international scientists and artists aiming to study and experience volcanoes and glaciers as well as the Icelandic society and its culture. Fictive and real landscapes have served as the setting for narratives from Norse mythologies written in the 13th century, 18th-century travel journals, 19th and 20th-century adventure novels, and recent films such as Star Wars , James Bond, and Game of Thrones . Taken together, these narratives create a general idea of destination nature experiences, as is currently visually exhibited on Instagram and other digital platforms where the idea of the destination Iceland continues to be moulded by influencers.

Since the mid-twentieth century, Iceland has worked towards increasing the number of foreign visitors. It grew slowly during the 20th century up until the 1990s. A significant part of those who travelled to Iceland used to be experienced nature-lovers, geared with analogue maps and compasses, ready for camping and hiking in remote areas without any designated infrastructure. The visits grew steadily in the second half of the 20th century, with a total of four million foreign tourist arrivals from 1950 to 2000. After the economic meltdown in 2008, the Icelandic government increased its focus on tourism as a potential rescue line for foreign currency, with the Icelandic krona in free fall. Furthermore, the Eyjafjallajökull eruption in 2010 put Iceland on the map by bringing flight travel to a halt in large parts of the world. Fearing a negative impact on the country’s growing tourism industry, Iceland launched the most extensive tourism campaign to that date, called “Inspired by Iceland”[2]. However, the campaign proved somewhat unnecessary, as the eruption significantly increased interest in Iceland as a destination. In addition, the drop in the local currency made Iceland a less expensive destination and thereby in reach for a larger group of visitors than before. Hence, the tourist surge following the Eyjafjallajökull eruption came hand in hand with export-led economic recovery plans emerging from the 2008 financial crisis. This resulted in exponential growth in the number of foreign visitors. Whereas tourism doubled between 1997 and 2007, the number of tourists grew 500% between 2010 and 2017, peaking at 2.5 million in 2018[3]. The sudden increase was followed by a slight decrease in 2019 and a sudden stop in 2020, caused by the Covid-19 pandemic. A short sequence that could resemble a rollercoaster ride.

In spring 2021, the area of Geldingadalir metamorphosed into an accessible erupting volcano midway between Keflavik International Airport and the capital city of Reykjavik. Overnight, the priorly unknown area became a pilgrimage site for scientists and local and foreign visitors alike. Regularly on the news, geologists referred to measurements and monitoring to predict the future of the volcanic activities, all the while stressing that nature behaves in unpredictable and uncontrollable ways. In contrast, engineers presented their experiments and calculations for plans to control the lava flow. On one hand, nature was viewed as a force beyond human control, and on the other, a controllable phenomenon, a force to be tamed.

The right to nature and nature’s right

“The public is allowed to travel on the terrain and stay there for legitimate purposes. This right is accompanied by an obligation to take good care of the country’s nature,” states the nature conservation law stressing that people should show full consideration for the landowner and other right holders [...] and follow their guidelines and instructions regarding travel and handling around the country[4].  The nature conservation law also defines the different types of protected areas, including national parks, with the common purpose to preserve the nature of the area, allow the public to get to know and enjoy its nature and history, promote research and education about the area and strengthen economic activities in the vicinity of the national parks. There are 115 protected areas in Iceland, hereof three national parks, of which two are designated UNESCO Heritage Sites.

Þingvellir National Park, a designated UNESCO World Heritage site since 2004, was initially established in 1928 when it became the first protected site in Iceland. Located in the southwestern part of Iceland, about 50 km from the capital, Reykjavík, Þingvellir National Park covers an area of 228 km²[5]. The history of Þingvellir, from the establishment of the Althing around 930, gives an insight into the spatial setting of the democratic forum of the Icelandic republic during the Viking Age, which, together with various natural phenomena, create a unique cultural landscape. From the settlement of Iceland, Þingvellir has been a destination for travellers and the site of national festivals. Originally, Icelanders travelled to Þingvellir to attend large feasts in relation to the annual parliamentary session. Now, it is amongst the most visited sites in Iceland, with service buildings, information centres, and an increasing number of constructed pathways and viewing platforms to enable access to different nature sites while protecting vegetation from the pressure of growing numbers of visitors.

Vatnajökull National Park is the second-largest national park in Europe, covering close to 14% of the total surface area of Iceland, including the Vatnajökull glacier, the largest glacier in Europe. It was established in 2007, merging a few previously protected sites into one. In 2019, Vatnajökull National Park was approved by the UNESCO World Heritage List, based on its unique nature and diverse landscapes created by the interplay of volcanic activity, geothermal energy, and streams with the glacier itself[6].

Snæfellsjökull National Park is located on the outskirts of Snæfellsnes in western Iceland. It is about 170 km² in size and the country’s first national park to reach the ocean.

In addition to the national parks, Reykjanes Geopark at the Reykjanes Peninsula and Katla Geopark in South Iceland have been included on the new UNESCO list of geoparks recognising “the importance of managing outstanding geological sites and landscapes in a holistic manner”[7], in accord with the definition that “a UNESCO Global Geopark uses its geological heritage, in connection with all other aspects of the area’s natural and cultural heritage, to enhance awareness and understanding of key issues facing society, such as using our earth’s resources sustainably, mitigating the effects of climate change and reducing natural disaster-related risks.”[8]

Fragile and life-threatening nature

Due to the sudden and immense growth in visitor numbers in the early 21st century, many natural sites in Iceland became significantly affected. Where the road system and the urban milieu escaped, the Icelandic host faced challenges greeting its guest, no longer a trained hiker, but nevertheless wandering in untouched landscapes, not aware of its danger nor fragility and unfamiliar with the codes of conduct known to the experienced hiker.

Along with nature protection rapid development of infrastructure had to be undertaken in order to accommodate travellers’ primordial needs when off the grid and to promote the security of visitors sometimes threatened by weather and site conditions. Small- and large-scale infrastructures were to be designed and constructed. Ranging from hiking paths, viewing platforms and natural spas to the construction of new hotels in the capital area and the expansion of the Keflavík International Airport. All the while, the previous local store in the village became a souvenir shop, and large shipments of rental cars came ashore to bring travellers out of the city and into nature.

Economic pressure and investment in small-scale infrastructure

In 2015, the tourist industry had become the most important export sector for Iceland, and in 2016, the share of tourism in GDP exceeded the share of fisheries which had previously been on top. The proportional importance of the tourism industry had become far greater than in most OECD countries [9]. Simultaneously, the travel period, previously mainly in the summer months, had been extended with increased winter tourism presenting other types of dangers and infrastructural needs than summer travel.

Facing rapid growth in tourism, Iceland increased its investments in small scale infrastructure. In 2011, The Tourist Site Protection Fund , hosted and serviced by The Icelandic Tourist Board, began its operations. The fund's purpose is “to promote the development, maintenance and protection of tourist sites and tourist routes throughout the country, thereby supporting the development of tourism as an important and sustainable pillar of the Icelandic economy. It also aims to promote a more even distribution of tourists throughout the country and to support regional development”[10].

More than 700 projects received funding from The Tourist Site Protection Fund between 2012 and 2020, amounting to around five and a half billion ISK. Contributions to the fund have increased significantly. In 2012, the fund had 69 million ISK at its disposal, but in 2020, the amount had grown to 700 million ISK. Initially the funded projects were mostly initiated by the state or municipalities but in recent years, projects by smaller parties, individual landowners and associations have increased considerably. Cooperation between private and public stakeholders on a regional level has gained more attention. In 2015, the Icelandic Tourist Board and the Tourism Task Force launched the development of Destination Management Plans (DMPs). Working towards coordination of development and aiming for management of flows in each region while strengthening regional initiatives.

As of now, The Tourist Site Protection Fund operates in three main focus areas. Firstly, nature protection and safety, focusing on projects related to nature conservation and visitor security. This can involve directional paths and platforms that guide visitors with the aim to regenerate and protect nature on the site. Secondly, the development of tourist attractions, favouring projects related to the development, construction and maintenance of built structures. And third, design and planning, such as changes to municipal plans, and design of foreseen development and construction. Projects can receive funding for design and planning and later another grant for construction. Initially, grants from the fund were mainly targeted to popular sites but there is increased emphasis on spreading the load by creating new magnets in less visited regions and to support regional development on the basis of destination plans. However, according to an evaluation report on the The Tourist Site Protection Fund, despite greatly increased budgets, there is still an urgent need for more investment [11].

National plan for the development of infrastructure for the protection of nature and cultural heritage

Since 2018, The Tourist Site Protection Fund has been reserved for projects owned or managed by municipalities and private parties. Projects on sites operated by the state, like national parks and preserved areas, receive funding from a national programme to develop infrastructure for the protection of nature and cultural heritage, a strategic twelve-year plan with a policy for infrastructure development on tourist sites and routes. The programme sets goals for site management and sustainable development, protection of nature and cultural heritage, security, planning and design, and tourist routes. A three-year project plan sets out proposals for concrete projects in parallel with the strategic plan.

The board behind the national programme includes representatives from four ministries and the Association of Icelandic Municipalities. In addition, from 2019 through 2021, there was an active Coordination Group with representatives from public institutions; three national parks, Icelandic Forest Service, The Soil Conservation Service of Iceland, The Cultural Heritage Agency of Iceland, The Iceland Tourist Board, Icelandic Association of Local Authorities and Iceland Design and Architecture (ID&A). The group was assigned to define projects to promote professional knowledge, increase quality in design and coordinate the development of infrastructure to protect natural and cultural-historical monuments in tourist sites. ID&A, whose role is to facilitate and promote design as a vital aspect of the future of Icelandic society, economy and culture, was commissioned to pursue and implement some of the projects on behalf of the Coordination Group. These projects were gathered with other relevant projects, including the Nordic project Design in Nature , under the umbrella of Góðar leiðir , Good Paths. A platform for coordination and collaboration between different operators to facilitate access to toolboxes, guidelines, and instructions to project owners and operators. Among them an update of a coherent signage system, originally from 2011 Vegrún , a manual for construction of nature paths nature paths , and guidelines for planning procedures for tourist sites.

Additionally, the Coordination Group has commissioned educational programmes for nature regeneration and best practices in designing, planning, and constructing infrastructure in nature sites. The group’s formal mandate ran out in 2021 and it remains to define further measures of the initiative.

Beyond the tolerance level

“Nature is the main attraction of the Icelandic tourism industry, and systematic efforts are being made to protect it with stress management and sustainability as a guiding principle,” reads Vegvísir í ferðaþjónustu from 2015[12]. Looking back, it can nevertheless be said that the design and implementation of small-scale infrastructure as protection measures for nature came more as a reaction rather than a carefully thought-out plan. In 2015, somewhat in a state of emergency, Stjórnstöð ferðamála, the Iceland Tourism Management Board, was established as a temporary initiative aiming to get an overview of the situation and coordinate research to prepare for action. Focusing on coordination between different sectors, the management board coordinated research on tolerance limits, concentrating primarily on the number of tourists. The Iceland Tourism Management Board’s focus areas were defined as positive tourist experiences, reliable data, nature conservation, competence and quality, increased profitability, and branding Iceland as a tourist destination.

Measuring tools

Data collection on different sites has been facilitated with instruments that measure the number of visitors. Other official measuring initiatives include The Tourism Balance Sheet , an extensive measuring tool for regularly assessing the impact of tourism on the environment, infrastructure, society, and the economy. Initiated by the Minister of Tourism, Industry and Innovation, the project was managed by the Icelandic Tourist Board and developed by EFLA Engineering together with consultants from Tourism Recreation & Conservation (TRC) from New Zealand and Recreation and Tourism Science (RTS) from the United States. The aim is to create the basis for policymaking and prioritising measures to increase coordination. Sustainability indicators were developed based on the tolerance limits of the environment, society, and the economy[13]. On a range of protected areas under official authority the assessment tool has been applied, facilitating the prioritisation of intervention and investment at a given site.  However, the defined parameters for measurement assess only the condition of structures and nature at a particular site. More qualitative and aesthetic assessment tools would be a valuable addition to the balance sheet at hand.

Official quality control system

One of the latest government initiatives in sustainable tourism promotion is Vörður, a holistic approach to destination management based on the French model, Réseau de grand sites de France, which defines the framework for destinations in Iceland that are considered unique nationally or globally. The project is managed by the Ministry of Tourism. The first destinations to start the process are Gullfoss, Geysir, Þingvellir National Park and Jökulsárlón. The ambition of establishing such a quality assessment system was initially set in Vegvísir fyrir ferðaþjónustu (Guidelines for tourism ) in 2015 [12].The plan is that by 2022, more sites, including privately owned tourist sites, can apply for assigned membership in the quality control system. Sites assigned with the label Vörður are seen as models for other destinations, fulfilling quality criteria in terms of management, supervision, organisation, facilities, services, nature conservation, safety and more. The sites must demonstrate a long-term commitment to implementing defined management and planning standards, including design, accessibility, education, security, load management and digital infrastructure.

Design traditions and local craftmanship

Infrastructure of an agricultural society becomes a framework of leisure for the urbanite.

Design tradition and local craftsmanship

Small-scale infrastructure in Icelandic nature reflects the geology of Iceland and ingenious use of local building materials, and a story of a nation shifting rapidly from an agricultural to an urban society in the wake of the 20th century. Abruptly, Icelanders were distanced from living with, in and off the land, growing a seed of longing of that exact nature for repose and experience.

Following the introduction of the first motorised fishing vessel at the beginning of the 20th century and the construction of a sturdy stone pier in Reykjavík, fishing replaced agriculture as the primary industry, keeping its status until the 21st century when the tourist industry took over. Revenues from the fishing industry set the stage for urbanisation throughout the 20th century, together with the birth of the Icelandic urbanite who no longer lived with nature but longed for it. Accordingly, a new perception of nature appears in the artworks and literature of the early 20th century, portraying nature as something beautiful and even sublime, yet distant. The prints of artworks by the “Icelandic masters”, framing the solemnity of nature, ended up on a wall in the living room of a new apartment of sons and daughters of nature who now lived in the city.

Until the 20th century, turf farms were the characteristic habitat of Iceland, nestled in the landscape, leaning from the wind with thick earth walls creating good insulation. The grass roofs grew naturally from the landscape, creating small hills as seen from the exterior perspective. In the early 20th century, concrete became Iceland's local building material. Hence, the texture of the built environment jumped directly from earth to concrete, made of volcanic sand abundant in the estuaries and beaches along the coast.

In parallel with urbanisation in the 20th century, outdoor leisure activities grew steadily with a surge in hiking, mountain skiing, recreational fishing, and bathing. In the 1920s, the first outdoor hut to support leisure activities in nature was built in Lækjarbotnar, close to Þingvellir. Iceland Touring Association (FÍ) was founded in 1927. Today, the association runs 40 mountain huts across Iceland, mainly along the most popular hiking trails.

As part of a swimming education movement in the first decades of the 20th century, local communities in many areas constructed local and outdoor swimming pools, often close to hot water sources that previous generations had bathed in. Weathered and sensitive structures from history, these pools have later attracted travellers and later, at times, excessive intrusion and damage like in the examples of Seljavallalaug and Hrunalaug. 

Cairns, conical structures of stacked stones laid decades and even centuries ago, still serve as signposts in Icelandic landscapes where people have wandered since the island’s settlement. Together, the cairns in the open landscape create negative lines indicating old routes for hikers and horse-riders, travelling with goods and running errands in all weather in the agricultural society, usually taking the shortest route over hills and mountains between the distant farms. Apart from guiding the way, the cairns would serve as information infrastructure, as wanderers would sometimes leave notes between the rocks, a poem, a gentle word on how to proceed, what to be aware of, or what to look for. The type of stones used for these conical structures varies from area to area, from old basalt rock in the east and west to younger lava stones in areas on top of the Mid-Atlantic-Ridge, which lies underneath Iceland from the southwest through the northeast – demarking the zones of volcanic activity. This variety of building materials and building techniques is also found in other historic structures like trails, pathways, steps, walls, and fences laid by different stones, with local versions in each part of the country.  The differences are explained by specific knowledge passed on through local craftsmanship and the natural material palette depending on the geological formation of each area. Along the old routes, there were huts built to shelter wanderers and farmers herding sheep from the highlands before the first snow. Like all other habitats, these huts were initially built of local material, mixing stone, rock, and earth with wood, which was scarce and therefore used sparsely and thoughtfully. A built lesson in sustainable design and building methods that warrants further study to unleash its potential in relation to future design in nature.

Current designs and future visions

Pristine nature, now with full service.

The twenty-first century has given Icelandic natural landscapes a new purpose as part of a recreational itinerary and experience of the global citizen welcoming the open invitation to seek temporary physical and mental recovery from the hazy urban world. Therefore, tourism has instigated new forms of urbanisation in remote areas and natural landscapes that can be observed through urban interdependencies within Iceland and beyond. As a result, the typical traveller in Iceland is no longer the experienced nature hiker but someone interested in experiencing nature while enjoying and valuing full service. Interestingly, although previously intact landscapes are now boosted with man-made infrastructures like trails, fences, signs, and poles, they still appear pristine and untouched in the eyes of the visitor[16].

Step by step and social cohesion

Tourism has presented new challenges regarding versatility and social cohesion concerning the design and planning of public spaces - where landscapes configure the ultimate space for the public and wildlife. The villages around the coastline have a new role to fulfil as service centres and gateways to the Icelandic wilderness and animal habitats. This role brings about new social and economic potential as well as challenges for municipalities that need to accommodate a growing number of visitors, all while mediating their smooth interaction with nature and wildlife.

When at its best, infrastructure that serves tourism serves the whole society by promoting the well-being and prosperity of the inhabitants. Examples of infrastructure improvements serving both locals and visitors include Borgarfjörður Eystri Visitor Centre. It’s an initiative that grew out of a humble viewing platform in Hafnarhólmi, a summer habitat of puffins, honorary yet temporary inhabitants of Borgarfjörður Eystri, greeted ceremonially upon their arrival in spring. The modest timber platform and stairs have now spun off a 300 m² multifunctional visitor centre that provides a framework for various activities for tourists, fishermen and residents of the village. The visitor centre that was built in concrete came about after the municipality entered into a collaboration with the Architectural Association in formulating goals and emphasis in a competition brief. In fact, design competitions have been increasingly used as a tool to develop popular tourist sites. Examples include Borgarfjörður Eystri and Baugur in the East, Bolafjall in the west and Leiðarhöfði in the south, all projects that are yet to be completed. All these projects have been initiated by small municipalities with the aim to enable access to and enhance experiences in natural environments. A complex and multifaceted endeavour where design competitions are a way for locals, landowners and municipalities of all sizes to engage with professional design communities. Design competition preparations can be facilitated by grants from The Tourist Site Protection Fund. However, they still demand long-term engagement, professional capacity, and funds from the project owner to achieve an ambitious vision, described in a competition brief, through projection.

Since 2018, the majority of projects supported by The Tourist Site Protection Fund have been initiated by locals where the landowner or municipality has coordinated and prepared for planning, design, and construction. In many cases, these are ingenious and well implemented projects while in others further guidance and expertise and even direct involvement of third parties would have been necessary. There is an evident need for applicable tools and access to expertise in design and more aspects of a nature site intervention as well as further financing for construction and maintenance of structures where the project owner can range from an individual, to a large municipality.

Protecting, bathing and weathering

Since ancient times, Icelanders not only swam, they also bathed in geothermal waters from natural sources and created hot tubs to dip in, close to their dwellings. The Guðlaug Baths project derives in part from a rich local ocean-swimming culture in the coastal town Akranes. The baths are nestled in the rocky barrier by the sand beach, which protects the village from the breakwater. As such, the baths form part of a functional protection structure as well as an aesthetical and recreational structure that has made Akranes, a few kilometres off the Ring Road, a worthwhile destination. Another example is Hrunalaug, a historic bathing infrastructure that has shown to be a popular attraction. Located on private property, the owners did not plan for visitors and have faced challenges in protecting the historic infrastructure and its surroundings from harmful intrusion. Hrunalaug is an example of vernacular design, of organic nature, and local materials that need constant mending and maintenance. An overview of the funding allocations shows that many projects receive repeated funding for maintenance and reparations, which raises questions of durability and an eventual need to promote resilient design strategies that take weathering forces better into account.

Durable design for safety and sensation

Since its establishment in 2011, safety has been a top priority for The Tourist Site Protection Fund. Ever since the first rescue squad was formed in Iceland in 1918, following frequent sea accidents and injuries along the shores, Icelandic rescue teams have put themselves on the scales to ensure public safety in Icelandic landscapes. With the increased number of foreign visitors, the volunteers in the Icelandic rescue teams have frequently headed out to help travellers under difficult, even life-threatening circumstances. Safetravel is a privately initiated and publicly-funded accident prevention project run by Landsbjörg, the Icelandic Association for Search and Rescue. The aim is to provide information to travellers and various services to limit risky behaviour, prevent accidents, and promote safe travel around the country.

Brimketill is a water experience project. An iron platform invites visitors to stand in the gushing waves, promoting safety by keeping visitors away from the slippery rocks. Brimketill is one of many examples of structures designed to respond to a demanding environment. Although the metal structure withstands the waves, the natural path toward the platform needs regular repair and maintenance due to the constant onslaught of the ocean waves, again pointing toward the necessity of robust and resilient structures.

Flexibility for landscapes in constant movement

In a context of constantly changing landscapes with sensational national phenomena like volcanoes and geysers that can gush and erupt when and where no one expects, the flexibility of strategies and structures is essential. Constructed stair at Saxhóll crater in Snæfellsnes and the systemic project hovering trails , which have been installed at Hveradalir (Hot Spring Valley), are both elevated from the ground. The aim is to minimise contact with the ground and protect nature from intrusion.  While the stairs at Saxhóll crater can be removed without consderable trace, the hovering trails are designed for movability with a modular design that enables easy disassembly and reassembly. The trails can be adapted to the movements in the landscape, and in the event of an earthquake, the structure is designed to withstand pressure, even if some of the individual pillars might break[17].

Contested notion of access

Previously many coastal areas were only accessible by water. Vast areas of Iceland remain intact, and large parts of the inlands are only accessible during the peak of the summer months. A study from 2013 showed that 43% of Europe’s wilderness is in Iceland (xxx). Currently, there are contested views on whether remote areas in the highlands should be made more accessible for cars or, rather, left in the current state in order to protect them and allow for peaceful visits of hikers. According to the management and protection plan of Vatnajökull National Park, certain areas have been closed for car access, favouring the nature experience of hikers and other visitors. 

Location-specific measurements of visitor numbers in Vatnajökull National Park show that the increase in visitors is site-specific within the park. Visits in areas close to road access and facilities increased, while the more remote areas remain reserved for the few[17]. This points toward the importance of site-specific approaches, scalability and a careful approach to each site. Some sites and areas would benefit from more built structures, while others might benefit from initiatives designed to reduce the need for infrastructure. And even removal of infrastructures that ease access to the given spot of the given site.

Network of connected points

One of the assessment criteria of The Tourist Site Protection Fund is the location of a site in relation to the local Destination Management Plan. Coordinated destination management with appropriate design for different sites can limit conflicts between different stakeholders, which is one of the focus areas of the Tourism Balance Sheet when measuring the tolerance limits of the local society.

A growing trend is to approach destinations as points in a network forming circuits that demand holistic design strategies for the assembly of different sites and their spatial and narrative interrelationship. A story that becomes the foundation for the marketing of an area with connected sites. The oldest and most visited circuit is the Golden Circle in southern Iceland, covering about 300 kilometres, with the primary sites Geysir, Gullfoss waterfall and Þingvellir National Park. The Golden Circle had close to 2 million visitors in 2019. Other and more recent circuits are the Diamond Circle in North Iceland, with the primary sites of lake Mývatn, Ásbyrgi Canyon, Dettifoss waterfall in Vatnajökull National Park and Goðafoss waterfall. 

The project that received the highest grant from The Tourist Site Protection Fund in 2021 was a network project in the vicinity of the Vatnajökull glacier initiated by Hornafjörður Municipality. A walking and cycling path between Svínafell and the national park in Skaftafell is to be designed and constructed in collaboration between local stakeholders. The so-called glacier route will connect the service and residential core of the area to reuse existing path structures, which will be restored and relinked. The project accords with the destination management plan of South Iceland.

Scalability

The accessibility to different sites on the above-mentioned circuits varies. In the case of the Diamond Circle, Goðafoss waterfall is by the central Ring Road, while some of the attractions inside of Vatnajökull National Park are more remote and have hitherto been accessible only during summer. The expected number of visitors all year round promoted in the destination management plan demands on sturdy infrastructure, which has already been put in place in Goðafoss in accord with local inhabitants. On the other hand, large-scale interventions into the landscapes of Vatnajökull National Park have been contested. The implementation of destination management plans and the launch of marketing campaigns for whole areas must be linked to a more refined design strategy for edge destinations on the circuits that warrant further work. Protection measures for lesser-known hidden gems in the vicinity of the main circuits must be in place before promoting them to a larger audience.

More cross-collaboration is needed Although there are signs of increased coordination between different agents involved in tourism, future scenarios are often drawn up solely by representatives of a defined tourism industry without involvement of members of the design or art community, nature protection, scholars, and the like. Furthermore, apart from the coordination group for the National Plan for Infrastructure, active between 2019 and 2021, officially established steering groups are often involved in isolated issues. One with a focus on tourism, another on planning and protection of natural and cultural heritage, and a third focused on design. And so forth. Thus, policy and planning work in the realm of tourism in Iceland circulates in an established tourist industry where increased numbers seem to be the principal success criteria, which goes hand in hand with plans put in force in order to limit negative impact on society and environment. In accordance with the Icelandic government’s focus on increasing foreign visitor arrivals, there have been diverse branding initiatives from the official promotional office of Iceland. Many of these initiatives have aimed to extend the travel period around the country, with campaigns instigating winter tourism and distributing visits around the country. However, more coordination is required between those who invite the visitors and those who host and greet the visitors; a plethora of private and public agents that partake in creating links on a chain of infrastructure, facilities and sites that need to be prepared for the influx of visitors all year round. Further, all sustainable tourism should preferably be aimed at and designed for the domestic traveller and the local as well as the foreign visitor, encouraging everyone‘s responsible and enriching engagement with nature, promoting health and quality of life for all.

Collaborating by means of design

Although site-specific conditions demand site-specific solutions, Iceland has been facing challenges that are well-known categorically and have already been dealt with elsewhere. Sharing experience through Nordic collaboration is highly valuable in this respect. A Nordic network could advance the development of a Nordic set of design principles that would form a basis for a Nordic Policy of Design as a tool to promote valuable nature experiences without harmful nature intrusion. However, it is through physical interventions, designed, built and maintained, that we eventually learn. In a quest for sustainable performance of built structures, innovative attitude and state-of the-art knowledge of design should be promoted. Nordic collaboration that facilitates room for experimentation and research on a range of aspects like how design can augment experience of nature by inviting the engagement of the senses, or how design strategies can further robustness against weathering forces, would be valuable.

To increase efficiency and resilience, it is essential to work comprehensively and collectively with more cross-sector, cross-country and cross-border collaboration where design is not end-of-pipe. The potential of design in the context of sustainable tourism lies in part in strategic design. Inherent holistic thinking and aesthetic considerations, the agility and potential of design to create links between lessons from the past and the needs of the future. The applicability of design processes to work with scenarios of movement and human interaction with its surroundings are all methods that can be applied more systematically when it comes to decision-making to prepare for interventions in natural environments. Further, acknowledging that every species has an equal right to thrive on earth, artists, designers, and scholars are paving the way with an empathic and personal approach. Instigating a change from a human-centred to a nature-centred approach. Sustaining sensitive ecosystems by prioritising their protection and regeneration. An essential part of this ideological change, to be followed through in action, is to allow for people’s engagement with and connection to nature. Therefore, design and design strategies that promote and provide tools for responsible engagement with nature is invaluable.

Notes 1 Halldór Björnsson, Bjarni D. Sigurðsson, Brynhildur Davíðsdóttir, Jón Ólafsson, Ólafur S. Ástþórsson, Snjólaug Ólafsdóttir, Trausti Baldursson, Trausti Jónsson. 2018. Loftslagsbreytingar og áhrif þeirra á Íslandi – Skýrsla vísindanefndar um loftslagsbreytingar 2018. Veðurstofa Íslands.  https://www.vedur.is/media/loftslag/Skyrsla-loftslagsbreytingar-2018-Vefur-NY.pdf 2 Gunnar Þór Jóhannesson & Katrín Anna Lund. Áfangastaðir í stuttu máli . Háskólaútgáfan & félagsvísindasvið Háskóla Íslands, Reykjavík  2021. 3 Hagstofa Íslands. (2003–2018) Farþegar um Keflavíkurflugvöll eftir ríkisfangi og árum 2003–201 8. https://px.hagstofa.is/pxis/pxweb/is/Atvinnuvegir/Atvinnuvegir__ferdathjonusta__farthegar/SAM0206. px" \h 4 Lög um náttúruvernd nr. 60/2013. https://www.althingi.is/lagas/nuna/2013060.html 5 Þjóðgarðurinn á Þingvöllum stefnumörkun 2018-2034. https://www.thingvellir.is > um þjóðgarðinn > stefnumörkun Þingvallanefndar > https://www.thingvellir.is/media/1754/a1072-023-u02-stefnumorkun-vefur.pdf 6 Snorri Baldursson. Vatnajökulsþjóðgarður, gersemi á heimsvísu. JPV útgáfa 2021. 7 Unesco. https://en.unesco.org/global-geoparks 8 Ibid. 9 Íris Hrund Halldórsdóttir. Ferðaþjónusta á Íslandi og Covid 19. Staða og greining fyrirliggjandi gagna. Ferðamálastofa. 2021. https://www.ferdamalastofa.is/static/files/ferdamalastofa/Frettamyndir/2021/juli/seigla-i-ferdathjonustu-afangaskyrsla-rmf-juli-2021-m-forsidu.pdf 10 Lög um Framkvæmdasjóð ferðamannastaða 75/2011. https://www.althingi.is/lagas/nuna/2011075.html 11 Atvinnuvega- og nýsköpunarráðuneytið. Skýrsla ferðamála-, iðnaðar og nýsköpunarráðherra um stöðu og þróun Framkvæmdasjóðs ferðamannastaða. Atvinnuvega- og nýsköpunarráðuneytið 2021. https://www.ferdamalastofa.is/static/files/ferdamalastofa/Frettamyndir/2021/januar/210111-atvinnuvegaraduneytid-framkvaemdasjodur-ferdamanna-v6.pdf 12 Atvinnu- og nýsköpunarráðuneytið. Vegvísir í ferðaþjónustu. https://www.ferdamalastofa.is/static/files/ferdamalastofa/tolur_utgafur/Skyrslur/vegvisir_2015.pdf 13 Stjórnarráð Íslands. https://www.stjornarradid.is/default.aspx?pageid=0e00328a-0ec4-492b-97f6-f32d41b2fd25#Tab0 14 Snorri Baldursson. Vatnajökulsþjóðgarður, gersemi á heimsvísu. JPV útgáfa 2021. 15 Anna María Bogadóttir. “Water as Public Greenspace: A Remotely Urban Perspective on Iceland” in Green Visions: Greenspace Planning and Design in Nordic Cities, Arvinius + Orfeus Publishing, Stockholm 2021. 16 Gunnar Þór Jóhannesson & Katrín Anna Lund. Áfangastaðir í stuttu máli . Háskólaútgáfan & félagsvísindasvið Háskóla Íslands, Reykjavík  2021. 17 Hovering trails. https://www.hoveringtrails.com 18 Snorri Baldursson. Vatnajökulsþjóðgarður, gersemi á heimsvísu. JPV útgáfa 2021. 19 Norðurstrandaleið. https://www.arcticcoastway.is/en/about/about

Bibliography, anna maría bogadóttir. “water as public greenspace: a remotely urban perspective on iceland” in green visions: greenspace planning and design in nordic cities, arvinius + orfeus publishing, stockholm 2021. anna dóra sæþórsdóttir et al.  þolmörk ferðamennsku í þjóðgarðinum í skaftafelli. ferðamálaráð íslands, háskóli íslands, háskólinn á akureyri, 2001. downloaded from: https://www.ferdamalastofa.is/static/files/upload/files/skaftafell.pdf . gunnar þór jóhannesson & katrín anna lund. áfangastaðir í stuttu máli . háskólaútgáfan & félagsvísindasvið háskóla íslands, reykjavík 2021. halldór björnsson, bjarni d. sigurðsson, brynhildur davíðsdóttir, jón ólafsson, ólafur s. ástþórssson, snjólaug ólafsdóttir, trausti baldursson, trausti jónsson. 2018. loftslagsbreytingar og áhrif þeirra á íslandi – skýrsla vísindanefndar um loftslagsbreytingar 2018. veðurstofa íslands. downloaded from: https://www.vedur.is/media/loftslag/skyrsla-loftslagsbreytingar-2018-vefur-ny.pdf íris hrund halldórsdóttir. ferðaþjónusta á íslandi og covid 19. staða og greining fyrirliggjandi gagna. ferðamálastofa 2021. íslensk ferðaþjónusta samstarfsverkefni kpmg, ferðamálastofu og stjórnstöðvar ferðamála — október 2020 sviðsmyndir um starfsumhverfi ferðaþjónustunnar á komandi misserum stjórnstöð ferðamála. downloaded from: https://home.kpmg/content/dam/kpmg/is/pdf/2020/10/svidsmyndir-um-framtid-ferdathjonustunnar-10-2020.pdf landsbankinn. hlutur ferðaþjónustu í landsframleiðslu í fyrsta sinn meiri en sjávarútvegs [the share of tourism in gdp for the first time greater than fishing industry]. hagsjá - þjóðhagsreikningar. landsbankinn 2018. lög um framkvæmdasjóð ferðamannastaða 75/2011. lög um náttúruvernd nr. 60/2013 snorri baldursson. vatnajökulsþjóðgarður, gersemi á heimsvísu. jpv útgáfa 2021. vegvísir í ferðaþjónustu. atvinnuvega- og nýsköpunarráðuneytið og samtök ferðaþjónustunnar 2015. downloaded from: https://www.ferdamalastofa.is/static/research/files/vegvisir_2015-pdf, author information.

Anna María Bogadóttir, [email protected]

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