DATELINE ICELAND - November/December 2001

A periodic look at news and events from the home of the Vikings. Brought to you by the Icelandic Tourist Board.

> Making Merry
> Glacier Gazing
> Hot Clubs in a Cool Country
> Shop Till You Drop
> Legend Has It..
> Dateline Mailbag: Don't Just Take Our Word For It

Making Merry

The start of December marks the beginning of the lavish Icelandic Christmas buffets where calorie-counting is just, well, prohibited. These gastronomical smorgasbords feature all the traditional Icelandic goodies guaranteed to please every Christmas palate.

New Year's Eve, (Dec. 31) is a nationwide event. Community bonfires, parties, club outings and fireworks make everyone happy to be part of the welcoming Icelandic way. Icelandair can get you there with a number of tempting packages, all wrapped and ready to be opened:

Christmas Buffet Tours - Eat your way through Iceland .. Packages start from $449 p.p. double occupancy. Depending on the package, buffets are featured at Restaurant Lon (Hotel Loftleidir), Restaurant Siggi Hall at Hotel Odinsve, Brasserie Borg (Hotel Borg), and Skrudur at Hotel Saga. Packages generally start from mid-November to mid-December.

Meet Santa in Iceland Tours - This package for parents and kids starts from $459 p.p. double occupancy for parents and $299 for one accompanying child age 11 and under.

Holiday Sparkle Tour - This is a deluxe, all-inclusive holiday tour tailor-made for families looking for the very best accommodations and holiday fun. It departs Dec. 6, 13, and 20 from New York, Baltimore, Boston, Minneapolis/St. Paul, and Orlando. Price for a double room with private bath from Friday through Sunday morning is $899 per person for adults, $569 for children ages 6-12 sharing a room with adults.

Christmas in Reykjavik Tour departs Dec. 23 (see above for departure locations). Tours begin from $599 per person.

New Year's Eve On Top of the World Tour departs Dec. 28 (see above). Tours begin from $1,199 per person.

For more details and information contact Icelandair Holidays, 1-800-779-2899; www.icelandair.com; [email protected]. Ask about their Midweek Madness and Thanksgiving packages too.

Special Stocking Stuffer: Log onto: www.randburg.com/is/taxfree.html to see how you can get 15% back on the VAT you paid during your trip.

During your holiday merrymaking in Iceland, be on the lookout for Yuletide Lads, those 13 gift-giving, elf-like bearded spirits dressed in red (remind you of anyone?) who live in the mountains until Dec. 12. Then, one-by-one, they descend to the villages to create mischief as Icelandic families prepare for the festive season. By Jan. 6, each one of the Lads, who stays for 13 days, is gone. But memories of their merry pranks and melodic renderings last until their return the following year.

Glacier Gazing

No winter trip to Iceland would be complete without a visit to its spectacular glaciers. They bring to mind the Ice Age, when glaciers once covered Iceland and parts of Europe. The Glacial Vistas tour from Icelandair Holidays includes snowmobile excursions and can be enjoyed from September through May for $255 p.p. Since it's hard to grasp the immensity of a glacier in just a day, consider a six-day World of Glaciers adventure that provides the perfect blend of culture and adventure in an area of spectacular beauty. Prices range from $1,089 - $1,149 p.p. double occupancy and includes airfare, hotel accommodations, Super Van transportation, and a Viking saga feast. (For more information: www.icelandair.com).

Hot Clubs in a Cool Country

Reykjavik's hip and just too-cool clubs, each with their own special ambience, are guaranteed to seduce you into the holiday spirit.

Vegamot Bistro and Bar right off Reykjavik's most popular shopping street, Laugavegus, attracts locals and tourists and boasts some of the most skilled chefs in Iceland. After 10 p.m., the pace quickens as Vegamot transforms into a lively night spot, while the bar remains relaxed enough for intimate conversations. EW Vegamotastigur 4, Reykjavik, (+354) 511-3040.

Kaffi Thomsen is a hip nightclub for the younger generation with a caf� upstairs and a dance floor below. Cave-like drawings of wild horses and big-game cats adorn the adobe-colored walls inside the entrance. Check out www.thomsen.is to sample the beat. Hafnarstraeti 17, Reykjavik, (+354) 561-4400.

Kaffibarinn is an art-house type club that serves as a local haunt for Icelandic musicians, actors and writers. This is the place to see and be seen. Bergstadastraeti 1, Reykjavik, (+354) 551-1588.

Astro is a popular disco which features live bands on Thursday's and R&B; on the weekends. Austurstraeti 22, Reykjavik, (+354) 552-9222.

Rex Bar is an upscale, London-style club which mixes 25 different types of wine with tasty international dishes. It even has a room where Rex members can enjoy cigars and cognac. Austurstraeti, Reykjavik, (+354) 551-9111.

Shop Till You Drop

Get into the Christmas spirit and take advantage of the wide array of the goodies Iceland offers, including some available nowhere else. You'll be able to fill your holiday carts with tax-free designer clothing, footwear, giftware and American, Scandinavian and European labels - all competitively priced. The Smaralind Shopping Centre, in Kopavogur just outside Reykjavik, is a must-see for your spree. The largest shopping center in Iceland, it includes international retailers, an entertainment center, and five cinemas when you're ready to take a break.

For more info: www.icelandtouristboard.com or call them at (212) 885-9700. When you return home, log onto www.icelandicstore.com or www.arcticnature.com for a wonderful treasure trove of gift ideas. A must for your shopping list is the traditional Icelandic handmade "Lopi" sweater. Created out of two types of wool from Icelandic sheep, these sweaters are a warm way to wish anyone a happy holidays.

Legend Has It..

Icelandic folklore is as fascinating as the country itself and knowing about its customs and traditions enables visitors to get the most out of their trip to Iceland.

Before there was Christmas, there was "Jol," a non-religious, midwinter festival. When Christianity arrived in Iceland, around the year AD 1000, "Jol" assumed the role of Christmas.

During the middle of the 19th century, Christmas trees made their first appearance in Iceland. Icelanders made their own with wooden boughs, painted green and decorated with leaves, candles and paper. Imported natural evergreen trees became available in the 1940's and today Christmas trees are grown in Iceland in large numbers.

The earliest Christmas gifts in Iceland were candles and their bright flames made homes brighter than the dim glow of fish-oil lamps usually used for lighting. Christmas thus became known as the "Festival of Lights."

The Feast of St. Nicholas is celebrated on December 6. The patron saint of seafarers, St. Nicholas eventually became known as Santa Claus. But by the late 1930's a certain group of lads adopted Santa's costume and if you read all of this Dateline: Iceland, you know who they are.

Dateline Mailbag: Don't Just Take Our Word For It

Want to know what travel to Iceland is really like? Well, don't just take our word for it, see what eight Americans had to say following their very excellent adventure in the summer of 2000. Christopher Mullins, of www.christopherjmullins.com, writes, "Your country gave us so many great memories on our trip that we felt like we owed something back. I think that our diary in the TOUR section and our final thoughts on Iceland in the PROFILE section really offer a more personal look from a "bunch of friends" that decided to visit. In any case, thank you again for your hospitality."