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

>Reykjavik Round Up
>Reykjavik Card
>Praise from the Netherlands
>Everybody in the Pool!
>Visit the 2004 Reykjavik Art Festival this May
>Midweek Madness
>Northern Enchantment
>Iceland Party Weekend
>Treasure Hunt in the Woods of Thor
>Batman Lands in H�fn
>Icelandair Makes Record Profit
>Fossavatn Ski Race Goes Global
>Let's Hear It For Herring
>Luxury Mud
>Did You Know?
>A Handle on Good Health

Reykjavik Round-Up

The city of Reykjavik was included in a list of the top 20 most-visited cities in 2003. Paris, Amsterdam, and Bruges were listed as the top 3 cities to visit. According to the list, comprised by Travelscene, Reykjavik was up 2 percent from the previous year. Here are some of the features drawing more and more visitors to the Iceland capitol:

Reykjavik Card

Get to know Reykjavík the easy way. The Reykjavík Tourist Card provides free admission to a great selection of museums and galleries, to all thermal pools in Reykjavík, and free unlimited travel by "Strætó" buses within the Greater Reykjavík Area. What’s more, the card grants discounts to various tours and services. The Reykjavík Tourist Card comes with a brochure with detailed information about participating museums and travel services, bus schedule, and other important details to make your visit memorable. In fact you don’t need much else apart from comfortable shoes and your traveling spirit. The Card can be purchased for 24, 48 or 72 hours. Click here for more information.

Praise from the Netherlands

Reykjavik has become one of the trendiest cities on the planet, evidenced by the latest accolade - a string of stores in the Netherlands called, quite simply, “Reykjavik.”

According to the company’s marketers, the idea for using the name “Reykjavik” was developed because “everybody is addicted to Iceland - especially to Reykjavik - which stands for the cold and brave sensation everybody must experience once in awhile.” We like the “brave” part, but will somebody please tell them that we do indeed have a summer in Iceland?

Everybody in the Pool!

The number of visitors to Reykjavik’s swimming pools increased by 9,000 in 2003. This marks the seventh year in a row that attendance at the pools has gone up. Click here for more information.

Visit the 2004 Reykjavik Art Festival this May

Since 1970, Iceland’s premier cultural festival has been bringing together the best in local and international entertainment. The Reykjavik Art Festival’s program offers a variety of selected exhibitions, concerts, dance, theater and opera performances. Along with its focus on Icelandic culture past and present, the festival hosts many outstanding international artists and performers. The Festival will be held annually starting this year, so join us for the start of this grand tradition. Click here for more information.

Midweek Madness

This is the perfect way to sample Reykjavik and see what all the fuss is about. Priced from just $299* per person based on double occupancy in March and $399* in April, Midweek Madness includes air, two nights at Icelandair hotels, roundtrip airport/hotel transfers, and a Scandinavian breakfast buffet daily. Click here for more information.

Northern Enchantment

Couples seeking something different from crowded beaches and canned entertainment will find something special waiting in northern Iceland. Spend an invigorating winter getaway in a colorful fairy-tale town surrounded by majestic mountains and fjords. You can wander through fanciful volcano carved landscapes or live at a faster pace on skis or snowmobiles. When the day's adventure is over, you can both relax in pure, geothermal hot tubs and saunas and dine on Iceland's delicious organic cuisine. Priced from $779* per person double occupancy. Click here for more information.

Iceland Party Weekend

This is your last chance to party the winter away. Take advantage of long weekend holidays in Iceland with this party package. By day, sleep in and enjoy afternoon sightseeing or outdoor adventure. In the night, party away at Iceland's best clubs and pubs. This package includes all the ingredients for a fantastic holiday. Lower priced airfares and packages may be available at icelandair.com, From $609* per person based on double occupancy. Click here for more information.

Treasure Hunt in the Woods of Thor

An All-Natural Scavenger Hunt. The mighty Thor heralded in Norse mythology is the inspiration for this treasure hunt and Jeep safari. Super Jeep 4X4's pick you up and charge out headed for the Thorsmork valley. Nestled between three glaciers lies a unique composition of glacial boulders, lichen and Icelandic myths. Teams will try to locate a buried treasure using their instincts, wits and GPS. The fun is in the hunt and bragging rights. From $699* per person based on double occupancy. Departs April 1, 2004. Click here for more information.

(* Prices quoted are exclusive of applicable taxes and official charges by destination of approximately $90, including the September 11th Security Fee.)

Batman Lands in H�fn

Several James Bond films have been shot in Iceland, along with Lara Croft’s Tomb Raider. Now another cinematic hero comes to Iceland - the caped crusader himself. The fifth Batman movie, “Batman Begins,” directed by Christopher Nolan, is currently being filmed in Iceland near Höfn in south-east Iceland. The film crew numbers around 200 people and among the actors are Michael Caine, Morgan Freeman, Liam Neeson, Katie Holmes and Christian Bale. Based on the DC Comics character created in 1939, several incarnations of Batman have graced the silver screen, most notably the recent films beginning in 1989 with Michael Keaton, then Val Kilmer and George Clooney - all have worn the mantle of the Dark Knight. Click here for more information.

Icelandair Makes Record Profit

These outstanding travel packages must be hitting a responsive chord out there. Icelandair had its most profitable year in company history in 2002, followed by its second most profitable in 2003. The company is looking forward to another great year bringing travelers to the magic of Iceland. Attractive pricing will undoubtedly help them reach their goal. You almost can’t afford to stay home. Click here for more information.

Fossavatn Ski Race Goes Global

Held the first weekend in May every year since 1935, the oldest, longest and largest ski race in Iceland is now beginning to attract professional skiers and weekend warriors from around the world. In 2004, the race will include 7,10 and 20 km races in addition to a 50 km race for the first time ever. No matter whether you snowplow or carve with the best of them, the Fossavatn is for you. Click here for more information.

Let's Hear it for Herring

The Herring Museum in Siglufjördur, North Iceland, has been selected to
compete for the European Museum Awards this year. The award ceremony takes place in Athens in May. According to curator Örlygur Kristfinnsson, this is the first time that an Icelandic museum has been nominated for this award. There are 40 museums altogether competing for the award. Kristfinnsson comments: “This means that we will be featured in a special book published by the European Museum Forum, which is great promotion for us.” Time to visit the museum yourself, we’d say. Herring is known as “Silver of the Sea,” and for good reason. Herring was considered so important that in 1673 Britain and Holland used their navies in a dispute over the control of herring grounds. This is the only known case of a humble fish causing a bloody international conflict. Click here for more information.

THEY SAID IT

Luxury Mud

The February 2004 issue of Vogue reports about a visit to the Blue Lagoon by spa consultant Alexia Brue:

“Brue herself has witnessed the healing properties of the Blue Lagoon, a happy accident of a spa that erupted, literally, in 1976, when workers were mining the region for its geothermal seawater. On a lark, Brue jetted off or a weekend, slopping on the white mud about her face and body. She emerged not just refreshed but a bit giddy, almost ecstatic. Her complexion glowed. She tried to take some home, but, she admitted, ‘It was sort of like bringing a doggy bag out of a great restaurant in Paris. It just didn’t feel the same back here.’”

“Dirty Pretty Things” by Penelope Green
Vogue Magazine
February 2004

Did you Know?

“The first European to see North America may have been Bjarni Herjolfsson. According to Norse sagas, the Viking trader was sailing from Iceland to Greenland in 986 when he got lost in the fog. He made his way to ‘a flat and wooded country’ - Canada, no doubt - but never left the boat. The sagas tease him for his timidity. But he did share his news with (and sell his ship to) the next Euro-visitor to the Americas, Leif Eiriksson, who was the first European to set foot in North America around the year 1000 A.D.”

- U.S. News & World Report, February 23, 2004

A Handle on Good Health

“Icelanders clearly have a good handle on the spa lifestyle: Their water, food, and air are among the world’s purest; their leisure time is spent soaking in thermal pools; and for exercise they hike, ski, whitewater raft, golf, snowmobile, and ride curiously small and hairy Icelandic horses. In short the entire country feels like one big destination spa … The average life expectancy is 79 years, and everyone looks so robust and healthy that it makes you wonder if the mythical foundation of youth isn’t one of Iceland’s many geysers.”

- Spa Finder Magazine, Sept./Oct. 2003

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For information on other exciting activities in Iceland, be sure to visit www.IcelandTouristBoard.com or www.IcelandNaturally.com