Does Iceland Have A Lot To Learn About Tourism?

Has the service and accommodations during your previous stay(s) in Iceland left you wanting? If you're leaning towards yes, you appear to be in good company.

Iceland, when compared to other tourist destinations, does not offer the same quality for price as other major tourist destinations, according to the recent The Reykjavik Grapevine article "Hotel Industry Harshly Criticized."

http://www.visitreykjavik.is/

In spite of the countries friendly reputation, Renato Gruenenfelder, the managing director of Guðmundur Jónasson Travel found that when,

"Comparing Icelandic hotels to those hotels with the same number of stars in Copenhagen, Paris, Dubai, Paris, Rome, Beijing and New York, he found that in most cases, Icelandic hotels ranked lower when it came to conditions, service, and quality for the same amount of money."

My experiences have been generally very positive. I will say there are times when I thought hotel staff could have been a tad more helpful but nothing really to the point of a complaint. In regards to restaurants and other places, everyone was extremely friendly and nice. 

Has anyone had a bad experience? Let me know. 

Review of The Blue Lagoon / Bláa Loní∂

What's the first thing you think of about Iceland? 

Ok... After Björk?  

Is it this?

This is the Blue Lagoon. 

Originally a waste run-off pool created by a geothermal energy power plant, it was discovered to have healing properties and built into a full-scale spa destination. Just think of it as a a better-for-you, upscale East River. 

When planning to go, I would recommend hitting it up either on your way in or way out of town. It was very convenient to catch a bus from the city center of Reykjavik, head to the Lagoon, spend a few hours there and then proceed to Keflavik airport, or vice-versa. 

A few highlights of my Blue Lagoon experience are:

Exclusive Lounge

Picture thanks to NYCFlyer75

If you plan to hit up the Blue Lagoon, you have the option to go for the Exclusive Lounge or go with the general public area. Yes, the lounge price is a bit steep, but it all comes down to the experience you want while you're there. 
Do you want an Equinox experience or a New York Sports Club experience?

The lounge comes with private rooms, drinks, fruit, private lounge and, most importantly on those many snowy, cold Icelandic days, a private enclosed entrance to the Blue Lagoon. You will find no more than 12 couples to make it even more exclusive. Also, it comes with an attendant who will take care of any issues/questions/spa & restaurant reservations you may have. While I was there, Omar(seen right) was my attendant. He was very friendly, funny and helpful. 


Lava
After spending several hours in the warm water of the lagoon, you will definitely work up an appetite. It seemed most people decided to go for the Blue Café. This reminded me of a quick food kiosk you'll find at La Guardia or JFK. I would highly recommend taking a bit longer and hitting up Lava, the full-service restaurant. I went for the sushi platter. I've never had such great tasting sushi. It was amazing. 




Silica Massage for Back
I opted to go for another splurge and scheduled a Silica Massage for Back while I was there. I greeted the masseuse and she led me to a separate section of the lagoon and had me lie on a floating rubber mat. It was a nice massage although interesting to have part of your body in the warm water and the other part exposed to the cold, arctic weather. I definitely enjoyed the massage but can't say that it stood out from any other ones I've received. With the Euro coming close to USD, I'd probably skip this the next time around. 

To sum things up, I highly recommend experiencing the Blue Lagoon. Just remember, it is a tourist destination and you are a captive audience so things will be expensive; you'll get what you pay for. 

For this excursion, save up, and splurge on the exclusive lounge and meal at Lava. 

Welcome To My Blog / Velkomin á bloggið mitt

Columbus, Ohio:
Population: 809,798
Area: 223.1 sq. miles

Wilmington, Delaware(New Castle County):
Population: 546, 076
Area: 494 sq. miles

New York City
Population: 8,337,000 
Area: 468.5 sq. miles

Iceland
Population: 321,857
Area: 39,770 sq. miles

One of these things is not like the other. I'll give you one guess...

I was born in Columbus, Ohio. I grew up in Wilmington, Delaware and I currently live in New York City. All of these are fairly dense urban or suburban centers. I'm the first to admit that I'm a city boy; I once neared panic-attack-levels of anxiety driving through the wilderness of coastal Oregon. 

So how would you explain falling in love with Iceland, a misunderstood country of 321,857 people with close to half located in the capital city of Reykjavik? 
Could it be their famous musicians, Björk and Sigur Rós? 
Their landscape being featured in movies and television shows like Game of Thrones? 
Our shared love of Huldufólk, or Hidden People?
Or possibly love of fermented shark chased with a shot of Black Death?

Answer: It's a little bit of everything. As judged by the clichéd nickname of the country, The Land of Fire and Ice, Iceland is a land of opposites. Most people end with that cursory depiction. Similarly, on the surface, New York City and Iceland appear to have nothing in common. While there are quire a few differences between the two, there is also quite a bit that connects the two cultures. 

This blog will explore the differences, similarities and everything in between. I hope you find it informative, enjoyable and helps you in your exploration of Iceland.