How to Plan a Stopover in Iceland

Jets no longer have to stop in Iceland to refuel between North America and Europe, but plenty of flights still go through Keflavik, and that makes it easy to spend a few days in Iceland on the way. If you're flying Icelandair across the Atlantic, you can add up to a week in Iceland without paying any more for your flights. Here's how it works, who it works with, and how to make the most of it.

The short answer

Book a transatlantic trip on Icelandair and choose the "Stopover in Iceland" option. You can stop on the way out, on the way back, or both. Most fares let you stay up to 7 nights at no extra airfare, and Flex fares allow up to 21 nights. Hotels, tours and transport in Iceland are extra. Icelandair is the only airline that offers this.

How the Icelandair Stopover works

These details come from Icelandair's Stopover page, checked in September 2026:

• No extra airfare. You're flying between North America and Europe with a connection in Keflavik anyway. The Stopover turns that connection into a few days in Iceland.
• Either direction, or both. When you pick "Stopover in Iceland" on icelandair.com, the search form shows an "Add a Stopover to your trip" option under the outbound flight and again under the return flight.
• Up to 7 nights on most fares. You can book this yourself on icelandair.com: pick the Stopover option when you search, then choose how many nights.
• Up to 21 nights on Flex fares (Economy Flex or Saga Premium Flex). For anything over 7 nights, you have to call or message Icelandair's service center; the website won't book it.
• Flights only. Accommodation isn't included. You book your own hotel, or buy a package through Icelandair's holiday arm.
• Adding one later is possible through the service center, but a change fee applies, plus any fare difference.

Why the price sometimes changes

Icelandair says the stopover itself costs nothing, but your total can still go up or down when you add one. That's because your second flight now leaves on a different day, and fares vary by date. If the price jumps, try moving the stopover by a day or two.

Which airlines offer a stopover?

Icelandair is the one to book. It's the only airline with a formal stopover program through Keflavik, and since PLAY folded it's the only airline whose own flights connect North America and Europe through Iceland.

PLAY, the low-cost carrier that also connected North America and Europe through Keflavik, shut down on 29 September 2025. WOW air, the one before it, collapsed in 2019.

Several other airlines fly to Keflavik from North America: United (Chicago all year, plus Newark and Washington Dulles in summer), Delta (New York JFK, Detroit and Minneapolis/St. Paul, all in summer), Air Canada (Montreal and Toronto in summer), WestJet (Calgary, Edmonton and Winnipeg in summer), Alaska Airlines (Seattle in summer) and Air Transat (Montreal in summer). American Airlines starts daily summer flights from Philadelphia on 27 May 2027. These routes come from the Keflavik Airport destinations page.

Those airlines fly to Iceland and back. They don't sell connections on to Europe from Keflavik. You can still build your own stopover by flying one of them to Iceland and booking a separate ticket onward with a European airline. Just know that separate tickets don't protect you: if the first flight is late and you miss the second, that's your problem. Leave at least a night in Iceland between them, which is the point anyway.

Where Icelandair flies from in North America

As of September 2026, the Keflavik Airport destinations page shows Icelandair flying to these North American cities. Halifax and Pittsburgh are summer routes and Miami is a winter one; check Icelandair's flight schedule for your dates.

Year-round	Seasonal
Baltimore Boston Chicago O'Hare Denver Minneapolis/St. Paul Nashville New York JFK Newark Orlando Portland (Oregon) Raleigh/Durham Seattle/Tacoma Toronto Pearson Vancouver Washington Dulles	Halifax (summer) Miami (winter) Pittsburgh (summer)

That's a long way from 2010, when this page listed Boston, New York and Seattle year-round, plus a handful of seasonal cities.

Where you can go on the other side

From Keflavik, Icelandair flies on to nearly 40 cities in Europe, among them Amsterdam, Barcelona, Berlin, Brussels, Copenhagen, Dublin, Edinburgh, Frankfurt, Glasgow, Helsinki, Lisbon, London (Heathrow and Gatwick), Manchester, Munich, Oslo, Paris, Prague, Rome, Stockholm and Zurich, plus seasonal routes such as Nice and Venice in summer and Salzburg and Tromsø in winter.

The stopover also works for Greenland (Nuuk, and seasonal Ilulissat, Kulusuk and Qaqortoq) and the Faroe Islands. See how to visit Greenland from Iceland.

Passports and the border

Iceland is in the Schengen area. On a stopover, you go through passport control in Keflavik, not at your final European airport. The Schengen 90-days-in-180 limit counts your Iceland days too.

The EU's Entry/Exit System registers non-EU visitors when they enter the Schengen area, and Iceland is part of it. The separate ETIAS travel authorisation hasn't started yet; the EU says it'll announce the start date several months in advance.

Getting out of the airport

Keflavik is about 50 km from Reykjavik. Your options:

• Flybus, run by Reykjavik Excursions, to the BSI bus terminal and many hotel stops.
• Straeto bus 55, the public bus, 2,400 ISK for adults to Reykjavik as of 2026. Pay on board by card or cash. Not every trip goes all the way to BSI, so check the timetable.
• A rental car, picked up at the airport. Handy if you want to see the Golden Circle or the south coast.
• A taxi. Book ahead with Hreyfill or another company.

More detail in getting between Reykjavik and Keflavik.

If you don't want to drag all your bags around Iceland, Icelandair points travelers to luggage storage options.

How long should you stay?

One night

Enough for a soak and a walk around Reykjavik. Many people go straight to the Blue Lagoon, which is on the Reykjanes peninsula not far from the airport. The crater row by nearby Grindavik erupted nine times between December 2023 and August 2025, and the lagoon and its roads have closed at short notice. The Icelandic Met Office says magma is still building up. Check safetravel.is before you book, and have a plan B, such as one of the Reykjavik city pools or other hot spring pools.

Two or three nights

This is the sweet spot for most people. You get a day in Reykjavik and a day or two out of town: the Golden Circle, the south coast to Vik, or the Snaefellsnes peninsula. See two days in Iceland and three days in Iceland.

Four to seven nights

Now you can go further: the south coast as far as the Jokulsarlon glacier lagoon, a flight up to Akureyri and Lake Myvatn, or a few days in the Westfjords. See four days in Iceland and five days in Iceland.

More than a week

You'll need a Flex fare and a call to Icelandair. With 10 days or more, you can drive the whole Ring Road. See 10 days in Iceland.

Mistakes to avoid

• Driving straight off an overnight flight. Eastbound flights from North America are mostly overnight, so you land tired. Safetravel warns about exactly this. Sleep first, or take the bus.
• Booking a stopover that's too short for the season. Winter days are short and the weather can shut roads. Give yourself a spare day in winter.
• Forgetting the cost of Iceland. The flights are free; Iceland isn't. See how to budget for a trip to Iceland and costs.
• Assuming any airline will do it. Only Icelandair tickets include the stopover. On other airlines you're booking two separate trips.

Stopover FAQ

Is the Icelandair Stopover really free?

The airfare is. Icelandair doesn't charge extra for the stop, though your total can change because your onward flight is on a different date. You pay for everything on the ground.

Can I add a stopover after I've booked?

Yes, by contacting Icelandair's service center. A change fee applies, plus any difference in fare.

Can I stop over if I'm flying from Europe to North America?

Yes. Icelandair offers the stopover on its flights across the Atlantic in both directions, so it works from either side, and on a round trip you can add one on the way out, on the way back, or both.

What's the best time of year for a stopover?

Summer gives you long days for driving. September to April is northern lights season. See when to go to Iceland.

>>what to do with two days in Iceland

Photo by WanderingtheWorld