WhyGo IcelandPart of the BootsnAll Travel Network

Travel Guide

Updated · BootsnAll

travelguide

Getting to Iceland is easier than it looks on a map. Keflavik is about 4,200 km from New York, closer than Paris is, and under 1,900 km from London. Almost everyone arrives by air: in 2025, about 2.27 million of Iceland's foreign visitors, or 98.7 percent, came through Keflavik, according to the Icelandic Tourist Board. This page is the starting point for the practical side of a trip. Each section links to a longer guide.

Flying to Iceland

Icelandair is the main carrier, with flights from North America and Europe, and plenty of foreign airlines fly in too. The budget Icelandic airlines have not lasted: WOW air is gone, and PLAY stopped flying on 29 September 2025 and cancelled all its flights. Summer fares are the highest of the year, so if your dates are flexible, shoulder season saves money.

>> More on flights to Iceland, including from the UK and Ireland

A stopover on the way to Europe

If you're crossing the Atlantic anyway, Icelandair lets you stop in Iceland with no additional airfare. According to Icelandair, most fares allow up to 7 nights, and Economy Flex or Saga Premium Flex fares allow up to 21 nights (for more than 7, you book through their service center). The stopover covers flights only, and the total fare can still change because the second leg flies on a different day. Compare a few date combinations before you book.

>> More on planning a stopover in Iceland

Taking the ferry

The other way in is the Norröna car ferry, which sails from Hirtshals in Denmark via Tórshavn in the Faroe Islands to Seyðisfjörður in East Iceland. It runs between April and mid-November. In summer it's a weekly two-night crossing leaving Hirtshals on Tuesdays; in spring and autumn it takes three nights, leaving on Sundays. It isn't cheap, so it makes the most sense if you have lots of time or want your own car or camper for a long trip. About 18,100 visitors arrived this way in 2025.

>> More on ferries to Iceland, or cruises

From the airport to Reykjavik

Keflavik is about 50 km from Reykjavik. Flybus runs the airport transfer, with departures timed to arrivals and a promise to wait for late flights. The cheaper option is Strætó's route 55, which has five daily trips to and from BSÍ on weekdays; at other times it runs to Fjörður in Hafnarfjörður. Taxis and rental cars are waiting too.

>> More on getting between Keflavik and Reykjavik and Iceland's airports

Getting around Iceland

You have more options than you might expect, depending on your time and budget.

  • Rental car. Pricey, but it gives you the most freedom, and many sights are hard to reach any other way. Check umferdin.is for road conditions, and remember the highland F-roads need a 4x4 and are usually closed from mid-September until June or July (Safetravel). See car rental and driving in Iceland.
  • Buses. The long-distance network changed on 1 January 2026. Route 57 runs Reykjavik to Akureyri once a day, and route 52 runs Reykjavik to Höfn four days a week. Plan trips on straeto.is. See bus travel in Iceland.
  • Domestic flights. Air Iceland is now part of Icelandair, which flies from Reykjavik's city airport to Akureyri, Egilsstaðir, Ísafjörður and Höfn, each in under an hour. Höfn joined the network in September 2025. If you land at Keflavik, you have to collect your bags and transfer to the domestic airport yourself.
  • Ferries. Herjólfur sails from Landeyjahöfn to the Westman Islands, and the Baldur crosses Breiðafjörður between Stykkishólmur and the Westfjords.
  • Tours. If you don't want to drive, day tours from Reykjavik cover the Golden Circle, the south coast and more. See day tours from Reykjavik.

>> More on transportation within Iceland

Before you go

Before any drive or hike outside town, check safetravel.is for alerts. That includes the Reykjanes peninsula near Grindavík and the Blue Lagoon, where the ground erupted nine times between December 2023 and August 2025 and the Icelandic Met Office says magma is still building up.

Photo by Stuck in Customs