Iceland’s Eruptions Are Inspiring a New Type of Volcanic Tourism

13.07.2024 - 00:43 / cntraveler.com

In Iceland, there’s a saying, Þetta reddast, used so frequently it’s often referred to as the nation’s unofficial motto. It means, roughly, “it's all going to work out in the end.”

When I visited Reykjavik in February—just a few days after a volcanic eruption cut off hot water to more than 20,000 people, and about two months after lava forced 4,000 more to permanently evacuate from the fishing village of Grindavik—one of the questions my tour group first asked Haflidi Kristinsson, our guide, was if he was concerned about the recent surge in Iceland’s volcanic activity.

After all, the latest eruption site was located just 25 miles from the nation’s capital Reykjavik (where approximately two-thirds of the local population lives), 12 miles from the Keflavik International Airport, and 3 miles from the world-famous tourist attraction, the Blue Lagoon. Iceland is no stranger to volcanic eruptions, but these were happening much closer to home; until the Fagradalsfjall eruption in 2021, the Reykjanes Peninsula’s volcanic system had remained dormant for the last 800 years. It begs the question: why isn’t everyone freaking out?

“Þetta reddast.”

This attitude may seem dangerously nonchalant. But perhaps the Icelandic view on the whims of mother nature is necessary when living on the rift of two tectonic plates, alongside 32 active volcanoes that erupt every 3 to 6 years.

Hikers watch the lava flowing from the erupting Fagradalsfjall volcano about 25 miles west of Reykjavik, on March 21, 2021.

“Imagine 500 years ago, being a farmer in Iceland. You never knew when a storm was going to hit. You never knew when a volcano was going to erupt and pour ash over your land,” says Ragnhildur Ágústsdóttir, the founder of Iceland’s educational Lava Show, who is also known to her Instagram followers as Lady Lava. “There was a lot of uncertainty. And I think this has really affected the mentality of Icelandic people.”

Icelanders have survived among such natural uncertainty like this for the thousand-plus years the island has been inhabited. Not only have they thrived in spite of volcanoes, but because of them—by harnessing the geothermal energy of volcanoes to heat homes, provide affordable electricity, and even bake bread, Iceland has become ​​the largest green energy producer per capita in the world.

In the beginning, the reawakening of the Reykjanes Peninsula’s volcanic system in 2021 was a gift to Iceland’s tourism economy, drawing hundreds of thousands of visitors to the smoldering lava field.

Our fascination with volcanoes—both their destruction and their beauty—is primal.

Fagradalsfjall was what they call a “tourist eruption.” Effusive fissure eruptions (the non-explosive ones), produce a slow and steady lava flow from