- From 18 March, everyone who can provide proof of a certified vaccination will be allowed to travel to Iceland without being subject to PCR testing and quarantine.
- Visitors who can provide valid evidence of prior infection are also exempt from border measures.
- This exemption will apply to citizens outside the Schengen area, including the UK and USA.
As of 18 March 2021, travelers entering Iceland who have completed vaccination against COVID-19 will be allowed to enter Iceland. Moreover, they will not be subject to border measures, such as testing and quarantine.
Until now, exemptions have only applied to those presenting certificates from the EU/EEA Area. Now all travelers providing proof of full vaccination with a vaccine certified by the World Health Organization (WHO) or European Medical and meeting the requirements defined by Iceland’s Chief Epidemiologist and the Icelandic regulations, are welcome to visit Iceland.
The exemption also applies to those who can provide valid proof of prior infection. Documentation on prior infections must be in accordance with the requirements defined by the Chief Epidemiologist. Read more
“We are excited to safely reopen our borders to fully vaccinated citizens, as well as those who are no longer susceptible to the virus,” says Sigríður Dögg Guðmundsdóttir, Head of Visit Iceland. “Tourism is a very valuable industry for Iceland, as it contributes to our economy and culture. With the support of approved vaccines, the targeted measures taken by Icelandic officials, experts, scientists, and the general population to continuously keep the infection rate down, combined with a focused reopening plan designed to keep the Icelandic people and tourists healthy, we are now able to extend an exemption to UK and U.S. travelers safely, and other non-Schengen visitors.”
Flights cancelled and open again
Following weeks of increased seismic activity, a volcanic eruption has begun disrupting travel to the North Atlantic island nation of Iceland. All flights into or out of Keflavik International Airport (KEF) were canceled on Friday following the eruption of the Fagradalsfjall volcano located on the Reykjanes Peninsula, 25 miles from the capital Reykjavik.
Scientists first warned of a possible eruption on March 3 after seeing an uptick in seismic activity in the area. Since last weekend, the tremors kept increasing, leading experts to warn that an eruption was imminent. On Friday, the Icelandic Meteorological Office (IMO) announced that an eruption had occurred at 21:10 local time and that people should avoid the area.
Unlike the explosive eruption of Eyjafjallajökull in 2010 that caused air traffic havoc all over Europe due to the massive amount of volcanic ash, effusive eruptions produce a steady flow of lava. For an effusive eruption to occur, the magma must have a low, low ascent velocity (Reynolds Number), a dimensionless number in fluid dynamics. When the magma ascent rate is higher, an explosive eruption occurs, spewing ash clouds high into the sky.
On its website, the IMO said the following:
“At the time of writing, the weather on the peninsula is wet and windy, and an orange glow can be seen in low clouds on the horizon from Reykjanesbær and Grindavík. The eruption site is in a valley, about 4.7 km inland from the southern coast of the peninsula. The coastal town of Grindavík is the closed populated region to the eruption site, located approximately 10 km to the southwest.”
It added: “There are presently no reports of ashfall, although tephra and gas emissions are to be expected.”
