Why Iceland’s broken economy is good news for visitors – finding cheap beer, affordable tours, good accommodation and activities.
In recent weeks, the whole world has had a bit of a hard time of it financially. Shares have plummeted, big companies have gone under and emergency bail-outs have been unveiled. It’s not just happening in Australia and the US either – Europe has taken an absolute kicking as well.
But nowhere has had it as bad as Iceland. The country had risen to prosperity on a mountain of debt and an unregulated banking industry.
And now it has all gone tits up. The country’s main three banks have had to be nationalised, and Iceland – which only has a population of just over 300,000 – is now saddled with enormous bills that it cannot possibly pay. The country is as good as bankrupt.
This is bad news for Icelanders and anyone – like me – who has savings in an Icelandic bank, but brilliant news for tourists.
Iceland has long been the most expensive country in the world to visit, but the days of the $20 beer are over. The Icelandic currency has gone into freefall alongside the general economy, and it’s now vaguely affordable to visit. Think $10 a beer instead, and better if the Aussie dollar gets back to where it was about six weeks ago.
I went to Iceland in May (back when it was still bloody pricey and I had savings). I’ll happily say that there’s no place on earth like it. In Europe, certainly, it’s staggeringly unique.
There are massive waterfalls, huge glaciers that you can go walking over, and thermally heated pools across the country. Half of the country looks like a weird moonscape, topped off with volcanoes, and it’s a top place to go whale or puffin watching. In other words, it’s got plenty of stuff that you can’t really do elsewhere in Europe. It also has a fascinating history to investigate – including the world’s first Parliament, the first Europeans to discover America and plenty of bloodthirsty Viking gore.
But it’s usually left off itineraries because of the reputation for being expensive. Well, it’s still expensive, but now on a par with Western Europe’s other expensive cities. If ever there’s a time to include it in the itinerary, it’s now.
And if you do make it over there, can you please ask a few chaps in suits when I can have my money back?
Do you have any questions you’d like to ask David about travelling in Europe or getting the best deals? Leave a comment below and he’ll try his best to help.
