Iceland Meets Thread

[kristilew]

Kristilew, consider posting on TripAdvisor's Iceland forum. Someone may have an idea of a work around for you. $657 seems excessive for one night's stay, even for Iceland.

I've actually done some more flight research and I think we can do it in one day without spending 10 hours layover or flying to London, if we drive to Raleigh and go from there. Delta actually has pretty good options at decent prices. JetBlue also flies from RDU but as of right now it is literally double the cost of Delta, which seems so odd to me.

What's really off-putting about the $657 for one room with roll away, is I looked on Booking dot com and can get two rooms (the hotel's recommendation for a party of 3) there on the same night, for a total of $712. Just in case we wondered if ABD marked up.

Kristilew, when I booked Iceland directly with ABD, the Vacationista told me they would do a transfer from the hotel to the Blue Lagoon. I'd better follow up on that.
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Please report back! If you get confirmation that they will transfer you, I will have my TA go back with that info.

I can't believe it didn't occur to ABD that some families would prefer to take advantage of the afternoon flight options. Of which, once I started looking, there are many. It's one thing to fly overnight to Italy, where you actually are in the air for enough hours get a little bit of sleep. But for a 5 hour flight, it doesn't make as much sense. Given an hour (at least) to settle the cabin, and an hour on the other end for landing prep, the lights will only be out for 3 at the most.

 

[aggiedog]

Wow, that hurts that ABD is charging you that, but makes more sense for two rooms. $300-ish is more standard for a nice room in Rey.

Yes, it's a short flight, and I feel like the afternoon flights are somewhat new. I've only ever seen "arrive at 4:30-6:30am" flights, but maybe I'm not looking in the right places. Either way, you'll have a great trip. I love Iceland.

 

[BluesTraveler]

@kristilew, I had an e-mail confirmation this morning that transfer to/from Blue Lagoon from the hotel IS included.

 

[carpenta]

The airlines probably added the afternoon flights to the schedule because the Iceland airport is chaos at best and they do not have enough gates to handle the traffic. Leaving we had to line up at the gate, go out onto a crowded bus, drive out onto the tarmac and walk up the portable stairway (while they were refueling the plane). The poor workers were completely overwhelmed.

 

[sayhello]

The airlines probably added the afternoon flights to the schedule because the Iceland airport is chaos at best and they do not have enough gates to handle the traffic. Leaving we had to line up at the gate, go out onto a crowded bus, drive out onto the tarmac and walk up the portable stairway (while they were refueling the plane). The poor workers were completely overwhelmed.

Sayhello

 

[kristilew]

@kristilew, I had an e-mail confirmation this morning that transfer to/from Blue Lagoon from the hotel IS included.

Good to know. We decided to get over ourselves and just do a pre-day. It's easier to rationalize the cost when we have the room for a whole extra day and a half than just for sleeping that one night.

On the flight from JFK to KEF and back, I was surprised by how many seats are already booked. Glad I didn't wait any longer to focus on flights! And now it feels more real since we have our airfare locked in! *Only* 282 days to go!

The airlines probably added the afternoon flights to the schedule because the Iceland airport is chaos at best and they do not have enough gates to handle the traffic. Leaving we had to line up at the gate, go out onto a crowded bus, drive out onto the tarmac and walk up the portable stairway (while they were refueling the plane). The poor workers were completely overwhelmed.

This sounds like our experience at both LHR and PHL airports. Seems like everyone is trying to maximize flights these days, at the expense of a pleasant boarding experience. What airline did you fly, Carpenta? Or do you think it even matters?

 

[carpenta]

We flew Icelandair which was very pleasant (the flight itself) but it was the airport that was crazy for every airline company it seemed. I read today one of the big volcanos was about to erupt for they have had earthquakes in the last week or so. It is suppose to rival the volcano back a number of years ago. Now that would screw up air traffic in Western Europe. We almost got stuck the last time Iceland volcano blew flying out of Barcelona.

 

[sayhello]

We flew Icelandair which was very pleasant (the flight itself) but it was the airport that was crazy for every airline company it seemed. I read today one of the big volcanos was about to erupt for they have had earthquakes in the last week or so. It is suppose to rival the volcano back a number of years ago. Now that would screw up air traffic in Western Europe. We almost got stuck the last time Iceland volcano blew flying out of Barcelona.

I had the opposite issue. I was trying to *get* to Barcelona for my cruise!! Luckily, I was flying Iberia (Spanish airline). They said if we got to Madrid, they'd get us to Barcelona somehow!!

Sayhello

 

[BluesTraveler]

Quick note on flights. We have finally booked. Because of flight times, we decided to spend a pre-night in NYC. We will fly into NYC on Wednesday, arriving at 2pm, and stay one night. Then we fly to Iceland on Thursday, leaving NYC around 2pm and arriving Iceland about 11:30pm. We have Friday to adjust and start to get acclimated to the time change. ABD starts Saturday afternoon. It is adding up to do a couple pre-nights, but it will make travel significantly less stressful to have some built-in cushion (and our whole family loves NYC, so a night there is truly a treat). Our other alternatives were to have a very short layover in NY or to fly overnight to Iceland - neither sounded like a good way to start a vacation.

 

[sayhello]

So I called to see how many people are on my Adults Only Iceland ABD, and found out that it's 40! *ALL* of the Iceland departures are sold out!! The Vacationista told me Iceland is so popular right now that the hotels have told them there's no requesting early checkins or late checkouts. That they are *that* booked up and desperate for the room! I sure hope this isn't going to be a super-crowded vacation... Amazing how things change in 2 years!

Sayhello

 

[BluesTraveler]

So I called to see how many people are on my Adults Only Iceland ABD, and found out that it's 40! *ALL* of the Iceland departures are sold out!! The Vacationista told me Iceland is so popular right now that the hotels have told them there's no requesting early checkins or late checkouts. That they are *that* booked up and desperate for the room! I sure hope this isn't going to be a super-crowded vacation... Amazing how things change in 2 years!

Sayhello

Oh my goodness. I'm glad I have already booked our 2 pre-nights. We had 30 in Wyoming and 33 in Alaska, and I think both of those trips are similar in terms of the kinds of activity to Iceland. Both of those trips could have accommodated another 7-10 people with no problem so I'm not as worried about a large crowd as I might be if this were a city-based, museum-heavy trip.

 

[sayhello]

Oh my goodness. I'm glad I have already booked our 2 pre-nights. We had 30 in Wyoming and 33 in Alaska, and I think both of those trips are similar in terms of the kinds of activity to Iceland. Both of those trips could have accommodated another 7-10 people with no problem so I'm not as worried about a large crowd as I might be if this were a city-based, museum-heavy trip.

That's very true! I was kind of surprised, because I've never had an Adults Only trip be even close to full! I've been on a couple of full family trips, but that's been OK, too. As I said, I was just surprised. The biggest problem with large groups generally seems to be bathroom breaks! Honestly, I'm more worried about the *other* people than my fellow ABDers! Apparently Iceland has become the #1 travel destination in the world! It's kind of a small country; I just hope there's enough room for all those tourists!

I actually booked one pre-night, and then decided 3 months later to add a second pre-night. ABD couldn't get it. (I'm sure they had a limited number of reduced-price rooms reserved). I ended up having to book my second pre-night myself! Luckily I did that months ago!

Sayhello

 

[carpenta]

Yes Iceland is the "place to see". We were told that there are 650,000 residents and last year there was 3 million+ visitors. Hotels are at a premium. I still shutter at the airport memories. There was construction when we traveled so hopefully that should help with your up coming trip. Bathrooms are on the small side and some are one or two seaters. We did Nat. Geo so we were off the beaten path and a smaller group of 22 so we saw some places different than the larger group.

 

[BluesTraveler]

So much for my best-laid plans! After planning out an elaborate stop in NYC centered around an afternoon flight to Iceland, we just got an e-mail that our afternoon flight was canceled and we are booked on the overnight flight after all. Incredibly frustrating, because we could have just flown out of Atlanta if we were going to do overnight! We can't change our NYC plans now (flights and show tickets already purchased), so I'm trying not to be too annoyed. #firstworldproblems. But still! Shows how very little control you have over travel issues...

 

[Grifdog22]

So much for my best-laid plans! After planning out an elaborate stop in NYC centered around an afternoon flight to Iceland, we just got an e-mail that our afternoon flight was canceled and we are booked on the overnight flight after all. Incredibly frustrating, because we could have just flown out of Atlanta if we were going to do overnight! We can't change our NYC plans now (flights and show tickets already purchased), so I'm trying not to be too annoyed. #firstworldproblems. But still! Shows how very little control you have over travel issues...

SO SORRY! This is awful. What airline did this to you?

 

[BluesTraveler]

SO SORRY! This is awful. What airline did this to you?

Iceland Air.

I think the lesson here is that I booked flights a little too early. I booked in December for a July trip. Of course, the reason I booked so early was that we wanted that perfect afternoon flight...but next time I will wait a little closer to the actual trip in the hopes flight schedules won't change so much.

 

[sayhello]

So much for my best-laid plans! After planning out an elaborate stop in NYC centered around an afternoon flight to Iceland, we just got an e-mail that our afternoon flight was canceled and we are booked on the overnight flight after all. Incredibly frustrating, because we could have just flown out of Atlanta if we were going to do overnight! We can't change our NYC plans now (flights and show tickets already purchased), so I'm trying not to be too annoyed. #firstworldproblems. But still! Shows how very little control you have over travel issues...

That really, really sucks. It just amazes me how airlines are just about the only business where you can purchase one thing, and what they deliver can look nothing like what you originally bought (except to start & end in the same place).

I hate to say this, but did you check on Icelandair's website and make sure the flight is cancelled? I've had other airlines "cancel" my flight and move me to a worse one, only to find the original flight is still out there, and they just wanted to free up seats on the more desirable flights so they could sell more tickets. Always, always check!!! I'm pretty sure they count on people not checking, and just *gasp* believing them.

Sayhello

 

[BluesTraveler]

That really, really sucks. It just amazes me how airlines are just about the only business where you can purchase one thing, and what they deliver can look nothing like what you originally bought (except to start & end in the same place).

I hate to say this, but did you check on Icelandair's website and make sure the flight is cancelled? I've had other airlines "cancel" my flight and move me to a worse one, only to find the original flight is still out there, and they just wanted to free up seats on the more desirable flights so they could sell more tickets. Always, always check!!! I'm pretty sure they count on people not checking, and just *gasp* believing them.

Sayhello

Yes - that was the first thing I thought of. I checked, and the only option showing is the overnight one.

 

[sayhello]

Yes - that was the first thing I thought of. I checked, and the only option showing is the overnight one.

Well, enjoy your time on Broadway, anyways!

Sayhello

 

[Rake 08]

We’re on the 11 Aug trip, departing Dulles the afternoon of the 9th. Kevin told us ABD was only offering one pre-night so we self-booked the Reykjavik Marina 9 Aug and asked Kevin to arrange the night of the 10th; there were plenty of rooms available. We considered doing the Blue Lagoon on Friday the 10th but decided Sat AM makes the most sense, Kevin confirmed ABD would work with us on transportation from the hotel to the spa. He also sent the same Blue Lagoon outline I posted on page 2 of this thread.