An American traveller who became an instant celebrity on social media after he managed to get lost in a particularly amusing manner while visiting Iceland in February 2016 is set to return to Iceland in the summer of 2017. The perpetually lost traveller tells the local news site Vísir that he cannot wait, that he has not planned where to go or what to see, and that he loves getting lost.
GPS equipment and a small typo
Last year Noel Santillan, a 28 year man from New Jersey, rented a car when he arrived at Keflavík airport. His first stop was Hótel Frón in downtown Reykjavík, where he had booked a room. Noel entered the address of the hotel into the GPS equipment in the car. Unfortunately he misspelled the name of the street: Instead of writing Laugavegur he wrote LaugaRvegur. Due to the extra r Noel received instructions to drive to the town of Siglufjörður in North Iceland.
News of Noel's misadventures spread quickly, making him an instant celebrity. He later followed up on his earlier GPS confusion by getting lost while looking for the Blue Lagoon.
Read more: GPS equipment leads lost tourist astray again – this time in South Iceland
According to the local news site Vísir Noel has booked a flight to Iceland on June 21. I wanted to experience the midnight sun, he told Vísir. He has yet to make any concrete plans about what to do and see or where to go: I'm not much of a planner. Things will just work out somehow. I think that's also the best way to travel. I'm not afraid to get lost. I love getting lost. That's how you meet new people, and it's the best way to have fun.
World fameous adventurer
Noel’s misfortunes in Iceland brought him fame, both locally and internationally. His travels and troubles were covered extensively by Icelandic media. International media outlets such as the BBC, The Independent, The New York Times, Aftonbladet, and TV2 covered his adventures in 2016.
An American traveller who became an instant celebrity on social media after he managed to get lost in a particularly amusing manner while visiting Iceland in February 2016 is set to return to Iceland in the summer of 2017. The perpetually lost traveller tells the local news site Vísir that he cannot wait, that he has not planned where to go or what to see, and that he loves getting lost.
GPS equipment and a small typo
Last year Noel Santillan, a 28 year man from New Jersey, rented a car when he arrived at Keflavík airport. His first stop was Hótel Frón in downtown Reykjavík, where he had booked a room. Noel entered the address of the hotel into the GPS equipment in the car. Unfortunately he misspelled the name of the street: Instead of writing Laugavegur he wrote LaugaRvegur. Due to the extra r Noel received instructions to drive to the town of Siglufjörður in North Iceland.
News of Noel's misadventures spread quickly, making him an instant celebrity. He later followed up on his earlier GPS confusion by getting lost while looking for the Blue Lagoon.
Read more: GPS equipment leads lost tourist astray again – this time in South Iceland
According to the local news site Vísir Noel has booked a flight to Iceland on June 21. I wanted to experience the midnight sun, he told Vísir. He has yet to make any concrete plans about what to do and see or where to go: I'm not much of a planner. Things will just work out somehow. I think that's also the best way to travel. I'm not afraid to get lost. I love getting lost. That's how you meet new people, and it's the best way to have fun.
World fameous adventurer
Noel’s misfortunes in Iceland brought him fame, both locally and internationally. His travels and troubles were covered extensively by Icelandic media. International media outlets such as the BBC, The Independent, The New York Times, Aftonbladet, and TV2 covered his adventures in 2016.
