Fewer Icelanders report that they skipped popular tourist destinations due to them being too crowded by foreign travelers. In the summer of 2014 76% of locals said they skipped a popular destination due to numbers of foreign travelers at the site, compared to 68% this past summer.
This drop is all the more remarkable when we keep in mind the fact that the number of foreign travelers in Iceland has increased dramatically since 2014: A total of 408,000 foreign travelers visited Iceland during June-August 2014, compared to 804,000 during June-August 2018, an increase of 97%.
Locals changing their travel patterns
A possible explanation for the drop in the number of locals who complain popular tourist sites are too crowded could be that people are gradually growing accustomed to tourism and crowds as the new normal. Investment in better facilities at popular sites, which ensure better management of visitors, could also explain fewer locals feeling sites are overcrowded.
A final explanation could be that people have changed their travel habits. A new report prepared for the Icelandic Road and Coastal Administration suggests that while locals appear to be changing their travel patterns in response to growing tourism many feel they are inconvenienced by growing crowds at popular sites. The report found that some people skipped destinations like Gullfoss waterfall, Geysir Geothermal area and Þingvellir National Park.
The report also found that locals chose to hit the road at different times than most other travelers to avoid traffic.
Read more: Iceland Insider guide to avoiding the crowds at tourist spots in Iceland
Avoiding the most popular sites and timing their travel to avoid the largest crowds are two of the simplest ways to avoid the crowds while traveling in Iceland.
Foreign travelers pose a traffic hazard
The report also found that some locals are frustrated by the driving habits of foreign travelers, complaining that too many tourists drive erratically, causing danger to other motorists by speeding up and slowing down suddenly, even stopping in the middle of the road to take photographs.
Fewer Icelanders report that they skipped popular tourist destinations due to them being too crowded by foreign travelers. In the summer of 2014 76% of locals said they skipped a popular destination due to numbers of foreign travelers at the site, compared to 68% this past summer.
This drop is all the more remarkable when we keep in mind the fact that the number of foreign travelers in Iceland has increased dramatically since 2014: A total of 408,000 foreign travelers visited Iceland during June-August 2014, compared to 804,000 during June-August 2018, an increase of 97%.
Locals changing their travel patterns
A possible explanation for the drop in the number of locals who complain popular tourist sites are too crowded could be that people are gradually growing accustomed to tourism and crowds as the new normal. Investment in better facilities at popular sites, which ensure better management of visitors, could also explain fewer locals feeling sites are overcrowded.
A final explanation could be that people have changed their travel habits. A new report prepared for the Icelandic Road and Coastal Administration suggests that while locals appear to be changing their travel patterns in response to growing tourism many feel they are inconvenienced by growing crowds at popular sites. The report found that some people skipped destinations like Gullfoss waterfall, Geysir Geothermal area and Þingvellir National Park.
The report also found that locals chose to hit the road at different times than most other travelers to avoid traffic.
Read more: Iceland Insider guide to avoiding the crowds at tourist spots in Iceland
Avoiding the most popular sites and timing their travel to avoid the largest crowds are two of the simplest ways to avoid the crowds while traveling in Iceland.
Foreign travelers pose a traffic hazard
The report also found that some locals are frustrated by the driving habits of foreign travelers, complaining that too many tourists drive erratically, causing danger to other motorists by speeding up and slowing down suddenly, even stopping in the middle of the road to take photographs.
