Of all the place this Cheapflights reporter has visited, Iceland is the most remote – and, just perhaps, the most magical. Gargantuan glaciers, dazzling Northern Lights, vistas that vanquish the workaday world. Then there’s the cuisine. Icelandic restaurants forever redefine the way you’ll eat fish.
If you knit or crochet, take home some skeins supple Icelandic wool. There’s nothing so sensuously warm when fashioned into a sweater or pair of house shoes.
All of this will be lots closer to Rocky Mountain fliers come May 2012 when Icelandair lofts year-round, nonstop Denver flights to Reykjavik. Icelandair’s long-range Boeing 757s will touch down at Keflavik International Airport, some 32 miles from the Icelandic capital.
Lots of folks like to stopover in Iceland for a day or two and then connect via Icelandair to cities such as Copenhagen, Stockholm, Manchester, Glasgow, Munich and Oslo. In all the new Denver flight to Reykjavik will position Rocky Mountain passengers to connect to more than 20 Icelandair destinations in Scandinavia, the United Kingdom and Europe.
There’s a natural Nordic affinity here, especially when it comes to winter sports. Colorado fliers get to explore ski the Alps, and European outdoor aficionados have a chance to tackle the Rockies.
Denver’s not Icelandair’s only US city. The carrier offers Boston flights to Reykjavik, New York Kennedy flights to Reykjavik and Seattle/Tacoma flights to Reykjavik. Those cities are year-round. Seasonally, Icelandair fields Washington, DC flights to Reykjavik, Minneapolis/St. Paul flights to Reykjavik and Orlando Sanford flights to Reykjavik.
While Airports Council International – North America ranks Denver International as the fifth-busiest airport on the continent (DEN handled some 52.2 million passengers last year), Icelandair’s move really impacts people throughout the Mountain West. They’ll be able to connect over Denver to catch those Icelandair departures.
Have you ever considered an Icelandic getaway? Tell us why – or why not.
Story by Jerry Chandler
(Image: Gunna)
